Germinating Five Forest Tree Species Native to the Virgin Islands
Daley, B. F. and Zimmerman, T. W. Tree Planters' Notes 53(1):10-15. 2009.
The scarcity of native trees in production at nurseries of the U.S. Virgin Islands is due in part to the lack of published seed and germination data. To address this, we provide descriptions for five trees that are native to the Virgin Islands and have production potential: wild cinnamon [Canella winterana L. (Gaertn)], coco plum (Chrysobalanus icaco L.), lignum vitae (Guaiacum of- ficinale L.), locust (Hymenaea courbaril L.), and ironwood [Krugiodendron ferreum Vahl (Urban)]. We developed baseline fruit and seed data and tested the effect of three pregerminative treatments on the seeds: 24-h water soak, boiling water, and 1-h gibberellic acid (GA3 ). Seed collection times, fruit and seed weight, time to germination, and expected rates are given. Treatments affected germination in all species except H. courbaril, which germinated well with all treatments and the control. All species except C. winterana germinated above 70 percent under at least one treatment.
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Author(s): Brian F. Daley, Thomas W. Zimmerman
Publication: Tree Planters' Notes - Volume 53, Number 1 (2008)
Volume: 53
Number: 1