Variability for Temperature of Germination in Sericea Lespedeza Germplasm

Autor: J. A. Mosjidis, J. Qiu, J. C. Willliams
Rok vydání: 1995
Předmět:
Zdroj: Crop Science. 35:237-241
ISSN: 1435-0653
0011-183X
DOI: 10.2135/cropsci1995.0011183x003500010043x
Popis: Poor and slow seed germination are major problems in growing sericea lespedeza [Lespedeza cuneata (Dumont de Courset) G. Don.]. Knowledge about the temperatures for optimum seed germination is vital to selecting the best seeding date for this forage legume. The objectives of this study were to determine the variability of sericea lespedeza germplasm for germination under several temperatures and the effect of seed weight on percentage and rate of germination. Germination response to temperature of 54 breeding lines and 26 accessions were tested. Mechanically-scarified seed of each of the 80 genotypes were weighed and germinated in the dark in a germinator at constant temperatures of 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30°C. An additional temperature (35°C) was included to test the germinability of the 26 accessions. Germination counts were recorded daily for 14 d to calculate total percent germination (TPG) and Maguire germination rate index (GRI). Temperature had a significant effect on TPG and GRI. Optimum germination temperature for sericea lespedeza ranged between 20 and 30°C. Thus, seeding time for this species for a particular location should be selected to match the optimum range of soil temperatures provided that adequate soil moisture is available. Mean TPG and GRI were significantly different among the genotypes at each temperature. However, genotypes with a consistently high TPG and GRI at a wide range of temperatures were found. Seed weight was correlated with TPG at 10 (r = 0.401) and 15°C (r = 0.459), and also with GRI (r = 0.388-0.475) at all temperatures for the breeding lines. However, seed weight was not correlated with TPG or GRI for the 26 accessions. THe TPG and GRI were highly interrelated, thus, measuring TPG alone should provide adequate information when describing response to environmental stresses in sericea lespedeza
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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