Recalcitrants seeds: Post-harvest problems

Abstract

At present, 7% of 6.721 species with some economic importance have seeds that are sensitive to dehydration and do not tolerate storage at low temperatures. The short longevity can reduce the time of seeds utilization, being necessary either to sow then immediately after fruit extraction, or to maintain them under adequate conditions of temperature, storage and water content. Also, seeds with water content above 10%-13% could have the viability reduced by the action of microorganisms. Some studies show ecological, morphological and physiological characteristics of recalcitrant seeds, which can contribute to improve propagation techniques. Therefore based on available literature, this revision was carried out to approach the main problems that can be found after harvesting of recalcitrant seeds.