The physiology of forage rye (Secale cereale)

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Abstract
SUMMARY: Field and pot investigations of the vegetative and early reproductive growth of a winter wheat and a winter rye cultivar over three seasons (1978–9, 1980–2) have shown that higher and earlier forage yields of rye are due to a combination of factors, notably more rapid rates of germination, crop emergence, leaf appearance and leaf expansion coupled with higher leaf area ratios. There was no evidence, from studies of net assimilation rate, that the photosynthetic apparatus of rye plants is better adapted than wheat to the low temperature and light conditions of winter and early spring. However, the earlier initiation of rye stem extension was associated with significant increases in net assimilation rate, which compensated for reductions in the leaf area ratio. Practical aspects of these results are discussed briefly.