Influence of irradiance level on flowering and male sterility induced by short days in Salsola komarovii Iljin

Abstract

Flowering and the male sterility induced by short days (SD) in Salsola komarovii Iljin (Chenopodiaceae) were studied anatomically and physiologically. A light-microscopic observation found that the male-sterile flowers had traces of stamens. The development of stamens ceased at the last stage of meiosis of pollen mother cells, and then vacuolated and degenerated. Flowering occurred earlier, and the number of flowers increased with increasing irradiance levels. On the other hand, the irradiance affected male sterility only slightly, and most of the flowers were male sterile even under high irradiance. The results indicate that irradiance interacts with photoperiod in different ways in regulation of flowering and male sterility within the same species.