Effects of temperature, light and other treatments on seed germination of Leymus chinensis

Leymus chinensis (Trin.) Tzvel., a perennial cool-season grass distributed widely in eastern Asia, is an ideal species for the rangeland industry and soil conservation, but the seed has a long dormant period and low germination rates. This study examined the effects of temperature, light and various treatments including stratification, H2SO4, NaOCl, gibberellic acid (GA3) and 6-benzyl adenine (BA), on the germination of Leymus chinensis seed. Seed stored over 1 yr and germinated at a temperature regime of 25/15°C with a 12/12-h photoperiod germinated best, and had a germination rate of 30.3%, with a minimum germination time of 12 d. In these germination conditions, germinated seeds were counted after 15 d to determine the effects of other treatments upon freshly harvested seed germination. The final germination rate for freshly harvested seeds stratified at 4°C for 0 to 10 wk ranged from 8.5 to 37.3%. Germination rates were 14.0 and 14.8% when seeds were treated with 70% H2SO4 for 3 and 6 min, respectivel...

[1]  M. Rolston,et al.  Water impermeable seed dormancy , 1978, The Botanical Review.

[2]  D. Qi,et al.  Seed germination characteristics in the perennial grass species Leymus chinensis , 2004 .

[3]  M. Dong,et al.  Caryopsis dormancy, germination and seedling emergence in sand, of Leymus racemosus (Poaceae), a perennial sand-dune grass inhabiting the Junggar Basin of Xinjiang, China , 2004 .

[4]  R. Horton,et al.  Enhancing Germination of Eastern Gamagrass Seed with Stratification and Gibberellic Acid , 2004 .

[5]  P. Milberg,et al.  Does cold stratification level out differences in seed germinability between populations? , 1998, Plant Ecology.

[6]  S. Adkins,et al.  Seed dormancy mechanisms in warm season grass species , 2004, Euphytica.

[7]  P. Hucl,et al.  Comparison of pre-treatments for inducing germination in highly dormant wheat genotypes , 2003 .

[8]  Gao Qiong,et al.  Effects of climatic change on biomass and biomass allocation in Leymus chinensis (Poaceae) along the North-east China Transect (NECT) , 2003 .

[9]  E. Ripley,et al.  Demography of reproductive and biomass allocation of grassland and dune Leymus chinensis on the Songnen Plain, north-eastern China , 2001 .

[10]  P. Hucl,et al.  Seed dormancy and germination in three annual canarygrass (Phalaris canariensis L.) cultivars relative to spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) , 2001 .

[11]  H. Hui.  A Study on Germination Characters With Hydration Dehydration Treatment in Five Grass Species. , 2001 .

[12]  S. Greipsson.  Effects of stratification and GA3 on seed germination of a sand stabilising grass Leymus arenarius used in reclamation , 2001 .

[13]  B. Burson,et al.  Seed dormancy and germination of dallisgrass, Paspalum dilatatum, stored under differing conditions , 1999 .

[14]  W. Pill,et al.  Seed Treatments Improve the Germination and Seedling Emergence of Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) , 1997 .

[15]  E. Ripley,et al.  Effects of grazing on a Leymus chinensis grassland on the Songnen plain of north-eastern China , 1997 .

[16]  M. Poverene,et al.  Seed Dormancy and Its Alleviation in Lovegrass Hybrids , 1996 .

[17]  J. Plummer,et al.  Effects of temperature, light and gibberellic acid on the germination of seeds of 43 species native to Western Australia , 1995 .

[18]  Xiangming Xiao,et al.  Interannual variation in the climate and above-ground biomass of Leymus chinense steppe and Stipa grandis steppe in the Xilin river basin, Inner Mongolia, China , 1995 .

[19]  Gregory A. Lang,et al.  Endo-, Para-, and Ecodormancy: Physiological Terminology and Classification for Dormancy Research , 1987, HortScience.

[20]  J. Siedow,et al.  A relationship between plant responses to cytokinins and cyanide‐resistant respiration , 1985 .

[21]  E. D. Williams.  Effects of temperature, light, nitrate and pre chilling on seed germination of grassland plants , 1983 .

[22]  K. Albrecht,et al.  Influence of Chemical Seed Treatments on Germination of Dormant Wild Rice Seeds 1 , 1980 .

[23]  J. P. Grime,et al.  Seed germination in response to diurnal fluctuations of temperature , 1977, Nature.

[24]  C. Miller,et al.  Effects of cytokinins on the respiration of soybean callus tissue. , 1972, Plant physiology.

[25]  G. W. Burton.  Breaking Dormancy in Seeds of Pearl Millet, Pennisetum typhoides 1 , 1969 .

[26]  L. Lacroix,et al.  Metabolic Changes in After-Ripening Seed of Prunus cerasus. , 1967, Plant physiology.

[27]  A. Halevy,et al.  Senescence inhibition and respiration induced by growth retardants and N-benzyladenine. , 1966, Plant physiology.

[28]  A. Halevy.  Effects of Gibberellin and Growth-retarding Chemicals on Respiration and Catalase Activity in Various Organs of Cucumber Seedlings , 1964 .

[29]  E. H. Roberts,et al.  A Survey of the Effects of Chemical Treatments on Dormancy in Rice Seed , 1964 .

[30]  G. Bergqvist,et al.  The Stimulation of the Respiration of Seeds with Gibberellic Acid and its Analytical Application , 1958 .