Sea Barley (Hordeum Marinum) Seed Germination Ecology and Seedling Emergence

Abstract

Sea barley is weedy grass in agricultural landscapes and infrastructure habitats (roads, railroads, etc.) in Golestan province (the northern part of Iran). This study investigated the germination of sea barley in response to temperature, water potentials, salinity, pH levels, waterlogging, heat stress and also seedling emergence in response to burial depth. Results showed that sea barley seeds germinated over a wide range of temperatures from 5 to 35 °C, with the highest germination at 25 °C. Seed germination was rapidly reduced with increasing osmotic potential so that germination declined by 36% at –0.2 MPa. This was also the case for the salinity stress, and germination declined by 30% at 40 mM NaCl. Seed germination was the highest (> 65%) in 6 to 7 pHs and no germination was observed at alkali levels. Heat stress completely inhibited the germination of seeds at all tested temperatures and durations. Sea barley seed germination was higher than 50% after being waterlogged for 45 days, and some germination (12%) still occurred 60 days after waterlogging. The highest seedling growth occurred at 1–2 cm soil depth and was negligible at ≥5 cm soil depths. The results of this study indicate that deep tillage or flamethrower may be good options to mitigate the negative impacts of this weed.