Hostname: page-component-5c6d5d7d68-pkt8n Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-08-20T12:12:18.224Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Seed germination and longevity of autumn-flowering and autumn-seed producing Mediterranean geophytes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 September 2012

I. Marques  and
D. Draper
I. Marques*
Affiliation:
Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Centro de Biología Celular y Molecular, Loja, Ecuador
D. Draper
Affiliation:
Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Instituto de Ecología, Loja, Ecuador
*
*Correspondence Email: isabel.ic@gmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The seasonality of the Mediterranean climate has important implications for plant physiology and some specific conditions must be met before germination can occur. Most plants sprout during the spring season although a few germinate during the autumnal rainy period. To understand the patterns of germination under autumn conditions we selected five Mediterranean autumn-flowering geophytes that usually co-exist in fire-prone habitats: Leucojum autumnale, Narcissus cavanillesii, Narcissus serotinus, Scilla autumnalis and Urginea maritima. Experiments were performed under conditions simulating those prevailing in the habitat during the autumnal Mediterranean season when seeds of these species usually germinate. In all species, germination occurred quickly ( < 7 d), was usually higher at the lowest temperatures tested (15°C, 20°C; >89%) and no signs of delayed germination were detected. Nevertheless, species usually had different patterns of seed germination, a strategy that might avoid interspecific competition when co-occurring in the same habitats. Germination was lower and slower in light than in darkness, suggesting that under natural conditions germination of seeds directly exposed to sunlight can be severely restricted. Several fire-dependent treatments (heat and ash) revealed a lack of fire-stimulated germination, and treatments even had a negative effect. In addition, only a small fraction of seeds remained viable after 1 year of dry lab storage and their germinability was very low, suggesting the absence of a permanent soil seed bank in the life cycle of these geophyes.

Keywords

Leucojum autumnaleNarcissus cavanillesiiNarcissus serotinusScilla autumnalisseed viabilityUrginea maritima
Type
Research Papers
Information
Seed Science Research , Volume 22 , Issue 4 , December 2012 , pp. 299 - 309
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Albert, M.J., Iriondo, J.M. and Pérez-García, F. (2002) Effects of temperature and pretreatments on seed germination of nine semiarid species from NE Spain. Israel Journal of Plant Sciences 50, 103–112.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Allison, V.J. (2002) Nutrients, arbuscular mycorrhizas and competition interact to influence seed production and germination success in Achillea millefolium. Functional Ecology 16, 742–749.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andersson, S. (1996) Seed size as a determinant of germination rate in Crepis tectorum (Asteraceae): evidence from a seed burial experiment. Botany 74, 568–572.Google Scholar
Barton, L.V. (1933) Seedling production of tree peony. Contributions from Boyce Thompson Institute 5, 451–460.Google Scholar
Baskin, C.C. and Baskin, J.M. (1988) Germination ecophysiology of herbaceous plant species in a temperate region. American Journal of Botany 75, 286–305.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, C.C. and Baskin, J.M. (1998) Seeds: Ecology, biogeography and evolution of dormancy and germination. San Diego, Academic Press.Google Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (1989) Physiology of dormancy and germination in relation to seed bank ecology. pp. 55–66in (Eds) Ecology of soil seed banks. New York, Academic Press.Google Scholar
Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (2004) A classification system for seed dormancy. Seed Science Research 14, 1–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beardsell, D. and Richards, D. (1987) Ecological aspects of seed germination. pp. 14–19in (Ed.) Germination of Australian native plant seeds. Melbourne, Australia, Inkata Press.Google Scholar
Bewley, J.D. and Black, M. (1994) Seeds: Physiology of development and germination (2nd edition). New York, Plenum Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clevering, O. (1995) Germination and seedling emergence of Scirpus lacustris L. and Scirpus maritimus L. with special reference to the restoration of wetlands. Aquatic Botany 50, 63–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Come, D. (1970) Les obstacles à la germination. Paris, Masson & CIE.Google Scholar
Copete, E., Herranz, J.M., Ferrandis, P., Baskin, C.C. and Baskin, J.M. (2011) Physiology, morphology and phenology of seed dormancy break and germination in the endemic Iberian species Narcissus hispanicus (Amaryllidaceae). Annals of Botany 107, 1003–1016.Google ScholarPubMed
Crosti, R., Ladd, P., Dixon, K. and Piotto, B. (2006) Post-fire germination: the effect of smoke on seeds of selected species from the central Mediterranean basin. Forest Ecology and Management 221, 306–312.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dafni, A. (1996) Autumnal and winter pollination adaptations under Mediterranean conditions. Bocconea 5, 171–181.Google Scholar
Delipetrou, P. (1996) Ecophysiology of seed germination in maritime plants with emphasis on the action of light (in Greek). PhD thesis, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.Google Scholar
Dixon, K.W., Roche, S. and Pate, J.S. (1995) The promotive effect of smoke derived from burnt native vegetation on seed germination of Western Australian plants. Oecologia 101, 185–192.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Donohue, K., Dorn, L., Griffith, C., Kim, E.S., Aguilera, A., Polisetty, C.R. and Schmitt, J. (2005) Environmental and genetic influences on the germination of Arabidopsis thaliana in the field. Evolution 59, 740–757.Google ScholarPubMed
Doussi, M.A. and Thanos, C.A. (1997) Ecophysiology of seed germination in composites inhabiting fire-prone Mediterranean ecosystems. pp. 641–649in (Eds) Basic and applied aspects of seed biology: Proceedings of the fifth international workshop on seeds. Dordrecht, Kluwer Academic Publishers.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doussi, M.A. and Thanos, C.A. (2002) Ecophysiology of seed germination in Mediterranean geophytes. 1. Muscari spp. Seed Science Research 12, 193–201.Google Scholar
Draper, D., Rosselló-Graell, A., Marques, I., Magos Brehm, J., Leitão Serra, G. and Correia, A.I.D. (2003) Programa de monitorização do património natural. PM01.1. Monitorização de plantas prioritárias. Universidade de Lisboa, Museu Nacional de História Natural, Jardim Botânico, Lisboa.Google Scholar
Freeland, P.W. (1976) Tests for the viability of seeds. Journal of Biological Education 10, 57–64.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Giménez-Benavides, L., Escudero, A. and Pérez-García, F. (2005) Seed germination of high mountain Mediterranean species: altitudinal, interpopulation and interannual variability. Ecological Research 20, 433–444.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holdsworth, M.J., Bentsink, L. and Soppe, W.J. (2008) Molecular networks regulating Arabidopsis seed maturation, after-ripening, dormancy and germination. New Phytologist 179, 33–54.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia e Geofísica (1961–1990) Anuários climatológicos de Portugal. Lisboa, Portugal, Instituto de Metereologia.Google Scholar
Keeley, J.E. (1987) Role of fire in seed germination of woody taxa in California chaparral. Ecology 68, 434–443.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Keeley, J.E. (1995) Seed-germination patterns in fire-prone Mediterranean-climate regions. pp. 239–273in (Eds) Ecology and biogeography of Mediterranean ecosystems in Chile, California and Australia. New York, Springer-Verlag.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Keeley, J.E. and Fotheringham, CJ. (2000) Role of fire in regeneration from seed. pp. 311–330in (Ed.) Seeds: The ecology of regeneration in plant communities (2nd edition). Oxon, UK, CAB International.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kondo, T., Sato, C., Baskin, J.M. and Baskin, C.C. (2006) Post-dispersal embryo development, germination phenology, and seed dormancy in Cardiocrinum cordatum var. glehnii (Liliaceae s. str.), a perennial herb of the broadleaved deciduous forest in Japan. American Journal of Botany 93, 849–859.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lamont, B.B. and Downes, K.S. (2011) Fire-stimulated flowering among resprouters and geophytes in Australia and South Africa. Plant Ecology 212, 2111–2125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lehner, A., Mamadou, N., Poels, P., Côme, D., Bailly, C. and Corbineau, F. (2008) Changes in soluble carbohydrates, lipid peroxidation and antioxidant enzyme activities in the embryo during ageing in wheat grains. Journal of Cereal Science 47, 555–565.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Light, M.E., Daws, M.I. and Van Staden, J. (2009) Smoke-derived butenolide: towards understanding its biological effects. South African Journal of Botany 75, 1–7.Google Scholar
Marone, L., Horno, M.E. and Solar, R.G.D. (2000) Post-dispersal fate of seeds in the Monte desert of Argentina: patterns of germination in successive wet and dry years. Journal of Ecology 88, 940–949.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marques, I. and Draper, D. (2012) Decoupling of reproduction and growth: an unusual pattern in the life cycle of the Mediterranean geophyte. Plant Species Biology 27, 106–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Masuda, M. and Washitani, I. (1992) Differentiation of spring emerging and autumn emerging ecotypes in Galium spurium L. var. echinospermon. Oecologia 89, 42–46.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McDonald, M.B. (1999) Seed deterioration: physiology, repair and assessment. Seed Science and Technology 27, 177–237.Google Scholar
McDonald, M.B. (2004) Orthodox seed deterioration and its repair. pp. 273–304in (Eds) Handbook of seed physiology: Applications to agriculture. New York, Food Products Press.Google Scholar
Meyer, G.A. and Witmer, M.C. (1998) Influence of seed processing by frugivorous birds on germination success of three North American shrubs. American Midland Naturalist 140, 129–139.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meyer, S.E., Carlson, S.L. and Garvin, S.C. (1998) Seed germination regulation and field seed bank carry over in shadscale (Atriplex confertifolia: Chenopodiaceae). Journal of Arid Environments 38, 255–267.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Middleton, B. (1999) Wetland restoration, flood pulsing, and disturbance dynamics. New York, John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Moore, R.P. (1962) Tetrazolium as universally acceptable quality test of viable seed. Proceedings of the International Seed Testing Association 27, 795–805.Google Scholar
Moreira, B., Tormo, J., Estrelles, E. and Pausas, J.G. (2010) Disentangling the role of heat and smoke as germination cues in Mediterranean Basin flora. Annals of Botany 105, 627–635.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Murthy, U.M.M., Kumar, P.P. and Sun, W.Q. (2003) Mechanisms of seed ageing under different storage conditions for Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek: lipid peroxidation, sugar hydrolysis, Maillard reactions and their relationship to glass state transition. Journal of Experimental Botany 54, 1057–1067.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nambara, E., Hayama, R., Tsuchiya, Y., Nishimura, M., Kawaide, H., Kamiya, Y. and Naito, S. (2000) The role of ABI3 and FUS3 loci in Arabidopsis thaliana on the phase transition from late embryo development to germination. Developmental Biology 220, 412–442.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Noble, I.R. and Slatyer, R.O. (1977) Post-fire succession of plants in Mediterranean ecosystems. pp. 27–36in (Eds) Environmental consequences of fire and fuel management in Mediterranean ecosystems. General Technical Report WO-3, USDA Forest Service.Google Scholar
Pérez-Fernández, M.A. and Rodríguez-Echeverría, S. (2003) Effect of smoke, charred wood, and nitrogenous compounds on seed germination of ten species from woodland in Central-Western Spain. Journal of Chemical Ecology 29, 237–251.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pérez-Garcia, F., Hornero, J. and Gonzalez-Benito, M.E. (2003) Interpopulation variation in seed germination of five Mediterranean Labiatae shrubby species. Israel Journal of Plant Sciences 51, 117–124.Google Scholar
Picó, F.X. (2012) Demographic fate of Arabidopsis thaliana cohorts of autumn- and spring-germinated plants along an altitudinal gradient. Journal of Ecology 100, 1009–1018.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pons, T.L. (1991) Induction of dark dormancy in seeds is importance for the seed bank in the soil. Functional Ecology 5, 669–675.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Quilichini, A. and Debussche, M. (2000) Seed dispersal and germination patterns in a rare Mediterranean island endemic (Auchusa crispa Viv., Boraginaceae). Acta Oecologica 21, 303–313.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rivas-Martínez, S., Lousa, M., Díaz, T.E., Fernández-González, F. and Costa, J.C. (1990) La vegetación del sur de Portugal (Sado, Alentejo y Algarve). Itinera Geobotanica 3, 5–126.Google Scholar
Rosselló-Graell, A., Marques, I. and Draper, D. (2003) Segunda localidad de Narcissus cavanillesii A. Barra & G. López (Amaryllidaceae) para Portugal. Acta Botanica Malacitana 28, 196–197.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thanos, C.A. (1993) Germination and the high irradiance reaction. pp. 187–190in (Eds) Methods in comparative plant ecology. London, Chapman & Hall.Google Scholar
Thanos, C.A. and Doussi, M.A. (1995) Ecophysiology of seed germination in endemic labiates of Crete. Israel Journal of Plant Sciences 43, 227–237.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thanos, C.A. and Georghiou, K. (1988) Osmoconditioning enhances cucumber and tomato seed germinability under adverse light conditions. Israel Journal of Plant Sciences 37, 1–10.Google Scholar
Thanos, C.A., Georghiou, K., Douma, D.J. and Marangaki, C.J. (1991) Photoinhibition of seed germination in Mediterranean maritime plants. Annals of Botany 68, 469–475.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thanos, C., Georghiou, K., Kadis, C. and Pantazi, C. (1992) Cistaceae: a plant family with hard seeds. Israel Journal of Botany 41, 251–263.Google Scholar
Thompson, J.D. (2005) Plant evolution in the Mediterranean. Oxford University Press, Oxford.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, P.A. (1977) A note on the germination of Narcissus bulbocodium L. New Phytologist 79, 287–290.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tobe, K., Li, X. and Omasa, K. (2004) Effect of five different salts on seed germination and seedling growth of Haloxylon ammodendron (Chenopodiaceae). Seed Science Research 14, 345–353.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Traveset, A., Riera, N. and Mas, R. (2001) Ecology of fruit colour polymorphism in Myrtus communis and differential effects of birds and mammals on seed germination and seedling growth. Journal of Ecology 89, 749–760.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tutin, T.G., Heywood, V.H., Burges, N.A., Moore, D.M., Valentine, D.H., Walters, S.M. and Webb, D.A. (1980) Flora Europaea. Vol. 5. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Valbuena, L. and Vera, M.L. (2002) The effects of thermal scarification and seed storage on germination of four heathland species. Plant Ecology 161, 137–144.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vandelook, F. and Van Assche, J.A. (2008) Temperature requirements for seed germination and seedling development determine timing of seedling emergence of three monocotyledonous temperate forest spring geophytes. Annals of Botany 102, 865–875.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed