A standardized and efficient technique to estimate seed traits in plants with numerous small propagules.

Premise: Variation in seed traits is common within and among populations of plant species and often has ecological and evolutionary implications. However, due to the time-consuming nature of manual seed measurements and the level of variability in imaging techniques, quantifying and interpreting the extent of seed variation can be challenging.

Methods: We developed a standardized high-throughput technique to measure seed number, as well as individual seed area and color, using a derived empirical scale to constrain area in , and .

Outcrossing rates in an experimentally admixed population of self-compatible and self-incompatible Arabidopsis lyrata.

The transition to self-compatibility from self-incompatibility is often associated with high rates of self-fertilization, which can restrict gene flow among populations and cause reproductive isolation of self-compatible (SC) lineages. Secondary contact between SC and self-incompatible (SI) lineages might re-establish gene flow if SC lineages remain capable of outcrossing. By contrast, intrinsic features of SC plants that reinforce high rates of self-fertilization could maintain evolutionary divergence between lineages.

A shift towards the annual habit in selfing .

An annual life history is often associated with the ability to self-fertilize. However, it is unknown whether the evolution of selfing commonly precedes the evolution of annuality, or . Using a 2-year common garden experiment, we asked if the evolution of selfing in the normally perennial was accompanied by a shift towards the annual habit.