A regulatory circuit conferring varied flowering response to cold in annual and perennial plants

Abstract

The reproductive strategies of plants are highly variable. Short-lived annuals flower abundantly soon after germination, whereas longer-lived perennials postpone and spatially restrict flowering. We used CRISPR/Cas9 and interspecies gene transfer to understand divergence in reproductive patterns between annual and perennial crucifers. We show that in perennial Arabis alpina, flowering in response to winter cold depends on the floral integrator SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN-LIKE 15 (SPL15), whose activity is limited to older shoots and branches during cold exposure. In annuals, this regulatory system is conserved, but cold-induced flowering occurs in young shoots, without requirement for SPL15, through the photoperiodic pathway when plants return to warm. By reconstructing the annual response in perennials, we conclude that characteristic patterns of reproduction in annuals and perennials are conferred through variation in dependency on distinct flowering pathways acting in parallel.