Integration of response to defoliation within plants of two species of Sesbania
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Authors: D. L. Marshall
Date: 1989
Journal: Functional Ecology
Volume: 3
Number: 2
Pages: 207-214
Summary of Methods: Plants of two species of Sesbania were defoliated in patterns designed to reveal the level of integrated response. For field grown plants, defoliation caused fruit abortion on the defoliated branches, but not elsewhere, showing that the response is at the branch level. When some of the leaves within each branch were removed, the entire branch showed reduction in fruit set. Greenhouse-grown plants had a simpler overall shape, they were unbranched and so had more limited responses. Thus, the size and shape of plants may determine response. The two species also responded differently to the clipping methods. Sesbania vesicaria sustained more damage when half of each leaf was removed and Sesbania macrocarpa sustained more damage when every other leaf was removed. Based on these results and the results of previous studies, the authors suggest that the response level of Sesbania plants depends on the age, size, and time of year of defoliation and that different herbivore feeding strategies can have species specific effects on Sesbania plants.
Article Summary / Main Points: None
Vegetation Types:
MLRA Ecoregions:
Agrovoc Control Words: Riparian zones Rangelands Wildlife
Article Review Type: Refereed
Article Type: Experimental Research
Keywords: defoliation, metamer, integrated physiological unit, yield components, modular growth
Annotation: Clipping treatments were applied in the field and in a greenhouse experiment. Clipping treatments were: 1) No clipping; 2) Every other leaf removed along a branch, producing two classes of nodes: nodes with leaves and nodes without leaves; and 3) one half of each leaf was clipped along a branch.
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