Full Length Research Paper

Allelopathy regulates wheat genotypes performance at the enhancement stage by soil water and prohydrojasmon (PDJ)

Shengpeng Zuo^1#, Jinhu Zhi⁴, Hongbo Shao^2,3,5#* and Guangchao Zhao¹

¹College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China.

²State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of  Sciences and Ministry of  Water Resources, Yangling 712100,China.

³Yantai Institute of Costal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai 264003, China.

⁴College of Plant Sciences, Tarim University, Alaer 843300, China.

⁵Institute for Life Sciences, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, China.

*Corresponding author. E-mail: shaohongbochu@126.com.  

Tel: +86 532 84023984.

Abbreviations: PDJ, Prohydrojasmon; CCA, canonical correspondence analysis;   ABA,    abscisic   acid;    Pro,    proline;    SOD, superoxide dismutase; CAT, catalase; POD, peroxidise; MDA, malondialdehyde; MJ, methyl jasmonate; WUE, water use efficiency; RI, reaction index; JA, jasmonic acids; CMV, cucumber mosaic virus.

 ^#These authors contributed equally to this paper.

Accepted 28 July, 2010

   Abstract

Growth adaptation and allelopathic potential of four winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) accessions has been investigated in pot experiments by prohydrojasmon (PDJ, 10 - 5M) and soil water (75 and 45%) at the enhancement stage. This paper also presented the performance of photosynthesis, water use and weed suppression. The effect of soil water and PDJ on wheat performance displayed significant differences depending on tested wheat cultivars and measured parameters. Water deficit decreased plant biomass significantly and changed phenotypic characteristics like plant height and leaf area of wheat. However, PDJ was found to stimulate wheat root growth and development so as to enhance pressure resistance and induce strong allelopathic potential and weed resistance. Physiological response in var. Lankao 95 - 25 to water shortage and PDJ was significantly relative to net photosynthesis rate and water use efficiency. Water deficit and PDJ would lead to plant phenotype and photosynthesis change and consequently, influence allelopathic expression and weed suppression of wheat based on Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA). Water deficit would induce the production and accumulation of more allelochemicals in wheat by passive transport of energy cost. Differing the regulation mechanism of water stress, PDJ showed active transport of energy supply in allelopathic stimulation, which implied that PDJ mainly exhibited its hormone effect to regulate and control wheat growth and development such as improving phenotypic features on competition at the basis of increasing growth cost. Therefore, it was possible for artificial measures to regulate allelopathic potential and weed resistance capacity of winter wheat cultivars, especially, in the arid areas of Loess Plateau of China.

Key word: Allelopathic potential, inducible regulation and interaction, prohydrojasmon, soil water stress, weed suppression, winter wheat.