Ecological Studies of Root Architecture in the Herbaceous Perennial Cryptantha Flava

研究将集中在一个物种内发生的根结构三维分支结构的变异，并确定变异在多大程度上是遗传控制的还是环境因素的结果。在未来，将探索根系建筑特征与根系功能之间的关系，以确定特定根系结构对植物整体性能的重要性。研究物种是草本多年生黄花潜花（Boraginaceae），它生长在犹他州东部半沙漠地区和邻近州的部分地区的沙质土壤中。由于从土壤中提取根的固有困难，根构型的定量描述以及根分支构型与根功能之间关系的研究几乎没有发展。这些信息是了解植物如何获取土壤养分和水分的基础。在沙漠系统中，限制植物生长的不是可利用的阳光，而是土壤资源，因此根系结构应该具有特别重要的影响。所选择的树种适合这些研究，因为其根的基本分支模式很容易量化，而且几乎整个根都可以从沙土中提取出来。这项研究的结果可以(1)帮助解释植物物种在不同土壤类型中的分布和表现，(2)为作物的发育提供重要信息，特别是那些耐旱或低营养土壤的作物。

Research will focus on variation that occurs within a species in three-dimensional branching structure of root architecture and determine the extent to which the variation is genetically controlled or results from environmental factors. In the future, the relationship between root architectural traits and root function will be explored to determine the importance of particular root structure to the overall performance of the plant. The study species is the herbaceous perennial Cryptantha flava (Boraginaceae) which occurs in very sandy soils throughout semi-desert regions of eastern Utah and parts of adjacent states. Because of the inherent difficulty of extracting roots from soil, quantitative descriptions of root architecture and studies of the relationship between the branching architecture of roots and root function are virtually undeveloped. Such information is basic to understanding how plants capture soil nutrients and water. Root structure should have particularly important consequences in desert systems where soil resources, rather than available sunlight, limit plant growth. The species selected is amenable for these studies because the basic branching pattern of its roots is easily quantified and because nearly entire roots can be extracted from the sandy soil. Results of the study could (1) help explain the distribution and performance of plant species across different soil types and (2) contribute information important to the development of crops--particularly those tolerant to drought or low nutrient soils.