Abstract
PREVIOUS work1 has shown that substantial economic losses may occur when S23 ryegrass is grown in areas of high coal-smoke pollution. Evidence suggested that sulphur dioxide was the toxic factor producing the depression in yield, although this could not be proved. We decided to investigate the effects of prolonged periods of low SO2 concentration on the growth of S23 Lolium perenne in order to establish whether SO2 can cause invisible injury and also to measure the depression of yields at different concentrations of the gas. We also used clones of wild L. perenne collected from Helmshore in a polluted region of East Lancashire. Observations at the ADAS Experimental Husbandry Farm at Helmshore have indicated that the native ryegrass in the district is apparently tolerant to the polluted atmosphere (C. H. Mudd, personal communication).
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References
Bleasdale, J. K. A., thesis, University of Manchester (1952).
Meetham, A. R., Atmospheric Pollution, 178 (Macmillan, New York).
The Investigation of Air Pollution, National Survey Annual Summary (Warren Spring Laboratory).
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BELL, J., CLOUGH, W. Depression of Yield in Ryegrass Exposed to Sulphur Dioxide. Nature 241, 47–49 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1038/241047b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/241047b0
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