Effects of pretreatments on Corema album (L.) D. Don (subsp. album) seeds' germination

Abstract

Abstract. Corema album (Ericaceae), "Camarinhas", endemic of the Atlantic dunes of the Iberian Peninsula has the possibility to become a new niche berry crop. Considering the agronomic and market possibilities for this species, the initial research step is the development of a seed germination protocol. We characterized C. album populations along its biogeographical area. The results show that different seeds characteristics differ significantly between sites. We also tested the effect of pretreatments on the germination of C. album seeds (subsp. album) from Duna de Quiaios in 2011, from Comporta in 2011 and Aldeia do Meco in 2011 and in 2012. The results show that there is site-to-site variation in the same year and year-to-year variation in a particular site in percentage of germinated seeds. Acid scarification (30, 60 and 120 minutes) followed by 1000 ppm of gibberellic acid was the most effective pretreatment in breaking dormancy of C. album and this pretreatment promote the best germination from seeds collected from Aldeia do Meco 2011 (30.3%) after 175 days. Our results suggest that the seeds had physiological dormancy. Considering the 2800 seeds collected: 54.5% ruptured the seed coat and 7.7% germinated.

Germination and Clonal Propagation of the Endemic Shrub Corema album, a Vulnerable Species with Conservation Needs and Commercial Interest

“…The same method was proposed by Rossini et al [22] for the endemic shrub Erica andevalensis (Ericaceae). Our results also corroborate those of Santos et al [16], who recently described hormonal methods as a means of germinating seeds from C. album from populations across the coast of Portugal. Nevertheless, our results differ from those of Santos et al [16], who treated seeds with a combination of GA 3 at 1000 ppm and low pH, obtaining lower germination rates (30.3%) in a much longer period (175 days).…”

“…Our results also corroborate those of Santos et al [16], who recently described hormonal methods as a means of germinating seeds from C. album from populations across the coast of Portugal. Nevertheless, our results differ from those of Santos et al [16], who treated seeds with a combination of GA 3 at 1000 ppm and low pH, obtaining lower germination rates (30.3%) in a much longer period (175 days). Thus, we can conclude that treating seeds with 200 ppm GA 3 in agar medium is a successful method to promote germination of C. album.…”

“…We confirmed that C. album seeds present physiological dormancy [13,16], which under natural conditions is broken by ingestion by natural dispersers such as rabbits and foxes (Figure 1). Fedriani and Delibes [13] described foxes and rabbits to be the most common dispersers of C. album seeds in the southern area of C. album distribution, the same as our study site, while Calviño-Cancela [10] described both rabbits and seagulls to be important but unspecialized dispersers.…”

“…Under this scenario it is necessary to gain knowledge on the mechanisms underlying C. album propagation, not only for maintaining and regenerating degraded C. album populations, but also for future feasible agricultural and pharmacological use [3][4][5][6]. So far there is very limited information on the germination responses of C. album [16] and, to our knowledge, no clonal propagation techniques have been described for this endemic and vulnerable species.…”

Knowledge and Consumption Habits Related with White Crowberries (Corema album L.)

“…The water-rich berries, with a moisture content higher than 83%, have high levels of fiber (around 40%, dry matter), total sugars (62.80%, dry matter) and low protein levels [7][8][9][10][11]. In general, crowberries are more acidic and less sweet than other berries such as blueberries, raspberries or blackberries, but have a distinctly fresh taste and an agreeable lemony flavor [7][8][9][10][11][12][13].…”