WATER PRE-HYDRATION AS PRIMING FOR Moringa oleifera Lam. SEEDS UNDER SALT STRESS

Abstract

The Moringa oleifera belongs to the Moringaceae family and presents different uses meanly for family farming. Aiming to establish plantations in areas of family agriculture of the Sergipe State (Brasil), the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of pre-soaking on M. oleifera seeds as a way overcoming salinity stress at first stages of development aiming the planting in marginal areas subjected to salinity. For the test we used two batches of seeds, with 0 and 3 months of storage. Both seed batches were treated for two times of pre-soaking in water (0 and 24 hours). After the treatment the seeds were placed on germination paper soaked 2.5 times with saline solutions (0, 25, 50, 100, 200 and 250 mol.m-3) and kept into germination chamber at 25°C and continuous light. The variables analyzed were percentage, speed of germination index, length and dry matter of seedlings. The treatment with submersion in water for 24 hours was effective to promote higher average values for vigor on moringa seeds.