Altitudinal Variation in Fruit, Seed and Seedling Characteristics of Schleichera oleosa (Lour.) Oken. in Doon Valley of Uttarakhand

摘要

The present study was conducted to investigate the morphological variations in fruit, seed and seedling characteristics ofSchleichera oleosa (Lour.) Oken. along the altitudinal gradient in Doon valley of Uttarakhand. The seeds were collected from three different altitudinal zones viz. lower altitude (250-500m), middle altitude (500-750m) and upper altitude (7501000m) in natural distribution area of the species. The germination trial was conducted in laboratory, the seedlings ofwhich were transplantedinto nursery after one month and growth parameters viz., root length, shoot length and collar diameter were measured after three months of transplanting. The results showed that the fruits collected from lower altitude (250-500m) were significantly (p<0.05) large in size, heavier in weight, having large and heavy seeds with more germination p er centage and produced healthy and vigorous seedlings. Altitude had significant (p<0.01) negative correlation with fruit size (length and width), seed size (length), weight (fruit and seed) and these parameters were significantly (p<0.01) positively correlated with germination p er cent, root length, shoot length and collar diameter. Thus, fruit size (length and width), seed size (length) and weight (fruit and seed) can be used as indicators while collecting fruits to produce healthy, vigorous seedlings and quality planting material.