EFFECT OF DIFFERENT SOIL ENVIRONMENTS ON THE BRACT ANATOMY OF CYPERUS SPECIES FROM DIFFERENT AREAS OF PUNJAB PAKISTAN

Abstract

Sedges, in the family Cyperaceae, are ranked as a third leading family of monocots after Poaceae and Orchidaceae. They are annuals, generally perennial, stoloniferous or rhizomatous herbs. Family members of Cyperaceae can adapt different habitats like extreme aridity, high altitude, extreme salinity, swamps, moist areas, marshes, and steep slopes. Cyperus is the largest genus of this family and is distributed throughout the world including desert or semi-desert regions. The most common species of this genus are abundantly found in the Northern hemisphere, in the temperate region. In Pakistan, Family Cyperaceae has different species distributed in different habitats all over Punjab including sub-mountainous scrub forests, desert and semi-deserts, Indus plains, and riverine/bela forests. Modifications in anatomical characteristics were studied in each population which showed its adaptability for different environmental situations. In this study, we have investigated the bract anatomy of various species of Cyperus collected from different regions of Punjab and different parameters of the bract were measured for this purpose. Our observations showed various anatomical modifications in the bract of Cyperus species growing in different soil conditions of Punjab.