Floral phenotypic response of <i> Ipomopsis aggregata </i> and related hybrids to changing soil moisture and nitrogen enrichment
Abstract
Plants are products of their environment. This is also true for flowers, which can be shaped through abiotic factors that lead to plastic response or natural selection. Both floral morphological traits and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have the potential to be impacted by environmental conditions. Floral morphology has long been understood to shape pollinator- plant interactions. VOCs emitted by floral tissues compose a plant’s floral scent, which is important for a variety of reproductive-related interactions. Namely, both the concentration and type of VOCs influence the activity of associated pollinators and herbivores. Learning more about floral morphology and VOCs and their response to abiotic conditions is essential due to their significance to plant reproduction and the current trends in global change. To contribute to this growing collection of knowledge, we investigated the effects of differing soil moisture conditions and nitrogen enrichment on the floral traits and VOC profiles of the well- studied Ipomopsis aggregata and related hybrids. To achieve this, we performed two experiments. The first was an observational study which monitored in situ soil moisture and attempted to correlate that to the emissions of compound. The second experiment was a manipulative study where nitrogen fertilizer was added to understand the effects of increased nitrogen on floral traits and VOCs. In response to nitrogen and water treatments we observed increased corolla width within the hybrid population. In terms of VOCs, the main effect was a larger increase in emission of alpha-pinene and beta-myrcene at night when nitrogen was applied, an effect seen only in the I. aggregata population. We did not detect associations of the floral traits with soil moisture. Understanding the effect of environmental conditions on floral traits is essential if we wish to know more about the future of plant-related biotic interactions under climate change.
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References (32)
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