Water Relations of Beans I. Effects of Water Stress on Growth and Flowering

Abstract

Summary Experiments were made in glasshouses, growth cabinets and growth rooms to study the differential responses of the broad bean to water stress during the vegetative and flowering phases of growth. Plants in the flowering phase proved to be more sensitive to drought than in the vegetative period, and there were different responses (Relative Growth Rate) to temperature at different stages of plant growth. Day length and temperature influenced the position of the earliest flower initials on the stem, and intensity of flower shedding was aggravated by high temperature.