异质生境下黑果枸杞异形果实的种子休眠及萌发特性 postprint

Abstract: A national second-class protected food and medicinal plant, Lycium ruthenicum grows in NorthwestChina’s arid, arid- land climate. At various elevation populations in southern Xinjiang, China, this speciesproduces flat and spherical fruit individuals and noticeably varied heteromorphic fruit individuals. We studiedseed sets and their quality, seed germination and dormancy, and drought stress responses of both types of fruitsfrom different elevation populations in laboratory settings, as well as the adaptive strategies of this species indifferent climate weather populations at southern Xinjiang to better understand how the heteromorphic fruit ofthis species adapted to its different climate desert habitat. Flat fruits had a larger seed set than globular fruits.Moreover, the seed set was reduced for both types of fruits with the increasing elevation, while seed qualityimproved for the same as elevation increased. The ability of seeds to absorb water is greater in low- elevationpopulations than in high-elevation populations, and the ability of seeds in flat fruit to absorb water is greater thanthat of globular fruit. The major elements that were employed to disrupt L. ruthenicum seed dormancy andincrease seed germination were high temperature (20-30 °C), low concentration (0.1 mmol·L−1 of GA3), and darkmode circumstances. The drought resistance of globular fruit seeds in low-elevation populations was greater thanthat of high-elevation populations, and they were 30% more susceptible to drought stress.