Overcoming Dormancy in Seeds of Amazonian Species

Despite the importance of the Amazonian species Schizolobium amazonicum, there is still no official protocol to favor the germination process of its seeds. The objective of this study was to evaluate methods of overcoming dormancy of paricá seeds and the quality of seedlings produced. The work was carried out at the Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Tocantins-Campus Araguatins. The experimental design was a completely randomized design with seven treatments and four replications. The treatments consisted of: intact seeds; lateral mechanical scarification of the tegument with electric emery for 2 seconds; lateral mechanical scarification of the tegument, using sandpaper number 50 for 1 minute + immersion in water at room temperature for 12 hours; chemical scarification of the tegument with caustic soda at 20% concentration for 30 minutes; chemical scarification of the tegument with caustic soda at a concentration of 20% for 45 minutes; immersion in water at 80 ºC + stay in water (room temperature) for 12 hours; immersion in water at 90 ºC + stay in water (room temperature) for 12 hours. The treatment with lateral mechanical scarification of the integument using electric emery for 2 seconds is the most suitable for overcoming dormancy in paricá seeds. Methods of overcoming dormancy had no influence on the quality of paricá seedlings.