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  • Author or Editor: L. V. Gusta x
  • Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science x
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Abstract

Low temperatures (LT) exotherms were found by differential thermal analysis (DTA) at −30°C in ‘Siberian C’ peach (Prunus persica [L.] Batsch) and −39° in ‘Starkrimson Delicious’ apple (Malus domestica Borkh. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry of intact stems and isolated bark and wood revealed that the LT exotherm was produced by freezing of deep supercooled water which was detected in the wood but not the bark. Freezing processes of the wood and bark appeared to be independent. In both species, xylem injury occurred at the same temperature as the LT exotherm and was closely, if not causally related to freezing of the supercooled water. Bark injury also occurred at the same temperature as the LT exotherm and may have been caused by dehydration stress or freezing of a small amount of supercooled water which remained undetected by NMR spectrometry. The dehydration resistance of apple wood on desiccation at 70 to 90% relative humidity was greater than that of the peach wood which in turn was greater than that of the bark of both species. The dehydration resistance of apple and peach wood may involve both nonliving and living elements of the wood because pulverizing the tissue destroyed the effect, whereas heat killing only lowered it. Both supercooling and dehydration resistance may be related to microcapillary pore structure which restricts heterogeneous nucleation and sublimation of supercooled water from the ray parenchyma cells.

Open Access

Abstract

Either imbibition at low temperatures or fast water uptake reduced germination of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) by 15%. The combination of imbibition at low temperatures and fast water uptake reduced germination by 65%. The most chilling-sensitive period for chickpea germination is the first 30 minutes of imbibition. Slow imbibition at 20°C for 24 hours prior to seeding of mechanically damaged chickpea seeds significantly improved percentage of germination, and uniform, vigorous seedlings resulted. Such prehydrated seeds also showed better emergence under field conditions, especially in early spring when the soil was still cold. The results suggest that mechanically damaged seeds sown in cold, wet soil undergo imbibitional chilling injury and fast water uptake, leading to poor field emergence. Prehydration of seeds by slow imbibition at warm temperature and/or fungicide application increased the germination and emergence of chickpeas sown into cold, wet soils.

Open Access

Abstract

In the paper “Imbibitional Chilling Injury during Chickpea Germination” by Tony H.H. Chen, S.D.K. Yamamoto, L.V. Gusta, and A.E. Slinkard [J. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 108(6):944–948, 1983], on page 946, Fig. 2 was omitted inadvertently during printing. The missing photograph and its caption appear below:

Open Access

Abstract

Leaves of cold-acclimated lemon [Citrus limon (L.) Burm. f.], grapefruit (C. paradisi Macf.), orange [C. sinensis (L.) Osbeck], and mandarin (C. unshiu Marc.) trees ranged in cold hardiness from −4 to −11°C. No significant differences in water content (g H2O/g dry weight) or melting point depression were observed. Plots of liquid water content during freezing (g H2O/g dry weight) vs. temperature were similar for the 4 citrus species. The tissues apparently deviated from ideal freezing behavior because less ice was formed. The reduced ice formation could not be accounted for by osmotic effects. Negative pressure potential developed during freezing is hypothesized to play a role in tissue water potential in frozen systems. It was concluded that hardier Citrus leaves survive freezing of a larger fraction of their tissue water.

Open Access