Skip Navigation



AOBPreview published online on August 11, 2006
Annals of Botany, doi:10.1093/aob/mcl170
This Article
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
98/4/869    most recent
mcl170v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by KETTENRING, K. M.
Right arrow Articles by GALATOWITSCH, S. M.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by KETTENRING, K. M.
Right arrow Articles by GALATOWITSCH, S. M.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by KETTENRING, K. M.
Right arrow Articles by GALATOWITSCH, S. M.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Annals of Botany Company. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
Received April 10, 2006
Revised May 31, 2006
Accepted June 15, 2006

Article

Effect of Light on Seed Germination of Eight Wetland Carex Species

KARIN M. KETTENRING 1 *, GARY GARDNER 2, and SUSAN M. GALATOWITSCH 2

1 Applied Plant Sciences, University of Minnesota, 305 Alderman Hall, 1970 Folwell Avenue, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA; Department of Horticultural Science, University of Minnesota, 305 Alderman Hall, 1970 Folwell Avenue, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA
2 Department of Horticultural Science, University of Minnesota, 305 Alderman Hall, 1970 Folwell Avenue, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
KARIN M. KETTENRING, E-mail: kett0044{at}umn.edu


  Abstract

• Background and Aims In wetland plant communities, species-specific responses to pulses of white light and to red : far-red light ratios can vary widely and influence plant emergence from the seed bank. Carex species are the characteristic plants of sedge meadows of natural prairie wetlands in mid-continental USA but are not returning to restored wetlands. Little is known about how light affects seed germination in these species--information which is necessary to predict seed bank emergence and to develop optimal revegetation practices. The effects of light on germination in eight Carex species from prairie wetlands were investigated.

• Methods Non-dormant seeds of eight Carex species were used to determine the influence of light on germination by examining: (a) the ability of Carex seeds to germinate in the dark; (b) the effect of different lengths of exposures to white light on germination; (c) whether the effect of white light can be replaced by red light; and (d) whether the germination response of Carex seeds to white or red light is photoreversible by far-red light.

• Key Results Seeds of C. brevior and C. stipata germinated >25 % in continuous darkness. Germination responses after exposure to different lengths of white light varied widely across the eight species. Carex brevior required <15 min of white light for ≥50 % germination, while C. hystericina, C. comosa, C. granularis and C. vulpinoidea required ≥8 h. The effect of white light was replaced by red light in all species. The induction of germination after exposure to white or red light was reversed by far-red light in all species, except C. stipata.

• Conclusions The species-specific responses to simulated field light conditions suggest that (a) the light requirements for germination contribute to the formation of persistent seed banks in these species and (b) in revegetation efforts, timing seed sowing to plant community development and avoiding cover crops will improve Carex seed germination.

Keywords: Carex, far-red light, seed germination ecology, photomorphogenesis, phytochrome, prairie wetland, red light, sedge, white light.
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.