Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness?
Background and aims – The cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum) is being grown in Germany as a promising new bioenergy crop with an increasing area under cultivation in the last years. Its alien status, its high productivity, and high reproductive potential could carry the risk of this species becoming i...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Meise Botanic Garden
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Plant Ecology and Evolution |
| Online Access: | https://plecevo.eu/article/104640/download/pdf/ |
| _version_ | 1797305100170952704 |
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| author | L. Marie Ende Lukas Hummel Marianne Lauerer |
| author_facet | L. Marie Ende Lukas Hummel Marianne Lauerer |
| author_sort | L. Marie Ende |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background and aims – The cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum) is being grown in Germany as a promising new bioenergy crop with an increasing area under cultivation in the last years. Its alien status, its high productivity, and high reproductive potential could carry the risk of this species becoming invasive. The present study investigates the dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds, to contribute to the assessment of its invasive potential. Material and methods – For this purpose, four experimental studies were conducted in Germany, Central Europe: wind dispersal distance was measured in a field experiment for wind speeds up to 7 m.s-1. The seeds were offered to rodents in different habitats near to a cup plant field. We observed seed persistence and germination over 4 weeks storing in water and over 4 years storing in different soil depths. Key results – Cup plant seeds are dispersed by wind only over a few meters. In the forest, rodents removed 100% of the offered seeds, in open habitats none. Independent of the duration of storage in water, germination rate of the cup plant seeds was constantly high. Most of the seeds already germinated in water in the first two weeks. Stored on the soil surface and at 10 cm soil depth, the seeds germinated already in the first two years. Stored at 30 cm depth, one third of the seeds retained their germination ability over four years. Conclusion – Wind serves as short-distance dispersal vector for cup plant seeds. Rodents remove the seeds, but it is unknown whether they disperse them or just eat them. Water could disperse the seeds, which retain their germination ability, over long distances. The cup plant could therefore spread and possibly become invasive in Central Europe, and therefore measures are suggested to prevent its dispersal and spontaneous settlement. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T00:20:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6cfff37a89bd471bb11475ba38f51a34 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2032-3921 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T00:20:18Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Meise Botanic Garden |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Plant Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-6cfff37a89bd471bb11475ba38f51a342024-02-16T10:40:52ZengMeise Botanic GardenPlant Ecology and Evolution2032-39212024-02-011571758710.5091/plecevo.104640104640Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness?L. Marie Ende0Lukas Hummel1Marianne Lauerer2University of BayreuthUniversity of BayreuthUniversity of BayreuthBackground and aims – The cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum) is being grown in Germany as a promising new bioenergy crop with an increasing area under cultivation in the last years. Its alien status, its high productivity, and high reproductive potential could carry the risk of this species becoming invasive. The present study investigates the dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds, to contribute to the assessment of its invasive potential. Material and methods – For this purpose, four experimental studies were conducted in Germany, Central Europe: wind dispersal distance was measured in a field experiment for wind speeds up to 7 m.s-1. The seeds were offered to rodents in different habitats near to a cup plant field. We observed seed persistence and germination over 4 weeks storing in water and over 4 years storing in different soil depths. Key results – Cup plant seeds are dispersed by wind only over a few meters. In the forest, rodents removed 100% of the offered seeds, in open habitats none. Independent of the duration of storage in water, germination rate of the cup plant seeds was constantly high. Most of the seeds already germinated in water in the first two weeks. Stored on the soil surface and at 10 cm soil depth, the seeds germinated already in the first two years. Stored at 30 cm depth, one third of the seeds retained their germination ability over four years. Conclusion – Wind serves as short-distance dispersal vector for cup plant seeds. Rodents remove the seeds, but it is unknown whether they disperse them or just eat them. Water could disperse the seeds, which retain their germination ability, over long distances. The cup plant could therefore spread and possibly become invasive in Central Europe, and therefore measures are suggested to prevent its dispersal and spontaneous settlement.https://plecevo.eu/article/104640/download/pdf/ |
| spellingShingle | L. Marie Ende Lukas Hummel Marianne Lauerer Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness? Plant Ecology and Evolution |
| title | Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness? |
| title_full | Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness? |
| title_fullStr | Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness? |
| title_short | Dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds (Silphium perfoliatum): do they contribute to potential invasiveness? |
| title_sort | dispersal and persistence of cup plant seeds silphium perfoliatum do they contribute to potential invasiveness |
| url | https://plecevo.eu/article/104640/download/pdf/ |
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