Germination Speed as a Predictor of Nursery Seedling Performance

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Abstract
Although they are not fully satisfactory, laboratory germination percentages are still better predictors of nursery-tree yield for both loblolly (Pinus taeda L.) and slash (Pinus elliottii Engelm.) pine seeds than any other means now available. Germination values, which combine both speed and completeness of germination, improve the predictability of nursery performance only in slowly germinating lots. Analyses of the reasons for better nursery growth of seedlings from stratified seeds reveal that under less favorable conditions they germinate faster than unstratified seeds. When equal-aged germinants from similarly-sized stratified and unstratified seeds are planted at the same time, seedling development is essentially the same. Seedlings from large-sized seeds (half-sib lots) did grow larger over a 10-week period than those from small-sized seeds.

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