Selecting for drought tolerance among Australian green couch grasses (Cynodon spp.)
Yi Zhou A , Chris Lambrides A B , Ryan Kearns A , Changrong Ye A , Ninh Cao A and Shu Fukai AA The University of Queensland, School of Land, Crop and Food Sciences, Qld 4072, Australia.
B Corresponding author. Email: chris.lambrides@uq.edu.au
Crop and Pasture Science 60(12) 1175-1183 https://doi.org/10.1071/CP09172
Submitted: 15 June 2009 Accepted: 31 July 2009 Published: 23 November 2009
Abstract
Increasing demand for scarce water resources in Australia has led to the selection of turfgrass genotypes with good drought tolerance. Here we describe the development of methodologies for screening green couch grasses (Cynodon spp.) grown in 40-cm PVC pots placed under rainout shelters. The drought tolerance of up to 8 genotypes including 4 commercial varieties (CT2, Grand Prix, Legend, and Winter Green) and 4 wild Australian ecotypes (1-1, 25-a-1, 40-1, and 81-1) was examined in 3 experiments conducted in 2007–08 and 2008–09. In the first experiment, all genotypes were grown with 2 soil types (clay and sandy soils) and 2 clipping heights (5 and 2 cm). Genotypic variation for survival period (defined as the period from the time water was withheld until 100% leaf firing had occurred) was high for the sandy soil × 2 cm clipping height treatment and, because retrieval of roots was easy, this combination was used in Expts 2 and 3 as the best system for screening drought tolerance. This method gave highly repeatable results across 2 years. Wild ecotype 81-1 had a significantly longer survival period than other genotypes, possibly associated with lower stomatal conductance early after water deficit was imposed, a greater root biomass at depth, and greater osmotic adjustment.
Additional keywords: turf, grass, ecotypes, water deficit, bermuda grass.
Acknowledgments
This project was supported by the Australian Research Council (ARC). The assistance of the Central Glasshouse Service Unit of The University of Queensland is also acknowledged.
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