are this color according to my camera and your laptop screen.
5 thoughts on “Neptunia prostrata nodules”
I found this, which I didn’t know:
Legume nodules that are no longer fixing nitrogen usually turn green and may actually be discarded by the plant. Pink or red nodules should predominate on a legume in the middle of the growing season. If white, grey or green nodules
predominate, little nitrogen fixation is occurring as a result of an inefficient Rhizobium strain, poor plant nutrition, pod filling or other plant stress.
I cut a few open, and they appear similar in coloration on the outside as they do on the inside. I only had a hand lens, so I may have missed subtle color streaks too small to see in the field.
Overall, though, the nodules appear pinkish, white and a few where yellowish. There is a different strain of nitrogen-fixing bacteria present in the Neptunia, and I’m unsure how that correlates to color variation.
On the Utricularia, there are lots of bladders, but I don’t know much of anything about their biology. Are they capable of restricting bladder growth when nutrient levels are sufficient?
Interesting. Since I’ve been out of school, the only place I know to find papers is through Google… I just read a paper and a few abstracts about Utricularia (wish I knew how to get access to more).
Apparently there was a paper written in 1989 that showed an unexpected result of Utricularia investing more in bladders in nutrient-rich environments. Another study has shown that “almost 100% of mature Utricularia purpurea bladders supported living communities of microorganisms and associated detritus.” They also contain blue-green algae, diatoms, photosynthetic protists, etc.. The paper I read is suggesting that Utricularia gains more from by-products from these communities than it does from carnivory, which would support the unexpected result from the 1989 study. So, mutualism. Pretty cool.
I found this, which I didn’t know:
Legume nodules that are no longer fixing nitrogen usually turn green and may actually be discarded by the plant. Pink or red nodules should predominate on a legume in the middle of the growing season. If white, grey or green nodules
predominate, little nitrogen fixation is occurring as a result of an inefficient Rhizobium strain, poor plant nutrition, pod filling or other plant stress.
Although I think you need to cut them open.
I cut a few open, and they appear similar in coloration on the outside as they do on the inside. I only had a hand lens, so I may have missed subtle color streaks too small to see in the field.
Overall, though, the nodules appear pinkish, white and a few where yellowish. There is a different strain of nitrogen-fixing bacteria present in the Neptunia, and I’m unsure how that correlates to color variation.
On the Utricularia, there are lots of bladders, but I don’t know much of anything about their biology. Are they capable of restricting bladder growth when nutrient levels are sufficient?
What is pod stress?
Interesting. Since I’ve been out of school, the only place I know to find papers is through Google… I just read a paper and a few abstracts about Utricularia (wish I knew how to get access to more).
Apparently there was a paper written in 1989 that showed an unexpected result of Utricularia investing more in bladders in nutrient-rich environments. Another study has shown that “almost 100% of mature Utricularia purpurea bladders supported living communities of microorganisms and associated detritus.” They also contain blue-green algae, diatoms, photosynthetic protists, etc.. The paper I read is suggesting that Utricularia gains more from by-products from these communities than it does from carnivory, which would support the unexpected result from the 1989 study. So, mutualism. Pretty cool.
Awesome! Do you have citations?
This is the only full paper I found:
Bladder function in Utricularia purpurea (Lentibulariaceae): is carnivory important?
Jennifer H. Richards