Tests of propagation of Pseudospondias microcarpa A. Rich. under the climatic conditions of Franceville in the southeastern of Gabon

<p>Pseudospondias microcarpa A. Rich is a tropical tree species, which is not domesticated despite its food and<br>pharmacological potentials. This study aims at introducing its domestication using two types of substrate. The<br>first substrate (S1) is a mixture of compost and local soil while the second substrate (S2) is only made of local soil.<br>The goal is to determine the best method of propagating P. microcarpa, among the following three techniques:<br>direct sowing of seeds, cutting and layering. For the direct sowing, seeds germinated in 41.67 % and 29.16 %,<br>respectively in the substrates S1 and S2. Besides, the axillary and foliar growth of the plantlets was identical in<br>both substrates. These results are due to the composition of the substrates and to the phenological stage<br>occurring at the end of the observations. Out of the 55 % of cuttings which recovered, all the plantlets withered<br>then dried out. The insufficiency of the photosynthetic reserves and the lack of formation of calluses introducing<br>the roots formation explain these phenomena. About 83 % of marcotts formed adventitious roots regardless the<br>substrate, which explains a predisposition of the substrates in the induction of the roots formation. Of the three<br>techniques tested, layering was found to be the best method of propagation of P. microcarpa.