Canadian Forest Service Publications
Upgrading germinability and vigour of jack pine, lodgepole pine, and white spruce by the IDS technique. 1992. Downie, B.; Wang, B.S.P. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 22(8): 1124-1131.
Year: 1992
Issued by: National Capital Region
Catalog ID: 10713
Language: English
Availability: PDF (request by e-mail)
Abstract
The IDS (incubation-desiccation-separation) technique, designed to upgrade germinability and vigour of conifer seed lots, was tested on various seed lots of white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm.), and jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.). The effect of germinability of redrying separated seeds to storage moisture content (approx. 5% fresh weight) and of accelerated ageing was also investigated. Separation resulted in significant increases in germinability for four of five lodgepole pine, three of four jack pine, and two of five white spruce seed lots. Redrying usually had no significant effect on germinability of separated seeds, and its effect was not predictable. Accelerated ageing decreased the mean germinability of all seed lots and fractions. Although the mean index of ageing was usually not significantly different between the control and bottom fraction (live seeds) for any species, the surface fraction (dead and dying seeds) usually had a significantly higher index of ageing. The IDS technique is effective for upgrading the germinability of a portion of a seed lot of lodgepole pine and jack pine but must be modified if it is to work well with white spruce.