Water stress in germination, growth and development of coffee cultivars

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of water stress on the germination of Coffea arabica seeds and the growth and development of plants from these seeds. Seeds of the cultivars Bourbon Vermelho, Mundo Novo, and BA-10 were placed to germinate in the dark at 30 ºC in the presence and absence of 100 g/L of polyethylene glycol 6000. The water stress applied delayed the beginning of seed germination by seven days in relation to seeds of the control, which had achieved responses of up to 50%, but there were no differences between the treatments at the end of the experiment. Furthermore, the length of the primary root in seeds germinated under water stress was less than in the control treatment, especially for the cultivar Mundo Novo. Plants of the cultivars Bourbon Vermelho and Mundo Novo developed from seeds previously germinated under water stress exhibited reduced height and fewer leaf pairs than those from the control, whereas ‘BA-10’ responded in a similar way in both treatments. Thus, the cultivars Bourbon Vermelho and Mundo Novo were more sensitive to the water stress applied in the germination phase than ‘BA-10’.

Histochemical approach of the mobilization of reserve compounds in germinating coffee seeds

“…Two stages of endosperm weakening have been reported to occur during germination of coffee seeds (Da Silva et al, 2019), in which case the endosperm constitutes the mechanical force of tissues surrounding the embryo. During the first stage, the water absorbed by the walls of endosperm cells is gradually transmitted to the embryo, which increases its pressure potential (Almeida et al, 2018), thereby characterizing the embryo growth potential. Gradually, the endosperm structure is weakened and the walls of its cells are degraded, which enables the nurturing of the growing embryo.…”

Germination response of diverse wild and landrace chile peppers (Capsicumspp.) under drought stress simulated with polyethylene glycol

“…The goal of the research presented here was to investigate adaptation to osmotic stress at germination in diverse landraces of chiles collected from different cultivation regimes and ecozones within southern Mexico. We used polyethylene-glycol (PEG) to induce osmotic stress at the seed stage, as has been done in germination studies of other cultivated and wild species [32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]. In most prior studies, PEG solutions were used to identify cultivars which perform well under both stress and un-stressed conditions, whereas here we aimed to identify G×E interactions among populations as an indication of local adaptation to drought stress.…”

Germination response of diverse wild and landrace chile peppers (Capsicum spp.) under drought stress simulated with polyethylene glycol

“…The goal of the research presented here was to investigate adaptation to osmotic stress at germination in diverse landraces of chiles collected from different cultivation regimes and ecozones within southern Mexico. We used polyethylene-glycol (PEG) to induce osmotic stress at the seed stage, as has been done in germination studies of other cultivated and wild species [32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]. In most prior studies, PEG solutions were used to identify cultivars which perform well under both stressed and un-stressed conditions, whereas here we aimed to identify G×E interactions among populations as an indication of local adaptation to drought stress.…”