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. 2012 Jun;109(7):1369-78.
doi: 10.1093/aob/mcs067. Epub 2012 Apr 3.

Parental environment changes the dormancy state and karrikinolide response of Brassica tournefortii seeds

M J Gorecki  1 , R L Long, G R Flematti, J C Stevens
Affiliations

Parental environment changes the dormancy state and karrikinolide response of Brassica tournefortii seeds

M J Gorecki et al. Ann Bot. 2012 Jun.

Abstract

Background and aims: The smoke-derived chemical karrikinolide (KAR(1)) shows potential as a tool to synchronize the germination of seeds for weed management and restoration. To assess its feasibility we need to understand why seeds from different populations of a species exhibit distinct responses to KAR(1). Environmental conditions during seed development, known as the parental environment, influence seed dormancy so we predicted that parental environment would also drive the KAR(1)-responses of seeds. Specifically, we hypothesized that (a) a common environment will unify the KAR(1)-responses of different populations, (b) a single population grown under different environmental conditions will exhibit different KAR(1)-responses, and (c) drought stress, as a particular feature of the parental environment, will make seeds less dormant and more responsive to KAR(1).

Methods: Seeds of the weed Brassica tournefortii were collected from four locations in Western Australia and were sown in common gardens at two field sites, to test whether their KAR(1)-responses could be unified by a common environment. To test the effects of drought on KAR(1)-response, plants were grown in a glasshouse and subjected to water stress. For each trial, the germination responses of the next generation of seeds were assessed.

Key results: The KAR(1)-responses of seeds differed among populations, but this variation was reduced when seeds developed in a common environment. The KAR(1)-responses of each population changed when seeds developed in different environments. Different parental environments affected germination responses of the populations differently, showing that parental environment interacts with genetics to determine KAR(1)-responses. Seeds from droughted plants were 5 % more responsive to KAR(1) and 5 % less dormant than seeds from well-watered plants, but KAR(1)-responses and dormancy state were not intrinsically linked in all experiments.

Conclusions: The parental environment in which seeds develop is one of the key drivers of the KAR(1)-responses of seeds.

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Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Climate data for four sites from which Brassica tournefortii seeds were collected in 2009, from the estimated start of germination events (May) until the month of seed collection for Dalwallinu (October), Merredin (December), Morawa (November) and Perth (November). The shaded area indicates the monthly temperature range. The black columns are the total monthly rainfall. ‘Total rainfall’ = cumulative rainfall; ‘Rain days’ = number of days on which rainfall was recorded; ‘Rain events’ = number of days or consecutive days of rainfall, bounded by ≥1 d with zero rainfall. All data from Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology (2010).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Climate data for common-garden sites, from sowing of seeds to seed collection for Katanning (23 June to 26 November) and Perth (3 June to 12 November) 2010. The shaded area indicates the daily temperature range. The black columns are the total daily rainfall. ‘Total rainfall’ = cumulative rainfall; ‘Rain days’ = number of days on which rainfall was recorded; ‘Rain events’ = number of days or consecutive days of rainfall, bounded by ≥1 d with zero rainfall. All data from Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology (2011).
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Daily temperature range in Perth during the drought experiment, from sowing of seeds to seed collection, 3 August to 31 December 2010. Data from Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology (2011).
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Germination response of four different collections of Brassica tournefortii seeds following collection from original source sites in 2009. Seeds were tested in 12-h alternating light or constant darkness, with or without 1 µm KAR1, under eight temperature regimes. Germination was scored 3 weeks after sowing. Bars indicate mean ± 95 % confidence interval for binomial estimates; n = 150 seeds per treatment.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 5.
Germination response of Brassica tournefortii seeds collected from plants grown in a common garden at Katanning, sown from four different original collection sources. Seeds were tested in 12-h alternating light or constant darkness, with or without 1 µm KAR1, under eight temperature regimes. Germination was scored 2 weeks after sowing. Bars indicate mean ± 95 % confidence interval for binomial estimates; n = 200 seeds per treatment.
Fig. 6.
Fig. 6.
Germination response of Brassica tournefortii seeds collected from plants grown in a common garden at Perth, sown from four different original collection sources. Seeds were tested in 12-h alternating light or constant darkness, with or without 1 µm KAR1, under eight temperature regimes. Germination was scored 2 weeks after sowing. Bars indicate mean ± 95 % confidence interval for binomial estimates; n = 200 seeds per treatment.
Fig. 7.
Fig. 7.
Germination response of Brassica tournefortii seeds collected from plants grown under droughted (−0·1 < Ψsoil > −0·5 MPa) or well-watered (Ψsoil > −0·01 MPa) conditions, germinated in 12-h alternating light or constant darkness, with or without 1 µm KAR1, under eight temperature regimes. Germination was scored 2 weeks after sowing. Bars indicate mean ± 95 % confidence interval for binomial estimates; n = 450 seeds per treatment.
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