Abstract
Efficacy of Cucumis myriocarpus fruit crude extracts on suppression of Meloidogyne incognita is well documented in Indigenous Cucumis technologies. Currently, test fruits are collected from the wild, and this unreliable source cannot meet the quantities required for producing a commercial bio-pesticides. Thus, objective of this work was to evaluate effect of temperature-exposure of C. myriocarpus seeds on seedling emergence. Treatments comprising 5, 25, 35, 45 and 55°C, arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD), with 10 replications. Seedling emergence responded linearly to temperature ranges, which suggested additional work to determine maximum temperature for denaturing inhibitory germination chemicals on seeds of wild cucumber. Key words: Bio-pesticides, indigenous cucumis technologies, seed dormancy, seedling emergence, temperature pre-treatment.
Highlights
Initial attempts to propagate seeds of wild cucumber (Cucumis myriocarpus “Naudin”), at the University of Limpopo were unsuccessful
After-ripening refers to physiological changes that occur within the seed postripening that enable germination to occur and is usually treated by long storage of seeds and exposure to high temperature (Cui and Yin, 1995; Hartmann et al, 2002)
Ground crude extracts of C. myriocarpus fruit have been used in Indigenous Cucumis Technologies (ICTs) for over 10 years with consistent results in nematode suppression and improved crop yield (Mashela et al, 2011)
Summary
Initial attempts to propagate seeds of wild cucumber (Cucumis myriocarpus “Naudin”), at the University of Limpopo were unsuccessful (unpublished data). The observation suggested that there were internal factors that inhibited seed germination, which possibly included after-ripening or seed dormancy. Ground crude extracts of C. myriocarpus fruit have been used in Indigenous Cucumis Technologies (ICTs) for over 10 years with consistent results in nematode suppression and improved crop yield (Mashela et al., 2011). In this technology, the material was researched and developed to address the plant-parasitic nematode problems in low-input agricultural systems, for marginalised farming communities in South Africa.
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