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The foraging behavior of bees is a complex phenomenon that depends on numerous physical features of flowers. Of particular importance are accessibility of floral rewards, floral proportions, symmetry and orientation. The flowers of Roepera are characterized by the presence of staminal scales (SS), which play an important role in nectar protection. We studied two species of Roepera with different symmetry

Dyckia is the third most diverse genus from Pitcairnoideae, pollinated mainly by insects and hummingbirds. In this study, we evaluated demography, reproductive biology and pollination of Dyckia excelsa, a saxicolous species typical of ironstone outcrops. It occurs in groupings composed of genets, ramets and seedlings and bloomed several times, principally in September, with fruiting and dispersing

Viola calaminaria is an endangered metallophyte endemic to a small area close to the border between Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, where it grows on rock outcrops rich in heavy metals (zinc, lead and cadmium). Because V. calaminaria reproduces mainly by seeds, it is of crucial importance to understand its germination requirements. Germination percentage and speed at constant (11–25°C) and alternating

The seed germination characteristics of Maianthemum dilatatum were investigated in a laboratory experiment and the results compared with those of other species in the subfamily Asparagoideae, LILIACEAE (Engler's system). M. dilatatum seeds mature in late September to October in montane to subalpine areas across Japan. Germination percentages and rates were low for fresh seeds at 10 to 30°C. Seeds cold

Pollinators represent one of the main agents of selection on floral traits. Here, we estimated phenotypic selection on floral morphology and phenology in a sympatric population of two orchid species, Platanthera bifolia and P. chlorantha, including enigmatic individuals with intermediate column morphology (as reflected by the distance between viscidia and caudicle length, two traits involved in assortative

Rewardless orchid species are pollinated by deception and have reduced reproductive success. Those species that present self‐compatibility followed by alternative mechanisms of autogamy may compensate for such episodic allogamy events. This is the case for rain‐assisted self‐pollination, a rare mechanism in Orchidaceae. In this study, we investigated the reproductive biology of two terrestrial species:

Phenotypic plasticity and developmental instability in leaf traits are common in oak species but the role of environmental factors is not well understood. To decipher possible correlations between different leaf traits and effects of the position of leaves within the tree canopy, we quantified the plasticity of three leaf traits of 30 trees of Quercus alba L., Quercus palustris Muench and Quercus velutina

Sonchus oleraceus and Rapistrum rugosum are two rapidly emerging weeds of the northern grain region of Australia. To understand the ability of these weeds regarding their germination response to temperature and different soil moisture regimes, experiments were undertaken on the germination of these weeds at varying osmotic potential and temperature regimes. The experiment was conducted as a split‐plot

Pseudovivipary is an asexual reproduction strategy correlated with extreme environments. Comanthera nivea occurs in habitats with low water retention. This study investigated the effect of soil moisture availability on C. nivea pseudoviviparous reproduction and flowering. We established four permanent plots (1 × 1 m), two in a shaded area, in which we marked 15 rosettes in each plot, and two in a full‐sun

Increases in the incidence and severity of drought threaten the viability of rare plants in arid regions. The endangered Nichol's Turk's head cactus (Echinocactus horizonthalonius Lemaire var. nicholii L. Benson) occurs only in four small, isolated populations in the Sonoran Desert of North America. Since 1995 we have monitored a population in southeastern Arizona (USA). Here we report 23 years of

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Seeds of winter annuals require a summer after‐ripening period for dormancy loss and low autumn temperatures for germination. With current and future changes in moisture and temperature, we tested the effects of warming along a relative humidity (RH) gradient on dormancy loss and effects of decreased diurnal temperature range (DTR) on germination. We further reasoned that the effects of changes in

Seed dispersal is one of the most important steps in the plant life cycle. However, there is, generally, a lack of fieldworks focused on wind dispersal and especially on semachorous dispersal (seeds spread when the fruits are shaken by wind and other vectors, such as animals), including boleochorous dispersal. Therefore, we aimed to determine how different types of wind and animals affected seed dispersal

Although it has been speculated that Hosta seeds have an underdeveloped embryo and morphological (MD) or morphophysiological dormancy (MPD), no detailed studies have been carried out to definitively confirm this suggestion. Our first purpose was to determine if embryos of six Korean species of Hosta (H. capitata, H. clausa, H. jonesii, H. minor, H. venusta and H. yingeri) grew inside the seeds prior

Camellia pubipetala is an endemic and endangered species with small and isolated populations occurring only in karst regions in Guangxi of south China. To understand the reproductive biology of C. pubipetala and its possible influences upon its endangered status, its breeding system and pollination ecology were studied in the Longhushan (LHS) and Longzhao (LZ) populations of this species. The flowering