Breaking the long dormancy of seeds of the Cornus mas L. species

• Main Author: Vojtěch Řezníček
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Mendel University Press 2007-01-01
• Series: Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae Brunensis
• Subjects: seeds; Cornelian cherry; stratification; auxinoids; long dormancy of seeds
• Online Access: https://acta.mendelu.cz/55/4/0043/

The present study was focused on breaking the long dormancy of harvested and treated seed of the Cornelian cherry. We used stratification, which accelerates ripening, enables rapid termination of dormancy and removes all obstacles to germination. The seeds were obtained from three localities (Tišnov, Lednice, Žabčice). Prior to stratification the seeds were soaked in water for 24 hours and then three stages of treatment were applied; 1st control stage – cold stratification, 2nd warm-cold stage – five-phase stratification and 3rd stage – treatment with auxinoids. In stages 1 and 2 after stratification the seeds were sown in spring; in the 3rd stage seeds were sown once again in autumn. In the 1st control stage the seeds did not germinate. In the 2nd stage after warm-cold stratification 14.13% plants of the Tišnovský 1 ecotype emerged; while only 6.33% plants of the Tišnovský 3 ecotype. In the 3rd stage, after auxinoid treatment and autumn sowing, 13.26% and 10.13% plants of Lednický 1 and Lednický 2, respectively, emerged. In the 1st control stage 3.86 % of the Jaltský variety and 2.80 % of Elegantní emerged. In the 2nd stage after treatment applying warm-cold stratification the varieties achieved various degrees of emergence; Botanický 5.66 %, Elegantní 5.40 % and Fruchtal 5.26 %. The highest proportion of germinating plants was seen in the 3rd stage in the Jaltský variety, i.e. 16.74 %, while the emergence of the varieties Fruchtal and Vydubecký was lower, i.e. 14.25 % and 12.20 %, respectively. In the 2nd year after a lapse of one year of dormancy the germinating capacity ranged between 62.30 and 76.28 %.Evaluations of the growth parameters of the seedlings were focused on the height of the plants and diameter of the root collar. The height of the seedlings ranged between 0.31 and 0.38 m and the diameter of the root collar between 4.12 and 4.40 mm. The weight of the stones of the ecotypes was considerably lower and ranged between 0.19 and 0.25 g. On the other hand the weight of seeds of the varieties was higher and ranged between 0.36 and 0.60 g. The difference was statistically highly significant. The weight of the seeds, their origin as well as the methods of treatment all affect the number of harvested plants in the first year after sowing. Seed treatment in the 2nd and 3rd variants resulted in a higher number of germinated plants than when conventional cold stratification was applied.