Heliotropium europaeum only germinates following sufficient rainfall to allow reproduction

Hunt, James R.; Cousens, Roger; Knights, S. E.

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2009.01.002

Cited by 18 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 29 publications

(37 reference statements)

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“…The germination falls away at lower temperature and low light intensity (6,7). We confirm that conclusions working at increasing temperature of the soil in the range 18-38 0 C. The same trend follows at the growth and flowering: puncture vine needs abundant light and high temperature.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 83%

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Could Microalgae Enhance the Germination ofTribulus TerrestrisL. Seeds?

Petkov

2010

Biotechnology & Biotechnological Equipment

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Seeds of Tribulus terrestris L. were sown in transparent plastic leaky boxes, at a depth of 4-5 mm in sand. The transparent pots were put on plates, where water has been added through the bottom holes and capillary ascending to the surface. The temperature of soil was 20-37 0 C, temperature of air 20-40 0 C. Either the soil microalgae, or preliminary grown microalgal suspension, single added with the water has been thriving at these conditions. At all experiments, the first seeds germinated exactly 3 days after they have been sown. Above 90 % of the seeds germinated to 7-9 day and single of them to 20 day. Inside, on the wall of the pots, green collour appeared due to microalgae and significantly later mosses appeared, too. Having worked with seeds from Pazardzhik a germination of 31 ± 12 % was achieved (74 seeds). Seeds gathered from nature, Black Sea coast, Zarevo, have germinated 7 of 10 in a single experiment. The manner of work is in consistency with a possible breeding of the plant as greenhouse seedlings.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 83%

“…Breeding of the plant in large scale is bound with some drawbacks as law germination of the seeds and high period of dormancy (5,7). The concentration of active substances is higher in the period of seed-immaturity coming in a heavy contradiction with production of seeds.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Could Microalgae Enhance the Germination ofTribulus TerrestrisL. Seeds?

Petkov

2010

Biotechnology & Biotechnological Equipment

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“…The main species present in the seed bank (S. apetala) was found to have enhanced germination after inorganic N addition, whilst increased germination with fertilization for total and forb seeds were apparent only in the low-water treatment (Table 1). Ephemeral species germinate after the opening of windows of opportunity and must be able to detect these suitable conditions (Hunt et al 2009). Increases in soil N availability related to disturbances usually act as a signal for pioneer species to germinate, establish and complete their life cycle (Luna and Moreno 2009), and this seems to be the case for the short-lived and nitrophilous S. apetala.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrogen fertilization and water supply affect germination and plant establishment of the soil seed bank present in a semi-arid Mediterranean scrubland

Ochoa‐Hueso

Manrique

2010

Plant Ecol

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Anthropogenic nitrogen (N) inputs in terrestrial ecosystems are higher than those that occur naturally and have been related to global biodiversity loss and altered ecosystem functioning. However, its effects on Mediterranean-type ecosystems, where production is water-limited and N regulated, remain unclear. We conducted a green-house experiment where we evaluated the effects of four simulated scenarios of N pollution (0, 10, 20 and 50 kg N ha -1 year -1 ) and two differential water supply regimes on the germination (experiment 1) and early plant establishment (experiment 2) of a seed bank from a semi-arid Mediterranean ecosystem of central Spain. Seed bank density was estimated as 62,374 ± 3,279 seeds m -2 . Approximately 99.5% of emerged seeds corresponded to only 14 species of a total of 52, the majority of which were the annual forb Sagina apetala. The responses for N treatments were speciesspecific, mainly positive or unimodal, with watering treatments having some interactive effects. N and water supply also affected total and specific productivity; the responses found for N treatments were mainly humpback-shaped and an increased water supply had additive effects on community establishment in terms of total plant biomass. This response was linked to forb responsiveness. Contrary to predictions, grass biomass did not change with N supply; however, grass to forb ratio was affected because of changes in the latter. Overall, these experiments suggest a critical load for plant biomass production and conclude that N and water availability and supply can modify germination and plant establishment. This should be taken into account when analysing the effects of global change on the dynamics of plant communities where annuals are dominant or vegetation must establish from seed following a natural or anthropogenic disturbance regime.

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“…Many ephemeral plant species in arid and semiarid Mediterranean regions rapidly germinate and grow in response to episodic rain pulses that occasionally occur in the spring and summer months (Tevis 1958, Freas andKemp 1983). These 'summer' ephemeral species often have a minimum temperature and water potential requirement that must be met before their seeds will germinate, restricting germination to periods of abnormally wet conditions in the warmer months of spring and summer (e.g., Mott 1974, Hunt et al 2009). Hence, rain pulses in the normally dry spring or summer months in semiarid and arid regions may trigger germination and growth of summer ephemerals, and the subsequent accumulation of continuous fine fuel required to sustain large fires.…”

Section: Associations Between Wildfire Activity and Broadscale Climatmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climatic anomalies drive wildfire occurrence and extent in semi-arid shrublands and woodlands of southwest Australia

et al. 2011

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Variation in the frequency, extent and intensity of wildfires can drive changes in the composition, structure, diversity and functioning of ecosystems in fire‐prone regions worldwide. However, relationships between climatic variation and wildfire occurrence remain poorly understood in many fire‐prone regions. We investigated fire occurrence and extent across 15,500 km2 of semi‐arid southwest Australia in relation to inter‐annual and/or seasonal variation in regional climate and broad‐scale circulation patterns. Superposed epoch analysis (SEA) was used to determine whether wildfire occurrence was related to anomalously high or low regional rainfall or temperature. In particular, we tested if years of minor fire extent (i.e., <250 km2 burnt) and major fire extent (i.e., >1,000 km2 burnt) occurred under different climatic conditions. We also used SEA to determine if wildfires occurred during or following periods of extremes of drivers of regional climate, including the El Niño southern oscillation (ENSO), the Indian Ocean dipole, atmospheric blocking in the adjacent Southern Ocean, and the southern annular mode (SAM). Fire occurrence was linked to dry and hot conditions typically associated with the El Niño phase of ENSO, with few or no fires in years with cool and wet summers. However, major fire years tended to occur during drought conditions that followed wet and cool conditions in spring and summer of the preceding year. These wet and cool periods were typically associated with the presence of blocking highs in the Southern Ocean to the south of Western Australia. We hypothesise that high rainfall in spring and summer favours the growth of ephemeral plants while subsequent drought conditions promote fuel drying, resulting in more continuous and highly flammable fuel beds capable of sustaining larger fires. Regional climatic patterns are likely driven by interactions among the SAM, atmospheric blocking, and decaying tropical cyclones. As climatic extremes are expected to increase in intensity and frequency in the future, it is likely that the occurrence of extensive wildfires in semi‐arid southwest Australia will also increase, potentially driving changes in the distribution and composition of fire‐sensitive plant communities.

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Heliotropium europaeum only germinates following sufficient rainfall to allow reproduction

Cited by 18 publications

References 29 publications

Could Microalgae Enhance the Germination ofTribulus TerrestrisL. Seeds?

Could Microalgae Enhance the Germination ofTribulus TerrestrisL. Seeds?

Nitrogen fertilization and water supply affect germination and plant establishment of the soil seed bank present in a semi-arid Mediterranean scrubland

Climatic anomalies drive wildfire occurrence and extent in semi-arid shrublands and woodlands of southwest Australia

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