Germination Responses of Three Desert Grasses to Moisture Stress and Light

Abstract

Lehmann lovegrass appeared very susceptible to physiological drought while Arizona cottontop and plains bristlegrass were not appreciably affected until osmotic tensions exceeded 12 atm. Lehmann lovegrass was the fastest and plains bristlegrass was the slowest to germinate. This study indicated that the adaptability and responsiveness of Lehmann lovegrass is due to its ability to germinate rapidly whereas the other two species require more time of moisture availability. Lehmann lovegrass and Arizona cottontop appeared adversely affected by constant darkness which suggests that they require a shallow planting while plains bristlegrass seemed to have the opposite response, which suggests that it requires a deeper planting.