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AOBPreview originally published online on March 10, 2005
Annals of Botany 2005 95(6):981-990; doi:10.1093/aob/mci102
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© The Author 2005. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oupjournals.org

Seasonal Patterns of Growth, Dehydrins and Water-soluble Carbohydrates in Genotypes of Dactylis glomerata Varying in Summer Dormancy

F. VOLAIRE1,*, M. R. NORTON1,2,3, G. M. NORTON1 and F. LELIÈVRE1

1 Institut National de Recherche Agronomique (INRA), LEPSE, 2 place Viala, 34060 Montpellier, France, 2 NSW Department of Primary Industries, PO Box 408, Queanbeyan, NSW 2620, Australia and 3 School of Land and Food Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Qld 4072, Australia

* For correspondence. E-mail volaire{at}ensam.inra.fr

Received: 1 October 2004    Returned for revision: 18 November 2004    Accepted: 8 January 2005    Published electronically: 10 March 2005

• Background and Aims Summer dormancy in perennial grasses has been studied inadequately, despite its potential to enhance plant survival and persistence in Mediterranean areas. The aim of the present work was to characterize summer dormancy and dehydration tolerance in two cultivars of Dactylis glomerata (dormant ‘Kasbah’, non-dormant ‘Oasis’) and their hybrid using physiological indicators associated with these traits.

• Methods Dehydration tolerance was assessed in a glasshouse experiment, while seasonal metabolic changes which produce putative protectants for drought, such as carbohydrates and dehydrins that might be associated with summer dormancy, were analysed in the field.

• Key Results The genotypes differed in their ability to survive increasing soil water deficit: lethal soil water potential ({Psi}s) was –3·4 MPa for ‘Kasbah’ (although non-dormant), –1·3 MPa for ‘Oasis’, and –1·6 MPa for their hybrid. In contrast, lethal water content of apices was similar for all genotypes (approx. 0·45 g H2O g d. wt–1), and hence the greater survival of ‘Kasbah’ can be ascribed to better drought avoidance rather than dehydration tolerance. In autumn-sown plants, ‘Kasbah’ had greatest dormancy, the hybrid was intermediate and ‘Oasis’ had none. The more dormant the genotype, the lower the metabolic activity during summer, and the earlier the activity declined in spring. Decreased monosaccharide content was an early indicator of dormancy induction. Accumulation of dehydrins did not correlate with stress tolerance, but dehydrin content was a function of the water status of the tissues, irrespective of the soil moisture. A protein of approx. 55 kDa occurred in leaf bases of the most dormant cultivar even in winter.

• Conclusions Drought avoidance and summer dormancy are correlated but can be independently expressed. These traits are heritable, allowing selection in breeding programmes.

Key words: Orchard grass, drought tolerance, avoidance, dehydration, dehydrins, carbohydrates, Dactylis glomerata, summer dormancy


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