Morphometric characteristics and seed germination of Dalbergia granadillo Pittier

Abstract

Objective: To know the variability and quality of seed in a Dalbergia granadillo Pittier (Fabaceae) population from the Soconusco, Chiapas, Mexico. Design / methodology / approximation: The seed was obtained from six trees during the months of February and March 2020. Two weeks after the seeds were collected, pod and seed variables were determined. Seed length (LS), width (AS), color (CS), weight of 100 seeds (g) (PS) and germination percentage (PG). The results were statistically analysed by analysis of variance using the GLM procedure and the comparison of means by Tukey (P ≤ 0.05) with the SAS 9.0 program. Results: There is wide variation in seed content. The pods registered from 1, 2, 3 and up to four seeds, although pods of one predominated. There are seeds of two colours, dark brown and light brown, and the latter are the most abundant; however, light colored seeds registered higher germination (96%). The weight of 100 seeds registered values ​​of 9.6-9.7 g. Study Limitations / implications: The species has a restricted distribution and presents a low number of individuals in the evaluated populations. Findings / conclusions: The morphometric characteristics of the seeds allowed to identify the variability and quality, mainly in shape, size and coloration of the seeds, as well as the number of seeds per pod.