Alelopatía de Mesosphaerum suaveolens (bamburral) frente a las semillas de Pilosocereus gounellei subsp. Gounellei (xique-xique)

Introduction: Plants used for reforestation purposes, e.g. the cactus Pilosocereus gounellei (F.A.C.Weber) Byles and Rowley subsp. Gounellei, may undergo the allelopathic effect of other plants (mainly those commonly known as "unwanted"), e.g. Mesosphaerum suaveolens L. Kuntze. In other words, coexistence of different plant species may affect the ecological succession of one of them. Objective: Evaluate the allelopathic action of essential oil from M. suaveolens on the germination of seeds of P. gounellei subsp. Gounellei. Methods: Leaf essential oil was diluted at various concentrations (125-1000 μg/ml) and applied to seeds of P. gounellei subsp. Gounellei, accompanied by a control group. The seeds that germinated were counted and measurements were taken of some variables, such as percentage and germination, germination speed and T50. Results: The oil was shown to delay or inhibit the germination of seeds of P. gounellei subsp. Gounellei at concentrations ≥1000 μg/ml. Conclusions: The essential oil of M. suaveolens is capable of delaying or inhibiting the germination of seeds of P. gounellei subsp. Gounellei. Therefore, seeds of the cactus should not be sown in areas with a large population of M. suaveolens . Keywords: Hyptis suaveolens ; terpene; allelochemical; P. gounellei.