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Effects of cold stratification, temperature, light and salinity on seed germination and radicle growth of the desert halophyte shrub, Kalidium caspicum (Chenopodiaceae)

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Abstract

We tested the effects of cold stratification, temperature, light and NaCl on seed germination and germination recovery and of NaCl on radicle growth and radicle elongation recovery of Kalidium caspicum, a small leafy succulent shrub dominant in saline deserts in northwest China. In all conditions of temperature and light/darkness, germination percentages and rates of cold-stratified seeds were significantly higher than those of nonstratified seeds. Germination of a high percentage of both nonstratified and stratified seeds was inhibited by 0.2 M NaCl, and 0.6 M NaCl completely inhibited germination. Nongerminated seeds germinated after they were transferred from NaCl solutions to distilled water. Radicle elongation significantly decreased with increase in salinity, and it was completely inhibited by ≥1.0 M NaCl; radicle elongation recovered in young seedlings pretreated by 10 days of incubation in ≤0.4 M NaCl. Results show that seed germination and early seedling growth of K. caspicum are salt tolerant, and these characteristics help explain why this species can survive and dominate salt habitats, such as those in the Junggar desert in Xinjiang, northwest China.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (KZCX2-YW-431), the National Natural Science Foundation (30570281), and the Ministry of Science and Technology of P.R. China (2005DKA21006).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, P.R. China

    Xiaoxia Qu, Lei Wang & Zhenying Huang

  2. Department of Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 40506, USA

    Xiaoxia Qu & Jerry M. Baskin

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  1. Xiaoxia Qu
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  2. Jerry M. Baskin
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  3. Lei Wang
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  4. Zhenying Huang
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Correspondence to Zhenying Huang.

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Qu, X., Baskin, J.M., Wang, L. et al. Effects of cold stratification, temperature, light and salinity on seed germination and radicle growth of the desert halophyte shrub, Kalidium caspicum (Chenopodiaceae). Plant Growth Regul 54, 241–248 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-007-9246-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-007-9246-3

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