Stomatal behavior, water relations and leaf area development of pigeonpea and cowpea grown under moisture stress
1996
Abuhay Takele (IAR, Addis Abeba (Ethiopia)) | McDavid, C.R
A pot experiment was carried out under greenhouse conditions to compare the stomatal behaviour, water relations and leaf area development of pigeonpea and cowpea under variable moisture stresses (SS = severely stressed, MS = Moderately stressed and WW = well watered). In pigeonpea moisture stress increased the stomatal resistance (rs) of the abaxial surfaces, whereas in cowpea moisture stress increased rs of both leaf surfaces similarly. This difference suggests that the threshold for stomatal closure in cowpea is much higher than for pigeonpea. Leaf water potential was also affected by increased moisture stress and leaf water potential in the SS plants was significantly lower than that of MS and WW plants. Leaf water potential values in pigeonpea were lower than those of cowpea in all the treatments over time. Differences in leaf relative water content (LRWC) also occurred between the moisture stress treatments and between the two crop species. The LRWC of SS plants was significantly lower in both pigeonpea and cowpea throughout the study. LRWC in stressed plants declined more rapidly in pigeonpea than in cowpea. Differences in both leaf water potential and LRWC were attributed to the differences in the stomatal behaviour of pigeonpea and cowpea. Leaf area development were adversely affected by increasing the levels of moisture stress in both crops.
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