Effect of Cold Stress on Nursery Argan (Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels) Seedlings Production

Abstract

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Screening of marine Moroccan microalgae with antimicrobial activity View project Abstract: Effect of the cold period was investigated as a limiting factor for nursery argan (Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels) seedlings production. The effect of the cold period (from November to January was characterized by minimum temperatures ≤ 10 ° C) on the survival of argan seedlings elevated in the seedling trays was studied during two years. In the first year, seedlings of 15 different mother-trees were elevated in the open air (without shade house), while seedlings of 30 genotypes of the second year were growing under shade house. Effect of the cold period of the seedlings without shade house was characterized by yellowing and drying of leaves. Cold stress affects 47.9% of seedlings while 53.9% of these seedlings recovered by the appearance of new leaves. The reaction of mother-trees to cold stress is significantly variable, and the percentage loss of seedlings under the influence of cold, after the resumption of seedlings ranged from 6.9% for mother-tree 3 and 35.9% for mother-tree 9. By contrast, no loss is recorded during the cold period for seedlings grown under shade house.