RESPONSES OF SELECTED PRE-TREATMENTS ON THE CUTICULAR SURFACE OF RECALCITRANT: Trichilia dregeana

摘要

Recalcitrant seeds are desiccation-sensitive, generally large and are commonly produced by trees in tropical and sub-tropical regions. These seeds are hydrated and metabolically active when shed, cannot tolerate desiccation and cannot be effectively stored. Therefore, to conserve the germplasm, seed-derived embryos/axes (explants) need to be cryopreserved, the procedures necessarily involving a dehydration step as hydrated germplasm cannot be exposed to liquid nitrogen (LN) without lethal freezing damage. The variability in water content of explants among different recalcitrant-seeded species, and even within a species is critical when attempting to establish guidelines for manipulation of seed water content.