Abstract
BackgroundUsing native wildflowers for restoring marginal lands has gained considerable popularity. Establishment of wildflowers can be challenging due to several environmental factors. Restoring the microbial community in degraded habitats can potentially result in the native plant performance and habitat restoration. This study was conducted to investigate the impact of native soil microbes and seeding depth on germination of south Texas native wildflowers. Two wildflower species, Ratibida columnifera (Nutt.) (Mexican Hat) and Verbesina encelioides (Cav.) (cowpen daisy), were treated with microbial wash extracted from native soils, and germination rate was recorded for 14-day period. We further analyzed the growth, biomass allocation, and root colonization by mycorrhizal fungi in these two plants growing them in a plant growth chamber for 6 weeks. To determine the impact of seeding depth, we planted the seeds of the two plant species at 2-cm, 6-cm, and 12-cm depth and monitored germination and plant growth.ResultsThe two species responded differently to the seeding depth and microbial wash treatments. Microbial wash treatment resulted in higher germination rate in R. columnifera compared to control, while it did not have any impact on V. encelioides seed germination. While microbial treatment did not influence the total biomass, it had a significant impact on the biomass allocation in both the plant species. R. columnifera seeds germinated at both 2-cm and 6-cm depth and did not germinate at 12 cm, while the V. encelioides seeds germinated only at 2 cm and did not germinate at 6-cm or 12-cm seeding depth.ConclusionsWhile our results are species specific, our results indicate that native soil microbes can potentially improve the seed germination and growth of wildflowers. Our results also indicate the importance of specific seeding depth when sowing wildflower seeds for habitat restoration.
Highlights
Fragmentation and loss of native habitats along with intensive agricultural practices have resulted in the loss of biodiversity of plants, insects, along with soil microbes contributing to cascading effects on the broader ecosystem (Biesmeijer et al 2006; Fischer et al 2007; Evans et al 2013; Habel et al 2019)
Overall, our results show a mixed effect of microbial treatment on seed germination and growth in the two wildflower species (Fig. 1)
The two species had different response to microbial wash treatment, while the germination rate in V. encelioides was not influenced by the microbial wash treatment R. columnifera seeds treated with microbial wash had a significantly higher germination rate (P=0.004)
Summary
Fragmentation and loss of native habitats along with intensive agricultural practices have resulted in the loss of biodiversity of plants, insects, along with soil microbes contributing to cascading effects on the broader ecosystem (Biesmeijer et al 2006; Fischer et al 2007; Evans et al 2013; Habel et al 2019). Several environmental factors influence the germination and establishment of native plants in the heavily degraded soils and result in a high failure rate (Nevill et al 2018), and there is limited information available on collecting, cleaning, and quality testing of native plant seeds (Frischie et al 2020). Factors such as compacted soils, low nutrient and moisture, and lack of soil biota, which can potentially break the seed dormancy or pathogens that cause decay of seeds, can have significant impacts on the seed germination and growth. To determine the impact of seeding depth, we planted the seeds of the two plant species at 2-cm, 6-cm, and 12-cm depth and monitored germination and plant growth
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