Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-mlc7c Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-05T14:28:06.606Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Fate of Yellow Nutsedge (Cyperus Esculentus) Seed and Seedlings in Soil

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 June 2017

Jon Lapham  and
Donald S. H. Drennan
Jon Lapham
Affiliation:
Agric. Manage. Div., P.O. Box 373, Harare, Zimbabwe
Donald S. H. Drennan
Affiliation:
Dep. Agric. Bot. Plant Sci. Lab., Univ. Reading, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 2AH, U.K.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Changes in dormancy and viability of freshly harvested seed of yellow nutsedge buried in the field, at depths of 5, 25, and 50 mm, were studied over a 2-yr period. The number of dormant, viable seed decreased most rapidly at 5 mm because more seed lost their dormancy and germinated (up to 30%) than at lower depths. Loss of viability through decay of seed appeared similar at all depths. No seedlings emerged from any depth. In a laboratory experiment, conducted in optimal soil moisture conditions, seedlings emerged from all seed that germinated, demonstrating that adequate soil moisture was critical for seedling establishment. This was substantiated in a second field experiment in which irrigation and mulching greatly increased seedling survival. The number of seedlings surviving in irrigated plots was 0.78% of seed sown and 0.03% in the rain-fed plots. The role of seed in the establishment of yellow nutsedge infestations is probably of little importance in dryland cropping areas despite the longevity and viability of the seed.

Keywords

Yellow nutsedge, Cyperus esculentus L. ♯ CYPESSeed longevitydormancyviabilityZimbabweCYPES
Type
Weed Biology and Ecology
Information
Weed Science , Volume 38 , Issue 2 , March 1990 , pp. 125 - 128
Copyright
Copyright © 1990 by the Weed Science Society of America 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Literature Cited

1. Anonymous. 1968. Soil temperature: notes on agricultural meteorology, no. 18. Dep. Meteorol. Serv., Harare, Zimbabwe. 40 pp.Google Scholar
2. Bell, R. S., Lachman, W. H., Rhan, E. W., and Sweet, R. D. 1962. Life history studies as related to weed control in the northeast. 1. Nutgrass. Rhode Island Agric. Exp. Stn. Bull. 364. 33 pp.Google Scholar
3. Belleu, M. K. 1946. Weed Seed Handbook. Series V. Bull. Dep. Agric. Calif. 35:87–94.Google Scholar
4. Bendixen, L. E. and Nandihalli, U. B. 1987. Worldwide distribution of purple and yellow nutsedge (Cyperus rotundas and C. esculentus). Weed Technol. 1:61–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5. Garg, D. K., Bendixen, L. E., and Anderson, S. R. 1967. Rhizome differentiation in yellow nutsedge. Weeds. 15:124–128.Google Scholar
6. Hill, E. R., Lachman, W. H., and Maynard, D. N. 1963. Reproductive potential of yellow nutsedge from seed. Weeds 11:160–161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
7. Jansen, L. L. 1971. Morphology and photoperiodic responses of yellow nutsedge. Weed Sci. 19:210–219.Google Scholar
8. Justice, D. L. and Whitehead, M. D. 1946. Seed production, viability and dormancy in nutgrass Cyperus rotundus and C. esculentus . J. Agric. Res. 73:303–318.Google Scholar
9. Lapham, J. 1985. The population dynamics of the weed Cyperus esculentus L. Ph.D. Thesis, Univ. Reading. 264 pp.Google Scholar
10. Manlove, R. J. 1985. On the population ecology of Avena fatua L. Ph.D. Thesis. Univ. Liverpool. 183 pp.Google Scholar
11. Mayer, A. M. and Poljakoff-Mayber, A. 1975. Factors Affecting Germination. Page 24 in Mayer, A. M. and Poljakoff-Mayber, A., eds. Germination of Seeds. 2nd ed. Pergamon Press, Oxford.Google Scholar
12. Mulligan, G. A. and Junkins, B. E. 1975. The biology of Canadian weeds. 17. Cyperus esculentus L. Can. J. Plant Sci. 56:339–350.Google Scholar
13. Patterson, D. N. 1970. Climate of Rhodesia. The Rhod. Sci. News. 4: 182–184.Google Scholar
14. Roberts, H. A. and Feast, P. M. 1973. Emergence and longevity of seeds of annual weeds in cultivated and undisturbed soil. J. Appl. Ecol. 10:133–143.Google Scholar
15. Snedecor, G. W. and Cochran, G. C. 1967. Regression. Page 153 in Snedecor, G. W. and Cochran, G. C., eds. Statistical Methods. The Iowa State Univ. Press, Ames, Iowa.Google Scholar
16. Stoller, E. W. 1975. Growth, development and physiology of yellow nutsedge. In Problem Weeds - Special Session on Nutsedge. Proc. N.C. Weed Control Conf. 30:124–125.Google Scholar
17. Stoller, E. W. and Sweet, R. D. 1987. Biology and life-cycle of purple and yellow nutsedges (Cyperus rotundus and C. esculentus). Weed Technol. 1:66–73.Google Scholar
18. Thullen, R. J. and Keeley, P. E. 1979. Seed production and germination in C. esculentus and C. rotundus . Weed Sci. 27:502–505.Google Scholar