Seed storage conditions change the germination pattern of clonal growth plants in Mediterranean salt marshes

Abstract

The effect of salinity level and extended exposure to different salinity and flooding conditions on germination patterns of three salt-marsh clonal growth plants (Juncus subulatus, Scirpus litoralis, and S. maritimus) was studied. Seed exposure to extended flooding and saline conditions significantly affected the outcome of the germination process in a different, though predictable, way for each species, after favorable conditions for germination were restored. Tolerance of the germination process was related to the average salinity level measured during the growth/germination season at sites where established individuals of each species dominated the species cover. No relationship was found between salinity tolerance of the germination process and seed response to extended exposure to flooding and salinity conditions. The salinity response was significantly related to the conditions prevailing in the habitats of the respective species during the unfavorable (nongrowth/nongermination) season. Our results indicate that changes in salinity and hydrology while seeds are dormant affect the outcome of the seed-bank response, even when conditions at germination are identical. Because these environmental-history-dependent responses differentially affect seed germination, seedling density, and probably sexual recruitment in the studied and related species, these influences should be considered for wetland restoration and management.

Viability, dormancy, germination, and intraspecific variation of Bolboschoenus maritimus (alkali bulrush) seeds

“…Only seeds from the Bear River source population-the seeds with highest germination in 2.3-were used in this experiment. Flooding was done with freshwater because B. maritimus seed germination is reduced under brackish to saline conditions (Espinar et al, 2005). A 3-way factorial ANOVA in a completely randomized design was used to look at the effects of flooding (2 levels), light (2 levels), and germination temperature (2 levels) on proportion germination.…”

Aridity level, rainfall pattern and soil features as key factors in germination strategies in salt-affected plant communities

“…Halophyte communities are particularly dependent on water availability, and in particular, germination strategies are expected to adapt to water availability (Espinar et al, 2005). Donohue et al (2010) established that germination behavior was one of the earliest phenotypes expressed by plants, which has consequences for the evolution of postgermination traits, ecological niches and geographic ranges.…”

Hyperspectral Sensors as a Management Tool to Prevent the Invasion of the Exotic Cordgrass Spartina densiflora in the Doñana Wetlands

“…Among the diverse submerged plant community, Ranunculus peltatus, Myriophyllum alterniflorum, Chara gallioides and Ruppia drepanensis are the most abundant. For a more detailed description see the works by Espinar et al, García-Murillo et al and Rivas Martínez et al [40][41][42]. We selected an area of 763 ha along the lower banks of the "Brazo de la Torre" channel where it meets the Guadalquivir River ( Figure 1C) that had been covered by two hyperspectral sensors flown in tandem for vegetation mapping purposes and we had collected ground-truth field data of S. densiflora distribution on the same year.…”