Although temperature plays a crucial role in governing seed reproduction in High Arctic plants, little is known about the germination response of these plants to climate warming. We conducted a germination experiment to examine the thermal germination characteristics of three common High Arctic plant species in Svalbard: Dryas octopetala, Oxyria digyna, and Salix polaris. We exposed the seeds to two temperature regimes: gradually increasing and decreasing temperatures between 4 and 15 °C. Additionally, we measured the ground surface temperatures at the study site. All three High Arctic plant species exhibited no specific temperature requirements for germination, with minimum germination temperatures falling within the range of 4–8 °C. Based on the ground surface temperature data, the period during which the weekly average ground surface temperature exceeded this minimum germination temperature range (period available for germination) spanned from mid-June to mid-August. By simulating a warming scenario of 2 and 4 °C, we estimated that the onset of the period available for germination would advance by 1–2 and 2–3 weeks, respectively. Furthermore, our results suggest the possibility of autumn germination in the High Arctic region under future warming conditions.

尽管温度在控制高北极植物种子繁殖方面起着至关重要的作用，但人们对这些植物的发芽对气候变暖的反应知之甚少。我们进行了一项发芽实验，以研究斯瓦尔巴特群岛三种常见高北极植物物种的热发芽特性：仙女木、Oxyria digyna和Salix Polaris。我们将种子暴露在两种温度条件下：在 4 至 15 °C 之间逐渐升高和降低温度。此外，我们还测量了研究地点的地表温度。所有三种北极植物物种都没有表现出特定的发芽温度要求，最低发芽温度在 4–8 °C 范围内。根据地表温度数据，周平均地表温度超过最低发芽温度范围的时期（可发芽期）为6月中旬至8月中旬。通过模拟 2°C 和 4°C 的变暖情景，我们估计可发芽期的开始将分别提前 1-2 周和 2-3 周。此外，我们的结果表明，在未来变暖的条件下，高北极地区秋季发芽的可能性。