Effect of Different Storage Containers on Germination Parameters in Diospyros melanoxylon R

Introduction

Forest is a dense growth of trees, together with other plants, covering a large area of land. It represents an ecosystem a community of plants and animals interacting with one another and with the physical environment. The forests of the world are classified into three general types or formations, which are primarily expressions of the climate in which the vegetation grows. In addition, the forest provides shelter for wildlife, recreation and aesthetic renewal for people, and irreplaceable supplies of oxygen and soil nutrients. Deforestation, particularly in the tropical rain forests, has become a major environmental concern, as it can destabilize the earth's temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide levels (Anonymous, 1998) [1] . Diospyros melanoxylon Roxb., commonly known as tendu or kendu and belonging to the family Ebenaceae, is a medium-sized tree or shrub that may attain a height of up to 25 m and a girth of 1.9 m. The bark is pelican in colour and exfoliates in rectangular scales. The primary root is long, thick and fleshy at first, later becoming woody and greyish, often swollen in the upper part near ground level. Leaves are opposite or alternate, coriaceous, up to 35 cm long, tomentose on both sides when young and becoming glabrous above when fully grown. Male flowers are mauve, mostly three-flowered, while female flowers are also mauve, mostly extra-axillary or sometimes solitary, generally two and opposite each other, and larger than the male flowers (Luna and Chamoli, 2006) [18] . Fruits are olive green, ovoid, 3-4 cm across and contain 1 to 8 seeds. The pulp is yellow, soft and sweet. Seeds are compressed, oblong, shiny and often banded. The tree may be deciduous or evergreen depending on its habitat. In dry localities it remains leafless for a short period during the hot weather and regains its leaves in May-June, whereas in moist localities it is evergreen. Flowers appear from April to June on new shoots and the fruit ripens after one year. The edible fruits are largely eaten and disseminated by fruit bats, birds and hornbills. The tree produces good seed in alternate years (Anonymous, 1998) [1] . Diospyros melanoxylon is an important multipurpose tree species native to the Indian subcontinent. The leaves of this species are extensively used in the manufacture of beedi (country cigarette), providing livelihood to millions of tribal and rural people in central and eastern India. In addition, the fruits are edible and the wood is valued for timber and fuel (Khiamngamang et al., 2017). Despite its economic and ecological importance, natural regeneration of D. melanoxylon is often poor due to irregular seed production, short seed viability under ambient conditions and lack of standardized storage practices (Imchen et al, 2015) [13] . Seed storage is a critical component of any successful nursery or plantation programme. The type of container used for storing seeds significantly influences moisture content, gaseous exchange, temperature fluctuations and pest infestation, all of which affect seed longevity and germination potential. Hermetic containers that restrict moisture and oxygen exchange have been reported to prolong viability of many orthodox seeds, whereas permeable containers often lead to faster deterioration under fluctuating environmental conditions (Chitra et al., 2010; Hossain et al., 2005) [6,12] . Although limited studies have examined the seed biology of D. melanoxylon, systematic information on the comparative performance of different storage containers on its germination attributes over extended periods is scarce. Therefore, the present investigation was undertaken to assess the effect of various storage containers on germination percentage, germination value, germination energy and germination speed of D. melanoxylon seeds stored for 2, 6 and 12 months under laboratory conditions.

Materials and Methods

The present study was carried out in the laboratory and nursery of the College of Forestry, Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences, Naini, Allahabad. The experimental site is situated between 28°52′ N latitude and 81° E longitude at an altitude of 98 m above mean sea level. The climate of the region is generally tropical, characterized by hot summers with a maximum temperature of 48 °C during May-June and cold winters with a minimum temperature of 1°C. The average annual rainfall ranges from 850 mm to 1000 mm, most of which is received during the monsoon season. Ripe fruits of Diospyros melanoxylon were collected from healthy, superior, medium-sized trees growing at different locations in Uttar Pradesh. The collection sites lie between 23°45′ to 23°35′ N latitude and 82°78′ to 83°27′ E longitude. The seeds were extracted by depulping the fruits through maceration followed by thorough washing under running tap water. The cleaned seed lot was then divided into different small samples for the subsequent experiments. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomized design (CRD) with nine treatments and three replications. The treatments consisted of storage of seeds in an open tray (T0), air-tight plastic jar (T1), earthen pot (T2), gunny bag (T3), paper bag (T4), cotton bag (T5), polythene bag (T6), glass jar (T7) and tin container (T8). Equal quantities of seeds were placed in each container and stored under ambient laboratory conditions. The experiment was repeated for two consecutive years. Germination tests were conducted at 2, 6 and 12 months after storage. Seeds were placed in sterilized petri dishes or germination trays lined with moist filter paper and maintained at optimum temperature. The parameters recorded included germination percentage, calculated as the proportion of seeds that produced normal seedlings; germination value, computed following standard formulae that combine the speed and completeness of germination; germination energy, expressed as the percentage of seeds germinated by a specified early period of the test; and germination speed, representing the rate of germination expressed as the sum of germinated seeds divided by the number of days. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed and treatment means were compared using critical difference (CD) at the 5% level of significance.

Results and Discussion

Germination percentage Significant differences were observed among storage containers for germination percentage at all storage periods (Table 1). At 2 months of storage, the highest pooled germination was recorded in air-tight plastic jar (94.77%) which was statistically at par with glass jar (94.31%) and tin container (94.21%). The lowest germination was observed in open tray (82.14%). After 6 months, glass jar maintained the highest germination (93.34%) followed by tin container (92.12%) and air-tight plastic jar (91.69%), while open tray declined sharply to 55.48%. At 12 months of storage, glass jar recorded the maximum germination percentage (88.58%), closely followed by tin container (87.65%) and air-tight plastic jar (87.20%). Open tray showed the poorest performance (28.48%). Intermediate containers such as polythene bag (78.84%), earthen pot (59.74%), paper bag (52.06%), cotton bag (50.91%) and gunny bag (48.79%) showed progressive decline with increasing storage duration. Overall mean germination decreased from 89.47% at 2 months to 64.70% at 12 months, indicating gradual loss of viability with time, the magnitude of which was strongly influenced by the type of container.

Acknowledgement

AcknowledgementsThe authors are grateful to the college of Forestry, SHUATS for providing necessary laboratory facilities to carry out this research work.

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