GERMINATION CHARACTERISTICS OF TEDERA (BITUMINARIA BITUMINOSA VAR. BITUMINOSA)

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the germination response of tedera seeds
(Bituminaria bituminosa var. bituminosa C. H Stirt) to water submersion t. Tedera
is a perennial legume considered as a potential new pasture for Mediterranean,
African and arid areas and traditionally used as forage for ruminants. It is
characterized by deep-rootedness, drought tolerance, high protein content and
nutritive value, offering elevate interest in animal nutrition. The experiment was
undertaken from October 2015 with freshly harvested seeds collected by hand on
natural populations from Gran Canaria, Canary Islands. Seed weight of tedera was
compared using four replicates of 50 seeds. The seeds were divided into two
groups (two replicates each group) and submerged on ambient temperature water
during 16 or 24 hours each group. The mean seed weight was 23mg and it
germinates in temperatures ranging from 12°C to 20°C. Tedera have no
germination requirement for light. Tedera showed radicle protrusionfrom 4-8 cm
with no significant difference between groups. However, the highest percentage of
seed germination was achieved in the 24 hours group (65%) compared to the 16
hours group (27%), which showed a significant decrease (p<0, 05) in the
percentage of seed germination. This study demonstrated that submersion during
affected the Bituminaria bituminosa var. bituminosa seed germination and
suggesting that tedera is a promising species for direct seeding. The results suggest
that additional experiments are required for direct seeding.