Objective:

To characterize morphological and reproductive aspects of Chascolytrum subaristatum (Lam.) Desv., in the Entre Ríos province, Argentina.

Materials and Methods:

A comparative analysis was carried out of two observation periods, in which the inflorescences and seeds of Ch. Subaristatum were attended. In March, 2016, caryopses collected the previous year were planted. At the beginning of spring, 10 plants were evaluated during 2016 and 2017. he beginning of flowering, maturity and harvest moment, number of inflorescences, nodes and paracladia, and number of spikelets, were recorded. In addition, the weight, moisture and germination of anthecia with caryopses, were determined. The results between harvests, relative to the number of nodes and anthecia, were compared through the mean difference test for independent samples. The chi square test was applied for the homogeneity of proportions.

Results:

The structural morphology of the inflorescence in both years showed low variability. The percentage of inflorescences increased 37 % in the second year with regards to the first. The results of weight, moisture and germination of the caryopses showed significant differences between the harvest years (p ≤ 0,05). Non-deep physiological dormancy was observed, which was overcome after dry storage.

Conclusions:

Regarding the relation of the inflorescence with the productive aspects, harvest and seed quality, to manage the grassland appropriately, and to avoid grazing at the moment of development of the reproductive tillers, is suggested. In the Entre Ríos region, seed production is possible, and varies according to the conformation of the inflorescence, plant age and harvest year.

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