Copernicia alba (Morong ex Morong & Britton) is a palm tree native to tropical and subtropical climates, commonly named “carandá”, that often forms monodominant populations in the Pantanal wetland in Brazil. Currently, the knowledge of the seed germination behavior of C. alba is still limited, as well as seed viability in ex-situ conservation under laboratory conditions. Hence, this study investigated the effect of water treatments and a one-year storage period (at 19°C under a relative humidity of 45%) on its germination. We subjected fresh and stored seeds to immersion in water at room temperature (~25°C) for 24, 48, and 72 h; and hot water (~75°C) for 5 min and 10 min. The results showed that seeds do not have primary dormancy, with fresh seeds germinating 84% in the control. Additionally, fresh seeds had a significant increase in germination percentage (reaching 100%) and faster germination times after immersion in water for 48 and 72 h. On the other hand, hot water treatments decreased germination for both fresh and stored seeds. One year of storage reduced the germination capacity by almost 50%. We concluded that seeds of C. alba may be easily germinated under laboratory conditions for seedling production, and water immersion at room temperature can improve the germination of fresh seeds. However, long-term seed storage and hot-water treatments may jeopardize germination. Future studies should further investigate ex-situ conservation of seed of C. alba under extended periods, considering seed desiccation and alternative storage conditions, to improve seed conservation techniques .
Interpopulation variability in seed traits may drive the regeneration capacity of a species to colonize different environments. In the present study, we evaluated the variation in seed physical traits (mass / size, water imbibition, shape index) and physiological traits (germination) of five Polygonaceae species. Seeds of Polygonum lapathifolium var. salicifolium, P. lapathifolium, Reynoutria japonica, Rumex trisetifer, and R. obtusifolius were collected from two or three populations in Jiujiang, China. Physical seed traits were measured before germination tests conducted under different combinations of light and temperatures. Most species had a significant variation in seed physical and physiological traits, although populations are geographically close. Interpopulation variation in seed traits appeared to be species-specific, with the highest variation for R. japonica and lowest for R. trisetifer seeds. Germination response to temperature and light conditions also varied among species and populations, being mostly inhibited in the dark treatments. The light dependence of germination can be related to the small seed size, except for the round-seeded Rumex, depending on the temperature regime. Optimal temperature ranges mainly varied from 10/20°C to 25/35°C, with significant decreases in germination percentage at both coolest and warmest extremes. Germination requirements seem to be related to altitudinal gradients in populations of P. lapathifolium and R. japonica seeds.
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