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Effect of Water Stress on the Growth and Fecundity of CommonWaterhemp (Amaranthus rudis)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Debalin Sarangi
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583
Suat Irmak
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Systems Engineering, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583
John L. Lindquist
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583
Stevan Z. Knezevic
Affiliation:
Northeast Research and Extension Center, Haskell Agricultural Laboratory, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Concord, NE 68728
Amit J. Jhala*
Affiliation:
Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583
*
Corresponding author's E-mail: Amit.Jhala@unl.edu
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Abstract

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Common waterhemp is one of the most commonly encountered and troublesomeweeds in the midwestern United States. It is well known that water stressadversely affects crop growth and yield; however, the effects of waterstress on weed growth and seed production are poorly understood. Theobjective of this study was to determine the effects of degree and durationof water stress on growth, development, and fecundity of two commonwaterhemp biotypes in greenhouse experiments conducted at the University ofNebraska–Lincoln. No difference was observed in growth, development, andseed production between two biotypes in response to degree and duration ofwater stress; therefore, data were combined. The degree of water stressstudy included five treatments, where the amount of water applied to eachpot at 2-d interval was equivalent to 100, 75, 50, 25, and 12.5% of pot(soil) water content. The highest plant height (163 cm), number of leaves(231 plant−1), and growth index (4.4 × 105 cm3) were recorded at 100% of pot water content (no waterstress). Similarly, aboveground biomass, total leaf area, and seedproduction reached their maximum at 100% of pot water content treatment,whereas they were reduced as degree of water stress increased. The study ofwater stress duration included five treatments, where amount of waterapplied to each pot at 2-, 4-, 6-, 8-, and 10-d intervals was equivalent to100% of pot water content. The highest plant height (150 cm), number ofleaves (210 plant−1), and growth index (3.8 × 105 cm3) were observed at 2-d interval of water stress, whereasseed production was similar at 2-d (36,549 seeds plant−1) and 4-d(34,176 seeds plant−1) intervals. This study shows that commonwaterhemp has capacity to survive and reproduce even under a higher degreeand duration of water stress.

Information

Type
Weed Biology and Ecology
Copyright
Copyright © Weed Science Society of America