Temperature and day length response of some cocksfoot populations

Abstract

Seedling plants of seven cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) populations were exposed to day/night temperatures of 20/15, 15/10, 12/7, and 9/4°C at day lengths of either 8 or 16 hr. Leaf size, rate of leaf appearance, and relative growth rate decreased as temperature decreased. At higher temperatures, relative growth rate was greater in long than in short days, but at 9/4° it was greater in short days. Long days increased leaf size but slightly reduced the rate of leaf appearance at higher temperatures; the increased leaf size, however, more than compensated for the slightly lower rate of leaf appearance, so that relative growth rate was greater in long than in short days. At 9/4°, however, greater leaf size did not compensate for the much slower rate of leaf appearance in long days. Growth rates were consequently lower in long than in short days at 9/4°. The populations showed a general similarity in response, although significant differences between populations were recorded for particular treatments. There was no apparent relationship between seedling growth rates at low temperatures in this experiment and winter growth of these populations under field conditions.