Pollinizer influence on almond seed dormancy

9 pages, 3 tables.-- Available online 17 Nov. 2004.
Breaking seed dormancy is necessary for the completion of germination. Maternal tissues (integument and endocarp) appear to control seed germination, although the effect of the pollinizer has also been described. In this work, the influence of the pollinizer flowering time was studied on the stratification requirements of almond seed germination. Stratification requirements were determined in seeds (with and without endocarp) from crosses between a female progenitor and pollinizers of different flowering dates. The results showed an influence of the pollinizer in the stratification requirements of seeds with endocarp. However, no correlations were found between pollinizer flowering date and stratification requirements, which seem to be determined mainly by the female progenitor. In the case of seed stratification without endocarp, the results did not show any influence of pollinizer on stratification requirements. The observed variability within females (within or between crosses) could be due to differences in the shell characteristics, the different accumulation of inhibitors in the integument, or the genetic nature of the embryos.
The work has been financed by the project AGL2001-1054-C03-01 entitled ‘‘Mejora Genética del Almendro’’ from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology. The authors also acknowledge the support of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology for the contract of Dr. P. Martínez-Gómez.