Ecophysiological requirements on seed germination of a Mediterranean perennial grass (Stipa tenacissima L.) under controlled temperatures and water stress

•The optimum temperature of germination of Stipa tenacissima L. is 20 °C.•The water potential of germination of Stipa tenacissima L. does not exceed − 0.5 MPa.•Seed weight is not involved on germination percentages of Stipa tenacissima L.•Germination of S. tenacissima L. required a strict suitable condition, which can lead to the risk of extinction of the species.•Stipa tenacissima steppes will be severely affected by climate change scenario.

Stipa tenacissima L. (alpha grass) steppes are one of the most representative ecosystems in arid Mediterranean ecosystems. On the one hand these steppes, which are perpetually exposed to climate and strong anthropogenic pressure, have undergone severe degradation. On the other hand, the ability of S. tenacissima to regenerate naturally is significantly reduced. In this study the germination response and seedling emergence of S. tenacissima are examined in relation to the main environmental factors (water stress and temperature) under laboratory-controlled conditions. The main aim of this paper was to investigate the influence of temperature over a temperature range (10 °C–30 °C) and water stress induced by the solutions of polyethylene glycol (PEG)-6000 (0 to − 1.6 MPa) for a period of 30 days, on the germination behavior of S. tenacissima seeds. The results showed that temperatures between 10° and 20 °C seem to be favorable for the germination of this species, with optimum temperatures among accessions found in 20 °C. When seeds were water-stressed, germination severely decreased at − 0.8 MPa, indicating that the accession resistance limits to the water stress, and was completely inhibited at − 1.6 MPa. Consequently, the final germination percentage (FGP) decreased and the mean time germination (MTG) increased. Based on the empirical data of the germination rate, we estimated that the parameters of the thermal time and hydrotime models showed different values in all accessions which proves the difference between accession adaptive capacities.