Effects of ethphon and salicylic acid on growth and ergot alkaloids concentrations of Achnatherum inebrians seedlings

Effects of ethephon and salicylic acid (SA) on growth and ergot alkaloids concentrations of drunken horse grass (Achnatherum inebrians) over a 3-week period were determined in controlled experiments in the greenhouse. The variations of the alkaloid contents with ethephon and SA treatment were measured. The results showed that plant heights and above-ground biomass of A. inebrians increased (P0.05) compared with the control (CK) . However, the contents of ergine and ergonovine were higher than that of control (CK) treatment, especially for ethephon treatment which had significant effects (P0.05).