South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

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South African Journal of Botany

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/sajb

Reproductive biology, phenology, pollen viability and germinability in

Kersting’s groundnut (Macrotyloma geocarpum (Harms) Mare
chal &
Baudet, Fabaceae)
Konoutan Me
dard Kafoutchonia,b,*, Eric Etchikinto Agoyia, Gbe
wonme  de

a Hospice Dassouc,
Hospice Samson Sossoua, Sergino Ayia, Corneille Ahanhanzo Gle le
d, Aristide Cossi Adomouc,
Hounnankpon Ye
domonhan , Cle
c

ment Agbangla , Achille Ephrem Assogbadjoa
b

a
Non-Timber Forest Products and Orphan Crop Species Unit, Laboratory of Applied Ecology (LEA), Faculty of Agronomic Science, University of Abomey-Calavi, 01
BP 526, Tri postal, Cotonou, Benin
b
Laboratoire de Ge
ne
tique Mole
culaire et d’Analyse des Ge
nomes (LGMAG), Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, University of Abomey-Calavi, Abomey-Calavi BP
142, Benin
c
Laboratory of Botany and Plant Ecology, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, University of Abomey-Calavi, Cotonou 01 BP 4521, Benin
d
Central Laboratory of Plant Biotechnology and Plant Breeding, Department of Genetic and Biotechnology, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, University of Abo-
mey-Calavi, Benin

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Article History: Knowledge gap on the reproductive biology of orphan crops is a major challenge to their cultivar develop-
Received 30 September 2020 ment and genetic improvement. This study described the reproductive organs and phenology, assessed
Revised 10 November 2020 receptivity of stigma versus anther dehiscence, and examined pollen viability and germination in Kersting’s
Accepted 17 November 2020
groundnut. Experiments were conducted on nine morphotypes in a randomized complete block design with
Available online xxx
three replications in a screenhouse. Phenological observations were made on 1026 flower buds. Anther
Edited by S-L Steenhuisen dehiscence was determined through microscopic observations while receptivity of the stigma was assessed
using the hydrogen peroxide test. Pollen viability was assayed using histochemical staining. In vitro germina-
Keywords:
tion and pollen tube growth were assessed for up to 72h. Flowers were bisexual and incompletely protogy-
Style movement
nous, and spontaneous self-pollination was favoured by style bending. Flowering and fruiting were classified
Protogyny
into six developmental stages each. Timing of all stages differed significantly (P<0.001) among morphotypes.
Forced self-pollination
Anther dehiscence The stigma was receptive 1-2 days before anther dehiscence and remained so until each flower wilted.
Stigma receptivity Anthesis started 3 days from young bud appearance and lasted between 2
4 days depending on the morpho-
Pollen tube growth type. Pollen viability rates were very high (88
98%) and differed among morphotypes (P<0.001). Pollen ger-
mination rates were low (8
37%) and varied among morphotypes and anthesis stages (P<0.05). Pollen tube
growth varied significantly among morphotypes, anthesis stages and incubation time. The morphotype
ZHLA-2 exhibited the highest reproductive vigour and could be recommended as pollen donor for hybridiza-
tion. The study provides information on the best time and stage for emasculation and is expected to help
breeders optimise a hybridisation protocol.
© 2020 SAAB. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction ‘orphan crops’ remains cursory and indubitably a hurdle for their
improvement (Cullis et al. 2019). Studies related to the anthesis, pol-
The major breakthroughs in plant genetic improvement that fav- len viability, in vitro pollen germination, and stigma receptivity have
oured the advent of the ‘Green revolution’ in the 1960s were associ- been conducted in many minor legume crops including faba bean
ated with the knowledge of reproductive biology of crop species (Vicia faba L.) (Stoddard 1986), cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.Walp)
(Whitford et al. 2013; Jaiswal et al. 2016; Singh et al. 2010). Yet, the (Ribeiro et al. 2013; Ige et al. 2011), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan (L.)
knowledge base regarding the reproductive biology of the so-called Millsp.) (Jayaprakash and Sabesan 2013; Kar and Datta 2017), and
Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranean (L.) Verdc.)
(Onwubiko et al. 2011; Chandra et al. 2019; Linneman 1993) among
* Corresponding author at: Non-Timber Forest Products and Orphan Crop Species others, and allowed important achievements in their genetic
Unit, Laboratory of Applied Ecology (LEA), Faculty of Agronomic Science, University of
improvement. For instance, various pigeon pea hybrid varieties with
Abomey-Calavi, 01 BP 526, Tri postal, Cotonou, Benin.
E-mail address: [email protected] (K.M. Kafoutchoni). 25
69% yield superiority over the local cultivars were obtained in

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2020.11.015
0254-6299/© 2020 SAAB. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

India by the means of intra and interspecific crosses (Saxena 2015). In thinned to one per pot 10 days after sowing. The pots were laid out
contrast, low success rates of artificial hybridization were recorded in in a randomized complete block design with three replications in
chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), and the lack of details on the flowering which each plot was made up of 5 pots aligned one next to the other.
stages chosen for making crosses was the principal underlying cause The plants were watered every 2-3 days.
(Kalve and Tadege 2017; Altaf and Ahmad 1990).
Kersting’s groundnut (Macrotyloma geocarpum (Harms) Mare
chal 2.2. Flowering and fructification phenology
& Baudet, Fabaceae), commonly known as “doyi” in Benin, is an indig-
enous legume crop widely grown and consumed in West Africa. Its Phenological observations were made to determine the timing
seeds are rich in protein, and contain essential micronutrients includ- and duration of the different flower developmental stages. In total,
ing key minerals (Fe, Ca, Mg, K, Zn, Na, P) and vitamins (A, B1, B2) 1026 flower buds (38 flower buds £ 9 morphotypes £ 3 replications)
(Chikwendu 2015). The crop is thus a valuable surrogate protein were randomly selected and monitored daily, based on the observ-
source for people with limited access to animal protein and a poten- able changes in colour and size of floral parts. The selected flower
tial source of income for rural communities. Listed as one of the 101 buds were tagged at their initial stage. After wilting, tagged flowers
promising orphan crops promoted by the African Orphan Crops Con- were monitored every 2 days until pod maturation. To determine the
sortium (AOCC), the crop has recently received greater attention initiation of anthesis and anther dehiscence, 432 flowers buds were
from researchers in Benin (Assogba et al. 2015; Akohoue et al. 2019; tagged and monitored for eight days. Six flowers per morphotype
Akohoue et al. 2018; Loko et al. 2019; Coulibaly et al. 2020; were removed every day, then dissected and anthers observed with
Agoyi et al. 2019), Ghana (Mohammed et al. 2018; an Olympus stereoscopic microscope. Likewise, stigma receptivity
Mohammed et al. 2019; Jaiswal et al. 2019) and Nigeria (Chik- was measured on 432 random flowers (n=48 flowers per morpho-
wendu 2015). Studies of reproductive biology African orphan legume type), over a period of eight days, using the method of
crops such as Kersting’s groundnut are, however, still very limited. Dafni et al. (2005). Briefly, 1-2 drops of a hydrogen peroxide solution
To our knowledge, the only reproductive biology study in Ker- (H2O2; 3%) were put on the stigma of six flowers per morphotype per
sting’s groundnut was carried out two decades earlier and was based day to test a peroxidase activity indicating stigma receptivity. Stig-
on three cultivated varieties (Obasi and Ezedinma 1994). The study mas that produced bubbles within 2-3 mins were considered recep-
showed that the time from flower initiation to anthesis was about tive (Thimmaiah et al. 2018). Anthesis time was defined as when the
6 days and did not vary among varieties. Moreover, it was found that stigma was receptive to pollen and anthers were ready to release it
the stigma became receptive 12 hours before anthesis while anthers (Rudall et al. 2007).
dehisced 7-8 hours before anthesis (Obasi and Ezedinma 1994).
Unfortunately, the study did not provide any detail regarding the 2.3. Pollen viability
characteristics of the varieties studied. Yet, flower and seed morpho-
types are known to impact important reproductive traits such as pol- Pollen viability was tested using the Carbol Fuchsin staining
len production, pollen viability, pollen germination capacity, stigma method (Stanley and Linskens 1974). Nine flowers were randomly
receptivity, fruit set, and eventually grain yield as reported in pigeon collected per morphotype at different periods (pre-anthesis, anthesis,
pea (Kar and Datta 2017). Knowledge of these and additional repro- post-anthesis), for 27 flowers sampled per morphotype in total.
ductive characteristics in different Kersting’s groundnut morpho- Then, pollen from 3 anthers picked on each flower were dusted on 3
types will help breeders determine the optimal time and the right glass slides per flower (729 slides in total) and stained with 1% Carbol
stage of flower bud to use to perform emasculation and pollination. Fuchsin. All slides were observed and imaged with a Carl Zeiss Primo
This information is imperative to successful hybridization in the crop Star Binocular Microscope (Germany). Pollen grains appearing deep
as the stage of flower bud used for emasculation and the pollination red were considered as viable whereas colourless or light stained
time can affect the success rate of artificial hybridization as reported grains were considered non-viable (Gaaliche et al. 2013).
in Capsicum annuum L. (Kivadasannavar et al. 2013) and Arachis hypo-
gaea L. (Chu et al. 2016), respectively. On the other hand, the genetic 2.4. In vitro pollen germination and pollen tube growth
dissection of complex heritable traits relies on the development of
mapping populations which can only be established through crosses. In vitro germination and pollen tube growth were assessed using
Therefore, a better knowledge of the floral morphology and repro- the hanging drop method (Stanley and Linskens 1974). Three flowers
ductive biology of Kersting’s groundnut is a prerequisite in formulat- were randomly collected per morphotype and for each of the follow-
ing effective strategies for improvement of the crop and ing phases: pre-anthesis, anthesis, and post-anthesis. A small drop of
understanding the genetics of complex traits such as yield compo- germinating medium was placed onto cover glasses inside a petro-
nents. leum jelly circle (Stanley and Linskens 1974). Pollen grains were
Therefore, the present study aimed to (i) describe the reproduc- sown on the drop by squashing a single anther using sterilized nee-
tive organs and phenology; (ii) assess receptivity of stigma and dles. This operation was performed under an Olympus stereoscopic
anther dehiscence; and (iii) examine pollen viability and germination microscope at 10x. Slides were delicately placed on the cover glasses,
in Kersting’s groundnut. then the slides were inverted and placed into petri dishes containing
moist filter paper. The germinating medium contained 5% sucrose
2. Material and methods (C12H22O11), 5 ppm boric acid (H3BO3) and 1% agar
(Gaaliche et al. 2013). Petri dishes were incubated in darkness at
2.1. Plant materials and experimental design 30°C for 24, 48 and 72 hours. All slides were viewed and microphoto-
graphs were taken with a Carl Zeiss Primo Star Binocular Microscope.
Nine accessions (Table 1) representing different morphotypes of Germination percentages were determined by counting germinated
Kersting’s groundnut based on the combination of seed coat and and total number of pollen grains per slide. Pollen was considered
flower colours were investigated in this study. The experiment was germinated when its tube length exceeded the grain diameter
conducted in the screenhouse of the Laboratory of Applied Ecology (Salem et al. 2007). Pollen tube length was measured on 15 pollen
(06°240 55.4200 N 02°200 21.4400 E; altitude 20 m.a.s.l) at the Faculty of tubes for each of the 81 treatments (3 phases £ 9 morphotypes £ 3
Agronomic Sciences (University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin). Seeds incubation periods). For this purpose, microphotographs were first
were sown in plastic pots (20 cm diameter £ 21 cm depth) containing assembled in mosaic using Autostitch for Macintosh (Brown and
sterilized soil at a rate of two seeds per pot, and seedlings were Lowe 2007; Ma et al. 2007) and pollen tube lengths were
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K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

Table 1
Kersting’s groundnut morphotypes and their characteristics.

N° Accession Seed coat colour Flower colour Country of origin Donor

1 ZHLA-2 Cream Purple Benin Collected

2 GTA-3 Cream White Benin Collected
3 ZHLA-1 Brown White Benin Collected
4 GBO-4 Brown Pink Benin Collected
5 T-10 Black Pink Ghana SARI
6 BUR7 Black White Burkina Faso INERA
7 E-5 Cream with black butterfly-like eye White Ghana SARI
8 BUR13 Cream with black butterfly-like eye Purple Burkina Faso INERA
9 TK9-12 Gray mottles on brown background Purple Nigeria IITA
SARI
Savanna Agricultural Research Institute, INERA
Institut de l'Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles,
IITA
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture.

subsequently measured using Fiji ImageJ version 2.0.0 from the ‘car’ package (Fox and Weisberg 2019) was used to extract
(Abr
amoff et al. 2004). Mosaicked images were calibrated in ImageJ the p-value of fitted GLMMs. Estimated marginal means and associ-
before measurements. ated standard errors were extracted from the models using the
‘emmeans’ package (Lenth 2019) and used to describe the flowering
2.5. Data analysis and fruiting phenological stages, along with coefficient of variation
and range. To determine the period of anthesis, as well as the onset
Data were analysed in R version 3.6.1 (R Core Team 2020). The dif- of anther dehiscence and stigma receptivity for each morphotype,
ferent flowering and fruiting phenological stages were determined GLMMs were constructed and marginal means were estimated from
and described by means of descriptive statistics (mean § standard the models using the ‘emmeans’ package (Lenth 2019). The day at
error, coefficient of variation, and range). Differences in the duration which 50% of the anthers and stigmas tested positive for dehiscence
of each phenological stage among morphotypes were assessed using and peroxidase activity, respectively, was determined and used as
generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) with Poisson or negative the basis for comparison of the morphotypes. Percentages of viable
binomial error distribution (in case of overdispersion) performed in pollen were compared among anthesis stages (pre-anthesis, anthesis,
the ‘lme4’ package (Bates et al. 2015). Overdispersion was checked post-anthesis) and morphotypes using a Generalized linear model
using the function provided by Bolker et al. (2009) (http://bbolker. (GLM) with quasipoisson family, performed in ‘lme4’ package
github.io/mixedmodels-misc/glmmFAQ.html#testing-for-overdisper (Bates et al. 2015). Tukey post-hoc test as performed in the ‘mult-
sioncomputing-overdispersion-factor). In all models, morphotype comp’ package (Hothorn et al. 2008) was used for multiple compari-
was included as a fixed effect and flowers nested within plants within sons. Pollen germination percentage and pollen tube length were
blocks (1 | Block/Plant/Flower) were used as random effects to control summarized using descriptive statistics (mean § standard error, coef-
the spatial repeated measures of flowers per plant across blocks, as ficient of variation and range). Differences in pollen germination rates
recommended by Crawley (2012). The Tukey post-hoc test was per- among morphotypes, incubation time, anthesis stages and their
formed to test for significant differences among morphotypes, using interactions were assessed using GLM. Similarly, Analysis of variance
the ‘multcomp’ package (Hothorn et al. 2008). The Anova function (ANOVA) or Kruskal-Wallis test were used, when appropriate, to test

Fig. 1. Flower structure of Kersting's groundnut (M. geocarpum). (a) Emergence of four flower buds at a node, (b) Floral diagram, (c) Opened flower showing the different parts of the
corolla, (d) Exudate glands on the inner face of the standard petal (white arrows), (e) Dorsifixed immature anther, (f) Dehiscing anther. Scale bar = 4 mm in (c) and (d).

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K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

for differences of pollen tube length among morphotypes, incubation

time, and anthesis stages. ANOVA followed by Tukey post-hoc test
were used when normality and homoscedasticity assumptions were
met. Kruskal-Wallis test and the Dunn post-hoc test were performed
when the two assumptions were violated.

3. Results

3.1. Floral morphology

The inflorescence was an axillary-pseudoraceme with four sessile

or subsessile flowers at each node (Fig. 1a). Fig. 1b depicts the floral
diagram of Kersting’s groundnut. The floral formula is
BBt 2 % # Kð5Þ C 1þ2þð2Þ A1þð9Þ G ð1Þ

indicating that the flower was zygomorphic (%) with one bract (B)
and two persistent bracteoles (Bt). Bract and bracteoles 6-7 £ 1-
1.2 mm, lanceolate to linear, acuminate. The flower had a single plane
of symmetry in meridian direction (#). It was hermaphrodite (⚥)
with pentamerous calyx and corolla. The calyx was green and com-
posed of five valvate sepals (K), lanceolate, acuminate, fused towards
the base, forming a calyx tube. The two vestibular lobes 5-16 £ 1-
9.5 mm were almost fully fused. The bracteoles were longer than the
calyx tube. The corolla, pale white-green, greenish, yellowish, white
tinged with purple or pink depending of the morphotype, was made
of five petals (C) with vexillary arrangement: a standard petal (vexil-
lum), two wing petals (alae) and two keel petals fused at their tips,
forming a boat-shaped structure (carina) that enclosed the reproduc-
tive organs (Fig. 1c). The standard petal 9.5-19 £ 6-17 mm, ovate to
obovate, glabrous, had two glands that exuded a sticky substance
during the early flowering stages (Fig. 1d). The wings 10-12 £ 2-
2.4 mm, glabrous. The keels 10-13 £ 2.50-3.5 mm, glabrous and
clawed. Sepals and petals alternated in position (Fig. 1b). The androe-
cium was gamostemone, diadelphous, consisted of ten stamens
9
17 mm long, the vexillary one being free forming a falcate stami- Fig. 2. Stages of floral development in Kersting's groundnut (T10 morphotype with
nal tube. The anthers were 27.85-401.95 £ 19.04-339.24 mm, ellip- black seed and pink flower). (a, d) - initiated flower, (b, e) - young bud, (c, f) - devel-
oped bud, (g, j) - mature bud, (h, k) - open flower, (i, l) - wilted flower. Ant - anther, Bt
soid, bilobed and dorsifixed with longitudinal dehiscence (Fig. 1e,f).
- bracteole, Sg - stigma, Sp
sepal, Spt
standard petal, St
style, Kpt
keel petal,
Dehiscing anthers released pollen grains of 7.9-38.9 mm in diameter. Wpt
wing petal. Grid cells = 1 mm.
The gynoecium (G) was sessile or subsessile, 8
17 mm long with an
elongated superior ovary 1.2
5 mm long, containing 2 to 3 green, calyx (Fig. 2c). The standard petal remained closed making the inner
shiny and globular ovules with erect dorsal placentation. The stigma petals (wings and keels) not visible. The upper half portion of the
was capitate. Ovules diameter averaged 0.25 mm. standard started to change colour. The elongation of the stamens and
pistil was noticeable, though the physical configuration of the two
3.2. Phenology organs remained unchanged (Fig. 2f). The developing corolla became
yellowish in the morphotypes with white flower (BUR7, E-5, GTA-3
3.2.1. Flowering phenology and ZHLA-1), slightly purple in purple-flowered morphotypes
Flowering phenology was determined based upon observable (BUR13, TK9-12 and ZHLA-2), and light pink in pink-flowered ones
changes in colour and size of flowers. Six developmental stages (GBO-4 and T-10). The developed bud stage occurred in average 61
including initiated flower (S1), young bud (S2), developed bud (S3), DAS. The time from developed to mature bud (S4) stage varied from a
mature bud (S4), opened flower (S5) and wilted flower (S6) were few hours to 2 days. The S4 stage was characterized by a more pro-
identified (Fig. 2). Flower initiation (S1) was observed in average nounced pigmentation of the upper part of the standard petal
53 days after sowing (DAS) and this stage typically lasted 6
8 days (Fig. 2g). During this stage, the petals expanded rapidly until they
depending on the morphotype. At S1, all the flower parts were reached their final size. The stamens grew significantly to position
already in place (Fig. 2d), though the perianth was not developed the anthers approximately at the same level as the stigma, the style
(Fig. 2a). During this phase, the initiated flower elongated and gradu- still bent (Fig. 2j). S4 stage usually occurs 62 DAS (Table 2). The S5
ally became a young bud (S2). The S2 stage occurred in average 59 stage (open flower stage) was defined as when the flower fully opened
DAS. At this stage, five sepals became visible. A tiny light green bud with sepals and petals bent backwards (Fig. 2h). The inner face of the
appeared between the sepals. The colour of the young bud was the standard petal was strongly pigmented in purple- and pink- flowered
same irrespective of the morphotype. The sepals protruded the bud morphotypes. Stamina elongated further to position the anthers right
by 3
5 mm (Fig. 2b). The stamen had a short filament carrying at the above the stigma which has straightened up (Fig. 2k). Depending on
top a yellowish and already developed anther. The style was bent the morphotype, the flower opened between 53 and 73 DAS with an
downwards with the stigma also curling downwards and inwards. At average across morphotypes of 64 DAS. The S5 stage lasted around 1-
this phase, the stigma and part of the style are above the level of the 2 days before the flower wilted (S6). At S6 stage, the flower started to
anthers (Fig. 2e). The transition from young to developed bud (S3) was dry and petals to shed (Fig. 2i). The stigma became brown-blackish
very fast, varying from a few hours to two days. The S3 stage was and the anthers already drying became brown (Fig. 2l). Flowers typi-
characterized by the elongation of the corolla which exceeded the cally wilted about 66 DAS.

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K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

Table 2
Variability in the timing of six designated flower developmental stages in Kersting’s groundnut.

Accession Flower developmental stage

S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6
c c c
BUR13 Mean §SE 52 § 0.76 59 § 0.80c 60 § 0.79 61 § 0.81 63 § 0.85c 65 § 0.84c
Range 34 - 67 38 - 70 39 - 72 40 - 73 41 - 84 43 - 80
CV 16.88 15.75 15.27 15.24 15.48 15.00
BUR7 Mean §SE 47 § 0.88b 53 § 0.88b 54 § 0.87b 55 § 0.88b 57 § 0.88b 60 § 0.89b
Range 29 - 78 38 - 82 39 - 83 39 - 83 38 - 83 42 - 89
CV 24.37 21.99 20.9 20.79 20.38 19.76
E-5 Mean §SE 43 § 1.0a 49 § 1.0a 50 § 1.0a 51 § 1.0a 53 § 1.1a 55 § 1.1a
Range 25 - 81 38 - 90 39 - 91 40 - 93 40 - 95 42 - 96
CV 28.32 25.2 23.86 24.12 24.21 22.80
GBO-4 Mean §SE 52 § 1.2c 59 § 1.1c 60 § 1.1c 61 § 1.2c 63 § 1.2c 65 § 1.1c
Range 29 - 68 32 - 70 34 - 72 35 - 73 36 - 74 39 - 78
CV 22.89 19.18 18.62 18.53 18.1 17.30
GTA-3 Mean §SE 63 § 1.3e 70 § 1.3e 71 § 1.3e 72 § 1.3e 73 § 1.3e 76 § 1.4e
Range 45 - 90 51 - 93 52 - 94 52 - 96 53 - 99 54 - 101
CV 16.06 3.49 3.59 3.85 3.83 3.28
T-10 Mean §SE 56 § 0.52d 64 § 0.40d 65 § 0.39d 66 § 0.40d 68 § 0.41de 70 § 0.39d
Range 34 - 75 44 - 83 46 - 84 45 - 84 45 - 88 48 - 91
CV 11.68 7.8 7.43 7.51 7.59 7
TK9-12 Mean §SE 61 § 0.52e 67 § 0.54e 68 § 0.54e 70 § 0.54e 71 § 0.57de 73 § 0.55de
Range 42 - 76 43 - 88 46 - 89 47 - 90 48 - 92 50 - 93
CV 8.03 7.73 7.56 7.4 7.69 7.24
ZHLA-1 Mean §SE 59 § 0.59de 66 § 0.52de 67 § 0.54de 68 § 0.57de 70 § 0.59de 73 § 0.58de
Range 45 - 68 52 - 76 53 - 78 53 - 81 56 - 84 58 - 85
CV 7.93 6.4 6.46 6.72 6.79 6.41
ZHLA-2 Mean §SE 61 § 0.49e 68 § 0.25e 69 § 0.25e 70 § 0.27e 72 § 0.23e 74 § 0.21e
Range 45 - 67 58 - 69 59 - 70 60 - 73 63 - 75 65 - 76
CV 8.1 3.74 3.59 3.82 3.25 2.84
S1
Initiated flower, S2
young bud, S3
developed bud, S4
mature bud, S5
open flower, S6
wilted flower.
Means were rounded to the nearest integer to be consistent with 24 h observation intervals.
Means with different letters in each column are statistically different at p<0.05 according to Tukey’s test (GLMM with
negative binomial error distribution).

Results from generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) showed receptive a few days before anthers start dehiscence. Anther dehis-
statistically significant differences in the timing of all floral develop- cence occurred at developed bud stage (S3) when the floral bud is still
ment stages at 0.001 probability level (Table 2). The morphotype E-5 closed. Based on the analysis of onset and duration of stigma recep-
bloomed significantly earlier (43 § 1.0 DAS) and was also the earliest tivity and anther dehiscence (Fig. 3), anthesis time was determined
in the case of all subsequent flower developmental stages. Greater for each morphotype. Most flowers reached anthesis 3-4 days from
number of days to young, developed and mature bud stages were young bud appearance and anthesis lasted from 2 to 4 days depend-
observed for the morphotypes TK9-12 and ZHLA-1. The morphotypes ing on the morphotype (Fig. 3). However, it was observed that a few
GTA-3 and ZHLA-2 were late in all stages (Table 2). flowers can reach anthesis earlier (2 days after young bud appear-
The flower development time (initiation to wilting) significantly ance) or later (5 days after bud appearance). The onset of anthesis
differed among morphotypes (x2 = 30.72, df = 8, p = 0.000). It varied coincided with the developed bud (S3; Fig. 2c) stage of floral develop-
from 13 to 16 days with an average of 14 days across morphotypes. ment in all morphotypes and spanned to open flower stage (S5,
The morphotype with black seed and pink flower (T-10) had the lon- Fig. 2h).
gest flower development time (16§1.1 days) while the shortest time
was recorded for BUR7, the morphotype with black seed and white 3.2.3. Fruiting phenology
flower. Consistent to flowering phenology, six stages of fruit development
were identified: beginning peg (F1), beginning pod (F2), full pod (F3),
3.2.2. Stigma receptivity, anther dehiscence and anthesis beginning seed (F4), full seed (F5), and mature seed (F6; Fig. 4). Fruit
The hydrogen peroxide test indicated that the onset of stigma development started by the beginning peg stage (F1). This stage corre-
receptivity (at least 50% of flowers having receptive stigma) was the sponded to when the gynophore elongated geotropically carrying the
first day of flower initiation, in the morning (S1 stage; Fig. 3). The fertilized ovary towards the soil. The beginning peg stage was defined
stigma remained receptive for several days ranging from 6 (BUR13) as the time when 50% of the plants developed at least one peg. It
to about 8 days (ZHLA2). Results of the generalized linear model occurred 67 DAS in average and lasted 15 days. The peg elongated
(GLM) with quasibinomial error distribution showed a significant dif- between 2.5 to 3.5 cm before podding began (Fig. 4a). The F2 stage,
ference in stigma receptivity with respect to morphotypes beginning pod, was defined as when the ovary tip started to swell and
(x2 = 29.20, df = 8, p = 0.000), and this difference was found to change had at least twice the diameter of the peg (Fig. 4b). This happened in
over time (x2 = 19.04, df = 8, p = 0.015). The onset and span of anther average 82 DAS. During this stage, the ovary gradually developed
dehiscence also varied with respect to morphotypes (x2 = 17.78, into a full pod (F3). The full pod stage (Fig. 4c) was attained 94 DAS in
df = 8, p = 0.023), and time (i.e. age of flower bud) greatly impacted average. At this stage the pod had it final shape and was green irre-
the effect of morphotype on anther dehiscence (x2 = 28.51, df = 8, spective of the morphotype. Cross sections revealed that pods con-
p = 0.000). The onset of anther dehiscence, defined as when at least tained only a small fertilized ovule at this stage (Fig. 4g). The F4 stage
50% of flowers have dehiscing anthers, occurred earlier in the mor- (Fig. 4d), beginning seeding, followed around eight days after F3 stage.
photype BUR13 and ZHLA-2 (Fig. 3). The morphotypes TK9-12 and Cross section observations showed that at this stage, 50% of the
BUR7 were late to initiate anther dehiscence. Observations revealed a examined plants had at least one fruit in which the seed was suffi-
protogynous character of the flowers. Indeed, the stigma became ciently developed to show visible cotyledon sections when cut with a
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K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
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Fig. 3. Anther dehiscence and stigma receptivity patterns in 9 morphotypes of Kersting’s groundnut.
* percentage of dehiscent anthers shedding pollen and/or carrying some pollen grains adhering to the anther wall.

sharp blade (Fig. 4h). The F5 stage (Fig. 4e), full seed, was attained purple (Fig. 4f), indicating that the seed it contained has attained
when in 50% of plants, the seed appeared to fill the pod cavity. The physiological maturity (Fig. 4j).
seed contained in the pod was, however, still green indicating that it The timing of all fruit development stages statistically differed
was immature (Fig. 4i). The pod was also green in all morphotypes. among morphotypes (Table 3). The morphotype E-5 initiated fruiting
The F6 stage, mature seed, was attained when in 50% of plants, at least significantly earlier (GLMM: x2 = 622.03, df = 8, p<0.001). The mor-
one pod had changed colour and became white or white tinged with photypes GTA-3, TK9-12 and ZHLA-2 were late to initiate fruiting.
Table 3 also indicates that pod development (GLMM: x2 = 57.3,
df = 8, p<0.001) and initiation of seeding (GLMM: x2 = 45.26, df = 8,
p = 0.001) were significantly fast in E-5, BUR7 and GBO-4. Initiation
of seeding, on the other hand, was late (105 DAS) in TK9-12 and
ZHLA-2 (Table 3). Morphotypes were not compared for full seed (F5)
and mature seed (F6) stages as only a few pods evolved into these
stages, which did not allow meaningful comparison.

3.3. Pollen viability

No significant difference (GLM: likelihood ratio x2 = 2.74, df = 2,

p = 0.253) was found in pollen viability rates among anthesis stages.
Nevertheless, pollen viability significantly differed (p < 0.001) among
morphotypes for each of the considered stages (Table 4). At pre-
anthesis, seven morphotypes had a viability of pollen grains averag-
ing between 94% and 97%. The minimum mean pollen viability (88%)
was recorded for morphotypes GBO-4 and ZHLA-1. The highest per-
centage of viable pollen (97.95%) at anthesis was recorded for ZHLA-
2. GBO-4 and ZHLA-1 but also BUR13 exhibited a statistically lower
(GLM: likelihood ratio x2 = 27.43, df = 8, p = 0.001) pollen viability. At
post-anthesis, GBO-4 showed the lowest pollen viability rate
(82.51%) whereas the pollen viability for the other morphotypes
exceeded 90% (Table 4). Fig. 5a is a microphotograph showing viable
versus non-viable pollen grains.

3.4. In vitro pollen germination and pollen growth

Fig. 4. Stages of fruit development in Kersting's groundnut. (a)
beginning peg, (b)
There was a significant variation in pollen germination rate with
beginning pod, (c, g)
full pod, (d, h)
beginning seed, (e, i)
full seed, (f, j)
mature respect to morphotypes (GLM: x2 = 181.94, df = 8, p < 0.001; Table 5).
seed. Grid cells = 1 mm. Overall, pollen germination rates were relatively low with a
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450

Table 3 stage (GLM: x2 = 8.53, df = 2, p = 0.014). Irrespective of the morpho-

Variability in the timing of six fruit development stages in Kersting’s groundnut type, pollen germination percentage was significantly higher during
morphotypes.
pre-anthesis (17.6%) compared to anthesis and post-anthesis. The
Accessions Fruit development stages interaction between incubation time and morphotype was significant
indicating different responses of the morphotypes to increasing incu-
F1 F2 F3 F4
bation time. A significant interaction (GLM: x2 = 471.56, df = 26, p <
c c b
BUR13 Mean§SE 67 § 0.82 82 § 0.79 95 § 0.63 103 § 1.1b 0.001) was also found between morphotype and anthesis stage
Range 45 - 82 59 - 102 79 - 114 84 - 132
revealing that the percentage of pollen germination exhibited by the
CV 14.29 11.27 7.57 11.62
BUR7 Mean§SE 61 § 0.85b 77 § 0.85b 92 § 0.33a 99 § 0.65a different morphotypes was impacted by the anthesis stage (Table 5).
Range 44 - 89 49 - 104 77 - 113 82 - 135 The average pollen tube length ranged from 75 mm to 215 mm
CV 18.21 14.55 4.83 8.69 (Table 5) and varied significantly with respect to the morphotype
57 § 0.99a 74 § 0.95a 91 § 0.41a 100 § 0.68a
E-5 Mean§SE
(Kruskal-Wallis: x2 = 236.07, df = 8, p < 0.001). BUR7, BUR13, GBO-4
Range 40 - 99 54 - 106 80 - 111 84 - 121
CV 20.63 15.45 5.4 8.23
and TK9-12 had shorter pollen tubes (69.3 § 15.5 mm to 89.1 § 11.0
GBO-4 Mean§SE 67 § 1.1c 82 § 1.1c 91 § 0.72a 99 § 1.0a mm), while ZHLA-2 had the longest one (191 § 4.9 mm). Pollen tube
Range 44 - 81 56 - 99 63 - 109 70 - 127 growth also differed with respect to incubation time and anthesis
CV 16.14 12.57 7.36 9.55 stage. Indeed, a significant increase in pollen tube length was noted
GTA-3 Mean§SE 77 § 1.3e 91 § 1.6f 96 § 0.93c 103 § 1.5b
when the incubation time was increased from 24h to 48h. However,
Range 60 - 98 51 - 118 81 - 112 77 - 124
CV 11.63 12.47 6.87 10.28 a substantial reduction in pollen tube length was also observed after
T-10 Mean§SE 72 § 0.38d 85 § 0.48de 96 § 0.44c 103 § 0.85b 72h of growth (Table 5). On the other hand, there was a significant
Range 53 - 91 63 - 113 75 - 113 80 - 127 reduction in pollen tube growth in response to subsequent anthesis
CV 6.58 7.07 5.92 10.48
stages. The maximum pollen growth (197.6 § 4.5 mm) was obtained
TK9-12 Mean§SE 75 § 0.61e 89 § 0.66e 97 § 0.61d 105 § 0.99d
Range 52 - 94 74 - 115 83 - 108 86 - 126
at pre-anthesis stage while the minimum growth (90.7 § 7.3 mm)
CV 7.75 7.24 6.01 8.92 was observed at post-anthesis phase, indicating that pollen lost via-
ZHLA-1 Mean§SE 74 § 0.54de 87 § 0.58e 96 § 0.64c 104 § 1.1cd bility over time, irrespective of the morphotype (Table 5). Interac-
Range 60 - 88 70 - 93 83 - 112 80 - 129 tions of morphotype with incubation time, and anthesis stage were
CV 5.88 5.46 5.41 8.69
all highly significant (p < 0.001) indicating that the effect of morpho-
ZHLA-2 Mean§SE 76 § 0.29e 88 § 0.60e 97 § 0.78d 105 § 1.3d
Range 65 - 79 74 - 104 78 - 116 81 - 136 type on pollen tube growth varied according to incubation time and
CV 3.89 6.81 7.76 11.38 anthesis stage. Fig. 5b shows germinating pollen grains and pollen
F1
Beginning peg, F2
beginning pod, F3
full pod, F4
beginning seed. Means tubes after 24 h of incubation.
were rounded to the nearest integer to be consistent with 24 h observation intervals.
Means with different letters in each column are statistically different based on 4. Discussion
Tukey’s test (GLMM with negative binomial error distribution, p0.001). Morpho-
types were not compared for full seed (F5) and mature seed (F6) stages as only a few
of pods had reached these stages. Understanding floral and reproductive biology creates an avenue
for genetic research and crop improvement (Kumari and Sharma
maximum percentage of 36.9% recorded for ZHLA-2. Lower pollen 2017). In the present study, we described the reproductive organs
germination rates of 8.0% and 8.4% were obtained for T-10 and with their phenological events, assessed stigma receptivity and
BUR13, respectively. All other morphotypes showed pollen germina- anther dehiscence, and examined pollen viability and germination in
tion rates ranging between 9 and 17% (Table 5). There was no signifi- nine morphotypes of Kersting’s groundnut. The study is of prime
cant effect of incubation time on pollen germination (GLM: x2 = 0.04, importance as it provides consistent information to help breeders
df=2, p = 0.979), while a significant effect was observed for anthesis devise a breeding program for the crop.

Table 4
Pollen viability rates of Kersting’s groundnut morphotypes before, during and after anthesis.

Accession Pre-anthesisy Anthesis Post-anthesisz

Mean § SE CV Mean § SE CV Mean § SE CV

BUR13 94.73 § 1.42ᵇ 10.03 89.54 § 3.74’ 28.03 93.57 § 1.52ᵇ 10.92
(69.35 - 100) (19.61 - 100) (66.67 - 100)
BUR7 94.18 § 0.92ᵇ 6.58 93.31 § 0.92’ᵇ 6.61 92.05 § 0.88ᵇ 6.45
(69.35 - 100) (80.14 - 100) (80.14 - 100)
E-5 95.72 § 0.84ᵇ 5.89 94.84 § 1.56’ᵇ 11.01 97.13 § 1.22ᵇ 8.45
(69.35 - 100) (74.19 - 100) (74.19 - 100)
GBO-4 88.18 § 2.06’ 15.67 88.33 § 2.12’ 16.13 82.51 § 3.15’ 25.58
(42.31 - 98.55) (42.31 - 98.55) (42.31 - 98.55)
GTA-3 94.98 § 0.75ᵇ 5.31 96.09 § 0.77ᵇ 5.38 92.2 § 1.48ᵇ 10.76
(85.51 - 100) (83.67 - 100) (67.74 - 100)
T-10 95.76 § 0.41ᵇ 2.88 93.66 § 2.04’ᵇ 13.79 90.45 § 2.02ᵇ 15.82
(92.31 - 100) (19.61 - 100) (62.34 - 100)
TK9-12 97.00 § 0.61ᵇ 4.20 96.12 § 0.44ᵇ 3.08 96.72 § 0.56ᵇ 3.87
(89.39 - 100) (90.79 - 100) (88.89 - 100)
ZHLA-1 88.65 § 2.05’ 15.51 90.36 § 1.23’ 9.16 95.6 § 0.60ᵇ 4.18
(61.11 - 100) (75.00 - 100) (86.49 - 100)
ZHLA-2 95.69 § 1.22ᵇ 8.55 97.95 § 0.36ᵇ 2.45 93.44 § 1.51ᵇ 10.82
(73.13 - 100) (94.37 - 100) (68.75 - 100)
F-value 6.20*** 3.43*** 6.98***
y
One day before anthesis (young bud stage),
z
one day after anthesis (open flower stage). Means with different letters in each column are sig-
nificantly different at 0.05 probability level according to Tukey’s multiple comparison post hoc test.
*** Significant at p < 0.001. Values between brackets are ranges (min
max).

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K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

glands in the reproduction of the species, albeit their position on the

standard petal suggests that they could be nectaries. According to
Vogel (1997), many diadelphous taxa of the subfamily Papilionoideae
commonly feature two nectaries that accumulate nectar at the basis
of the vexillary petal, where there are usually two openings (Bernar-
dello 2007). In any case, flower visitors seem to be rare and are
unknown in Kersting’s groundnut which is congruent with previous
observations from Amuti (1980). Further research is needed to inves-
tigate the anatomy and morphology of these secretory structures as
well as their functional role in pollination of Kersting’s groundnut.

4.2. Phenology
Fig. 5. Pollen viability and germinability. (a) Pollen viability in 1% Carbol Fuchsin, (b)
Pollen germination after 24h of incubation at 30°C.
The sequence of events occurring in the process of flower develop-
ment has been widely studied in many orphan legumes (Kar and Datta
4.1. Floral traits related to the breeding system 2017; Kalve and Tadege 2017; Dhanaraj 2018), unlike in Kersting’s
groundnut. In the present study, we identified six stages of floral
The detailed observation of floral structures revealed that Ker- development (S1
S6) and six stages of fruit development (F1
F6).
sting’s groundnut presents a zygomorphic corolla with imbricate These reproductive stages are similar, apart from a few differences, to
lobes, the uppermost (adaxial) lobe overlapping the others in the bud those developed for groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) (Boote 1982) and
and the lowermost (abaxial) pair of lobes forming a carina that enclo- Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranean) (Dhanaraj 2018), two other
ses reproductive organs. These are particular flower features of most cultivated subterranean legumes. Dhanaraj (2018) recently depicted
plant species of the Papilionoideae subfamily of legumes the flower development scale of Bambara groundnut into six stages.
(Tucker 2003; Singh 2019) which facilitate their pollination by visit- The main difference between Kersting’s groundnut and Bambara
ing insects (Aronne et al. 2012). Another particular trait of Kersting’s groundnut scales is that the S1 stage (initiated flower) identified in the
groundnut flowers is the presence of two parallel glandular appen- former corresponds to stages 1 to 3 of the latter. Besides, the scale
dages on the internal face of the vexillum. This is a specific floral trait developed in the present study includes wilted flower (S6, Fig. 2i)
of species belonging to the genus Macrotyloma (Verdcourt 1970) and which is absent from Dhanaraj’s work. In addition, no ‘over-mature
was among the traits used by Mare
chal and Baudet (1977) to transfer pods’ stage was included here, contrary to groundnut, though the
the monospecific genus Kerstingiella including Kersting’s groundnut, flower development stages presented here are more informative than
then named Kerstingiella geocarpa, to Macrotyloma. However, these in groundnut (Boote 1982). Indeed, our first five stages (S1
S5) corre-
authors did not mention the function and role of these intriguing spond to the R1 stage of groundnut. The most remarkable stage of the

Table 5
Effects of morphotype, incubation time and anthesis stage on pollen germination rate and pol-
len tube length in Kersting’s groundnut. The bottom panel contains P-values from the GLM
(pollen germination) and Kruskal-Wallis test (pollen tube length).

Pollen germination (%) Pollen tube growth (mm)

Mean § SE Range Median § SE Range

Morphotype
BUR13 8.42 § 0.84’ 1.85-18.18 69.30 § 15.48a 30.43-166.97
BUR7 9.28 § 0.89’ᵇ 1.23-14.89 89.10 § 10.95a 20.12-258.79
E-5 11.01 § 1.91abc 3.90-37.50 105.00 § 12.64ab 26.93-322.79
GBO-4 10.23 § 1.00’ᵇ 2.86-19.23 73.70 § 14.48a 20.05-203.03
GTA-3 17.78 § 2.24c 5.88-39.13 151.00 § 8.94c 20.88-487.67
T-10 8.02 § 1.51’ 1.41-27.54 145.00 § 9.27cd 37.54-403.01
TK9-12 16.04 § 1.53bc 5.45-33.33 60.70 § 12.64a 2.15-206.55
ZHLA-1 12.12 § 1.70abc 1.47-28.57 147.00 § 9.05bc 10.46-363.14
ZHLA-2 36.87 § 3.00d 13.33-74.07 191.00 § 4.90d 26.05-612.67
Time
24H 14.41 § 0.97’ 4.65-40.00 141.00 § 5.46b 2.15-436.56
48H 14.62 § 1.75’ 1.23-74.07 154.00 § 5.23b 20.88-540.71
72H 14.22 § 1.31’ 1.41-39.13 107.00 § 6.97a 20.12-404.56
Anthesis stage
Pre-Anthesisy 17.56 § 1.80ᵇ 1.47-74.07 179.00 § 4.52c 2.15-404.56
Anthesis 12.30 § 1.19’ 1.23-40.00 125.00 § 5.90b 2.15-335.42
Post-Anthesisz 13.39 § 0.95’ 2.86-37.50 90.70 § 7.33a 20.05-612.67
P value
Morphotype (M) <0.001*** <0.001***
Time (T) 0.979 ns 0.002**
Stage (S) 0.014* <0.001***
M£T <0.001*** <0.001***
M£S <0.001*** <0.001***
Means with same letters are not significantly different according to Tukey’s post hoc test at
P<0.05
y
One day before anthesis (young bud stage),
z
one day after anthesis (open flower stage)
ns
not significant,
* significant at p < 0.05,
*** significant at p < 0.001

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450

reproductive growth of Kersting’s groundnut is the development of finding obtained from the evaluation of anther dehiscence and the
pegs (F1 stage, Fig. 4a). According to Chandra et al. (2019), it is a spontaneous self-pollination observed in the crop, this study recom-
unique evolutionary adaptative organ that mediates the reproduction mends that emasculation be performed early on young flower buds
of the crop by protecting the pods from unfavourable biotic and abiotic one day old. Such buds are generally 5-6 mm in length (Fig. 2b). Early
factors of the growing environment. Unlike in groundnut where failure emasculation will hence prevent unwanted self-pollination since it is
of peg penetration in the soil induces embryo abortion and therefore found that buds greater than this size may have been spontaneously
yield loss (Chandra et al. 2019), Kersting’s groundnut develops pods self-pollinated. Emasculation of 1-day old buds would, however, be
even with pegs that have not penetrated into the soil. Nevertheless, challenging as Kersting’s groundnut young buds are particularly frag-
pods that developed above the soil surface appear undersized as the ile and difficult to manipulate due to their small size, twisted keels,
subterranean peg can absorb nutrient and moisture from soil to ensure and basal position. The same constraints added to a high rate of abor-
an optimal development of the pod (Chandra et al. 2019). Pod develop- tion following mechanical manipulation of floral organs were also
ment above soil surface may hence potentially affect Kersting’s reported to limit successful hybridization in Bambara groundnut
groundnut yield although the magnitude of this effect is yet to be (Azam-Ali et al. 2004). Pollen to be used for hybridization should ide-
established. ally be sourced from mature or freshly opened buds (i.e. 3 to 4 days
old buds). As illustrated in other orphan legume crops including Bam-
4.3. Incomplete protogyny and spontaneous self-pollination in bara groundnut (Azam-Ali et al. 2004) and chickpea (Kalve and
Kersting’s groundnut: implications for the breeding system of the crop Tadege 2017), the crossing technique is also decisive in the success
rate. Thus, it may be necessary to assess the efficiency of different
We observed that Kersting’s groundnut flowers are incompletely techniques and optimize a crossing protocol for this neglected crop
protogynous as their stigma becomes receptive 1-2 days before to foster its genetic improvement in Benin and West Africa. This
anther dehiscence and remains so for 4-6 days. Protogyny primarily study provides the basis for choice of strategies and periods to oper-
prevents self-pollination through the temporal reduction of pollen- ate in order to develop such protocol.
pistil interferences in flowering plants (Ferna
ndez-
Illescas et al. 2011; Griffin et al. 2000). However, protogyny is not 4.5. Pollen viability, germinability and pollen tube development
always effective in preventing or even reducing selfing
(Friedman and Barrett 2009). Despite their protogynous nature, some Pollen grains exhibited a great viability level which is maintained
species can force self-pollination using sometimes unusual mecha- up to 24 h after anthesis. Thus, pollen grains can potentially be con-
nisms (Zhang and Li 2008; Freitas and Sazima 2009). In the case of served for a few days to few weeks in appropriate conditions. This
Kersting’s groundnut, the flowers are found to be ‘pre-anthesis cleis- capability would be a major advancement for hybrid development in
togamous’ as described by Lord (1981). This means that bud pollina- Kersting’s groundnut. However, some authors (Veiga et al. 2012;
tion occurs before anthesis, which should lead to a high rate of Soares et al. 2008; Rathod et al. 2018; de Souza et al. 2017) argued
selfing in the crop. On the other hand, the phenological events of that, though histochemical viability tests are simple, straightforward
flowering revealed style movement towards the anthers at stages S2 and cheap techniques, they tend to overestimate pollen viability and
and S3, suggesting a spontaneous self-pollination as reported earlier would, therefore, provide misleading information regarding pollen
in Tephrosia purpurea (Kumari and Sharma 2017), Calolisianthus pen- viability. This is consistent with our findings where percentages of
dulus and Deianira nervosa (Freitas and Sazima 2009). Evidence pollen viability above 82% were observed as revealed by the Car-
revealed that style or stigma movements favour selfing in various bol fuchsin staining, whereas the average in vitro germination
plant families including Lamiaceae (Ganie et al. 2015), Leguminosae rates only ranged from 8 to 36% (Table 5). However, the low pol-
(Kumari and Sharma 2017), Malvaceae (Wani et al. 2015), Valeriana- len germination rate observed may be the result of in vitro germi-
ceae (Khajuria et al. 2011), Violaceae (Culley 2002), and Zingibera- nation, which according to Galletta (1983), often underestimates
ceae (Li et al. 2002; Zhang et al. 2003). In Kersting’s groundnut, the pollen viability. To bypass the bias that could be introduced in
incomplete protogyny coupled with a style movement exposing the estimation of pollen viability through in vitro germination test,
already receptive stigma to the anther seem to induce the spontane- authors recommend to correlate pollen germination rates with
ous self-pollination at an early flowering stage. The same mechanism production traits such as fruit and seed yield (Soares et al. 2013;
is observed in the Papilionoideae legume weed T. purpurea, which Valadares et al. 2019). Therefore, investigating the correlation
exhibits an obligate autogamy (Kumari and Sharma 2017). However, between yield and pollen in vitro germination may be a worthy
the mechanism observed here is slightly different than in T. purpurea. research objective in future works.
In fact, the standard petal of Kersting’s groundnut forms two small We found that accession ZHLA-2 which has cream seed and
glands (Fig. 1d) located at the same level with the stigma and the purple flower exhibited the highest pollen germination rate and
anthers, which exude a sticky substance that seems to stick the pol- pollen tube development. Hence, the male gametes of this mor-
len grains to the stigma surface. An obligate autogamy in Kersting’s photype have a high vigour, making it a potentially good candi-
groundnut may facilitate the maintenance of homogeneity of paren- date as a pollen donor for hybridization. Nevertheless, the choice
tal lines in breeding programs. Conversely, it may also have detri- of paternal and maternal parents predominantly depends on the
mental consequences such as reduced genomic variation breeding objectives. The unexpected highest pollen germinability
(Lam et al. 2010), increased linkage disequilibrium and inbreeding and pollen tube growth recorded for pre-anthesis pollen grains
depression (Wright et al. 2013). This corroborates the finding from can be explained by the fact that pollen grains having matured
Pasquet et al. (2002) who studied the genetic diversity in the crop newly were still more viable compared to post-anthesis where
using isozymes and revealed an extremely low level of genetic varia- grains were aging, and then losing viability. On the other hand,
tion in the species. Further studies relating to the investigation of the effect of incubation time on pollen germination was not sig-
potential self-incompatibilities are necessary to validate the assump- nificant suggesting that pollen germinated very quickly and
tion of strict autogamous selfing in Kersting’s groundnut. attained a maximum germination rate in only a few hours. This
pattern is consistent with a study on Swainsona formosa (G.Don)
4.4. Anthesis timing and its implication for hybridization J.Thompson, a Papilionoideae species whose pollen presented
maximum germination after only 1 hour of incubation (Zulkar-
Identifying the appropriate time for emasculation is critical for nain 2019). Therefore, shorter time intervals should be considered
breeders as it increases chances for successful crossing. Based on the in future pollen germination studies.
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K.M. Kafoutchoni, E.E. Agoyi, G.H. Dassou et al. South African Journal of Botany 137 (2021) 440
450

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Coulibaly, M, Agossou, CO, Akohoue
, F, Sawadogo, M, Achigan-Dako, EG, 2020. Farmers’
KMK, EEA, GHD and ACA designed the study. KK conducted the Preferences for genetic resources of Kersting’s Groundnut [Macrotyloma geocar-
experiments analysed the data, with technical support from EEA, pum (Harms) Mare
chal and Baudet] in the production systems of Burkina Faso and
GHD and ACA. SA actively participated in data collection. KMK devel- Ghana. Agronomy 10 (3), 371.
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Cullis, C, Lawlor, DW, Chimwamurombe, P, Bbebe, N, Kunert, K, Vorster, J, 2019. Devel-
guidance throughout experiments, data management and manu-
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de Souza, EH, Souza, FV, Rossi, ML, Packer, RM, Cruz-Barros, MAV, Martinelli, AP, 2017.
Funding Pollen morphology and viability in Bromeliaceae. Anais da Academia Brasileira de
Cie^ncias 89 (4), 3067–3082.
Dhanaraj, B, 2018. Effect of short duration high temperature stress on bambara
This work was supported by the Netherlands Organisation for Sci-
groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc.) plant reproduction. University of Not-
entific Research (NWO-WOTRO) [grant numbers W08.270.344] and tingham.
the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture Fern
andez-Illescas, F, Nieva, FJJ, de las Heras, MA, Mun~ oz-Rodríguez, AF, 2011. Dichog-
(RUFORUM) [grant number RU/2018/TQA/38]. amy in Salicornieae species: establishment of floral sex phases and evaluation of
their frequency and efficacy in four species. Plant Systemat. Evolut. 296 (3-4), 255–
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