Efecto de los tratamientos de semilla, la procedencia y el riego en el establecimiento de Hibiscus elatus Effect of seed treatments, provenance and irrigation on the establishment of Hibiscus elatus

The emergence and growth of Hibiscus elatus seedlings under nursery conditions was studied, in seeds subject to acid scarification treatments in combination -or not- with partial hydration treatments in water. The seeds were collected in four forest provenances of the Sierra del Rosario Biosphere Reserve (two seasonal evergreen mature forests and two secondary forests) and were subject to different irrigation frequencies (daily, alternate days and once a week) during their permanence in nursery. The pregerminative treatments were adequate to increase seedling emergence and growth with regards to the control (untreated seeds), for all provenances, although the positive effect depended on the irrigation rate of the substratum. The water stress significantly affected seedling vigor, independently from the treatment used; nevertheless, under these planting conditions, the water treatment was the most favorable to improve plant functioning in the seeds collected in the mature forest; while those from the secondary forest had a better ability to respond to water stress with scarification treatment, combined with partial hydration in water. The use of hardening treatments in the seeds was proven to decrease the damaging effect caused by the insufficient soil moisture on seedling establish- ment, independently from the collection site.