Variation in Seed Weight, Number per Capsule and Germination in Populus deltoides Bartr. Trees in Southeastern Ohio

Abstract

During a 3-year period, 1981-1983, a sample of Populus deltoides trees in the Hocking River basin of southeastern Ohio exhibited either an inverse relationship between seed weight and number or a change in one character without a change in the other. Within-tree differences in seed weight and number per capsule were observed both with respect to capsule location within catkins and catkin location between opposite sides of a single tree. There was no significant relationship between seed weight and number per capsule or between seed weight and tree size. However, with increased tree size, there was a decrease in seed number per capsule. Open-grown, isolated trees had larger seeds and fewer seeds per capsule than forest-grown trees. Large seeds resulted in significantly larger seedlings than did small seeds.