North Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA.
U.S. Geological Survey, North Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27695, USA.
Sci Rep. 2019 May 14;9(1):7331. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-43753-y.
Floral traits and rewards are important in mediating interactions between plants and pollinators. Agricultural management practices can affect abiotic factors known to influence floral traits; however, our understanding of the links between agricultural practices and floral trait expression is still poorly understood. Variation in floral morphological, nectar, and pollen traits of two important agricultural species, Coffea arabica and C. canephora, was assessed under different agricultural practices (sun and shade). Corolla diameter and corolla tube length were larger and pollen total nitrogen content greater in shade plantations of C. canephora than sun plantations. Corolla tube length and anther filament length were larger in shade plantations of C. arabica. No effect of agricultural practice was found on nectar volume, sugar or caffeine concentrations, or pollen production. Pollen total nitrogen content was lower in sun than shade plantations of C. canephora, but no difference was found between sun and shade for C. arabica. This study provides baseline data on the influence of agronomic practices on C. arabica and C. canephora floral traits and also helps fill a gap in knowledge about the effects of shade trees on floral traits, which can be pertinent to other agroforestry systems.
花部特征和花部报酬在介导植物与传粉者之间的相互作用中起着重要作用。农业管理措施会影响已知影响花部特征的非生物因素；然而，我们对农业措施与花部特征表达之间联系的理解仍知之甚少。在不同农业措施（遮荫和阳光直射）下，评估了两个重要农业物种咖啡阿拉比卡和咖啡卡内弗拉的花部形态、花蜜和花粉特征的变化。咖啡卡内弗拉的遮荫种植体的花冠直径和花冠管长度较大，花粉总氮含量较高，而在咖啡阿拉比卡的遮荫种植体中，花冠管长度和花药花丝长度较大。农业措施对花蜜量、糖或咖啡因浓度或花粉产量没有影响。咖啡卡内弗拉的阳光直射种植体中的花粉总氮含量低于遮荫种植体，但咖啡阿拉比卡的阳光直射和遮荫种植体之间没有差异。本研究提供了农业措施对咖啡阿拉比卡和咖啡卡内弗拉花部特征影响的基础数据，也有助于填补有关遮荫树对花部特征影响的知识空白，这对其他农林系统可能很重要。
