Methods to overcome dormancy of seeds of Enterolobium schomburgkii (Benth.) Benth.

Abstract

Enterolobium schomburgkii is an arboreal species, native to the Amazon that presents a wide neotropical distribution. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effect of different methods to overcome dormancy in E. schomburgkii seeds. The experimental design was entirely randomized, with three treatments and four repetitions of 25 seeds. The methods were (T1) seed coat breakdown opposite the hilum; (T2); seed coat breakdown opposite the hilum + immersion in water for 4 hours and control (T3). The parameters were evaluated: height of the seedlings (H), stem diameter (D), percentage of the emergence of seedlings (E) and the emergence speed index (ESI). The parameters diameter, emergence, and ESI were strongly influenced by the method used to overcome dormancy. The highest values of H, D, E, and ESI were observed in the T2 treatment, due to the time of exposure to water, which provided the acceleration of the emergence of the seedlings. The dormancy of the seeds of E. schomburgkii is overcome with the shoot opposite to the hilum and can be accelerated with immersion in water for 4 hours.