Techniques for Enhancing Saltgrass Seed Germination and Establishment

Abstract

Because of its exceptional salinity tolerance, inland saltgrass [Distichlis spicata var. stricta (L.) Greene] has great potential for use as a turfgrass and revegetation species of saline sites. However, saltgrass seeds have a low germination rate due to seed dormancy. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate different seed treatments to enhance germination and establishment of inland saltgrass. In Experiment I, seven different seed treatments were tested for their ability to enhance germination percentage in the growth chamber and compared with a control of no treatment. These treatments included treatments with hot water, hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ), sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ), potassium nitrate (KNO 3 ), bleach, machine scarification, stratification, and hand nicking. Results indicated that germination percentage was increased only by stratification, hand nicking, and machine scarification treatments as compared with the control. In Experiment II, machine scarification, stratification, hand nicking, and the control were tested in the growth chamber. Hand nicking, scarification, and stratification increased percentage germination from 13.0% to 54.0 to 61.7%. Stratification resulted in the fastest germination, followed by hand nicking and scarification. Experiment III was conducted in the field, and seed treatments included machine scarification, stratification, and the control. Two months after seeding, plots seeded with stratified and scarified saltgrass seeds established adequate plot coverage as a turf, whereas the coverage for the control was inadequate, exhibiting inferior turf quality. In summary, stratification and machine scarification improve germination and establishment of seeded saltgrass. Experiment I

Improving Seed Germination of Saltgrass under Saline Conditions

“…Without pretreatment, saltgrass seeds have a low germination due to seed dormancy. Previously, Qian et al (2006) found that stratification and machine scarification improved germination of saltgrass seeds. To break seed dormancy, seeds were subjected to machine scarification.…”

“…To break seed dormancy, seeds were subjected to machine scarification. Scarification was performed by setting a scarifier (MAT‐OSU pneumatic seed scarifier, Mater Intel., Corvallis, OR) at 112 MPa pressure and 60‐grit sandpaper was used for 4 min (Qian et al, 2006).…”

Germinación Y Emergencia Diaria De Cariópsides Y Diásporas De Pastos Nativos E Introducidos

“…Por otro lado, en pasto Navajita se registraron las mayores TED en cariópsides de 0.5 a 1.0 cm de PS en el periodo de 8 a 10 dds (6 y 5 plantas d -1 ; P ≤ 0.001), mientras que en diásporas de pasto Navajita, las mayores TED ocurrieron a 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 y 3.0 cm en el periodo de 11 a 13 dds (7, 6, 4 y 4 plantas d -1 ; P ≤ 0.001); lo que indica que en pasto Navajita no conviene eliminar brácteas accesorias en siembras de temporal. Con respecto a lo anterior, Quian et al (2006) registraron un periodo de germinación hasta 73 dds en laboratorio con Distichlis spicata, y Larsen y Bibby (2004) registraron la aparición de plántulas de 1 a 25 dds con cariópsides de T. dactyloides. Por lo tanto, el pasto Navajita es más susceptible a mayor PS en comparación con Banderita, por lo que estos valores bajos de TED Cuadro 1.…”

“…La clasificación de cariópsides ha sido estudiada por Larsen y Andreasen (2004) y Springer et al (2001) en Tripsacum dactyliodes, así como por Ramírez-Calderón et al (2003) en triticale (Triticum x Secale Wittmack), quienes indican que a mayor peso de cariópside, se presenta mayor tasa de germinación, relación que influye en mayor área foliar y radical, lo cual es de importancia en siembras de temporal (Quian et al, 2006;Tian et al, 2003).…”

Effect of Treatment with Concentrated Sulfuric Acid and a Homogenizer, and Temperature at Germination and Storage on Seed Germination in Eight Pelargonium Species

“…As methods for breaking down the impermeable coats of seeds, chemical treatment (Rogers, 1987;Yang et al, 2007), hot water (Nell et al, 1981;Rao and Mukherjee, 1978), stratification (Qian et al, 2006;Yang et al, 2007;Zhou et al, 2009), high temperature (heat) (Sugimoto and Lidbetter, 2002), plant-derived smoke (Abdollahi, 2012;Sugimoto and Lidbetter, 2002) and heat and smoke (Brown and Staden, 1997;Dixon et al, 1995;Tieu et al, 2001) have been studied and developed to deal with these plants individually. Research on breaking down hardness of seed with H2SO4 treatment has been tried with several plants.…”