Seedling quality and seed yield of Gentiana lutea L.

Plant growth as well as root and seed yield of yellow gentian was evaluated in Mikkeli (South Finland) using a simple sowing method: stratificated seeds mixed with sand were sown in pots when the white germs were visible. The number of living seedlings/pot was counted before transplantation as well as after growth of one and two years in black plastic mulch. During the first two years, 8-20% of the young seedlings died with a loss of 1-3 seedlings per pot. The highest root weights of the 5-year-old plants were measured in the pots which had 3, 4 or 5 seedlings at transplantation, amounting to 892, 845 and 949 g/pot, respectively. The average seed yield per flower stem was 4.84 g/stem in the third year and 6.96 g/stem in the fourth year. The quality of the seed yield was high: thousand seed weight 1.100-1.300 g and germination capacity was 81-88%. The method described here is easy, simple and requires no special investments, the growers may be able to do it on their own farms. It is recommended to deposit an amount of the sand seeds mixture per pot containing 4-8 seeds.