It was quantified the influence of temperature and substrate on the germination of Cariniana estrellensis (Raddi) Kuntze seeds. The experiments used a completely randomized factorial experimental design involving a constant 25 ºC thermoperiod or alternating 30 ºC / 20 ºC thermoperiod (both with a 8 h light:16 h dark photoperiod), sand or filter paper substrates, and seeds from three mature trees. All experiments used four replicates of 25 seeds each. Evaluations included percentage germination (radicle > 2 mm), percentages of normal and abnormal seedlings, mean germination, speed and mean germination time. While temperature did not alter the percentage germination a constant temperature of 25 ºC on filter paper resulted in a higher percentage germination of normal seedlings with radical protrusion (65.8%) and a smaller percentage of abnormal seedlings (16.5%). Moreover, seeds with the highest water content (10.3%) and mass of a thousand seeds (8.91 g) resulted in the lowest germination speed and the highest mean germination time. We concluded that the seed lot characteristics interfered with the results, indicating the need for further investigation into germinative differences from different provenances of the same tree species.
jequitibá-branco; Lecythidaceae; native forest seeds; physiological quality
