Epidermal features of Lotus oroboides = Ottleya oroboides (Leguminosae: Loteae)

STENGLEIN S.A. & ARAMBARRI A.M.

Lotus Newsletter

AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH SERVICE

Año: 2005 vol. 35 p. 183 - 190

We report here whether accessions of Lotus oroboides (Humboldt, Bonpland & Kunth) Ottley in Kearney & Peebles, collected in different environmental areas, presented differences among leaf epidermal characters. Data on epidermal cells, stomata, stomatal indeces and trichomes were recordered and summarised in tables and figures. To test the posibility of variability in leaf epidermal features 18 leaves of six accessions of L. oroboides were studied on both the adaxial and the abaxial leaf surfaces. Among epidermal microcharacters all L. oroboides accessions were statistically different. Our results demonstrated that micromorphological characteristics on both leaf surfaces are variable traits among L. oroboides accessions. This variability has been attributed to the presence of ecotypes determined by the environmental conditions where they were grown, or genetic infiltration from other species or may be hypothetisised that this species still is in an evolutionary process.