Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 77 (4): 581-591, 2004
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Reproductive biology of Convolvulus chilensis (Convolvulaceae) in a population of
Aucó (north-central Chile)
The perennial herb Convolvulus chilensis is the only endemic species of the
Convolvulaceae in Chile. The breeding system, phenology, morphology and floral longevity of C. chilensis were studied in
a natural population located at Aucó, Reserva Nacional Las Chinchillas, IV Región, Chile. A controlled pollination experiment was
carried out considering the following treatments: natural pollination, cross-pollination, manual self- pollination, automatic self-pollination
and apomixis, evaluating their effect on fruit formation and seed number per fruit. In addition, we evaluated the following traits of the
progeny according to pollination type (selfing or outcrossing): seed weight, germination and seedling height and number of leaves after
eight weeks of germination under green house conditions. We found Convolvulus chilensis is self-compatible, partially
autogamous (capable of selfing without a pollinator agent) and partially apomictic (capable of producing seeds without male gamet).
The floral longevity was estimated in 5.25 h During this period, the pollen on the stamens is available only during 1.5 h. The blooming
period lasted for 22 weeks (August to January). The apomixis treatment showed a lower fruit set and seed number per flower than
natural, cross and self-pollination treatments, which did not show any difference between them in both traits. Pollination type (selfing or
outcrossing) did not affect progeny performance in terms of the evaluated seed and seedling traits
Key words:
Convolvulaceae,
Convolvulus chilensis, breeding system, self-compatibility, autogamy
