Growth Forms, Carbon Allocation, and Reproductive Patterns of High Arctic Saxifrages

Abstract

Components of reproductive strategy are described for seven species of Saxifraga representing three important forb growth forms (dwarf erect, cushion, and rosette) in the High Arctic. Reproductive effort, flowering frequency, dispersal patterns, and carbon allocation (dry weight, caloric) to roots, leaves, and inflorescences were determined for each species. Although reproductive strategies could not be generalized for each growth form, three trends in carbon allocation and reproduction were apparent. Saxifraga cernua (dwarf erect forb), S. foliolosa (rosette), and S. flagellaris (rosette) had high carbon allocation to vegetative versus flowering tissue, and reproduced by vegetative means (bulbils, basal budding, stoloniferous bulbils). Saxifraga rivularis (dwarf erect forb) and S. nivalis (rosette) had a high carbon allocation to flowering versus vegetative tissue, reproduced by seed, and had a high ratio of immature to mature plants. Saxifraga caespitosa (cushion) and S. tenuis (rosette) had a high carbon allocation to flowering versus vegetative tissue, reproduced by seeds, and had a high ratio of mature to immature plants. These three reproductive patterns roughly follow those outlined in 1979 by other workers.