Abstract
As a versatile cruciferous species, Eruca sativa is widely cultivated, but in some areas, it has become an invasive weed. There are few studies on its seed dormancy and soil seed bank. This research examined seed dormancy, germination, and dynamics of the soil seed bank of E. sativa, with a view to provide support for its prevention and control. We tested the effects of temperature, light, storage, water, and salinity stress on seed germination and burial depth on seedling emergence of E. sativa. Dynamics of the soil seed bank were determined with a 24 month in situ seed-burial study. Seeds of E. sativa can germinate in a temperature range of 5–35°C; moreover, they exhibited non-deep physiological dormancy (NDPD) at maturity, which can be broken by dry storage or exposure to low temperature in winter. Germination of E. sativa seeds was sensitive to water and salinity stress, and most seeds did not germinate at -0.3 MPa. When buried in soil in the field, seeds exhibited an annual dormancy/non-dormancy cycle and formed at least a short-term persistent soil seed bank. Seeds buried deeper than 5 cm can hardly emerge. Seeds of E. sativa have a wide germination temperature range and exhibited dormancy cycling, which promotes the formation of a persistent soil seed bank and enables it to better adapt to the harsh low-temperature climate of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. No-tillage would be a good management strategy for this species.
Highlights
Seeds of E. sativa mature in the beginning of August, and after seeds mature, some of them remain on the mother plants
Our results showed that after the elimination of dormancy, seeds of E. sativa germinated to relatively high percentage at low temperature (Figure 2), suggesting that E. sativa is well adapted to the harsh low-temperature environment of the Tibetan Plateau
Our results indicated that seeds of E. sativa on the soil surface formed a transient soil seed bank, but those buried in soil can form at least a short-term persistent soil seed bank, as 20.67 ± 0.67% and 3.33 ± 0.67% of seeds buried in 5 and 10 cm depth remained viable after 24 months burial, respectively (Figure 1B)
Summary
Germination, and seedling establishment are crucial steps in the life cycle of seed plants (Bewley et al, 2013). A successful weed management program must take these aspects of weed biology and ecology into account (Forcella et al, 1993). The successful establishment of a seedling depends largely on the interaction between germination requirements and the environment (Hilhorst, 2008). The ability to germinate successfully under a variety of environmental conditions is a characteristic of many successful and Germination Characteristics of E. sativa widespread weed species (Baker, 1991; Wainwright and Cleland, 2013). Temperature, moisture, and light are the most critical environmental factors, which affect the germination of seeds, and the persistence of the soil seed bank (Baskin and Baskin, 1985b; Gutterman, 1994). Understanding the germination ecology of weeds is essential for their management and limiting their spread to new sites
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