Influência da luz e da temperatura na germinação de sementes de Marcetia taxifolia (A. St.-Hil.) DC. (Melastomataceae) Light and temperature influence on seed germination of Marcetia taxifolia (A. St.-Hil.) DC. (Melastomataceae)

Marcetia taxifolia (A. St.-Hil.) DC. (Melastomataceae) é um arbusto amplamente distribuído nos campos rupestres da Serra do Cipó, Brasil. É uma espécie com potencial na recuperação de áreas degradadas e este estudo apresenta os primeiros dados sobre o efeito da luz e da temperatura na germinação de suas sementes. Sementes foram coletadas em maio/2001 e foram submetidas a testes de germinação nas temperaturas constantes de 15, 20, 25, 30 e 35ºC sob fotoperíodo de 12 horas e em ausência de luz durante 30 dias. Foram encontradas diferenças significativas entre a percentagem de germinação e tempo médio de sementes submetidas ao tratamento claro e escuro a 15, 20, 25 e 30ºC (p Marcetia taxifolia (A. St.-Hil.) DC. (Melastomataceae) is a shrub widely distributed in the rupestrian fields of Serra do Cipó, Brazil. In spite of M. taxifolia being a potential species to be used in land rehabilitation, no complete study has been conducted regarding its seed germination. The goal of this work was to evaluate the effect of light and temperature on seed germination of M. taxifolia. Seeds were collected in May/2001 and were submitted to germination tests at constant temperatures of 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35ºC under a photoperiod of 12 hours, and in the absence of light for 30 days. There were statistically significant differences between seed germination and mean time of germination for seeds submitted to the light and dark treatments at 15, 20, 25 and 30ºC (p < 0,05; all). Seed germination under 35ºC was totally inhibited. The higher germination percentages were obtained at 15 and 20ºC, which differed significantly from the temperatures of 25 and 30ºC (ANOVA = 13,65; p < 0,001). The data contribute to further studies focusing the propagation of M. taxifolia for land rehabilitation purposes