Selection of Urban Shade Tolerant Ground Cover Plant Through Photochemical Assessment

Abstract

In this study, we performed to selection of urban shade tolerant ground cover plant through growth and photochemical reaction analysis. Plants that are not properly planted according to their biological requirements under different growth conditions cause several problems such as poor growth and withering, which wastes an enormous amount of time and budget for maintenance. Multi-layer planting is designed to ensure vegetation resources that lack mobility have their native ecological characteristics, respond to different living environments and show different growth patterns as they are affected by factors such as sunlight on the ground and underground moisture. Against this backdrop, this study aimed to provide base information for planting designs through the evaluation of the growth and photochemical reaction of plants under different partial shading conditions. The results of this study are expected to be utilized in planning and designing planting to reduce factors that may cause flaws in landscape planting and minimize the burden of maintenance. Under different shading conditions (0%, 50% and 80% shading), distinct changes in the growth of plants were observed. Pachysandra terminalis ‘Variegata’, Physostegia virginiana, Carex maculata, Veronica linariifolium are recommended to be planted in 50% - 80%-shading spaces. We performed to evaluate and analyze the growth and light utilization efficiency of garden plants in the shade area through chlorophyll fluorescence reaction analysis. Under shading, the fluorescence parameter related with electron-transport in photosystem II, ET2O/RC was effectively enhanced whereas the electron transport flux until PSI acceptors per reaction center (RE1o/RC) reduced. In addition, some photochemical parameters such as RC/ABS, RE1O/RC, DIo/RC, DFTOTAL ABS were important for the determination of shade tolerance. On the basis of these results, the shade tolerant index deduced from growth and photochemical parameters were useful for an evaluation of shading stress in urban ground cover plants. Changes of plant height and length of stem node every two weeks of Pachysandra terminalis ‘Variegata’ by non shading (top left), 50% shading (top right), and 80% shading (bottom left) treatment relatively. Different letters in one measurement indicate statistically significant difference at p ≤ 0.05 by Duncan multiple range test.