DORMANCY OVERCOMING IN Bowdichia virgilioides Kunth SEEDS

Bowdichia virgilioides Kunth is a tree species of the family Fabaceae. The species is well adapted to dry and poor lands, being indicated for reforesting activities, being widely used on wood structures for civil construction, and also as a species with high medicinal potential. This study aimed to evaluate methods for overcoming dormancy of B. virgilioides seeds through different types of scarification and water submersion. To do so, four treatments and control were used: T1 - seeds with no treatment, T2 – mechanical scarification with # 120 sandpaper; T3 – chemical scarification with concentrated sulfuric acid (98%) for 10 minutes; T4 – submersion in hot water (80°C) for 5 minutes; T5 – submersion in water at room temperature (approximately 30°C) for 48h. The experiment was conducted in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) and the analyzed variables were: germination percentage (%G), average germination speed (VMG) and average germination time (TMG). Data was analyzed using the “GerminaQuant” software and results compared using Tukey’s test at 5% probability. Germination percentage was higher for treatments 3 and 4, with the decreasing sequence: T3 – 82%, T4 – 64%, T2 – 9%, T1 – 4% and T5 – 2%. Regarding average germination time, only T2 and T1 were statistically different from each other, T2 had the shortest time (10.33) and T1 the longest time (30.33). For VMG, T2 and T3 presented the best results, being statistically different from the other treatments, with 0.093 and 0.085 as respective results of T2 and T3. It could be concluded that treatments with immersion in sulfuric acid for 10 minutes (T3) and immersion in water at temperature of 80°C for five minutes (T4) are more efficient for improving germination percentage of B.virgilioides seeds, being the recommended methods for overcoming seed dormancy.