Mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus montanus Raf) is a useful reclamation species because it can occupy and improve poor soils. Literature regarding seed propagation of tbis species is var· ied and often contradictory, recommending stratification dura· tions of 14 to 90 days, and sulfuric acid scarification durations of none to 60 minutes. To assess variability in propagation require. ments among se...

BACKGROUND Hypoxis hemerocallidea, arguably the most well-known medicinal species in South Africa, has been the subject of intensive harvesting from the wild leading to recent conservation concerns. The seeds of this species do not propagate easily and can lie dormant for up to twelve months. MATERIALS AND METHODS In the in vitro germination experiments water, acid and chemical pre-sowing tre...

During last two decades studies on endozoochorous seed dispersal indicated that a large numbers of plant seeds are potentially dispersed and suceefully germinated via animal dung. However, very little is known about the relative importance of endozoochory in germination success of plant species in semi-steppe rangelands. In this paper we examined dung germinating seed content, seed deposition p...

The changes in phytate, phytase activity and in vitro bioavailability of iron and zinc during soaking and germination of three white sorghum varieties (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench), named Dorado, Shandweel-6, and Giza-15 were investigated. Sorghum varieties were soaked for 20 h and germinated for 72 h after soaking for 20 h to reduce phytate content and increase iron and zinc in vitro bioavailabi...

rapid germination is an important factor determining the final yield. the most important abiotic stress threatening lentils is drought and temperature. therefore, this study was performed with the aim of investigating effects various thermal treatments (5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30°c) and four levels of drought (0, -4, -8, -12 and -16 bar) on percentage and germination rate of lentil genotypes. a s...

In the context of seed technology, the use of physical methods for increasing plant production offers advantages over conventional treatments based on chemical substances. The effects of physical invigoration treatments in seeds can be now addressed at multiple levels, ranging from morpho-structural aspects to changes in gene expression and protein or metabolite accumulation. Among the physical...

In this work we investigated whether priming with auxin, cytokinin, gibberellin, abscisic acid and ethylene, alters the physiological responses of seeds of pigeon pea germinated under water and cadmium stress. Seeds treated with water or non-treated seeds were used as control. Although compared to non-treated seeds we found that the hormone treatments improve the germination of pigeon pea under...

Seasonal germination timing strongly influences lifetime fitness and can affect the ability of plant populations to colonize and persist in new environments. To quantify the influence of seasonal environmental factors on germination and to test whether pleiotropy or close linkage are significant constraints on the evolution of germination in different seasonal conditions, we dispersed novel rec...

Understanding germination requirements of native species is an important component of restoration in south Puget Lowland prairies (Washington, USA). We conducted an experiment to determine the effects of pre-germination treatment and germination temperature conditions on the proportional germination of three species of Lupinus. For one species, Lupinus lepidus, germination was highest following...