SEED DORMANCY AND PRE-TREATMENTS TO ENHANCE GERMINATION IN SELECTED <em>ALBIZIA</em> SPECIES

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to find out the best pre-treatment to improve the germination and vigour of Albizia odoratissima, Albizia procera, and Albizia falcataria seeds. Soaking the nicked seeds of A. odoratissima or mechanically scarified seeds of A. falcataria in flowing water gave the maximum germination percentage and vigour. Scarification with concentrated H₂SO₄ for 10 or 20 min gave the largest germination percentage and vigour in A. procera. Seedcoat extract of these seeds inhibited the germination of seeds of yardlong bean, okra, brinjal and rice. Thin Layer Chromatography showed the presence of a coumarin-like substance with a RF value of 0.22 in the seedcoat of A. odoratissima. The presence of yet another substance was also indicated.