Ephemeral plant: Difference between revisions
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An '''ephemeral plant''' is one marked by short life cycles. The word ephemeral means transitory or quickly fading. In regard to [[plant]]s, it refers to several distinct growth strategies. The first, '''spring ephemeral''', refers to perennial plants that emerge quickly in the spring and die back to their underground parts after a short growth and reproduction phase. '''Desert ephemerals''' are plants which are [[adaptation|adapted]] to take advantage of the short wet periods in [[arid]] [[climate]]s. '''Mud-flat annuals''' take advantage of short periods of low water. In areas subjected to recurring human disturbance, such as plowing, '''weedy ephemerals''' are very short lived plants whose entire [[biological life cycle|life cycle]] takes less than a [[growing season]]. In each case, the species has a life cycle timed to exploit a short period when resources are freely available.<ref>Keddy, P.A. 2007. Plants and Vegetation: Origins, Processes, Consequences. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 666 p. Chapter 3, Resources.</ref> |
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==Spring ephemerals== |
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'''Spring ephemeral''' describes a life habit of [[Perennial plant|perennial]] woodland [[wildflower]]s which develop aerial parts (i.e. [[Plant stem|stem]]s, [[leaf|leaves]], and [[flower]]s) of the [[plant]] early each spring and then quickly bloom, and produce seed. The leaves often wither leaving only underground structures (i.e. [[root]]s, [[rhizome]]s, and [[bulb]]s) for the remainder of the year. This strategy is very common in [[herbaceous]] communities of [[deciduous forest]]s as it allows small herbaceous plants to take advantage of the high levels of [[sunlight]] reaching the [[forest]] floor prior to formation of a canopy by [[woody plant]]s. Examples include: [[spring beauty|spring beauties]], [[trillium]]s, and [[harbinger of spring]].<ref>Archibold, O. W. 1995. Ecology of World Vegetation. London: Chapman and Hall.</ref>[[Image:Trilliumgrand.jpg|right|thumb|300px|''[[Trillium grandiflorum]]'' in the foreground and the smaller ''[[Thalictrum thalictroides]]'' in the background are both spring ephemerals of [[North America]]n [[deciduous forest]]s.]] |
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==Desert ephemerals== |
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[[File:Namaqualand,_Goegap_1029.jpg|right|thumb|250px|''This normally bare desert in Namaqualand, Goegap Nature Reserve in [[South Africa]] has a proliferation of flowers and desert ephemerals during the brief spring wet season.]] |
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'''Desert ephemerals''', such as the ''[[Arabidopsis thaliana]]'', are plants which are [[adaptation|adapted]] to take advantage of the very short favorable seasons in [[desert]]s. [[Annual plant]]s in deserts may use the weedy ephemeral strategy to survive in the desert environment. These [[species]] survive the dry seasons through [[seed dormancy]]. Alternatively, some [[Perennial plant|perennial]] desert plants may die back to their underground parts and become dormant when there is not enough [[water]] available.<ref>Archibold, O. W. 1995. Ecology of World Vegetation. London: Chapman and Hall.</ref> |
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==Mud flat ephemerals== |
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Most water bodies have natural changes in water level over a year. For example, rivers have higher water periods after melting snow or rainy seasons, followed by natural low water periods. Large lakes have similar seasonal changes, but also changes over longer periods of time. Many short-lived plants, particularly annual plants, grow during low water periods, then set seeds which remain buried in the mud until the next low water period.<ref>Keddy, P.A. 2000. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 614 p. Chapter 2, Flooding.</ref> |
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==Weedy ephemerals== |
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Many agricultural weeds are '''ephemeral''' and reproduce rapidly after human disturbance from plowing. Roadside weeds similarly exploit the disturbance from road construction and mowing. These plants rarely have any commercial use, and can be [[invasive weed]]s. Examples include: ''[[Cardamine hirsuta]]'' and ''[[Cannabis ruderalis]]''. Plants which have short life spans, rapid rates of growth, and high levels of seed production are also termed ruderals.<ref>Grime, J. P. 1979. Plant Strategies and Vegetation Processes. Chichester: John Wiley.</ref> |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist}} |
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{{Wiktionary|ephemeral}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ephemeral Plant}} |
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[[Category:Flowers]] |
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[[Category:Ephemeral plants| ]] |
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Revision as of 12:00, 30 November 2018
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