Survival and Recovery of `Meyer' Zoysiagrass Rhizomes after Extracellular Freezing

Abstract

<jats:p>Rhizomes of `Meyer' zoysiagrass (<jats:italic>Zoysia japonica</jats:italic> Steud.) were subjected to temperatures below 0 °C and were subsequently placed in a growth chamber with air at 34 °C day/28 °C night to determine the rate of shoot growth from nodes. Rhizomes exposed to subzero temperatures produced shoots steadily up to 16 days after freezing (DAF), but subsequent shoot growth from rhizomes was minimal. At 32 DAF, shoots were present on 68% and 44% of the nodes of unfrozen control (2 °C) rhizomes and those frozen to -7 °C, respectively. In another study, samples were frozen to a sublethal temperature (-7 °C) to examine the distribution of extracellular ice voids near the apical meristems of rhizomes and to characterize tissue recovery. Extracellular voids were present within the leaf tissue and between the leaves in samples prepared for scanning electron microscopy (SEM) immediately after freezing to -7 °C. By 12 DAF, most of the remaining voids were observed in older leaves. Nearly all extracellular voids in the leaves were absent by 20 DAF. However, by 28 DAF, some rhizomes still had small voids between leaves. Although the structure of zoysiagrass rhizomes subjected to -7 °C was temporarily disrupted, tissues recovered from extracellular freezing and new shoot growth was produced following exposure to warm temperatures.</jats:p>

Isolation and expression profiles of theZjDREB1gene encoding a DRE-binding transcription factor from zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica)

“…Thus 'Meyer' was the most cold-tolerant cultivar. This result was similar to those in several previous reports (Warmund et al, 1998;Dunn et al, 1999;Patton and Reicher, 2007). 'Meyer' was the only commercially-available cultivar showing ≤ 7% Winter injury in two consecutive years (Patton and Reicher, 2007).…”

Evaluation of Zoysiagrass Genotypes for Shade Tolerance

“…Adaptation to a wide range of environmental conditions has further led to an increase in zoysiagrass popularity. Zoysiagrass tolerates moderate salinity levels (Marcum et al, 1998;Qian et al, 2000), moderate drought conditions (Qian and Engelke, 1999b;White et al, 2001), and exposure to low temperatures (Dunn et al, 1999;Warmund et al, 1998). Extensive documentation exists on the tolerance of 'Diamond' zoysiagrass to shaded environments (Engelke et al, 2002;Engelke, 1999a, 1999c;Qian et al, 1998).…”

‘Diamond’ Zoysiagrass Putting Green Establishment Affected by Sprigging Rates, Nitrogen Sources, and Rates in the Southern Transition Zone

“…It forms a dense, uniform turf by producing both rhizomes and stolons. It also tolerates stress and unfavorable conditions, including lower light intensity (Baldwin et al, 2009;Qian and Engelke, 1999a), moderate to high salinity (Marcum et al, 1998;Qian et al, 2000), moderate drought conditions (Qian and Engelke, 1999b;White et al, 2001), and cold temperatures Warmund et al, 1998). High quality of turf appearance under a wide range of environmental conditions has increased zoysiagrass popularity.…”