Winter Soil Warming Exacerbates the Impacts of Spring Low Temperature Stress on Wheat

Abstract

The increase in global mean air temperature is likely to affect the soil temperatures in agricultural areas. This study aims to study the effects of winter soil warming on the responses of wheat to low temperature stress in spring. Wheat plants were grown under either normal or increased soil temperature by 2.5°C for 82 days in winter. The physiological and yield responses of the plants to a 2-day low temperature stress (4/2°C in the day/night) at jointing stage were investigated. After exposing to low spring temperature, the plants that had experienced winter soil warming showed lower leaf and root water potential, lower oxygen scavenging capacity and poor photosynthetic performance as compared with the plants grown under normal soil temperature during winter. WL plants had significantly lower sugar content in shoot than the CL plants, which might have contributed to their higher susceptibility to low temperature. In addition, winter soil warming exacerbated the negative effects of low spring temperature on grain yield.

Modulation of photosynthate supply by CO2 elevation affects the post‐head‐emergence frost‐induced grain yield loss in wheat

“…Namely, at vegetative growth stages, the enhanced photosynthate supply enhanced the plant growth which in turn increased the sensibility of wheat plants to PHEF. In consistent with this, our previous study indicated that both higher air temperature and soil temperature at vegetative growth stages exacerbated the impacts of subsequent low-temperature stress on wheat through altering the growth of root and shoot, which may contribute to the increased susceptibility to low temperature in wheat (Li, Jiang, & Liu, 2016;. However, the higher photosynthate supply by [CO 2 ] elevation during the reproductive stage facilitated the recovery of wheat plants after exposure to PHEF, benefited the regeneration of tillers and enhanced the grain filling process, hence affecting the yield components.…”

Comparative Physiology and Transcriptome Analysis of Young Spikes in Response to Late Spring Coldness in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

“…LTs often hamper its growth and yield in the major wheat-growing regions of the world, such as China, the United States, Europe, and Australia (Holman et al, 2011;Trnka et al, 2014;Zheng et al, 2015b;Crimp et al, 2016;Xiao et al, 2018). In the meantime, the rise in global warming accelerated the wheat growth cycle and increased the risk of cold injury (Kodra et al, 2011;Augspurger, 2013;Zheng et al, 2015a;Li et al, 2016). Cold conditions also restrict active root water uptake, resulting in water deficiency in stem and triggers drought stress (Aroca et al, 2012), which instigates the inevitable damage to wheat growth.…”

Effects of Low Temperature at Booting Stage on Sucrose Metabolism and Endogenous Hormone Contents in Winter Wheat Spikelet

“…As a result, low temperature in spring has become a major constraint of winter wheat production, especially in southern Huanghuai and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, China. Moreover, the increase in global average winter temperatures promotes winter growth, increasing cold vulnerability in the spring (Li et al, 2016). Low temperatures in spring generally occur between the end of March and beginning of April, during which time wheat ears are in a critical period of meiosis and tetrad formation and are, therefore, highly sensitive to temperature stress.…”