Seed germination of four amaranth species (Amaranthus spp.)

Abstract

Amaranth (Amarantus spp.) is an important species for its benefits in human and animal nutrition, therefore, the reproduction of these species is important, supported by rigorous experiments that generate quality information. Consequently, the present work aimed to determine the germination of 20 accessions of four species of Amaranthus spp. This was carried out at the Technological Institute of Chiná, Campeche, Mexico, with seeds donated by The North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station (NCRPIS), Iowa State University, from Africa, Asia, Greece, South America, USA, and Mexico. The seeds were weighed and measured, then they were sown in Petri dishes and kept in a germination chamber at 27 ºC and a relative humidity of 54 % in the dark, every 24 hours the germinated seeds were counted and removed. The analyzes were performed using the ANOVA test to identify differences in weight, length and germination between accessions. The results did not show statistical differences in seed length, between species or between accessions, with respect to weight if there were statistical differences both between species and between accessions. The results showed that A. hypochondriacus from India had the highest weight (0.00093 ± 0.000075 g). Germination did obtain statistical differences in the different evaluation times, at 24 and 48 hours, where the highest germination was in the species A. hypochondriacus and A cruentus. Therefore, it is concluded that seed germination is different in each species and accession.