Female-biased sex allocation in relation to growth rate of fruit in Erythronium japonicum

Abstract

Using four populations of the liliaceous perennial Erythronium japonicum, I examined the hypothesis that sex allocation will be female-biased if the duration of sink-limited growth of fruits, during which fruits grow exponentially, is long. I found that all marked fruits in each population had a period of sink-limited growth. Among the four populations, the mean length of sink-limited growth increased, and the mean dry mass ratio of the sum of the corolla and androecium/fruit decreased, in a consistent order. Thus, plants in populations where the duration of sink-limited growth was long allocated relatively more of their resources to their female functions. This result was consistent with the above hypothesis.