Evaluation of the germinative behaviour of three native species with or- namental potencial in the centre-north of Santa Fe.

Abstract

The native flora has an enormous landscaping potential not fully explored yet. In the present work, aspects related to seeds and germination behavior of three native plant species from central-northern Santa Fe with ornamental potential, prioritized for their introduction to nursery production in the framework of the actions of the Program for Documentation, Conservation and Valuation of Native Flora (PRODOCOVA), have been studied. The studied species were “Sangre drago” Croton urucurana Baill, “Horquetero” Tabernaemontana catharinensis A. DC., and “Ojo de muñeca” Paullinia elegans Cambess. For C. urucurana alternating temperatures of 20-30 °C were found as optimal temperature, while for P. elegans and T. catharinensis, constant temperature at 25 °C determined the highest percentage of germination. Additionally, the initial and fi nal count of the germination percentage were determined for each species. Finally, it was also noted that seeds of P. elegans are recalcitrant. These results provide the basis for the introduction to cultivation of the studied species.