In vivo creep and stress relaxation experiments to determine the wall extensibility and yield threshold for the sporangiophores of phycomyces

The pressure probe was used to conduct in vivo creep and in vivo stress relaxation experiments on the sporangiophores of Phycomyces blakesleeanus. The in vivo creep and in vivo stress relaxation methods are compared with respect to their utility for determining the irreversible wall extensibility and the yield threshold. The results of the in vivo stress relaxation experiments demonstrate that the growth usually does not cease when the external water supply is removed, and the turgor pressure does not decay for hours afterwards. A successful stress relaxation experiment requires that the cell enlargement rate (growth rate) be zero during the turgor pressure decay. In a few experiments, the growth rate was zero during the turgor pressure decay. However, in general only the yield threshold could be determined. In vivo creep experiments proved to be easier to conduct and more useful in determining values for both the irreversible wall extensibility and the yield threshold. The results of the in vivo creep experiments demonstrate that small steps-up in turgor pressure, generally