ARS | Publication request: GROWTH PHASES OF LESQUERELLA FENDLERI AND L. PALLIDA IN RESPONSE TO TWO DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES

Submitted to: Society for Economic Botany Annual Meeting
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: May 1, 2003
Publication Date: June 5, 2003
Citation: Bodey, D., Dierig, D.A., Tomasi, P. 2003. Growth phases of lesquerella fendleri and l. pallida in response to two different temperatures. Economic Botany. pp 13. (Abstract)

Technical Abstract: Lesquerella is a potential new alternative industrial oilseed crop currently being studied for its hydroxy fatty acid (HFA) content. Understanding the plant development stages and the effect of the number of growing degree-days is important in determining the areas of seed production. Seventy-five plants of each species were planted in two growth chambers set at 140C and 180C, respectively. We measured the number of days it took the plants to move from one growth stage to the next at both temperatures. Six growth stages were identified and the criteria for each stage were determined as follows: I) Emergence ' the appearance of the cotyledons; II) Early Vegetative ' a predetermined number of leaves; III) Late Vegetative ' predetermined number of branches; IV) Bud ' the appearance of flower buds on the branches; V) Flower ' open flowers; VI) Siliques ' the appearance of siliques. The plants were scored on a routine basis and the number of days it took to reach a specific stage calculated. This information will be utilized in future studies in determining growth stages in the field at different planting zones.