Res. on Crops 18 (2) : 210-215 (2017) With seven figures Printed in India Sarcopoterium spinosum (L.) Spach aqueous extract inhibits seed germination and seedling growth of winter wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) HAZEM S. HASAN*,1, KHALDOUN J. AL-HADID 2 AND SAEID ABU-ROMMAN 3 1 Department of Plant Production and Protection Faculty of Agricultural Technology Al-Balqa Applied University, Al-Salt 19117, Jordan *(e-mail : Hazem@bau.edu.jo) (Received : May 09. 2017/Accepted : June 13, 2017) ABSTRACT Aqueous extract of Sarcopoterium spinosum (L.) Spach was evaluated for phytotoxicity effect against winter wheat (Triticum durum) seed germination and seedling growth. Aqueous concentrations of 2, 4, 8 and 10% (w/v) of Sarcopoterium spinosum were used. The reduction in germination percentage was more than 40%, while the reduction in germination rate was almost 60%. The reduction in radicle length was more than 60%, while the reduction in radicle dry weight was almost 50%. The reduction in plumule length was more than 40%, while the reduction in plumule dry weight was more than 35%. The reduction of root dry weight was more than 60%, while the reduction of shoot dry weight was more than 35%. The reduction of chlorophyll content was more than 40% at the highest extract concentration compared with control. In conclusion, S. spinosum had strong phytotoxicity effect against winter wheat. Therefore, S. spinosum aqueous extract is a good candidate as a bio-herbicide against winter wheat. Key words : Allelopathy, aqueous extract, chlorophyll, germination, Sarcopoterium spinosum, seedling growth, Triticum durum INTRODUCTION Sarcopoterium spinosum (Rosaceae) is a perennial bush of 10-30 cm height that is common to the south-east Mediterranean area. It has small leaves and it flowers from February to April, with fruits maturing in autumn (Gargano et al., 2007; Rosen et al., 2009; Day, 2013). In folk medicine, S. spinosum has antidiabetic activity (Arumugam et al., 2013). S. spinosum possesses allelopathic potential and is used in narrow leaf weed suppression (Baskin and Baskin, 2014). The term allelopathy, first introduced by Molisch (Molisch, 1937), refers to a phenomenon in which chemical compounds are produced from one plant and have harmful or beneficial effects on other plants (Rice, 1984).These chemical compounds, or allelochemicals, are toxic compounds produced by the plant as a defense mechanism against herbivores and competing plants. Chemically, DOI : 10.5958/2348-7542.2017.00035.3 allelochemicals are secondary products of the main metabolic pathways of plants. Most allelochemicals are water-soluble substances that are released into the environment through leaching, root exudation, volatilization and decomposition of plant residues (Whittaker and Feeny, 1971; Hall and Henderlong, 1989; Chon and Kim, 2005). The economic crop loss from weeds is high in direct and indirect ways. The reduction of crop yield is estimated to be 45-95% depending on the ecological conditions (Fahad et al., 2015). In fact, weeds can cause 100% crop loss in developing countries (Rodenburg et al., 2016). Weeds compete with crops for available minerals. Moreover, weeds can serve as hosts for different pathogens (Mourelos et al., 2014). The use of chemical herbicides affects the environment, human health, food and soil (Gevao et al., 2000). The application of herbicide has a negative impact on public health, livestock, and environment. In fact, 2 Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan (e-mail : kalhadid@ju.edu.jo) 3 Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Technology, Al-Balqa Applied University, Al-Salt 19117, Jordan (e-mail : ssadroman@yahoo.com)
Effect of aqueous extract of Sarcopoterium spinosum (L.) Spach on winter wheat 211 the extensive use of pesticides and herbicides causes damage to natural enemies and honeybee losses that result in pollination problems. Moreover, damage was reported on birds, fish, and other wildlife animals (Pimentel, 2009). Furthermore, the long-term use of herbicides has resulted in herbicide resistance of weeds (Jacobs and Kingwell, 2016). Therefore, using natural phytotoxic compounds is a good alternative to reduce the dependency on synthetic herbicides. In fact, using extracts from plants of allelopathic properties is a good alternative for achieving sustainable weed management (Bialy et al., 1990; Ravlic et al., 2012; Tigre et al., 2012). Different compounds were identified as inhibitors to wheat. For instance, phenolics concentration was proportional to the inhibition of wheat radicle growth (Ben- Hammouda et al., 1995). Glucobrassicin and sinapine thiocyanate have a moderate inhibitory activity against wheat. However, isothiocyanates showed high inhibitory activity against wheat germination and seedling growth. In fact, the most active compound that inhibited wheat germination was 2-phenethyl ITC (Bialy et al., 1990). The main objective of this study was to investigate the effective concentrations of the phytotoxicity effect of S. spinosum aqueous extract against winter wheat seed germination and seedling growth. MATERIALS AND METHODS Plant Material Leaf samples were collected from S. spinosum stands from Amman, Jordan (32 1 N; 35 48 E). The collected leaf samples were rinsed repeatedly under running tap water to remove any debris. Leaf tissues were dried in a drying oven at a temperature of 45ºC for 48 h, ground to a fine powder, and stored at 4ºC until use. Preparation of Aqueous Extract The aqueous extract was prepared by soaking 2, 4, 6 and 10 g of dry ground leaves of S. spinosum in 100 ml of distilled water, and agitated at room temperature for 24 h on a horizontal shaker set at 100 rpm. The extract was filtered through Whatman No. 1 filter paper, and kept refrigerated at 4ºC until use. The distilled water was used as a control (0% extract). Effect of S. spinosum Aqueous Extract on Germination and Early Seedling Growth of Wheat Wheat (Triticum durum cv. Haurani 27) seeds were surface-sterilized in 2% sodium hypochlorite solution containing 0.02% (v : v), Tween 20 for 5 min, then rinsed four times in distilled water and dried using two filter papers. The sterilized seeds were soaked in distilled water (control), and the respective extract solution of each concentration for 3 h at room temperature. Fifteen uniform seeds of each control and treatment were evenly placed on Petri dishes containing four layers of Whatman No. 1 filter paper. Initially, filter papers were moistened with 15 ml of the respective extract solution and the control. Petri dishes were incubated in a growth incubator at 24±2ºC. Five ml of the extract solution and distilled water were added to each Petri dish every alternate day. Germination was recorded daily for eight days. Seeds were considered germinated after the emergent radical had protruded at least 1 mm beyond the seed coat. After eight days, final germination percentage, germination rate, radical and plumule lengths, and radicle and plumule dry weights were recorded. The germination rate (GR) was calculated by dividing the number of germinating seeds each day by the number of days and summing the values. Treatments were arranged in a completely randomized design with eight replications. The experiment was repeated three times. Effect of S. spinosum Aqueous Extracts on Seedling Growth of Wheat Wheat seeds were sterilized as mentioned above. Four seeds were planted at equal distance in pots (15 cm diameter, 25 cm height) filled with homogenous soil. The pots were placed in the greenhouse. Each pot was irrigated every two days with 100 ml of respective plant extract concentration. The pots irrigated with distilled water were considered as controls. After four weeks, data were recorded for root and shoot dry weights, and total chlorophyll content. Treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design with eight replications. Determination of Total Chlorophyll Content Chlorophyll from leaf tissues was extracted in 80% acetone for 24 h at 4ºC. The
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