Effect of Fruit Maturity and Extraction Treatment on Germination Percentage of Langusei (Ficus minahassae (Teysm.et.Vr.) Miq))

Langusei (Ficus minahassae (Teysm.et.Vr.) Miq) is one of the endemic flora of Sulawesi which existence is increasingly threatened. Attempts to maintain the existence of Ficus minahassae species by understanding the cultivation techniques of the Langusei species, especially regarding the appropriate germination techniques, need to be addressed. This study aims to determine the level of fruit maturity and the appropriate extraction treatment for the germination of Langusei seeds. The experimental design used in this study was a complete randomization design which is arranged in a factorial pattern. The first factor is the classification of the level of seed maturity based on fruit color categories: 1) Orange-brown fruit, 2) Orange-reddish fruit, 3) Red fruit, and 4) Red-black fruit, while the second factor is the fruit extraction treatment which consists of: 1) Extraction with dry wind treatment for 24 hours, 2) Extraction with drying treatment for 12 hours, and 3) Extraction with water treatment for 24 hours. The results showed that the fruit maturity level and the appropriate extraction treatment to produce optimal Langusei seed germination were in the (orange-brown and orange-reddish fruit) (mature fruits prior to ripening) which was soaked in water for 24 hours.

Germination strategy of Allium victorialis, a wild edible plant with high commercial potential

The spring ephemeral Allium victorialis grows naturally in Europe, Asia, and North America. Because of its pleasant taste, aroma, and nutraceutical properties, it is intensively gathered in its natural habitats by the local populations. To introduce A. victorialis as a new crop, technologies of mass-propagation and effective production must be developed. However, the biology of seed dormancy and germination in this species is not clear, and numerous attempts at controlled seed germination have not succeeded. We employed a systematic approach for seed germination of this species under controlled conditions. Two main factors, post-ripening seed age and germination temperature regimes, were studied in combination with various germination techniques. As opposed to common conceptions, our results show that the seeds of A. victorialis do not experience morphological, physical, or physiological dormancy, and are completely ready for germination immediately following ripening. Propagation of A. victorialis from seed can be performed by germination of fresh seeds at moderate (20 °C) temperatures, in a sterile planting medium with good aeration. The germination strategy, revealed in this research, opens new prospects for the development of A. victorialis as a new and useful crop.

Trial Germination of Coastal Vegetation (Terminalia catappa, Calophyllum inophylum L., and Barringtonia asiatica) in the Kima Atas Permanent Nursery

It was estimated that North Sulawesi needs 9,870,093.33 coastal vegetation seeds to rehabilitate the damage of coastal ecosystems which reach 14,805.14 ha, where the largest area 13.884 ha located in other land use. This study aims to provide information of seed germination techniques in Permanent Nursery Kima Atas, Manado. Research was arranged in complete randomized design as factorial with three replications. Ketapang (Terminalia cattapa) will obtain high viability in fluctuation of temperature and humidity, i.e used sand media, without wildlings and placed under 25% shade and rain. Keben (Baringtonia asiatica) through the incision and decay that placed in the open location will obtain viability until 90% within 2 months. Nyamplung (Calophyllum inophyllum) requires shell splitting in order to improve the viability and it can be done by cracking and stripping.

An In Vitro Germination Technique for Some Stone Fruit Species: the Embryo Isolated from Cotyledons Successfully Germinated without Cold Pre-treatment of Seeds

Seeds of temperate fruit species need a long time to germinate as a result of their requirement of stratification or cold treatment. Therefore, fast and uniform germination techniques are desirable and important for fruit tree propagation and especially for breeding studies. The effects of combinations of benzylaminopurine (BAP) and gibberellic acid (GA3) on in vitro embryo germination of apricot, peach, and wild cherry were determined without seed cold pretreatment. The results showed that no germination was recorded in all the seeds with testa. In the seeds without testa, no germination (wild cherry) or limited germination (less than 10%) was recorded. When the embryos separated from cotyledons were cultured, successful germination was obtained for all species. In general, the addition of different combinations of BAP and GA3 into the Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium significantly increased the germination ratios of embryos without cotyledons in all species. For wild cherry, the best treatment (66.7% germination) was MS media containing 0.5 mg·L−1 BAP + 2.0 mg·L−1 GA3 or 0.5 mg·L−1 BAP + 4.0 mg·L−1 GA3. For peach, the best treatment (86.7% germination) was MS medium supplemented with 0.5 mg·L−1 BAP + 3.0 mg·L−1 GA3. For apricot, the best treatment (93.3%) was MS media containing 0.5 mg·L−1 BAP + 3.0 mg·L−1 GA3, 1.0 mg·L−1 BAP + 1.0 mg·L−1 GA3, or 1.0 mg·L−1 BAP + 2.0 mg·L−1 GA3.

Propagation for the Conservation of Pityopsis ruthii, an Endangered Species from the Southeastern United States

Pityopsis ruthii is an endangered species endemic to the Hiwassee and Ocoee Rivers in Tennessee. As part of a recovery effort focused on P. ruthii, vegetative propagation and in vitro multiplication and seed germination techniques were developed. Plants were vegetatively propagated using greenhouse stock plants and wild-collected stems. Rooting occurred with and without auxin treatments but was greatest when 0.1% indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) talc was applied to the vegetative cuttings; rooting was lowest when flowering stems were used. Pro-Mix BX substrate provided the most consistent rooting. In vitro multiplication was accomplished by the removal of lateral shoots from in vitro-grown plants that were rooted on Murashige and Skoog (MS0) basal medium with 270 clones produced from a single individual after 4 months. Nineteen clones were transplanted and secured with bonded fiber matrix into their natural habitat and 14 survived for 1 year. To avoid genetic swamping of native populations with the introduction of large numbers of genetically identical individuals through clonal propagation, seed-based propagation efforts were explored. Open-pollinated seeds were collected, disinfested and germinated, and seedlings established on MS medium. Seeds were submersed in 70% ethanol for 1 minute and briefly flamed. Seeds were surface-sterilized in a range [10% to 50% (v/v)] Clorox® bleach solutions with vigorous shaking for 20 minutes, rinsed three times in sterile water, and germinated on MS0. Removal of pappus from seeds was required for successful disinfestations, but the bleach concentration was not critical. Successful propagation is a step toward the conservation and recovery of P. ruthii and should allow future reintroduction projects.

Soil seedbank composition and dynamics across alpine summits in south-eastern Australia

Alpine soil seedbanks are generally regarded as small and unimportant to regeneration. Here, we investigate for the first time the composition of the readily germinable soil seedbank across alpine summits in south-eastern Australia. We aimed to compare the species in the seedbank with the standing vegetation, show seasonal variations in seedbank composition and identify regeneration strategies of alpine seedbank species. By using standard glasshouse and cold-stratification germination techniques, the germinable soil seedbank across the study region was found to comprise 39 species from 25 families, with species from the Asteraceae the most common. Persistent seedbanks were found across all eight alpine summits (1668–1970 m), comparable in seed density (150 ± 27 to 1330 ± 294 per m2) with those of other alpine areas in the northern and southern hemispheres. The density of germinable seeds varied widely among sites and between collection times (autumn, spring) and there were no trends in seed density with altitude. The qualitative and quantitative similarity between the seedbank species and the standing vegetation was low. Correlations between the proportions of species in regeneration categories (from obligate seeders, through to vegetative regenerators) in the standing vegetation and the seedbank were also poor. Our results indicate a divergence between the species in the current standing vegetation and those present in the readily germinable soil seed bank. The current patterns and predominance of seed-regenerating species in the seedbank indicate that these species may have an important role to play in regulating and contributing to future changes in the vegetation assemblage.