Effects of sowing depth on seed germination and seedling growth of Aframomum citratum (Pereira) K. Schum

Series of investigations have been carried out on the effect of sowing depths on seed germination and early seedlings growth of Aframomum citratum and has shown that sowing depth influences germination and early growth of most plant species. Thus, the importance of varying planting depths has received much attention from researchers for some time now. The depths studied in this research were 0, 3 and 6 cm, respectively. Using a split plot complete randomized design (CRD) in a non-mist propagator, a total of 864 seeds (432 fresh and 432 dry) of A. citratum were sown with three replicates for each soil type in prepared polyethylene bags. Germination was monitored daily for a period of six weeks while data for germination parameters was collected. Early growth parameters such as average number of leaves (NL), average leaf surface area (SA) and average height of seedlings, (SH) were measured every week for two months. Results revealed that germination started 2 months after fresh seeds were sown in all soil types. Dried seeds being treated with 50% dilution of concentrated sulphuric acid for 20 min did not germinate during the germination period that ranged from 2 to 7 months. Sowing depths significantly affected the cumulative germination percentage and early growth (p<0.05). Thus, the highest percentage of seedlings was produced at 0 cm sowing depth, followed by 3 cm sowing depth and the least was at 6 cm sowing depth. Germination of A. citratum seeds can be done based on the information given in this study.   Key words: Aframomum citratum, seeds, sowing depths, germination, early growth.