Redistribution of Nutrient Elements from Cotyledons of Two Species of Annual Legumes During Germination and Seedling Growth

Abstract

The distribution of dry matter and various mineral nutrients between testa and embryo of seeds of Lupinus albus and L. angustifolius is described It was found that lupin seeds at either end of a pod contained less dry matter and minerals than seeds in the middle of the fruit. The transport of dry matter, N, P, K, S, Ca, Mg, Na, Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu from cotyledons of parent seeds of both species to the seedling axis was measured from germination to the time of cotyledon death. N, P, K and S were retrieved from cotyledons with over 90 per cent efficiency, dry matter, Mg, Na, Fe, Zn, Mn and with 59–90 per cent efficiency, and Ca with 26–31 per cent efficiency. There was little change in the efficiency of nutrient retrieval from cotyledons when seedlings were grown in different culture media. Both species showed a linear relationship between the loss of each element and dry matter throughout the experiment, and a similar proportioning between root and shoot of the amount of a specific nutrient mobilized from cotyledons of parent seeds.