Influence of Lighting and Laser Irradiation on the Germination of Caper Seeds

María Laura Foschi, Mariano Juan, Bernardo Pascual and Nuria Pascual-Seva ()
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María Laura Foschi: Plant Production Department, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Mariano Juan: Plant Production Department, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Bernardo Pascual: Plant Production Department, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Nuria Pascual-Seva: Plant Production Department, Universitat Politècnica de València, 46022 Valencia, Spain

Agriculture, 2022, vol. 12, issue 10, 1-14

Abstract: Caper seeds present difficulties in their germination, which has been studied by several research teams. It is known that light can release dormancy in some seeds, but its effect on caper seed germination has not yet been deeply studied. The main aim of this study was to analyze the response of caper seeds germination to light exposure. The study analyzed the germination response of seeds to lighting with different wavelengths (white, red, blue, red + blue and darkness) and to the He-Ne laser light, using both dry seeds and seeds that had been previously soaked in water. Overall, it could be stated that caper seeds are insensitive to light during the germination process. Thus, germination could be carried out in lightness or darkness, so germination in nurseries could be carried out in the darkness, leading to substantial energy savings. Caper seed irradiation with a He-Ne laser during short exposure times improved the germination percentage for the seeds previously soaked in water, germinating all viable seeds. However, applying a solution of gibberellic acid was always required in all the cases studied.

Keywords: Capparis spinosa L.; darkness; gibberellic acid; light-emitting diodes (LEDs); light wavelength; soaking (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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