CLONAL INTEGRATION MODIFIES RESPONSES OF HEDYSARUM LAEVE TO LOCAL SAND BURIAL IN MU US SANDLAND

doi:10.17521/cjpe.2006.0037

Abstract

Abstract:

In arid and semi_arid inland deserts, a major environmental stress for the plants is recurrent sand burial, which can influence the physical and biotic microenvironment of the plants and soil. Previous studies have shown that different sand burial depths have different effects on plants. Slight sand burial could increase the height increment, leaf biomass and the number of new ramets of the plants, while heavy sand burial impaired the growth of the plants and even decreased their survival. In other words, below a certain burial threshold level, the growth of the plants is stimulated probably because of multiple factors. However, as the level of burial increases, the positive response declines until it becomes a negative factor. Sand dunes are frequently colonized and stabilized by many rhizomatous clonal plants in arid and semi_arid inland deserts. Clonal physiological integration often helps clonal plants buffer local environmental stresses encountered by the ramets. The rhizomatous clonal semi_shrub, Hedysarum laeve, is a dominant plant species and important for vegetation restoration in the Mu Us sandland. We conducted a field experiment to investigate whether clonal integration can increase the threshold of sand burial and help rhizomatous H. laeve tolerate heavy sand burial. The results showed that slight sand burial could accelerate ramet growth and enhance their leaf biomass, stem biomass and shoot biomass. Heavy sand burial reduced the biomass of the plants and impaired survival and growth of the ramets. Clonal integration increased the threshold of sand burial. Ramets connected to other ramets had greater height increment, stem biomass, leaf biomass and shoot biomass as compared to ramets that were not connected to other ramets under heavy sand burial. These results suggested that clonal physiological integration could help H. laeve ramets to tolerate relatively heavy sand burial, and clonal integration should play a role in H. laeve occupying the Mu Us sandland.

Key words: Mu Us sandland, Hedysarum laeve, Sand burial, Clonal integration

LIU Feng_Hong, YE Xue_Hua, YU Fei_Hai, DONG Ming. CLONAL INTEGRATION MODIFIES RESPONSES OF HEDYSARUM LAEVE TO LOCAL SAND BURIAL IN MU US SANDLAND[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2006, 30(2): 278-285.

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URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.17521/cjpe.2006.0037

https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2006/V30/I2/278

Figures/Tables 3

Table 1 F_values of two_way ANOVA for the effects of sand burial and rhizome connection as well as their interaction on the characteristics of the ramets subjected to sand burial

指标 Item	沙埋 Sand burial (S)		连接 Rhizome connection (R)		沙埋×连接 S×R
指标 Item	F	df	F	df	F	df
高增量 Height increment (cm)	11.84^***	6,84	15.38^***	1, 84	4.93^***	5,84
茎生物量 Stem biomass (g)	5.87^***	6,84	5.16^*	1, 84	2.53^*	5,84
叶生物量 Leaf biomass (g)	10.32^***	6,84	6.96^***	1, 84	5.01^***	5,84
地上分株生物量 Shoot biomass (g)	8.62^***	6,84	5.25^*	1, 84	4.81^**	5,84

Fig.1 Height increment(A),stem biomass(B),leaf biomass(C)and shoot biomass (D) of ramets which were subjected to sand burial connected to another ramet without sand burial or disconnected another ramet

Fig.2 Height increment(A),stem biomass(B),leaf biomass (C) and shoot biomass (D) of ramets which were not subjected to sand burial connected to another ramet subjected to sand burial

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