Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-dh8gc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-20T00:22:29.588Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Germination behavior of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) populations across a range of salinities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Antonio DiTommaso
Antonio DiTommaso*
Affiliation:
Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, 903 Bradfield Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853; [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Common ragweed is a native annual that colonizes disturbed habitats including agricultural fields and roadsides. It is especially abundant along roadways receiving regular applications of deicing salt. Anecdotal evidence has suggested that the emergence of common ragweed seedlings often occurs before the emergence of other roadside species and at salinity concentrations as high as 400 mM L−1, a level that can be found in roadside soils in early spring. However, the extent of this tolerance to salinity in common ragweed populations has not been quantified. The objective of this study was to assess the germination behavior of common ragweed seeds collected from three roadside and two agricultural populations across a salinity gradient. Seed germination of these five populations was monitored daily for 21 d across a sodium chloride gradient [0, 100, 200, 300, and 400 mM L−1] under controlled conditions. Seeds from roadside populations showed consistently greater total germination and rate of germination than seeds from agricultural populations. Germination differences were most evident at the 300 and 400 mM L−1 salinity concentrations. Average germination at the 400 mM L−1 sodium chloride concentration was 31% for two roadside populations and only 3% for two agricultural populations. Germination of seeds placed in distilled water after the 21-d salinity exposure treatments (i.e., recovery rates) was also greater for the roadside vs. agricultural populations. Findings indicate that the germination behavior of common ragweed seeds to salinity for roadside populations may be locally adaptive and allows common ragweed to emerge relatively early in spring thus providing a competitive advantage over later emerging roadside plants.

Keywords

Common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia L., AMBELLocal adaptationroadside vegetation managementruderalsseed germinationsodium chloride
Type
Weed Biology and Ecology
Information
Weed Science , Volume 52 , Issue 6 , December 2004 , pp. 1002 - 1009
Copyright
Copyright © 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

Bajji, M., Kinet, J-M., and Lutts, S. 2002. Osmotic and ionic effects of NaCl on germination, early seedling growth, and ion content of Atriplex halimus (Chenopodiaceae). Can. J. Bot 80:297–304.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baskin, C. C. and Baskin, J. M. 1998. Types of seed dormancy. Pages 27–47 in Baskin, C. C. and Baskin, J. M. eds. Seeds: Ecology, Biogeography, and Evolution of Dormancy and Germination. San Diego, CA: Academic.Google Scholar
Bassett, I. J. and Crompton, C. W. 1975. The biology of Canadian weeds. Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. and A. psilostachya DC. Can. J. Plant Sci 55:463–476.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bazzaz, F. A. 1974. Ecophysiology of Ambrosia artemisiifolia: a successional dominant. Ecology 55:112–119.Google Scholar
Bryson, G. M. and Barker, A. V. 2002. Sodium accumulation in soils and plants along Massachusetts roadsides. Commun. Soil Sci. Plant Anal 33:67–78.Google Scholar
Cheplick, G. P. and White, T. P. 2002. Saltwater spray as an agent of natural selection: no evidence of local adaptation within a coastal population of Triplasis purpurea (Poaceae). Am. J. Bot 89:623–631.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
DiTommaso, A., Choy, J., and Watson, A. K. 2000. Seed germination of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) roadside populations and of potential competitor species under saline conditions. Weed Sci. Soc. Am. Abstr 40:17–18.Google Scholar
DiTommaso, A. and Massicotte, R. 2002. Vers une gestion intégrée et durable des dépendances vertes: Le contrôle biologique de la petite herbe à poux. Final report. Montreal, QC, Canada: Service de l'environnement et des études d'integration au milieu métropolitain (SEIMM) du ministère des transports du Québec. 144 p.Google Scholar
DiTommaso, A., Massicotte, R., and Watson, A. K. 2002. Management of common ragweed along roadways: a collaborative effort in Québec. Pages 83–87 in Tellman, B. ed. Proceedings of the Weeds Across Borders Conference. Tucson, AZ: The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.Google Scholar
D'Itri, F. M. 1992. Prologue. Pages v–x in D'Itri, F. M., ed. Chemical Deicers and the Environment. Boca Raton, FL: Lewis.Google Scholar
Forman, R. T. T. and Alexander, L. E. 1998. Roads and their major ecological effects. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst 29:207–231.Google Scholar
Greenway, H. and Munns, R. 1980. Mechanisms of salt tolerance in non-halophytes. Annu. Rev. Plant Physiol 31:149–190.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greipsson, S., Ahokas, H., and Vähämiko, S. 1997. A rapid adaptation to low salinity of inland-colonizing populations of the littoral grass Leymus arenarius . Int. J. Plant Sci 158:73–78.Google Scholar
Greipsson, S. and Davy, A. J. 1994. Germination of Leymus arenarius and its significance for land reclamation in Iceland. Ann. Bot. (Lond) 73:393–401.Google Scholar
Greipsson, S. and Davy, A. J. 1996. Sand accretion and salinity as constraints on the establishment of Leymus arenarius for land reclamation in Iceland. Ann. Bot. (Lond) 78:611–618.Google Scholar
Greub, L. J., Drolsom, P. N., and Rohweder, D. A. 1985. Salt tolerance of grasses and legumes for roadside use. Agron. J 77:76–80.Google Scholar
Gutterman, Y. 2000. Maternal effects on seeds during development. Pages 59–84 in Fenner, M., ed. Seeds: The Ecology of Regeneration in Plant Communities. 2nd ed. Wallingford, UK: CABI.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harper, J. L. 1977. Population Biology of Plants. London: Academic. Pp. 166–168.Google Scholar
Hutchinson, F. E. and Olson, B. E. 1967. The relationship of road salt applications to sodium and chloride ion levels in the soil bordering major highways. Transport Res. Rec 193:1–7.Google Scholar
International Seed Testing Association. 1985. International Rules for Seed Testing 1985. Seed Sci. Technol 13:300–520.Google Scholar
Jones, P. H., Jeffrey, B. A., Walter, P. K., and Hutchon, H. 1992. Environmental impact of road salting. Pages 1–116 in D'Intri, F. M. ed. Chemical Deicers and the Environment. Boca Raton, FL: Lewis.Google Scholar
Khan, M. A., Gul, B., and Weber, D. J. 2002. Seed germination in the Great Basin halophyte Salsola iberica . Can. J. Bot 80:650–655.Google Scholar
Khan, M. A. and Ungar, I. A. 1984. The effect of salinity and temperature on the germination of polymorphic seeds and growth of Atriplex triangularis . Willd. Am. J. Bot 71:481–489.Google Scholar
Khan, M. A. and Ungar, I. A. 2001. Effect of germination promoting compounds on the release of primary and salt-enforced seed dormancy in the halophyte Sporobolus arabicus . Boiss. Seed Sci. Technol 29:299–306.Google Scholar
Kiang, Y. T. 1982. Local differentiation of Anthoxanthum odoratum L. populations on roadsides. Am. Midl. Nat 107:340–350.Google Scholar
Labadia, C. F. and Buttle, J. M. 1996. Road salt accumulation in highway snow banks and transport through the unsaturated zone of the Oak Ridges Moraine, southern Ontario. Hydrol. Process 10:1575–1589.Google Scholar
Lambers, H., Chapin, F. S. III, and Pons, T. L. 1998. Plant Physiological Ecology. New York: Springer Pp. 277–280.Google Scholar
Liem, A. S. N., Hendricks, A., Kraal, H., and Loenen, M. 1985. Effects of de-icing salt on roadside grasses and herbs. Plant Soil 84:299–310.Google Scholar
Lombardo, V. and Saladino, L. 1997. Effect of salinity of water on seed germination capacity. Note II. Irrig. Dren 44:3–7.Google Scholar
Maryushkina, V. Y. 1991. Peculiarities of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) strategy. Agric. Ecosyst. Environ 36:207–216.Google Scholar
Miller, R. E. and Fowler, N. L. 1994. Life history variation and local adaptation within two populations of Bouteloua rigidiseta (Texas grama). J. Ecol 82:855–864.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noe, G. B. and Zedler, J. B. 2000. Differential effects of four abiotic factors on the germination of salt marsh annuals. Am. J. Bot 87:1679–1692.Google Scholar
Rahman, M. and Ungar, I. A. 1990. The effect of salinity on seed germination and seedling growth of Echinochloa crusgalli . Ohio J. Sci 90:13–15.Google Scholar
Rice, K. J. and Mack, R. N. 1991. Ecological genetics of Bromus tectorum. III. The demography of reciprocally sown populations. Oecologia 88:91–101.Google Scholar
Rothfels, C. J., Beaton, L. L., and Dudley, S. A. 2002. The effects of salt, manganese, and density on life history traits in Hesperis matronalis L. from oldfield and roadside populations. Can. J. Bot 80:131–139.Google Scholar
Slatkin, M. 1987. Gene flow and the demographic structure of natural populations. Science 236:787–792.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Steel, R. G. D. and Torrie, J. H. 1980. Principles and Procedures of Statistics. A Biometrical Approach. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill. Pp. 471–472.Google Scholar
Thompson, J. R. and Rutter, A. J. 1986. The salinity of motorway soils. IV. Effects of sodium chloride on some native British shrub species, and the possibility of establishing shrubs on the central reserves of motorways. J. Appl. Ecol 23:299–315.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, J. R., Rutter, A. J., and Ridout, P. S. 1986. The salinity of motorway soils. I. Variation in time and between regions in the salinity of soils of central reserves. J. Appl. Ecol 23:251–267.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ungar, I. A. 1995. Seed germination and seed-bank ecology in halophytes. Pages 599–627 in Kigel, J. and Galili, G. eds. Seed Development and Germination. New York: Marcel Dekker.Google Scholar
Ungar, I. A. 1996. Effect of salinity on seed germination, growth and ion accumulation of Atriplex patula (Chenopodiaceae). Am. J. Bot 83:604–607.Google Scholar
Van Tienderen, P. H. and Van Der Toorn, J. 1991. Genetic differentiation between populations of Plantago lanceolata. I. Local adaptation in three contrasting habitats. Ecology 79:27–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vickers, J. C. and Zak, J. M. 1978. Effects of pH phosphorus and aluminum on the growth and chemical composition of crown vetch. Agron. J 70:748–751.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ward, N. I., Roberts, E., and Brooks, R. R. 1977. Lead uptake by seedlings of Lolium perenne and Trifolium repens . N. Z. J. Sci 20:311–316.Google Scholar
Westing, A. H. 1969. Plants and salt in the roadside environment. Phytopathology 9:1174–1181.Google Scholar