Flexible Resource Allocation-Efficient Water Use Strategies Facilitate Invasion of Invasive Vine Sicyos angulatus L.
by
Qingmin Pan
1,†,
Chenyang Xue
2,†,
Lin Meng
3,
Ying Gao
3,
Mengyang Yu
3,
Lin Geng
3,
Ping Guan
1,* and
Bo Qu
1,* 1
College of Biological Technology, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110016, China
2
Key Laboratory of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016, China
3
Yixian Water Conservancy Affairs Service Center, Yixian 121100, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Biology 2024, 13(6), 392; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology13060392
Submission received: 2 May 2024
/
Revised: 19 May 2024
/
Accepted: 27 May 2024
/
Published: 29 May 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biology, Ecology and Management of Invasive Alien Plants)
Simple Summary
The invasive vine Sicyos angulatus L. destroys the natural ecosystem of invaded areas and seriously interferes with normal agricultural production. Understanding the growth and development characteristics of S. angulatus is necessary in order to explore its invasion mechanisms and implement appropriate prevention and control measures. Flexible resource allocation and efficient water use strategies promote the growth and development of S. angulatus. In addition to conventional pesticides and aboveground removal measures, strengthening the removal of the root system of S. angulatus helps to improve control efficiency.
Abstract
The invasive vine Sicyos angulatus L. destroys the natural ecosystem of invaded areas. Understanding the differences in growth and development between S. angulatus and other plants is necessary to explore the invasion mechanisms of S. angulatus and implement appropriate prevention and control measures. Thus, this study compared the growth, photosynthesis, and root characteristics of invasive liana S. angulatus and other three vine plants, Ipomoea nil (L.) Roth, Ipomoea purpurea (L.), and Thladiantha dubia Bunge, at different growth stages: seedling, flowering, and fruiting. The results showed that the total biomass of S. angulatus in the fruiting stage was 3–6 times that of the other three plants, and the root biomass ratio and root–shoot ratio decreased throughout the growth stage. Throughout the growth stage, the total leaf area of S. angulatus was significantly higher than that of the other three plant types, and the specific leaf area of S. angulatus at the seedling and flowering stages was 2.5–3 and 1.4–3 times that of the other three plants, respectively. The photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and transpiration rate of S. angulatus at the fruiting stage were significantly higher than those of the other three plants, and its water use efficiency was higher than that of the other three plants at the three growth stages, indicating its strong photosynthetic capacity. The root activity and root pressure of S. angulatus were also significantly higher than those of the other three plants at the seedling and flowering stages. These results show that S. angulatus flexibly allocates resources to its aboveground parts during the growth stage to ensure that the plant obtains the space necessary for its growth and development and that with the help of higher root pressure and root activity, S. angulatus can maintain higher photosynthesis and water use efficiency with fewer resources. Therefore, the prevention and control of S. angulatus requires a combination of aboveground and underground measures. Spraying conventional weedicide/herbicide and manually removing aboveground plants may lead to its resurgence.
Keywords:
invasive plants; vine; photosynthesis; root pressure
