Abstract
The effects of storage regime (laboratory and soil storage) and fire cues (heat and charate) on seed viability and germination were investigated in the nut-fruited Restionaceae species, Cannomois virgata (Rottb.) Steud. Soil-stored seeds were cycled through a series of alternating temperature and moisture regimes in a phytotron, while laboratory-stored seeds were kept at comparatively constant temperatures and low humidity. Seed deterioration in soil-stored seed was not significantly different to laboratory-stored seed. A marked improvement in germination of soil-stored seed was observed on exposure to charate from a fire.
Highlights
Germination of seeds of the nut-fruited Restionaceae has been notoriously difficult to achieve (Brown et al, 1994; Brown et al, 1998)
Poor seed germination may be due to inappropriate seed collection methods or sorting methods, resulting in poor seed quality (Clegg, 1980; Brown et al, 1998)
Recent research into the suitability of seed collection and sorting methods, seed quality and viability suggest that seed germination remains poor even in well-sorted seed collections (Newton et al, 2002)
Summary
Draining seed trays were watered to saturation with a fine-spray hose with frequencies indicated in the table. Tetrazolium tests were conducted at the end of 48 weeks of soil storage on a subset of seeds to check viability. Control seeds, which were exposed to neither charate nor heat, were buried in seed trays in untreated Silvermine soil. Seed trays containing fire-treated, charate-treated and control seeds were placed in a phytotron for 1 week without watering at 10 -C, 12 h/30 -C, 12 h to simulate high autumnal temperature fluctuations that would be experienced by seeds following vegetation removal by fire. Technical problems in the phytotron resulted in a temperature spike at the end of the second week This did not appear to affect germination. At the end of the experiment, germinants and visibly deteriorated seed were recorded, and a subset of the remaining seed was tested for viability with tetrazolium.
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