HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Figures Only Full Text Free Full Text (PDF) Free Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Related articles in Crop Science Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (8) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Kokubun, M. Articles by Takahashi, M. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Kokubun, M. Articles by Takahashi, M. Agricola Articles by Kokubun, M. Articles by Takahashi, M. Related Collections Soybean Water Stress Crop Physiology & Metabolism

CROP PHYSIOLOGY & METABOLISM

Flower Abortion Caused by Preanthesis Water Deficit Is Not Attributed to Impairment of Pollen in Soybean

^a Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku Univ., Aoba-ku, Sendai, 981-8555, Japan
^b Tohoku National Agric. Exp. Stn., Kariwano, Akita, 019-2112, Japan
^c National Agriculture Research Center, Kannondai, Tsukuba, 305-8666, Japan

* Corresponding author (kokubun{at}bios.tohoku.ac.jp)

A large proportion of flowers in the soybean plant [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] abort during development. Water stress imposed during the development of flowers is a major factor increasing the rate of abortion, and long-term or frequent water deficits during this period might decrease yield. The physiological mechanism underlying this phenomenon remains unclear. The objectives of this study were (i) to discover whether a water deficit imposed on a soybean genotype IX93-100 prior to anthesis could cause the abortion of the proximal flowers, which are destined to produce seed-bearing pods at a high rate under optimal conditions, and (ii) to determine whether the abortion was due to the impairment of the pistil (ovule) or stamen (pollen) function. Water stress caused by restriction of watering for 3 d during the preanthesis stage significantly increased the abortion of the proximal flowers. The pistils of well-watered plants, pollinated with either stressed or nonstressed pollen, produced pods at a considerable rate, whereas only a small percentage of water-stressed pistils developed into pods, even when crossed with nonstressed pollen. These results suggest that flower abortion caused by a preanthesis water deficit is not attributed to an impairment of pollen, but was probably due to impairment of ovule function.

Abbreviations: DAF, days after flowering • PPFD, photosynthetic photon flux density

Related articles in Crop Science:

This issue in Crop science

Crop Science 2001 41: 1379-1380. [Full Text]  

This article has been cited by other articles:

				K. Sun, K. Hunt, and B. A. Hauser Ovule Abortion in Arabidopsis Triggered by Stress Plant Physiology, August 1, 2004; 135(4): 2358 - 2367. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]