Germination of seeds of tropical pioneer species under controlled and natural conditions

By I. Válio, F. M. Scarpa. 2001

89 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Seed germination of eight tropical pioneer species (Cecropia hololeuca, C. pachystachya, C. glazioui, Solanum gracillimum, S. granuloso-leprosum, S. tabacifolium, Croton floribundus and Miconia chamissois) was studied. In controlled conditions, alternating temperatures were tested from 5 to 25 °C. Low Red:Far Red ratios (R:FR) were also examined. In the field, germination was evaluated in gaps and under the canopy. With the exception of Croton floribundus, all other species were photoblastic in that higher germination percentages were found under light conditions (S. tabacifolium behaved as a negative photoblastic species at some temperatures). No relationship was found between germination percentage and alternating temperature. Germination was markedly reduced under low R:FR ratios. Alternating temperature is not the main factor affecting field germination. The low R:FR ratio under the canopy seems to be the crucial factor affecting germination.

Subfields: Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Nature and Landscape Conservation, Plant Science

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/463e9c904a2592f1486075db284eff93af74b504

Citations in the corpus

• Tree regeneration and microclimate in a liana and bamboo-dominated semideciduous Atlantic Forest (2007, unknown): “A diurnal range of temperature of 25 8C occurring in gaps in BLC, may favor the germination of pioneer species such as Trema micrantha and Solanum granuloso-leprosum, which are known for colonizing rapidly large gaps and harvested areas (Valio and Scarpa, 2001; Rodrigues et al., 2004).”