Botanica Serbica 2019 Volume 43, Issue 2, Pages: 175-186
https://doi.org/10.2298/BOTSERB1902175K
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Congeneric comparison of allelopathic and autotoxic effects of four Solidago species
Karpavičienė Birutė (Institute of Botany, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania)
Danilovienė Julija (Institute of Botany, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania)
Vykertaitė Roberta (Institute of Biosciences, Life Sciences Centrе, Vilnius, Lithuania)
The invasive species Solidago canadensis and S. gigantea are known for having
the potential to inhibit their neighbours through allelopathy. However,
there are no data on allelopathic properties of the natural interspecific
hybrid S. ×niederederi and no investigations comparing the allelopathic
potential of native and invasive Solidago species. We therefore studied the
allelopathic effect of aqueous leaf extracts of S. virgaurea, S. canadensis,
S. gigantea and S. ×niederederi on two congeneric pairs of species (Festuca
and Solidago) occurring naturally in communities with the tested Solidago
species. Germination and seedling growth of Festuca rubra were inhibited by
all Solidago extracts more than were those characteristics of F. pratensis,
while S. canadensis was more sensitive to its own and congeneric extracts
than was S. ×niederederi. The effect of leaf type (green or withered) on
Festuca seedling growth was target species-specific, while seed germination
was more suppressed by green leaf extracts. The results of this study do not
support the hypothesis that invasive plant species have stronger persistent
allelopathic effects on native plants compared to their native congeners.
Keywords: allelopathy, germination, inhibition, invasive plants, Solidago