Assessment of effect of different pre sowing treatment on seed of Terminalia chebula Retz

Abstract

Terminalia chebula Retz., commonly known as Harar or Black Myrobalan, is a medicinally significant tree species valued for its therapeutic and commercial applications. However, its natural regeneration is severely limited due to hard seed coats, poor kernel development, and physical dormancy, resulting in low germination rates. This study was conducted to assess the effect of various pre-sowing treatments on seed germination behavior of T. chebula. Six treatments were tested: control (T0), soaking in cold water for 24 hours (T1) and 48 hours (T2), soaking in cow dung slurry for 24 hours (T3), mechanical scarification (T4), and seed pelleting (T5). The experiment, laid out in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replications of 16 seeds each, was carried out in the Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki district of Chhattisgarh, India. Results indicated significant differences among treatments in terms of days to seedling emergence, germination percentage, mean daily germination, peak value, and germination value. Mechanical scarification (T4) was the most effective treatment, resulting in the highest germination percentage (72.91%), shortest emergence time (17.33 days), and highest germination value (0.30). Soaking seeds in cold water for 48 hours (T2) also showed promising results. The study concludes that mechanical scarification is the most effective and practical pre-sowing treatment to enhance germination performance in T. chebula, aiding in its propagation and conservation.