Liriope muscari (Decne.) L.H. Bailey is a valuable horticultural and medicinal plant that grows under a range of light intensities, from high to low, in the understories of shrubs. To understand how this species adapts to these various environments, we selected two groups of lilyturf growing under poplar trees at two different spacings. Each group was divided into three types, open field, forest edge and shaded forest with high, medium and low irradiance levels, respectively, and then we

more »

... d their photosynthetic characteristics, physiology and biomasses. Results: Light saturation point, light compensation point and in situ net photosynthetic rate (PN) were highest in lilyturf growing under high. In contrast, lilyturf growing under low light had a higher apparent quantum yield and Chl a and b contents, indicating that they adapted to low light. Although the leaves of lilyturf growing under low light were small, their root tubers were heavier. Conclusions: The novelty of this research is the demonstration of the eco-physiological basis of lilyturf's shade adaptation mechanisms indicated by photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll fuorescence, Chla, Chlb and Car contents and grown in different irradiance. We believe that lilyturf is a shade-tolerant plant suitable for planting in undergrowth, but attention should be paid to the canopy density of the forest when interplanting.The findings presented here advance our understanding of the photosynthetic characteristics of understory plants and may assist in the optimization of irradiances in the furture.