Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Patterson, D. T.
Right arrow Articles by Duke, S. O.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow Articles by Patterson, D. T.
Right arrow Articles by Duke, S. O.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Patterson, D. T.
Right arrow Articles by Duke, S. O.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Plant and Cell Physiology, 1979, Vol. 20, No. 1 177-184
© 1979

Article

Effect of growth irradiance on the maximum photosynthetic capacity of water hyacinth [Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms]1

David T. Patterson and Stephen O. Duke

Southern Weed Science Laboratory US0A-SEA-AR, P. O. Box 225, Stoneville, Mississippi 38776, U. S. A.

We grew water hyacinth [Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms] for 60 days in a greenhouse under natural light and in a controlled environment room at 31/25°C day/night temperatures and 90, 320 and 750/µEm–2sec–1. We then determined maximum photosynthetic rates in 21% and 1% oxygen, stomatal diffusion resistances, contents of chlorophyll and soluble protein, and the size and density of the photosynthetic units (PSU) in representative leaves from the four treatments. In air containing 21% oxygen, maximum photosynthetic rates were 14, 27 and 29 mg CO2 dm–2hr–1 for plants grown in artificial light at 90, 320 and 750µEm–2sec–1, respectively. Plants grown in natural light (maximum of 2000 µEm–2sec–1) had maximum photosynthetic rates of 34 mg CO2 dm–2hr–1. In all treatments, photosynthetic rates in 1% oxygen were about 50% greater than rates in normal air, indicating the presence of photorespiration in water hyacinth. There was no apparent relationship between maximum photosynthetic rate per unit leaf area and stomatal conductance, chlorophyll content per unit area, or PSU density per unit area. However, the higher maximum photosynthetic rates were associated with greater mesophyll conductances, specific leaf weights and protein contents per unit area. When plants grown at 90µEm–2sec–1 for 120 days were transferred to 750µEm–2sec–1 for 5 days, only young leaves that were just beginning to expand at the time of transfer exhibited adaptation to the higher irradiance. The 40% increase in light-saturated photosynthetic rate in these young leaves was associated with increases in mesophyll conductance, soluble protein content per unit area, and specific leaf weight.

1 Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station cooperating.

(Received July 19, 1978; )
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.