Seasonal variation of carbohydrates in Pueraria montana as affected by soil characteristics in a river floodplain.

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Md Harun Or Rashid, Takashi Asaeda

Friday 3 july 2015

12:30 - 12:33h at Oceania (level 0)

Themes: (T) Managing deltas, (ST) Wetland protection and shore restoration, Poster pitches

Parallel session: Poster pitches: 15K. Deltas - Wetland

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We examined the seasonal changes of total non-structural carbohydrate (TNC), water soluble carbohydrate (WSC) and starch concentrations in Pueraria montana throughout its lifecycle to elucidate potential points in the seasonal growth and phenological cycles for improved control. The study was carried out at two different habitat zones with distinct soil conditions in the riparian zone of the Tama River, Tokyo, Japan. The highest and lowest concentrations of TNC and TNC pools in roots of P. montana were observed in December and August at both study sites. Lowest TNC reserves were attained at the end of the vegetative stage with highest TNC reserves at the end of the reproductive stage. WSC gradually decreased from April to August in the roots, and then increased until February. The starch concentrations of all plant organs followed the same pattern as WSC. Stem and leaf did not show the same pattern as the roots. The total carbohydrate concentrations and pools did not show significant variation between the two sites suggesting that soil conditions had very little effect on carbohydrate production in different organs of the plant (p _ 0.05). The studies suggest that the identified low points of carbohydrate storage in the roots might be exploited to improve management of P. montana.