Restoration practitioners have many seed material choices when restoring plant communities, and cultivars may be the most affordable and accessible material available for some species. However, the process of plant selection and commercial seed production can limit trait variability critical to survival and persistence in heterogeneous environments. Several studies show the impacts of plant selection and commercial production on trait values and variation in aboveground traits. Yet, researchers rarely assess impacts on root traits in wild‐collected material relative to cultivars. This is a critical gap, especially in arid environments where root traits play key roles in plant survival. We grew Pseudoroegneria spicata seedlings from three wild accessions and three cultivars (the cultivars “Whitmar” and “Goldar,” and the “selected germplasm polycross” “P‐7”) to compare root and shoot traits and variability. We grew seedlings in a growth chamber for 4 weeks in sand, which had low moisture content and few added nutrients, resulting in stressful conditions. We harvested the plants and compared trait variation and averages between wild‐collected versus cultivars for four shoot and four root traits. We found that wild accessions had marginally greater variation in root tip count, root mass fraction, and shoot mass fraction. Importantly, wild‐collected plants had 51% more root tips on average, greater variability in four of seven traits that exhibited differing variability between collection types, and greater survival compared to cultivars. These results indicate differences in traits and variation in wild and cultivated accessions that should be considered when choosing material for restoration use.

中文翻译：

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隐藏的变异：品种和野生植物的性状变异不同，具有令人惊讶的根性状结果

在恢复植物群落时，恢复从业人员可以选择许多种子材料，而栽培品种可能是某些物种可负担得起的，最容易获得的材料。但是，植物选择和商业种子生产的过程可能会限制对异质环境中的生存和持久性至关重要的性状变异。多项研究表明，植物选择和商业生产对性状价值和地上性状变异的影响。但是，研究人员很少评估相对于品种对野生采集材料中根系性状的影响。这是一个关键的差距，特别是在干旱环境中，根部性状在植物生存中起着关键作用。我们种植了假单胞菌来自三个野生种质和三个品种（“ Whitmar”和“ Goldar”品种，以及“精选种质多交”“ P-7”）的幼苗，以比较根和芽的性状和变异性。我们在生长室中的沙土中培育幼苗达4周，沙土中的水分含量低，添加的养分很少，导致胁迫条件。我们收获了植物，比较了野生采收品种和栽培品种四个芽和四个根性状的性状变异和平均值。我们发现野生种在根尖数，根质量分数和枝条质量分数上有较大的差异。重要的是，野生采集的植物平均具有超过51％的根尖，七个性状中的四个具有更大的变异性，这些特征在不同采集类型之间表现出不同的变异性，并且与栽培品种相比，存活率更高。