Essay Example on Adaptability failure due to low Temperature

Adaptability failure due to low temperature conditions and hence the poor seed germination Keywords Saussurea costus Ayurvedic luxuriantly kuth Pir Panjal and climate change Introduction Genus Saussurea belongs to one of the well known families of angiosperms ie Asteraceae It has more than 300 species Bremer 1994 of which about 61species are known to be distributed in India Hajra 1995 1988 Many of these species are endemic to north western Himalyas Aswal and Mehrotra 1994 reported as many as 46 species in India and among these 5 species namely S atkinsoni Clarke S jacea Klotz Clarke S costus Falc S taraxacifolia among occur in Thalan and Chang regions of valley Neel of Pir Panjal range Saussurea costus is essentially an erect perennial pubescent herb 

The root and shoot systems are markedly distinct and the height of plant generally varies between 1 4 meters the roots have been tremendously exploited for sesquiterpenoids which do have a potential medicinal value the leaves are large broad with marked dentition and with a long winged petiole Flowers are are in heads sessile either axillary or in terminal clusters

Fruit achene compressed and slightly curved Saussurea costus is endemic to North Western Himalaya However it is distributed to temperate regions of the world Entire plant is used for medicinal purpose however the root of kuth is widely used in traditional Indian medicine system Ayurveda Unani The roots are indigenously used for Cough Fever Stomach Ache and Rheumatism Due to ruthless exploitation of the plant for medicinal purposes Saussurea costus has happened to find a place in the red data book of Indian plants as an endangered species However In 2003 IUCN has listed this species under critically endangered species Area of interest Conditions Number of seeds sown Number of seeds germinated Germination percentage Seedlings survived Survival percentage Low altitude area THALAN Open field condition Within polyhouse High altitude area CHANG Open field condition Within polyhouse Material and methods In order to understand the seed germination and distribution patterns of Saussurea costus in two different region 

Thalan low altitude area and Chang high altitude area of Valley Neel elevated about 2134m and 2187m respectively from the sea level A field survey was carried out through structured questionnaires and detailed information from locals inhabitants of nearby vicinity Zaradi and Gujjars and Bakarwals was gathered through direct interviews Direct observations on seed collection and sowing were also made from the field To begin with the Seeds of wild Saussurea costus collected in the year 2014 sept oct were sun dried and stored at room temperature 16 0C About 100 viable seeds stored were sown in July 2015 in Thalan low altitude area and Chang high altitude area in open field and within polyhouse conditions in mountain soil rich in humus and litter to understand the impact of temperature on seed germination and survival of seedlings if any 

Area of interest Thalan and Chang are the two biodiversity rich reaches of valley Neel situated at an elevation of about 2134 m above the sea level It is about 26 kms away from the Banihal town and is essentially a part of Pir Panchal range of Himalyan mountain system It is a U shaped valley bounded on three sides by lofty mountain peaks while the mouth connects it with the block Ramsoo located to the right of NH44 To the north of the Valley are Thailand and Chang which receive the season's first snowfall in November and thus remain covered with snow sheets till late May Result and discussion Distribution Climate change is a recent global phenomenon which has directly or indirectly increased the global mean temperature This Increased temperature has in turn affected the species distribution across the globe and so is the case with the distribution of wild Saussurea costus In Thalan temperature during the month of june july is approximately 2 degree higher than what it used to be two decade earlier Many factors are responsible for such a hike in temperature and one of such factors is ruthless deforestation This increased temperature has directly or indirectly affected the distribution of wild Saussurea costus which thrives well in temperate regions of the world Initially the species was reported to be in clusters of 12 to 30 individuals among or nearby bushes and such clusters were more or less dispersed over a large geographical area at regular intervals 

But now the individual members of the species are distributed randomly either singly or in groups of 3to 5 Such distribution patterns were reported from Thalan which is easily accessible to inhabitants of nearby Locality However the Chang is still an abode to Sussurea costus The Chang region during the month of june july has a temperature that varies between 18 to 21 degree Celsius thus most conducive for the growth of plant species Seed germination percentage About 100 seed of wild Saussurea costus were sown in the month of June in open field and within polyhouse conditions both in high altitude and low altitude areas of Chang and Thalan Seed germination in Low altitude area Thalan in open field and within polyhouse condition was 31 and 23 17 while in high altitude area of Chang the age seed germination recorded was 43 21 and 57 13 respectively Thus the highest seed germination about 57 13 was recorded in Chang high altitude area with in polyhouse condition survival on The seedling survival percentage also varied considerably in open field and within polyhouse conditions of Both Thalan and Chang With In polyhouse condition both in Thalan and Chang the seedling survival age was much better than the open field conditions In open field condition the seedling failed to cope up with the frost conditions thus low seedling