Question:
Hardening off helps plants adapt to ______________ to a certain extent
Hardening off helps plants adapt to ______________ to a certain extent
Show Hint
Think of hardening off as "boot camp" for plants. It prepares them for the survival struggle in the open field where resources are not guaranteed.
Updated On: Aug 20, 2026
- Nursery conditions
- Extreme climatic conditions
- Greenhouse conditions
- Fertilizer overdose
Show Solution
Verified By Collegedunia
The Correct Option is B
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understanding the Question:
The question identifies the purpose of "hardening off," a critical final stage in the nursery management of tree seedlings before they are transplanted to the field.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
• Seedlings in a nursery are grown under pampered conditions with regular watering, shade, and protection from wind. If these "soft" seedlings are directly moved to a harsh field site, they often suffer from transplant shock and die.
• Hardening off is the process of gradually exposing the seedlings to harsher conditions—such as full sunlight, reduced watering, and outdoor temperatures—for a few weeks before planting.
• This process triggers physiological and morphological changes: the cell walls thicken, the cuticle becomes waxier to reduce transpiration, and the root-to-shoot ratio increases. These changes make the plant more robust.
• By undergoing hardening off, the plants adapt to extreme climatic conditions like intense heat, drying winds, and fluctuating temperatures that they will encounter at the plantation site.
• It does not help with fertilizer overdose or adaptation to nursery/greenhouse conditions (which are the very conditions the plant is being moved away from).
Step 3: Final Answer:
Hardening off helps plants adapt to extreme climatic conditions.
The question identifies the purpose of "hardening off," a critical final stage in the nursery management of tree seedlings before they are transplanted to the field.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
• Seedlings in a nursery are grown under pampered conditions with regular watering, shade, and protection from wind. If these "soft" seedlings are directly moved to a harsh field site, they often suffer from transplant shock and die.
• Hardening off is the process of gradually exposing the seedlings to harsher conditions—such as full sunlight, reduced watering, and outdoor temperatures—for a few weeks before planting.
• This process triggers physiological and morphological changes: the cell walls thicken, the cuticle becomes waxier to reduce transpiration, and the root-to-shoot ratio increases. These changes make the plant more robust.
• By undergoing hardening off, the plants adapt to extreme climatic conditions like intense heat, drying winds, and fluctuating temperatures that they will encounter at the plantation site.
• It does not help with fertilizer overdose or adaptation to nursery/greenhouse conditions (which are the very conditions the plant is being moved away from).
Step 3: Final Answer:
Hardening off helps plants adapt to extreme climatic conditions.
Was this answer helpful?
0
0
Top ICAR AIEEA Forestry Agroforestry Silviculture Questions
- Read the following statements of silvicultural system followed in tree species and choose the correct answer from the following options:
Statement (I): Anogeissus latifolia is worked only as a component species of mixed forests as coppice-with-standards.
Statement (II): Terminalia arjuna tree is not a regular component of forest stand and is usually worked under selection and coppice with standards.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below: - The most important single factor affecting natural regeneration of Shorea robusta is the time lag between the falling of seed and the commencement of the ________.
- Read the following statements and choose the correct answer about silvicultural system/s adopted for the management of Shorea robusta:
Statement (I): Under clear felling system, a rotation age is fixed and the entire area clear felled and the crop is of uniform age.
Statement (II): Selection system is adopted for areas which are badly eroded and where regeneration is problem and regeneration is obtained by natural means, which may be supplemented by planting.
Statement (III): In coppice with standards system, a few standards are retained and the other trees above the exploitable diameter are clear felled and regeneration is obtained by means of coppice.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below: - Which of the following type of soil is the best for plant growth?
- A biosphere reserve conserves and preserves the following variety of life and choose the correct option of variety of life:
(A). Wild animals
(B). Wild land
(C). Natural vegetation
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
View More Questions
Top ICAR AIEEA Silviculture Questions
- Read the following statements of silvicultural system followed in tree species and choose the correct answer from the following options:
Statement (I): Anogeissus latifolia is worked only as a component species of mixed forests as coppice-with-standards.
Statement (II): Terminalia arjuna tree is not a regular component of forest stand and is usually worked under selection and coppice with standards.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below: - The most important single factor affecting natural regeneration of Shorea robusta is the time lag between the falling of seed and the commencement of the ________.
- Read the following statements and choose the correct answer about silvicultural system/s adopted for the management of Shorea robusta:
Statement (I): Under clear felling system, a rotation age is fixed and the entire area clear felled and the crop is of uniform age.
Statement (II): Selection system is adopted for areas which are badly eroded and where regeneration is problem and regeneration is obtained by natural means, which may be supplemented by planting.
Statement (III): In coppice with standards system, a few standards are retained and the other trees above the exploitable diameter are clear felled and regeneration is obtained by means of coppice.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below: - Which of the following species has characteristic of tree without leaf for longest period of about 6 months.?
- What is the scientific name of the tree "Hollong"?
View More Questions
Top ICAR AIEEA Questions
- Which of the following statements is false?
- Which of the following is an example of an inventory?
- According to Adam Smith, productivity gains could be brought about through .
- The supply curve for an artificially scarce good is .
- Which of the following would not be considered an opportunity cost of paid employment?
View More Questions