Ensiling, a lactic acid fermentation process, is mainly used to preserve biomass. In addition, it has been shown affect seed viability of some plant species. The extent which this makes ensiling suitable as weed control measure, however, not yet determined. Both the range controllable species and parameters an process that safely kills seeds are still undefined. We aimed determine effect varyin...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Environmental change is increasingly impacting ecosystems worldwide. However, our knowledge about the interacting effects of various drivers of global change on sexual reproduction of plants, one of their key mechanisms to cope with change, is limited. This study examines populations of poorly regenerating and threatened common juniper (Juniperus communis) to determine the i...

A large body of research has documented the effect of seed priming ongermination, emergence and crop yield. In such research, seed priming has beenfound to have a positive, negative or no effect. Meta-analysis can help tosummarize and interpret a collection of experiments. The aim of this study was toconduct a meta-analysis to synthesize published data from studies addressing theeffect of seed ...

Studying seed dormancy and its consequent effect can provide important information for vegetation restoration and management. The present study investigated seed dormancy, seedling emergence and seed survival in the soil seed bank of Stipa bungeana, a grass species used in restoration of degraded land on the Loess Plateau in northwest China. Dormancy of fresh seeds was determined by incubation ...

We review developments in cone and seed production research during the past decade. We conclude that although cone induction techniques, including hormonal and cultural procedures, have been refined, they still do not fully overcome juvenility or noninductive environmental effects. The role pollen plays in enhancing seed production and the genetic quality of seed is discussed. Techniques for ha...

Elymus sibiricus L. is an important forage grass widely distributed in Asia and is usually a dominant species on Tibetan Plateau alpine grasslands. Here, we used the seed development indices of 1000 seed weight, seed moisture content, and seed viability to compare the seed characteristics at 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 days after anthesis (DAA) in five populations of E. sibiricus growing in Gann...