Calobota sericea is a native legume of South Africa, confined to the water-limited rangelands, and it has recently been prioritised for additional characterisation regarding its pasture potential. In this study, we examined the growth characteristics of C. sericea under glasshouse conditions where water limitation was implemented at different plant ages, and for different durations. Results indicate that preferential resource allocation to the roots, as well as reduced stomatal conductance and transpiration, were early responses to water limitation, irrespective of the age at which water limitation was imposed, or the duration of water limitation. Under water-limited conditions, increased production of protective pigments, such as carotenoids and anthocyanins, was also observed, which helped in recovery after rewatering. It was concluded that after rewatering, all negative impacts of water limitation on morphology and physiology of C. sericea plants were generally returned to well-watered levels. This suggests that C. sericea plants employ a wide range of phenotypic adjustments in response to water limitation, which makes the plants well adapted to areas with high rainfall variability.

Calobota sericea是南非的一种本土豆科植物，仅限于水资源有限的牧场，最近因其牧场潜力而被优先考虑进行更多表征。在这项研究中，我们检查了C. sericea的生长特性在温室条件下，在不同的植物年龄和不同的持续时间内实施限水。结果表明，对根部的优先资源分配以及气孔导度和蒸腾作用的降低是对水分限制的早期反应，无论施加水分限制的年龄或水分限制的持续时间如何。在限水条件下，还观察到类胡萝卜素和花青素等保护性色素的产生增加，这有助于补水后的恢复。结论是，在重新浇水后，限水对绢毛植物形态和生理的所有负面影响一般都恢复到浇水良好的水平。这表明C. sericea植物为了应对水分限制而进行广泛的表型调整，这使得植物能够很好地适应降雨量变化较大的地区。