Establishment of spiny hackberry (Celtis pallida Torr.) in plantings for wildlife has been hampered by low seed germination. We evaluated methods for enhancing germination of spiny hackberry by subjecting seeds to: (1) chemical scarification with 2.9 mol liter-1 H2O2, 0.71 mol liter-1 NaOCl, and concentrated (18 mol liter-1) H2 SO4; (2) rinsing with water; (3) 0, 0.3, 1.4, 2.9, and 4.3 mmol liter-1 gibberellic acid (GA); (4) 0.02 mol liter-1 KNO3; (5) mechanical scarification, or (6) moist heat (30 degrees C) followed by moist prechilling at 7 degrees C for 2 weeks. Untreated seeds exhibited higher percent germination in the light than in the dark. Percentage germination at 30 degrees C and germination rate were increased in the light and in the dark by either 1.4 mmol liter-1 GA or 3 days of moist heat (30 degrees C) followed by a 2-week moist prechill at 7 degrees C. A combination of mechanical scarification + 1.4 mmol liter-1 GA + 3 days moist heat (30 degrees C) followed by moist prechilling for 2 weeks at 7 degrees C increased germination from 1% (controls) to 49%. Germination varied slightly with seed source, but a large proportion of all lots was dormant. Spiny hackberry seeds can be treated with a combination of mechanical scarification + 1.4 mmol liter-1 GA + 3 days moist heat (30 degrees C) followed by moist prechilling for 2 weeks at 7 degrees C before planting to increase percentage and rate of germination. This material was digitized as part of a cooperative project between the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. The Journal of Range Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact lbry-journals@email.arizona.edu for further information. Migrated from OJS platform August 2020
Scholarly peer-reviewed articles published by the Society for Range Management. Access articles on a rolling-window basis from vol. 1, 1948 up to 5 years from the current year. Formerly Journal of Range Management (JRM). More recent content is available by subscription from SRM.