Effects of morphological and structural characteristics of six species of Sphagnum on their water-holding capacity

In this study, six Sphagnum species were collected from the wetlands of the Screw Shell Mountain Scenic Spot in Maojian Town, Duyun City, Guizhou, China to measure stem diameter, plant height, number of lateral branches and branches, saturated water absorption rate, external water absorption rate, internal water absorption rate, leaf hyaline cell area, and lateral branch density. Results showed that:(1) Saturated water absorption rates of the six species were:S.cuspidatum Ehrh (2518.99%) > S.palustre L. ssp. pseudocymbifolium (C.Müll.) A.Eddy (2351.87%) > S.palustre L.ssp. Palustre (2122.88%)> S.microporum Warnst. ex Card (1936.79%) > S.platyphylloides Warnst (1684.88%) > S. ovatum Hampe (1660.64%). (2) Internal water absorption was higher than external water absorption in all species. (3) Leaf hyaline cell area percentage was positively correlated with water absorption (saturated, external, and internal) (P < 0.01). Lateral branch density was positively correlated with internal water absorption (P < 0.01) and saturated water absorption (P < 0.05). Among the indicators measured, leaf hyaline cell area percentage and lateral branch density had the greatest influence on the water-holding capacity of Sphagnum.