Spanish cedar: Relationbetween Fruit and Seed Characteristics with Germination

For Spanish cedar (Cedrelaodorata L., Meliaceae) is unknown if big fruits contain a greater number of seeds and if those seeds have better physic and biological quality than those coming from small fruits. Therefore, the relation between physic characteristics of fruit and seed with Spanish cedar germination was determined. One hundred seeds per tree from three groups of 12 trees were sown in individual nursery bags and 100 in a seedbed. Fruit weight and number of seeds per fruit differed significantly among the three groups of trees. Fruit size was directly related to seed weight and inversely related to number of seeds per fruit.Germination in nursery bags did not correlate neither to fruit nor seed variables, but correlated in seedbed (r = 0.99, P = 0.03) to both fruit weight and number of seeds per fruit. The conclusion is that weightier fruits correspond to higher number of seed per fruit, smaller seeds and higher germination in Spanish cedar which would be useful to sure the plant production in nurseries.