Seedling emergence in the field is strongly related to the dynamics of dormancy release and induction of the seed bank, which is mainly regulated by soil temperature. However, there is limited information on how temperature-driven effects on dormancy changes are modulated by the seed hydration-level. We investigated the effect of seed water content (SWC) on the dormancy release and dormancy induction in Polygonum aviculare L. seeds. We characterised quantitatively the interaction between seed water content (SWC) and temperature through the measurement of changes in the lower limit temperature for seed germination (T_l) during dormancy changes for seeds with different SWC. These relationships were inserted in existing population-based threshold models and were run against field obtained data. The model considering SWC was able to predict P. aviculare field emergence patterns. However, failure to consider SWC led to overestimations in the emergence size and timing. Our results show that in humid temperate habitats, the occurrence of eventual water shortages during late-winter or spring (i.e. short periods of water content below 31% SWC) can affect soil temperature effects on seed dormancy, and might lead reductions in the emergence size rather than to significant temporal displacements in the emergence window. In conclusion, SWC plays an important role for the perception of temperature signals that drive dormancy changes in buried seeds.

田间幼苗出苗与休眠释放和种子库诱导的动力学密切相关，种子库的萌发主要受土壤温度调节。但是，关于如何通过种子水合水平调节温度对休眠变化的影响的信息有限。我们调查了种子含水量对何首乌种子休眠释放和休眠诱导的影响。我们通过测量种子发芽下限温度（T _l的变化）来定量表征种子含水量（SWC）和温度之间的相互作用）期间，具有不同SWC的种子会发生变化。这些关系被插入到现有的基于人口的阈值模型中，并与现场获得的数据进行对比。考虑SWC的模型能够预测球状疟原虫场出现模式。但是，由于不考虑SWC，导致出现规模和时机过高。我们的结果表明，在潮湿的温带栖息地，冬季或春季后期出现的最终缺水现象（即水分含量短于31％SWC的短期）会影响土壤温度对种子休眠的影响，并可能导致出苗量减少而不是出现窗口中出现明显的时间位移。总之，SWC在感知温度信号方面起着重要作用，该温度信号会驱动埋藏种子的休眠变化。