Método de colheita e superação de dormência na qualidade fisiológica de sementes de Cassia ferruginea Methods for harvesting and breaking the dormancy of Cassia ferruginea seeds

The harvesting method of fruits of tree species should be adequate to obtain seeds of maximum physiological quality. When present, the dormancy of Cassia ferruginea seeds is due to seed coat impermeability to water. This research work viewed to find the best methods both for the harvesting and for the breaking of dormancy of seeds of that species. The experiment was conducted during two years. In the first, fruits shed from the mother plant and laying on the ground were picked and their seeds submitted to the following treatments: 1. control, 2. mechanical scarification of the seeds with sandpaper no. 220, 3. hot water for 5 minutes (initial and final temperatures of 82 and 69 oC, respectively), 4. hot water for 15 minutes (initial and final temperatures of 82 and 51 oC, respectively), 1