The early vegetative growth of two annual pasture grasses (Hordeum leporinum Link and Lolium rigidum Gaud.)

Abstract

The early vegetative growth of Houdeum Iepouinum and Lolium rigidum was studied at three temperatures in a controlled environment cabinet. The seedling growth rate in each species was much more rapid during the period of endosperm availability than after cndospcrm exhaustion. At the temperatures tested (10, 17, and 24�C) the relative growth rate of Lolium was greater than that of Houdeum, with a relatively slight difference at 10 and 24�, but with a considerable difference at 17�. In spite of the superior relative growth rate of Lolium, seedlings of Houdeum were, for a considerable period following emergence, larger in terms of total weight, leaf area, root weight, root depth, and plant height because of the greater seed size. The length of this period of greater size depended on the temperature, being least (c. 26 days) at 17�C, when the advantage of Lolium was greatest. The implications of these findings in pasture production in southern Australia, and especially in the competitive relationships of Hordeum and Lolium, are described.