Data from: Effects of apical meristem mining on plant fitness, architecture and flowering phenology in Cirsium altissimum (Asteracaeae)
Data files
Jan 13, 2015 version files 300.76 KB
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Axial Head Position Diameter and Seeds.xls
31.23 KB
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Flower Head Data Set.xlsx
26.70 KB
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Greenhouse Seed Quality Data Set.xls
46.59 KB
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Plant Data Set.xls
86.53 KB
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README_for_Axial Head Position Diameter and Seeds.docx
13.63 KB
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README_for_Flower Head Data Set.docx
13.53 KB
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README_for_Greenhouse Seed Quality Data Set.docx
14.07 KB
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README_for_Plant Data Set.docx
15.04 KB
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README_for_Terminal Head Position Diameter and Seeds.docx
13.50 KB
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Terminal Head Position Diameter and Seeds.xls
39.94 KB
Abstract
Premise of the study: Interactions that limit lifetime seed production have the potential to limit plant population sizes and drive adaptation through natural selection. Effects of insect herbivory to apical meristems (apical meristem mining) on lifetime seed production rarely have been quantified experimentally. We studied Cirsium altissimum (tall thistle), whose meristems are mined by Platyptilia carduidactyla (artichoke plume moth), to determine how apical damage affects plant maternal fitness and evaluate both direct and indirect mechanisms underlying these effects. Methods: In restored prairie, apical mining was manipulated on tall thistles by applying insecticide, water, or no spray to apical meristems. We quantified effects on lifetime seed production, plant architecture, and flowering phenology. Seed germinability and seedling mass were evaluated in a greenhouse. Key results: Apical meristem miners decreased lifetime seed production of C. altissimum, but not seed quality. Higher mortality rates of damaged plants contributed to reduced seed production. Apical damage reduced plant height and increased the proportion of blooming flower heads in axial positions on branches. Apical damage delayed flowering and shortened flowering duration. Conclusions: Apical meristem mining reduced plant maternal fitness. The shift in the identity of blooming flower heads from terminal to axial positions contributed to this reduction because axial heads are less fecund. Shorter, meristem-mined plants may have been more susceptible to competition, and this susceptibility may explain their higher mortality rates. The kinds of changes in architecture and phenology that resulted from apical damage to C. altissimum have been shown to affect floral visitation in other plant species.