Pre-sowing treatment effects on gutgutiya (Protium serratum)- a threatened tree sspecies of Bangladesh

Abstract

Gutgutiya (Protium serratum) is a native threatened multipurpose tree species of hill forests of Bangladesh. Fruits of this species are edible and contain high medicinal value. This species is naturally propagated by seeds. Natural germination percentage and final survivability in natural condition of this species is low. Pre-sowing treatment effects on seeds of P. serratum was studied to find out the best pre-sowing method for this hard coated seeds for restoration of degraded and deforested land. Randomized completely block design was applied and randomly selected seeds were treated with nine different pre-sowing treatments. Seeds were sown in normal polybags with 3:1 soil and cowdung media, and propagator house with Sylhet sand media. Highest germination percentage (30%), plant percent (30%) and germination value (0.4) found in seeds sowing without any pre-sowing treatment followed by 10% H2SO4 treatment for 3 minutes and 10% HCl treatment for 3 minutes. Germination energy was highest (6.7%) in boiled water but other germination performances and seedling growth performances were lowest. No germination observed in propagator house. Shoot height (28.8 cm), leaf number (16), leaf size (12.7 cm×4.7 cm) and collar diameter (12 mm) were maximum in seedlings germinated by 10% HCl treatment for 3 minutes followed by 10% H2SO4 treatment for 3 minutes and 10% H2SO4 treatment for 1 minute. The result of the study revealed that with increasing of immersion time in acid increases germination and seedling growth performances. The findings of this paper recommend 10% HCl for 3 minutes and 10% H2SO4 for 3 minutes for better performances in germination and seedling growth. This paper also recommend here for further researches on different concentration of HCl and H2SO4 for different time period on this valuable species.