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Article: Establishment and seedling growth of big bluestem and switchgrass populations divergently selected for seedling tiller number. (Forage & Grazing Lands).
- Article from:
- Crop Science
- Article date:
- July 1, 2003
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 Crop Science Society of America. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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SEEDLING ESTABLISHMENT is a major limitation for incorporating improved cultivars of native warm-season grasses into a forage system. Lack of successful establishment of perennial forage grasses has been attributed to inadequate surface moisture (Newman and Moser, 1988b), weed competition (McCarty et al., 1967; Martin et al., 1982), excessive planting depth (Carren et al., 1987; Newman and Moser, 1988a), and low seedling vigor (Hyder et al., 1971; Berdahl and Barker, 1984).
Seedling vigor is a conceptual term and cannot be directly measured, but traits associated with seedling emergence or establishment success can be determined. Seed size (Kneebone, 1972), ...