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Shoot population dynamics of persisting clones of Miscanthus sinensis in the warm-temperate region of Japan

Journal of Plant Research volume 116, pages 443–453 (2003)Cite this article

Abstract

The population dynamics of annual shoots in four clonal patches of Miscanthus sinensis was surveyed in terms of clone persistence. Over a study period of 3 years, a stable net shoot number was attained through a balanced replacement of old shoots by tillering 2–3 times a year. The birth rate was significantly correlated with the average monthly temperature. This suggests that a warm climate advances the date of tillerings, and shoots become taller as they emerge earlier. Five cohorts were identified, corresponding to shoots that were born in spring, early summer, summer, autumn and early winter. The autumn cohorts were more numerous and had a greater longevity than the other cohorts; they were thus were best suited for overwintering and, consequently, maintaining the population from one generation to the next. The shoots of earlier cohorts grew too tall to survive the cold of winter, which might cause freezing injury, while later cohorts’ shoots excelled in overwintering because of their shortness. However, if the delayed shoots are very short, they will also have difficulty in surviving the early season of growth. Therefore, M. sinensis shoots have an optimum size for survival.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Dr. Makoto Kimura and Dr. Naoki Kachi for critically reading and making helpful suggestions on the earlier draft of the manuscript. We also thank Drs. Nobuo Nomoto, Hiroshi Tamura, Yoshiaki Kikuchi and Takehiro Masuzawa for continually providing valuable advice during the study. Thanks are due to Mrs. Tomoko Yokoi, Mr. Raymond Martel, Mr. Raymond Ducharme, Mr. Pierre Robert, the Seiso Miyake and Mrs. Sanae Kobayashi for their deep understandings of the study and for their support. We acknowledge the comments of the reviewers. Part of this study was supported by a Grant from the Shizuoka Research Institute of Shizuoka Prefecture (1998).

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  1. Shizuoka Seiko Gakuin, Shizuoka 422-8021, Japan

    Katsumi Kobayashi

  2. Center for Natural Science, Kitasato University, Sagamihara, Japan

    Yota Yokoi

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  1. Katsumi Kobayashi
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  2. Yota Yokoi
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Correspondence to Katsumi Kobayashi.

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Kobayashi, K., Yokoi, Y. Shoot population dynamics of persisting clones of Miscanthus sinensis in the warm-temperate region of Japan. J Plant Res 116, 443–453 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10265-003-0119-1

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Keywords

  • Clone persistence
  • Mean shoot longevity
  • Overwintering survival
  • Shoot cohort
  • Shoot population dynamics