Register      Login
International Journal of Wildland Fire International Journal of Wildland Fire Society
Journal of the International Association of Wildland Fire
RESEARCH ARTICLE

Effect of heat on seed germination of Pinus sylvestris and Pinus nigra ssp. pallasiana

Ibrahim Turna A and Ertugrul Bilgili A B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Karadeniz Technical University, Faculty of Forestry, 61080, Trabzon, Turkey.

B Corresponding author. Email: bilgili@ktu.edu.tr

International Journal of Wildland Fire 15(2) 283-286 https://doi.org/10.1071/WF05069
Submitted: 6 July 2005  Accepted: 3 October 2005   Published: 31 May 2006

Abstract

The present note presents and explains the results of a study dealing with the germination of seeds subjected to heat. Seeds of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Anatolian black pine (Pinus nigra ssp. pallasiana) were exposed to a range of temperatures (70, 90, 110, 130, and 150°C) for different exposure times (1 and 5 min). Germination rates were similar for all treatments and control at 1 min exposure for Anatolian black pine seeds, and almost no germination took place for all treatments at 5 min exposure. Similar results were obtained for Scots pine seeds, with the exception of a sharp decrease in the number of seeds germinated above 110°C. The effect of increasing the exposure time to 5 min was immediate, and no germination took place above 90°C. Results obtained indicate that seeds of the two species do not necessarily need fire for successful regeneration, but fires may have a positive effect on the germination by removing crown cover, thereby providing more light for the seeds deposited to the ground.

Additional keywords: Anatolian black pine; fire; heat treatment; Scots pine; seed germination.


References


Alonso L, Luis E , Tarrega R (1992) First phases of regeneration of Cistus laurifolius and Cistus ladanifer after burning and cutting in experimental plots. International Journal of Wildland Fire  2, 7–14.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Côme D (1970) ‘Les obstacles à la germination.’ (Ed. Masson: Paris)

Cooper CF (1961) The ecology of fire. Scientific American  204, 150–160.
Trabaud L (1989) Les effects du régime des feux: exemples pris dans le bassin méditerranéen. In ‘Options Mediterraneenes’, Serie Seminaires. (Ed. J Bellot) pp. 89–94. (CIHEAM-IAMZ: Zaragoza)

Trabaud L , Campant C (1991) Difficulte de recolonisation naturelle du Pin de Salzmann Pinus nigra ssp salzmannii (Dunal) Franco apres incendie. Biological Conservation  58, 329–343.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Valbuena L , Tarrega R (1998) The influence of heat and mechanical scarification on the germination capacity of Quercus pyrenaica seeds. New Forests  16, 177–183.
Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |