2024-03-28T10:17:40Zhttp://digital.csic.es/dspace-oai/requestoai:digital.csic.es:10261/391872018-09-21T09:50:26Zcom_10261_65com_10261_8col_10261_318
Meristem Growth, Phenology, and Architecture in Chamaephytes of the Iberian Peninsula: Insights into a Largely Neglected Life Form
Montserrat-Martí, Gabriel
Palacio, Sara
Milla, Rubén
Giménez-Benavides, Luis
Buds
Expansion
Morphogenetic cycle
Organogenesis
Pheno-morphology
Plant trait data bases
Primordia
20 páginas, 5 figuras, 2 tablas.-- El PDF es la versión post-print.-- The original publication is available at www.springerlink.com
Protection of resting buds and timing of shoot development are crucial morphological traits of plants growing in a seasonal climate. For eight species of Iberian chamaephytes with contrasting morphology and ecology, we explored the different growth stages within the morphogenetic cycle of the shoot (including the initiation, morphogenesis and maturation of vegetative and reproductive structures), the seasonality of these growth stages and their relationship with the general climate of the species distribution area. We evaluated the implications of morphogenetic cycles on the phenology, architecture and distribution of each species, and tried to identify good descriptors of these cycles for their inclusion in databases of functional plant traits. The morphology, activity and growth of meristems and the expansion of shoots were assessed periodically by dissecting buds under stereomicroscope. Plant phenology was recorded monthly for a minimum of 13 months on 15 marked plants of six out of the eight study species. All species showed naked buds, with meristems protected by leaf primordia and surrounding young leaves. We identified five stages of growth that summarize the processes of organogenesis and expansion of primordia in study species. Depending on the temporal arrangement of these stages and the type of structures subtending renewal meristems, we identified two types of morphogenetic cycles in study species: naked buds formed on brachyblasts (short branches) that extend for a relatively long time by neoformation; and naked buds on little shoot primordia that remain concealed by part of subtending leaves and extend rapidly in spring (preformed growth) sometimes followed by a period of slow expansion by neoformation. These morphogenetic cycles seem to be related to the general climate where study species grow: species with brachyblasts grow preferentially in areas with dry summers and not very cold winters, while species with shoot primordia protected by leaf structures tend to grow in areas with cold winters and not very dry summers. Some traits like the type and size of buds, or the type of morphogenetic cycle are quite easy to measure and provide important ecological information. These traits are good candidates to be included in plant trait databases.
This study was possible thanks to the collaboration within the GLOBIMED
network (Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, Spain) and the financial support of the MEC-CICyT projects
CGL2006-09431/BOS, CGL2007-66066-C04/BOS and CGL2008-04847-C02-01, DGA project GA-LC-
011/2008, and INIA projects RTA2005-00100-C02-00 and SUM2006-00025-00-00. SP and RM were
funded by a JAE-Doc CSIC and a Juan de la Cierva contract, respectively.
Peer reviewed
2011-09-01T08:10:49Z
2011-09-01T08:10:49Z
2011
artículo
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
Folia Geobotanica 46(2-3): 117-136 (2011)
1211-9520
http://hdl.handle.net/10261/39187
10.1007/s12224-010-9073-6
1874-9348
en
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12224-010-9073-6
open
Springer