Grain, sugar and biomass accumulation in photoperiod-sensitive sorghums. II. Biochemical processes at internode level and interaction with phenology.

Sugar accumulation in sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) stems is a complex trait that is particularly plastic in response to photoperiod. This study investigated sucrose accumulation in a sterile (no grain filling) and fertile near-isogenic line of the photoperiod-sensitive cultivar IS2848 in two greenhouse experiments.

Grain, sugar and biomass accumulation in tropical sorghums. I. Trade-offs and effects of phenological plasticity.

Grain and sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) differ in their ability to produce either high grain yield or high sugar concentration in the stems. Some cultivars of sorghum may yield both grains and sugar.

Source-sink imbalance increases with growth temperature in the spring geophyte Erythronium americanum.

Spring geophytes produce larger storage organs and present delayed leaf senescence under lower growth temperature. Bulb and leaf carbon metabolism were investigated in Erythronium americanum to identify some of the mechanisms that permit this improved growth at low temperature. Plants were grown under three day/night temperature regimes: 18/14 °C, 12/8 °C, and 8/6 °C.

Carbon dioxide enrichment does not reduce leaf longevity or alter accumulation of carbon reserves in the woodland spring ephemeral Erythronium americanum.

Background And Aims: Woodland spring ephemerals exhibit a relatively short epigeous growth period prior to canopy closure. However, it has been suggested that leaf senescence is induced by a reduction in the carbohydrate sink demand, rather than by changes in light availability. To ascertain whether a potentially higher net carbon (C) assimilation rate could shorten leaf lifespan due to an accelerated rate of storage, Erythronium americanum plants were grown under ambient (400 ppm) and elevated (1100 ppm) CO2 concentrations.