Measuring freezing tolerance: survival and regrowth assays.
Screening plants for freezing tolerance under tightly controlled conditions is an invaluable technique for studying freezing tolerance and selecting for improved winterhardiness. Artificial freezing tests of cereal plants historically have used isolated crown and stem tissue prepared by "removing all plant parts 3 cm above and 0.5 cm below the crown tissue" (Fowler et al., Crop Sci 21:896-901, 1981). Here, we describe a method of conducting freezing tolerance tests using intact plants grown in small horticultural containers, including suggested methods for collecting and analyzing the data.
USDA-ARS, Wheat Genetics Unit, Washington State University, 209 Johnson Hall, Pullman, WA, 99164, USA, dzs@wsu.edu.
Daniel Z
DZ
Skinner
Kimberly
K
Garland-Campbell
D000064:Acclimatization; D005615:Freezing; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013997:Time Factors; D014908:Triticum / Q000502:physiology*