I am not clear what actually happens with the seeds after sowing. Is it get
damaged by predation or infection or still intact in soil without signs of
germination?
I like the way Devi ji experimented with seeds of *Strychnos nuxvomica *and
*Melia dubia. *As she pointed out, most of the tropical seeds do have
dormancy (Quiet and inactive , but viable) period. Such seeds need a
minimum period to initiate the sprouting .
I will tell you one incident, My friend wanted to raise 1000 seedlings
of *Garcinia
indica *as a part of his research. I made fresh seeds available from
Karnataka and transported them to Kerala. They had kept it for germination
in polythene bags. After about 8 months, out of curiosity, I enquired about
the progress of germination. To my surprise he said there is no sign of
germination so far and he thought all of them had damaged or predated. I
told him to wait for another 4-5 months before discard the same. He let it
as such and they got several seedlings after 13 months!
If you refer some silviculture books you may get information about the
dormancy of several species.
Another incident, happened long back, we use to preserve fruits in 40%
formalin for display in Salim Ali bird Sanctuary Thattekad (Kerala). Once I
kept some Vatteria indica seeds in 40% formalin solution. To my surprise
after 7 days they started germinate within the solution and I taken out
those seedlings and planted them in the nursery. One of that seedlings
became a tree and is growing next to the Range office of the sanctuary.
There are several methods to break the dormancy such as chemical treatment,
burn (teak) to remove the hard outer cover, soaking in cold or warm water,
etc.
Some seeds need to pass through the gut of birds for germination (most of
Loranthaceaen seeds).
Regards,
Giby
Regards
Giby
* *
On 2 December 2011 09:39, Yazdy Palia <[email protected]> wrote:
> Dear Sheshadri ji,
> One cause of failure is attack by ants. Once you sow the seeds, the
> ants may be attacking them from underneath without anyone noticing it
> even. Hard seeds may be soaked in water and then germinated in a
> basket hung by a wire so that it is not accessible to ants. Use plenty
> of dried leaf litter along with topsoil and it should germinate
> without any problem. These though are the experiences of a novice. I
> do not claim to have any special knowledge.
> Regards
> Yazdy.
>
> On Fri, Dec 2, 2011 at 9:04 AM, Devi <[email protected]> wrote:
> > Sheshadri'ji,
> >
> > I've had some success with difficult seeds like Nux Vomica , Mala
> > Veppu [ Melia Dubia?] etc. In the case of Nux after much research I
> > found that new seeds do not sprout well and that they have to be at
> > least 6 months old. This may be the case with some other seeds too.
> > Also 'scarification' and soaking of hard seeds also help.
> >
> > I have been repeatedly unsuccessful in the case of Delonix Elata
> > [ Vadhanarayanam]. Would you be having any saplings of this?
> >
> > I live in Bangalore too and would like to help with seed germination
> > if possible.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Devi
> >
> > On Dec 1, 3:50 pm, Sheshadri Ramaswamy <[email protected]>
> > wrote:
> >> Dear Friends,
> >>
> >> I am in an effort to germinate seeds of Tree species for assisting
> forest
> >> dept. nurseries and am not able to geminate some like* Dolichandrone
> >> atrovirens, Melia dubia , Anogeissus latifolia, Mitragyna parviflora*
> etc.
> >>
> >> Can I get information on the above about treatments, germination
> techniques
> >> etc. ?
> >>
> >> These are some native species of Bangalore. I would be glad to discuss
> with
> >> someone who is doing the above.
> >>
> >> Regards.
>
--
GIBY KURIAKOSE PhD
Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE),
Royal Enclave,
Jakkur Post, Srirampura
Bangalore- 560064
India
Phone - +91 9448714856 (Mobile)
visit my pictures @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/giby
