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JOURNAL OF DESERT RESEARCH ›› 2016, Vol. 36 ›› Issue (3): 708-717.DOI: 10.7522/j.issn.1000-694X.2015.00203

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Evaluation on Drought-resistant Characteristics of Ten Caragana Species Based on Leaf Micromorphological Structure

Li Mengmeng1,2, Liu Dan1,2, Liu Yubing1   

  1. 1. Key Laboratory of Stress Physiology and Ecology in Cold and Arid Regions of Gansu Province/Shapotou Desert Research & Experiment Station, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, 730000, China;
    2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2015-12-01 Revised:2016-01-26 Online:2016-05-20 Published:2016-05-20

Abstract:

Leaves of ten Caragana species were collected from desert region of northwest China. The leaf cross-section and epidermal micromorphology were observed by light microscope and scanning electron microscope, respectively. Ten micromorphological and structural characteristics were selected to investigate the adaptive ability of drought environment, including blade thickness, stomata density, trichome coverage, cuticular layer thickness and other six leaf xeromorphic structure indices. The results showed that leaf epidermal micromorphology and mesophyll structure had significant adaptation to their habitats. Ten Caragana species were classified into three groups by hierarchical cluster analysis. The first group has higher stomata, blade and epidermal cell thickness, smaller trichome coverage and ratio of palisade to blade. The second has higher trichome coverage, smaller palisade and ratio of palisade to blade. The third has higher palisade and ratio of palisade to blade, smaller stomata, cuticle, blade and epidermal cell thickness. According to the subordinate function values, drought-resistance ability of ten Caragana species was as the follows: C. ordosica>C. roborvskyi>C. brachypoda>C. stenophylla>C. korshinskii>C. microphylla>C. intermedia>C. rosea>C. jubata>C. acanthophylla.

Key words: Caragana, mesophyll structure, epidermal micromorphology, drought-resistance

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