Germination of seeds of aspidosperma pyrifolium mart

Aspidosperma pyrifolium Mart. is native to the Caatinga in the northeast region and has great potential for the recovery of degraded areas, especially riparian forests; however, little is known about the influence of abiotic factors on its germination and vigor. Hence, this study aimed to evaluate the germination A. pyrifolium seeds subjected to different conditions of substrate, temperature and water and salt stresses. The experiments were carried out in two steps: the first one evaluated the influence of two temperatures and four substrates, while the second one evaluated the influence of water and salt stresses induced by two levels of NaCl and PEG 6000, plus a control (distilled water). Both experiments used four replicates of 25 seeds. For both experiments, the duration of the germination test was 10 days after sowing, period in which the following variables were evaluated: germination percentage, mean time of germination, shoot and root length, stem diameter, shoot and root dry matter and root/shoot ratio. All substrates at temperature of 25 ºC can be used for the germination test with seeds of A. pyrifolium. Water stress from the level of -0.3 MPa on is more severe on the germination and vigor of A. pyrifolium seeds in comparison to the salt stress.