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Acta Prataculturae Sinica ›› 2022, Vol. 31 ›› Issue (9): 96-106.DOI: 10.11686/cyxb2021371

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Allelopathic effects of extracts of Sonchus asper on seed germination and seedling growth of three herbaceous flower species

Ying-zi GUO1,2(), Wen-qing JIA2(), Song-lin HE1(), Zheng WANG1   

  1. 1.College of Landscape Architecture and Art,Henan Agricultural University,Zhengzhou 450002,China
    2.School of Horticulture Landscape Architecture,Henan Institute of Science and Technology,Xinxiang 453003,China
  • Received:2021-10-09 Revised:2021-11-23 Online:2022-09-20 Published:2022-08-12
  • Contact: Wen-qing JIA,Song-lin HE

Abstract:

This study explored the allelopathic mechanisms at play in competition between Sonchus asper and common herbaceous flowers. In this experiment, a petri dish bioassay was used to study the effects of different concentrations of extracts from aboveground and underground parts of S. asper on seed germination, seedling growth activities of related enzymes and malondialdehyde (MDA) content of the three herbaceous flower species Orychophragmus violaceus, Dianthus chinensis and Brassica juncea. It was anticipated the results might lay a foundation for development of biological control methods for weeds. It was found that the extracts of S. asper typically had a promotional effect at low concentration and an inhibitory effect at high concentration on the seedling growth of the three tested flower species. At a concentration of 5 g·L-1, the promotional effect of the two extracts was greatest for O. violaceus, followed by D. chinensisand the inhibitory effect reached a maximum at a concentration of 100 g·L-1. The two S. asper extracts increased the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in seedlings of the three tested flower seedlings. For O. violaceus and B. juncea this effect peaked at 50 g·L-1, and for D. chinensis the effect peaked at 25 g·L-1, and SOD activity remained higher than control at 100 g·L-1. The activities of peroxidase (POD) and catalase (CAT) in the tested flower species were increased at low concentrations of S. asper extract and then decreased at higher concentration, while the content of MDA increased with successive increases in the concentration of the extract. There was a very significant positive correlation between POD activity and seed germination rate of D. chinensis, and a highly significant positive correlation between POD activity and stem length and root length in B. juncea. The root length of O. violaceus wassignificantly positively correlated with the activities of POD and CAT, and stem length and the germination rate of O. violaceus wassignificantly positively correlated with the activity of CAT. A calculated index of the overall degree of allelopathic activity of the S. asper extracts on seed germination and growth ranked the effects on the tested flower species B. juncea>D. chinensis>O. violaceus. In summary, the extract causes a degree of damage to cell membranes of the three tested flower seedlings, so it would be advisable to avoid the flower planting in land seriously infested with S. asper.

Key words: seed germination, extract, allelopathy, Sonchus asper, enzyme activity