Effect of Scarification to Enhance Seed Germination of Certain Woody Plant Species

The present investigation includes five medicinally important woody plant species viz: Albizia lebbeck (L) Benth., Cassia tora L., Jatropha curcas L., Termenalia bellerica (Gaertner) Roxb. and T. chebula Retz. whose seeds exhibited hardseededness. This has led to the decrease in their germination percentage. Experiments such as various seed soaking treatments like cold water, hot water, mechanical and chemical scarification were studied on these species. Albizia lebbeck, Cassia tora and T. chebula showed highest germination percentage with 50% H₂SO₄ for 5 min. whereas T. bellerica exhibited maximum germination in the same acid for 10 min. On the other hand, Jatropha curcas exhibited maximum germination by mechanical scarification followed by tap water treatment. All the pre-sowing treatments showed better germination percentages compared to the control but the best one could be adopted to meet the medicinally important raw material demand as well as to maintain ecological balance and environmental stability.