Annual and seasonal variability in leaf traits of Iris variegata genotypes growing in contrasting light conditions

Abstract

During their evolution plants developed a set of mechanisms to adapt to the varying environmental conditions, resulting in diversified phenotypes. We were interested in the response of plants towards changing environmental parameters, to light in particular. For this study we selected genotypes of Iris variegata that experienced different light conditions in their habitats: a) genotypes situated along the top and slope of a dune, where it coexisted with annual and perennial herbs and low shrubs; b) genotypes inhabited the woodland understories. We grew I.variegata genotypes in two experimental light treatments (high and low) and tested differences between spring, summer and autumn as well as between two successive years. The plants responses were analysed at different levels of biological information and it was revealed that dissimilar light conditions markedly affected all aspects of plant anatomy and physiology. Repeated measures model ANOVA detected a significant effect of year, habitat and genotype in most analysed traits. Models of changes during growing seasons were treatment- and year-specific. We also present results from an on-going study which aims to assess occurrence patterns of phenotypic plasticity based on system-level analysis of the same sample that includes metabolic profiling approach combined with robust statistical analysis.