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Alfalfa water status and cold hardiness as influenced by cold acclimation and water stress
Author(s) -
STOUT DARRYL G.
Publication year - 1980
Publication title -
plant, cell and environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.646
H-Index - 200
eISSN - 1365-3040
pISSN - 0140-7791
DOI - 10.1111/1365-3040.ep11581816
Subject(s) - hardiness (plants) , acclimatization , dehydration , phytotron , turgor pressure , dry matter , water stress , botany , horticulture , dry weight , medicago sativa , biology , chemistry , agronomy , zoology , cultivar , biochemistry
Water stress at a nonacclimating temperature (18–20°C) increased the cold hardiness of Medicago sativa L. (alfalfa) plants. This increased cold hardiness was retained when the previously water‐stressed plants were cold acclimated (2–9°C) in the absence of water stress. Water stress during cold acclimation also increased cold hardiness. Alfalfa was demonstrated to suffer injury, measured as decreased growth following freezing, at sub‐lethal temperatures. During cold acclimation the turgor potential (ψ) of watered plants increased, whereas the solute potential and the water content per unit dry weight decreased. The large positive psgrdap of acclimated plants indicates that the decreased water content per unit dry weight is related to an increased proportion of tissue dry matter rather than to tissue dehydration.