IMPROVEMENT IN GERMINATION OF CHIRPINE (<em>PINUS</em> <em>ROXBURGHII</em>) BY A PRESOWING TREATMENT WITH HYDROGEN PEROXIDE

Abstract

GHILDIYAL, S. K., SHARMA, C. M. & KHANDURI, V. P. 2007. Improvement in germination of chirpine
(Pinus roxburghii) by a presowing treatment with hydrogen peroxide. Soaking of Pinus roxburghii seeds for 24 hours in H₂O₂ (1% v/v) solution showed 89.8% germination compared with 72.5% for seeds treated with distilled water (control) at 25 °C. H₂O₂ shortened the germination period by 10 days. Although the seeds of P. roxburghii germinate well due to lack of dormancy, the increasing demand for large quantities of seeds for reforestation programmes makes presowing treatments useful in improving the percentage of germination.