Seed Priming Effects on Germination and Seedling Establishment of Useful Tropical Trees for Ecological Restoration

Abstract

We assessed the effects of seed priming and soil retainers on seed germination and early seedling performance of useful species in a tropical semideciduous forest in Veracruz, México. We determined mass and water and lipid content in the seeds of Albizia saman, Cedrela odorata, Enterolobium cyclocarpum, and Swietenia macrophylla. The seeds were exposed to hydropriming and natural priming (seed burial inside the soil) and germinated at 25 C and 25/35 C. The produced seedlings were grown in a shade house and planted in a plain terrain and a hillside (slope 75%). Seedling growth and survival were evaluated. S. macrophylla and E. cyclocarpum seeds had the lowest and highest water content, respectively. S. macrophylla and C. odorata had oil seeds. A. saman and E. cyclocarpum seeds had physical dormancy. Natural priming improved germination in A. saman, C. odorata, and S. macrophylla while hydropriming and 25/35 C enhanced germination in E. cyclocarpum. In the shade house, natural priming promoted seedling growth in all studied species and in the field survival of A. saman and S. macrophylla. In E. cyclocarpum, this effect was obtained with hydropriming in the plain terrain. In the hillside, hydropriming and natural priming and 25/35 C improved survival of S. macrophylla and E. cyclocarpum, respectively. Seed burial for 8 days improved germination, seedling performance, and survival. To bury seeds inside a pot placed in a shade house induced natural priming in C. odorata. We suggest natural priming for A. saman, C. odorata, and S. macrophylla, and hydropriming for E. cyclocarpum seeds. Germination pretreatments were inexpensive and easy tools potentially applicable in restoration and conservation programs.

Effects of seed priming on germination and seedling growth of desiccation-sensitive seeds from Mexican tropical rainforest

“…Hydropriming does not affect the seed in the same way it does other species. In some cases, as in Enterolobium cyclocarpum and Quercus rugosa, hydropriming is an excellent pretreatment (Castro-Colina et al 2012;Peraza-Villarreal et al 2018). Thus, we have considered these studies for our experimental design.…”

“…Hydropriming is commonly used for native species because it is inexpensive and easy to use (Orozco-Segovia et al 2014). Hydropriming improves seed vigor of Mexican tropical forest species such as the orthodox seeds of Enterolobium ciclocarpum (Peraza et al 2018), but only little work has been done in species with desiccation-sensitive seeds. An exception is Quercus rugosa, which inhabits highly disturbed and stressful lava fields located in the southern hills of Mexico City.…”

“…Natural priming is a matrix priming variant that consists of burying in situ desiccation-tolerant seeds within a period ranging from seed dispersal to the beginning of the rainy season (González-Zertuche et al 2001;Orozco-Segovia et al 2014). After burial, unearthing, and dehydration, the seeds acquire the germination-related processes to invigorate them (Alvarado-López et al 2018;González-Zertuche et al 2001), which can even improve the growth and survival of seedlings (Benítez-Rodríguez et al 2014;Peraza-Villarreal et al 2018). In the seed bank, seeds undergo hydration-dehydration cycles in accordance with the moisture variation in the soil (Hadas 2004;Long et al 2015).…”

Seed enhancement: getting seeds restoration‐ready

“…Priming also induced rapid germination of several tree species ( Albizia saman , Cedrela odorata , Enterolobium cyclocarpum , and Swietenia macrophylla ) native to the tropical semideciduous forest of Veracruz, Mexico. Natural priming (manual seed burial, similar to matrix priming described above) was effective for A. saman , C. odorata , and S. macrophylla while hydro‐priming enhanced the performance of E. cyclocarpum seeds (Peraza‐Villarreal et al ). Hardegree and Van Vactor () reported that matrix priming enhanced total emergence of four North American bunchgrass species ( Elymus elymoides , Elymus lanceolatus , Poa sandbergii , and Pseudoroegneria spicata ) in the field, but the range of effects on germination were contingent upon seed lot, planting date, and soil type.…”

Seed Priming: An Interlinking Technology between Seeds, Seed Germination and Seedling Establishment

“…For instance, Peraza-Villarreal et al [72] evaluated the effects of seed priming and soil retainers on seed germination and performance of early seedling of useful species in a tropical semideciduous forest of Veracruz, Mexico. They tried to determine the mass, water and lipid content in the seeds of Albizia saman, Cedrela odorata, Enterolobium cyclocarpum, and Swietenia macrophylla.…”