Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

GERMINATION AND SEEDLING RESPONSE OF RAIN TREE PLANTS (ALBIZIA SAMAN JACQ. MERR) TO SEED PRIMING USING HOT WATER

Fathurrahmana, Mohd. Nizam Mohd. Saidb, Wan Juliana Wan Ahmadb, Febri Donia and CMZ Che Radziaha

Abstract

The present study was conducted to determine the effect of water temperature treatment and soaking time on seedling response and germination rate of rain tree plants using a completely randomized block design. The results showed that soaking seeds at different temperatures and soaking times may improve germination. Compared to other treatments and control, a combination of 50°C temperature and 4 minutes soaking time produced the highest seed germination rate (76.66 %). Meanwhile, treatment at 50°C for 2 minutes was observed to be the most effective temperature–soaking time combination as it produced the highest speed of germination (4.41 seeds/day). The results of this study add to the understanding of how seed priming with hot water could potentially stimulate germination, as well as reduce problems associated with physical dormancy.