Pollen production in anemophilous species of the Poaceae family in Tetouan (NW Morocco)

Abstract

Total pollen production per inflorescence and per square meter were studied in anemophilous species of the Poaceae family, to determine the relative contribution of each species to the total load of pollen released and to identify the species with the highest potential pollen emission. This was done by calculating the number of pollen grains per flower and per inflorescence and by estimating the density of inflorescences in an area of one square meter. Pollen production per inflorescence varied between 12,000 and 15 million grains, often being higher in the perennial species. Mountainous, grassland, riverside, and littoral areas contributed similarly to the amount of pollen grain production per square meter. Species such as Gaudinia fragilis, Hordeum murinum, Lolium rigidum, and Trisetaria panicea, with high pollen records, were found in all the studied areas. Aerobiological analysis will be undertaken to determine the main pollen season of Poaceae species. The results obtained are of great importance for respiratory health management in this region.

Phenological records as a complement to aerobiological data

“…Zanotti and Puppi (2000) species, but examined their flowering in relation to topographic gradient rather than pollen production. There are great differences in pollen production in Poaceae species (Prieto-Baena et al 2003;Aboulaich et al 2009). Some of these species are widespread and very abundant in vegetation, but they rarely open their spikelets, examples being most Bromus species, Vulpia myuros, and Hordeum leporinum.…”

The grass pollen season 2014 in Vienna: A pilot study combining phenology, aerobiology and symptom data

“…Although soft brome grass (B. hordeaceus) was present in significant numbers at both observation sites, a full flowering period could not be observed and therefore the impact within the main grass pollen season was subsequently low. Moreover, it is known that the pollen production of soft brome grass as an annual grass is low (Prieto-Baena et al, 2003;Aboulaich et al, 2009) and therefore unlikely to be a main contributor to the grass pollen season.…”

“…Grass pollen production of different species clearly had varying impact on the main grass pollen season. The pollen production of several grass species has already been investigated in Spain and Morocco (Prieto-Baena et al, 2003;Aboulaich et al, 2009). However, most of the species included in these studies are not native to central Europe and although different species of the same genus produce high amounts of pollen (e.g.…”

Relation between Poaceae pollen concentrations and meteorological factors during 2000–2010 in Timisoara, Romania

“…Many studies indicate some meteorological elements related to the start of Poaceae seasons: mean temperature in March-April (in the Netherlands), mean temperature before the season start (in Poland), total rainfall in July (in Australia), rainfall in June (in the Iberian Peninsula), cumulative temperature above 5.5°C in March-April, minimum temperature in the first decade of April and maximum temperature in the second decade of April (in the United Kingdom) [41][42][43][44][45][46]. Daily maximum temperature (optimum 21-25°C), daily mean temperature and anticyclonic synoptic situation on the day before the forecasted day have been reported as the main variables influencing the daily Poaceae pollen concentration [8,29,39,47,48]. The interpretations of most reports are based on various methods of statistical analysis (Pearson or Spearman correlation, regression analysis, time series analysis, artificial neural networks) [49].…”

“…The Poaceae species grow in different habitats [8]. Most representatives are anemophilous species that produce and release large amounts of pollen grains.…”