Effect of water potential on germination of seeds of Slylosanthes guia
nensis (Aubl.) Sw. To evaluate the water potential effect on germinati
on of S. guianensis two experiments were performed. The first one used
osmotic pre-treatment in the imbibition phase and after this period (
14 h) the seeds were germinated on filter paper moistened with distill
ed water. In the second experiment, besides the imbibition phase, seed
s were kept in a range of water potentials during all the process. The
potentials ranged from 0 to -18 bars, with 3 bars increments, induced
by mannitol or by polyethylene glycol. Each treatment was replicated
3 times with 100 seeds per replication. The seeds pre-treated during i
mbibition had high germination percentage, the highest being the ones
in polhyetylene glycol. In the second experiment the polyethylene glyc
ol solutions reduced dramatically the germination percentage in relati
on to mannitol. From -12 bars on germination ceased in the polyethylen
e glycol treatments, while in mannitol solution there was 52,67% of ge
rmination, in the same water potential.