Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Master's Theses Graduate School 2007 Evaluating seashore Paspalum seed germination and enhancement, erosion abatement and potential use as a vegetative landfarm cap Dexter Paul Fontenot Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses Recommended Citation Fontenot, Dexter Paul, "Evaluating seashore Paspalum seed germination and enhancement, erosion abatement and potential use as a vegetative landfarm cap" (2007). LSU Master's Theses. 1787. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_theses/1787 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Master's Theses by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. EVALUATING SEASHORE PASPALUM SEED GERMINATION AND ENHANCEMENT, EROSION ABATEMENT AND POTENTIAL USE AS A VEGETATIVE LANDFARM CAP A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in the partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science in The School of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences by Dexter Paul Fontenot B.S., Louisiana State University, 2003 December 2007 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my major professor, Dr. Edward Bush and my committee members Drs. Charles Johnson and Jeffery Beasley for their knowledge, support, and guidance throughout this study. I would also like to thank members of the faculty and staff of the Horticulture Department for their continued support. I would specifically like to thank Ms. Ann Gray and Mrs. Gloria McClure for assisting me with lab and field work. I would like to fondly express thanks to my wife Kathryn Fontenot for her help and encouragement during my graduate program. Finally, I would like to thank my family and friends for their support and interest in my academic endeavors. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................. ii LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ v LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... vi ABSTRACT..................................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER 1...................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 1 Introduction................................................................................................................... 2 Salt Tolerance................................................................................................................ 2 Cold Tolerance .............................................................................................................. 3 Wear Tolerance............................................................................................................. 4 Shade Tolerance............................................................................................................ 4 Maintenance .................................................................................................................. 5 CHAPTER 2...................................................................................................................... 7 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................ 7 Germination Studies Based on Temperature, Light, Seed Enhancement, and Salinity ........................................................................................................................... 8 Previous Studies on Rain Induced Erosion .............................................................. 14 Previous Studies on Brine Impacted Areas .............................................................. 18 CHAPTER 3.................................................................................................................... 21 OPTIMUM TEMPERATURE FOR GERMINATION OF PASPALUM VAGINATUM ‘SEASPRAY’.......................................................................................... 21 Introduction................................................................................................................. 22 Materials and Methods............................................................................................... 22 Results.......................................................................................................................... 24 Discussion .................................................................................................................... 26 CHAPTER 4.................................................................................................................... 28 EFFECTS OF PRIMING ON PASPALUM VAGINATUM ‘SEASPRAY’ SEED.... 28 Introduction................................................................................................................. 29 Materials and Methods............................................................................................... 29 Results.......................................................................................................................... 30 Discussion .................................................................................................................... 34 CHAPTER 5.................................................................................................................... 36 RAIN SIMULATION AND RUNOFF.......................................................................... 36 Introduction................................................................................................................. 37 Materials and Methods............................................................................................... 37 Results.......................................................................................................................... 39 Discussion .................................................................................................................... 43 iii CHAPTER 6.................................................................................................................... 44 UTILIZATION OF PASPALUM VAGINATUM FOR A BRINE LANDFARM CAP.......................................................................................................... 44 Introduction................................................................................................................. 45 Materials and Methods............................................................................................... 46 Results.......................................................................................................................... 48 Initial Soil Nutrient Sampling................................................................................ 48 Initial Plant Nutrient Sampling ............................................................................. 48 Final Nutrient Sampling......................................................................................... 49 Biomass Results....................................................................................................... 51 Visual Rating Results.............................................................................................. 52 Seedling Coverage Results ..................................................................................... 53 CHAPTER 7.................................................................................................................... 57 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................. 57 LITERATURE CITED .................................................................................................. 60 APPENDIX...................................................................................................................... 65 VITA................................................................................................................................. 68 iv LIST OF TABLES Table 6.1. Baseline plant tissue nutrition analysis............................................................ 49 Table 6.2. Biomass yield of three grass species growing on a brine landfarm................. 51 Table 6.3 Visual ratings of three grass species grown on a solid waste surface impoundment .................................................................................................................... 52 Table 6.4 Mean percent seed coverage by species according to depth............................. 53 Table 6.5. Mean percent seedling canopy coverage by depth of river silt according to species............................................................................................................................... 54 Table A.1. Baseline soil nutrition analysis ....................................................................... 66 Table A.2. Monthly total precipitation at Georgia Gulf Vinyls, LLC .............................. 67 Table A.3. Monthly high and low mean temperatures.....................................................