Seed scarification requirements in native and alien species

Authors

  • Federico Colombo Speroni INEAH (Inst. de Ecología y Ambiente Humano), Fac. de Cs. Naturales, Univ. Nac. de Salta, ARGENTINA
  • Marta Leonor De Viana INEAH (Inst. de Ecología y Ambiente Humano), Fac. de Cs. Naturales, Univ. Nac. de Salta, ARGENTINA

Abstract

We studied both seed scarification requirement for nine species (seven native and two alien) present in San Lorenzo mountain forest (Salta, Argentina) and the effect of seed passage through the cattle digestive tract on germination of Gleditsia triacanthos. We carried out two germination experiments in order to compare: 1) the effect of three different exposition times to HCl(c) on germination of nine tree species, and 2) the effect of mechanical and biological scarification on G. triacanthos germination. We recorded the number of germinated seeds daily and we calculated the proportion and speed of germination for each species and treatment. We evaluated the viability of non-germinated seeds with tetrazoleoum. Jacaranda mimosifolia and Tecoma stans showed the highest germination percentage and speed without scarification but a high mortality in the other treatments. On the other side, Duranta serratifolia and Celtis spinosa (dispersed by birds) did not germinate in any of the treatments. Seed passage trough cattle digestive tract did not enhance G. triacanthos seed germination. The major role of cattle in the invasion of G. triacanthos in San Lorenzo forest may be related to seed transport to the gaps and not to their scarification.

References

AHMED, M & DA WARDLE. 1994. Allelopathic potential of vegetative and flowering ragwort (Senecio jacobea L.) plants against associated pasture species. Plant Soil 64:61-68.

BARRET, SCH. 1992. Genetics of weed invasions. Pp. 91-119 en: SK Jane & LW Batsford (eds). Applied Population Biology. Kluer Academic. Dordercht,Países Bajos.

BROKAW, NVL. 1985. Treefalls, Regrowth and Community Structure in tropical forest. Pp: 5369 en: STA Picket & PS White (eds). The Ecology of natural disturbance and patch dynamics. Academic Press. New York, EEUU.

CANHAM, CD & PL MARKS. 1985. The response of woody plants to disturbance: patterns of establishment and growth. En: STA Picket & PS White (eds). The ecology of natural disturbance and patch dynamics. Academic Press. New York, EEUU.

CHAMBERS, JC & JA MACMAHON. 1994. A day in a life of a seed: Movements and fates of seeds and their implications for natural and Managed Systems. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 25:263-292.

COLOMBO SPERONI, F & ML DE VIANA. 1998. Fruit and seed production in Gleditsia triacanthos. Pp. 155-160 en: U Starfinger, K Edwards, I Kowarik & M Williamson (eds). Plant Invasions: ecological mechanisms and human responses. Backhuys Publishers. Leiden, Países Bajos.

DANTONIO, CM. 1990. Seed production and dispersal in the non-native, invasive succulent Carpobrutus edulis (Aizoaceae) in coastal strand communities of central California. J. Appl. Ecol. 27:693-702.

DE VIANA, ML & F COLOMBO SPERONI. 2000. Invasión de Gleditsia triacanthos L. (Fabaceae) en el bosque de San Lorenzo, Salta, Argentina. Pp: 71-84 en: HR Grau & R Aragón (eds). Ecología de árboles en las Yungas argentinas. Lab. de Invest. Ecológicas de las Yungas (LIEY). Tucumán, Argentina.

DRAKE, JA; A MOONEY; F DI CASTRI; RH GROVES; FJ KRUGER ET AL (eds). 1989. Biological Invasions, a global perspective. John Wiley & Sons. Chichester, Reino Unido.

GROVES, KL & F DI CASTRI. 1991 (eds). Biogeography of mediterranean invasions. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge, Reino Unido.

GUERRERO, M & J HERRERA. 1994. La germinación de Sesbania emerus (Fabaceae): efecto de la inmersión en ácido sulfúrico. Rev. Biol. Trop. 42(3):461-466.

HENDRY, GAF & JP GRIME (eds). 1992. Methods in comparative plant ecology. Chapman & Hall. London, Reino Unido.

HOWE, HF & J SMALLWOOD. 1982. Ecology of seed dispersal. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 13:201-228.

JANZEN, DH. 1981a. Guanacaste tree seed-swallowing by Costa Rican range horses. Ecology 62(3):587-592.

JANZEN, DH. 1981b. Enterolobium cyclocarpum seed passage rate and suvival in horses, Costa Rican Pleistocene seed dispersal agents. Ecology 62(3):593-601.

LODGE, DM. 1993. Biological Invasions: Lessons for Ecology. Trends Ecol. Evol. 4:133-137.

LOISELLE, BA & JG BLAKE. 1999. Dispersal of melastome seeds by fruit-eating birds of tropical forest understory. Ecology 80(1):330-336.

MACK, AL. 1993. The sizes of vertebrate-dispersed fruits: a neotropical-paleobotanical comparison. Am. Nat. 142(5):840-856.

MONTALDO, NH. 1993. Dispersión por aves y éxito reproductivo de dos especies de Ligustrum (Oleaceae)en un relicto de selva subtropical en la Argentina. Rev. Chil. Hist. Nat. 66:75-85.

ORTEGA BAES, P. 1999. Germinación y supervivencia de plántulas de P. ferox en el Parque Nacional Los Cardones Salta, Argentina. Tesis Profesional. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Universidad Nacional de Salta, Argentina.

PERRINS, J; M WILLIAMSON & A FITTER. 1992. A survey of differing views of weed classification: implications for regulation of introductions. Biological Conservation 59:47-56.

PICKET, STA & PS WHITE (eds). 1985. The ecology of natural disturbance and patch dynamic. Academic Press. New York, EEUU.

REJMÁNEK, M. 1996. A theory of seed plant invasiveness: the first sketch. Biol. Conserv. 78:171-181.

REJMÁNEK, M & DM RICHARDSON. 1996. What attributes make some plant species more invasive?. Ecology 77(6):1655-1661.

SYSTAT. 1992. SYSTAT 5.01 for Windows. SYSTAT Inc. EEUU.

VAN DER PIJL, L (ed.). 1982. Principles of dispersal in higher plants. SpringerVerlag. New York, EEUU.

VAN DER VALK, AG. 1992. Establishment, colonisation and persistence. Pp. 60-92 en: DC Glenn-Levin, RK Peet & TT Veblen (eds). Plant succession. Theory and prediction. Chapman & Hall. London, Reino Unido.

VAZQUEZ YAÑES, C & A OROZCO SEGOVIA. 1993. Patterns of seed longevity and germination in the tropical rainforest. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 24:69-87.

VITOUSEK, P & LR WALKER. 1989. Biological invasion by Myrica faya in Hawaii: plant demography, nitrogen fixation, and ecosystem effects. Ecol. Monogr. 59:247-265.

VITOUSEK, P; LR WALKER; LD WHITEAKER; D MUELLER-DOMBOIS & PA MATSON. 1987. Biological invasion by Myrica faya alters ecosystem development in Hawaii. Science 238:802-804.

VLEESHOUWERS, LM; HJ BOUWMEESTER & M KARSSEN. 1995. Redefining seed dormancy: an attempt to integrate physiology and ecology. J. Ecol.83:1031-1037.

WALKER, LR. 1990. Germination of an invading tree species (Myrica faya) in Hawaii. Biotropica22(2):140-145.

WILLIAMS, PA & BJ KARL. 1996. Fleshy fruits of indigenous and adventive plants in the diet of birds inforest remnants, Nelson, New Zealand. New Zeal. J. Ecol. 20(2):127-145.

WILLIAMSON, M (ed.).1996. Biological Invasions. Chapman & Hall. London, Reino Unido.

Downloads

Published

2000-12-01

How to Cite

Colombo Speroni, F., & De Viana, M. L. (2000). Seed scarification requirements in native and alien species. Ecología Austral, 10(2), 123–131. Retrieved from https://ojs.ecologiaaustral.com.ar/index.php/Ecologia_Austral/article/view/1588

Issue

Vol. 10 No. 2 (2000)

Section

Articles

License

Authors retain their rights as follows: 1) by granting the journal the right to its first publication, and 2) by registering the published article with a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY 4.0), which allows authors and third parties to view and use it as long as they clearly mention its origin (citation or reference, including authorship and first publication in this journal). Authors can make other non-exclusive distribution agreements as long as they clearly indicate their origin and are encouraged to widely share and disseminate the published version of their work.