We studied the effects of a change in flowering date on the reproductive output of a short-day annual plant, Xanthium canadense. The flowering date was changed by photoperiodic manipulation to 1 month earlier or later than the natural flowering date. Plants with the natural flowering date attained the highest reproductive output. For those flowering 1 month earlier or later, the reproductive output was decreased by 42% or 23%, respectively. The reproductive output was analyzed as the product of the biomass production during the reproductive period and its allocation to the reproductive organs. Although delay in flowering increased biomass production, it decreased its fractional allocation to the reproductive organs. The highest reproductive output in the natural flowering plants resulted from a compromise between these two effects of flowering. Plants flowering earlier had higher translocation rates to the reproductive organs and accelerated plant senescence. Later flowering caused a reduction in biomass translocation to the reproductive organs and thus extended the reproductive period. These experimental results are discussed in relation to the cost of reproduction and the optimal time for flowering that maximizes the final reproductive output. It is suggested that the natural flowering time maximized the reproductive output while minimizing the cost of reproduction.

The effect of different dates of germination on the timing of flowering and the final reproductive yield was examined in a short-day annual plant Xanthium canadense (cocklebur). Delays in germination of 30 and 60 days deferred flower initiation by 2 and 9 days, respectively. Although plants that germinated later were smaller because of the shorter growing period, the reproductive yields did not show as much reduction as the vegetative biomass. The reproductive effort (RE, defined as the ratio of final reproductive yield to the vegetative biomass at the end of the growing season) increased 1.5 and 2.5 times with delays in germination of 30 and 60 days, respectively. A simple model of plant growth was used to analyse the factors involved in the control of RE, which depends only on the dry mass productivity and its partitioning in the reproductive phase, and is independent of the productivity and partitioning in the vegetative phase. Since relative allocation of dry mass to the reproductive part in the reproductive phase was similar for plants with different germination dates, the different REs could be ascribed mainly to differences in productivity of the vegetative parts in the reproductive period. The dependence of RE on plant size is discussed.

No abstract

The transfer of 226Ra from soil to plant has been studied for wild trees and grasses to identify the site-and the plant-s~ecific variability in relation to the transfer of Ca. Twelve species of plants and soils were sampled from three different forests and one flood plain in Okayama, Japan. The concentrations of 226Ra in plant varied about 60 times by species and sites, while those in soil were not different significantly among sites. The transfer factors defmed as~e concentration ratio of 226Ra between plant and soil were linearly correlated with that of Ca, implying that~he abI1~ty of Ca uptake b~plant r~f1ect the ability of 226Ra uptake. The Ca concentrations in plant showed spe~le~-.speclfic value and vaned 22 tImes. The range of transfer factor (plant/soil) for Ca increased by the vanablhty of the Ca concentration in soil among sites. These results suggest that the wide variability of 226Ra concentration in plant can be ascribed to both the differences in plant and soil factors of Ca concentration. K1!YWORDS