User: | Open Learning Faculty Member:
Anna Zacaruk
September 29, 2017
After considering many different areas to study, I decided that an outdoor experiment at this time of year (autumn) in my region would be too complicated and risky knowing how unpredictable the weather is in Alberta. With permission from Dr. Percy Hebert, I’ve decided to do my project in my greenhouse, using some equipment from my mother who has her degree in agriculture and specializes in reclamation projects. I have decided to compare the interspecific competition between a weed plant species (dandelions) and a non-weed plant species (marigolds) for a light source. I was considering growing the plants for roughly 7 weeks in the same pots to see which will outcompete the other in both light and light-restricted conditions. My study area is technically my greenhouse, which has windows that are East and South facing. I intend to grow the plants in pots along the window sill in plastic potting trays until germinated, and then randomly remove some plants to a tray where light is limited by some sort of barrier (I was thinking mesh or burlap of some sort). I anticipate to allow the plants to grow for 7-8 weeks.
Questions I currently have are:
- How will limited light affect competition between dandelions and marigolds?
- How will limited light affect plant leaf and root growth?
- How will limited light affect plant overall (dry) biomass?
| I found a few interesting scientific papers on the subject of light competition in plants, with one of the most interesting being “The importance of light quality in crop-weed competition” by Lui JG et al. The paper discusses the notion that plant competition is thought to be driven by limiting resources such as light, which may disrupt physiological processes. The authors believe that changes in light resources may initiate a “shade avoidance response” in plants where they constrain their own development and reduce their own reproductive fitness in attempt to avoid growing in shaded areas and compete with other plants for light. | ||
| Another paper I found was called “Weed community characteristics and crop performance: a neighbourhood approach” by Pollnac FW et al. This paper discusses the possibility that the presence of weeds in crop fields causes crop yield reductions. The hypothesis tested was that increased weed species richness would decrease the effects of competition on spring wheat target plant performance. The authors ended up finding that species richness had no significant direct effect on spring wheat biomass, yield, or relative growth rate and that there were no significant neighbour species interaction terms. However, they did find that increasing weed species richness had a negative impact on the growth of individual weed species. | ||
| I am curious to see what my findings may be, and if they will differ from those of the scientific papers I have been reading. Stay tuned for the riveting results!!! |
