The Effects of Depth and Duration of Burial on the Germination of Ten Annual Weed Seeds

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Abstract
Seeds of barnyardgrass [Echinochloa crus-galli (L.) Beauv.], common purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.), fimbristylis [Fimbristylis miliacea (L.) Vahl.], goosegrass [Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn.], monochoria [Monochoria vaginalis (L.) Presl.], pale smartweed (Polygonum lapathifolium L.), rice flatsedge (Cyperus iria L.), slender amaranth (Amaranthus viridis L.), smallflower umbrella plant (Cyperus difformis L.), and sour paspalum (Paspalum conjugatum Bergius), were placed in nylon mesh bags and buried at 0 (surface), 2.5, 7.5, 15, and 25 cm depths in the soil in November 1974 for 10, 20, 30, 60, 90, 120, 180, 240, 300, and 365 days. They were then recovered from soil to test their germination in petri dishes. Seeds on the soil surface had lower percent germination than those that were buried. Statistical data showed that the total percent germination was not significantly different for the seeds buried at 2.5 cm and deeper in soil when examined at the same burial intervals. During the experiment, the total percent germination of seeds was classified into three groups: (a) percent germination remained constant and relatively high, as for smallflower umbrella plant, common purslane, goosegrass, and slender amaranth; (b) percent germination remained at a plateau for 240 days and then gradually declined at 300 and 365 days, as for sour paspalum; and (c) percent germination was low at the beginning and the end of the experimental period but high in the middle, as for barnyardgrass, monochoria, pale smartweed, rice flatsedge, and fimbristylis. During the experiment, common purslane, barnyardgrass, and monochoria reached a germination peak within the first 5 days. Seeds of the 7 other species germinated within 3 to 5 days or 6 to 10 days, depending on the combination of innate dormancy, temperature, and light intensity.