Abstract:
In the present study, fruits (drupes) were collected from Changa Manga Forest Plus Trees (CMF-PT), Changa Manga Forest Teak Stand (CMF-TS) and Punjab University Botanical Gardens (PUBG) and categorized into very large (≥ 17 mm dia.), large (12-16 mm dia.), medium (9-11 mm dia.) or small (6-8 mm dia.) fruit size grades. Fresh water as well as mechanical scarification and stratification were tested for breaking seed dormancy. Viability status of seeds was estimated by cutting test, X-rays and In vitro seed germination. Out of 2595 fruits from CMF-PT, 500 fruits were of very large grade.
This fruit category also had highest individual fruit weight (0.58 g) with more number of 4-seeded fruits (5.29%) and fair germination potential (35.32%). Generally, most of the fruits were 1-seeded irrespective of size grades and sampling sites. Fresh water scarification had strong effect on germination (44.30%) as compared to mechanical scarification and cold stratification after 40 days of sowing. Similarly, sampling sites and fruit size grades also had significant influence on germination. Highest germination (82.33%) was obtained on MS (Murashige and Skoog) agar-solidified medium as compared to Woody Plant Medium (WPM) (69.22%). Seedlings from all the media were transferred to ex vitro conditions in the greenhouse and achieved highest survival (28.6%) from seedlings previously raised on MS agar-solidified medium after 40 days. There was an association between the studied parameters of teak seeds and the sampling sites and fruit size.
