Open Access

ARTICLE

Growth and production characters of elymus cylindricus in different shortening heading time

by Chengcheng Li, Chan Zhou, Yunfei Yang

1 Key Laboratory of Vegetation Ecology, Ministry of Education, Institute of Grassland Science, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, China.
2 School of Life Science, Liaoning University, Shenyang, China.

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany 2019, 88(1), 55-61. https://doi.org/10.32604/phyton.2019.04577

Abstract

Ramet modules in a certain population differ in terms of functions, which accounts for different contributions of the same ramets. Shortening heading time brings about different contributions of such modules. Ramets heading one after another were treated as a continuum in respective cohorts of Elymus cylindricus aged two. The reproductive ramets that head earlier were marked with tags every four days during the whole heading stage from the beginning to the end, after which all the labeled ramets at the maturity period were gathered. The results showed that, the height and biomass of ramets, the length and biomass of inflorescences, percentage of inflorescence length to ramet height, percentage of inflorescence biomass to ramet biomass, the number and biomass of seeds, seed-setting rate, and percentage of seed biomass to ramet biomass declined with the increasing intensity of heading time shortening as displayed with linear or quadratic function. Ramet characteristics weakened remarkably when shortened heading time added up to 17 days. The biomass distribution in relation to inflorescence and seed maintain a stable rate at the early heading stage and dwindled quickly at the near-end stage, but the biomass of ramets remain constant throughout the entire heading stage. The ramets with earlier heading time make greater contribution to the survival of population than the shortened heading time in this species of bunchgrass.

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Keywords

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