The effect of simulated heat-shock and daily temperature fluctuations on seed germination of four species from fire-prone ecosystems

Abstract

Seed germination in many species from fire-prone ecosystems may be triggered by heat shock and/or temperature fluctuation, and how species respond to such fire-related cues is important to understand post-fire regeneration strategies. Thus, we tested how heat shock and daily temperature fluctuations affect the germination of four species from fire-prone ecosystems; two from the Cerrado and two from the Mediterranean Basin. Seeds of all four species were subjected to four treatments: Fire (F), temperature fluctuations (TF), fire+temperature fluctuations (F+TF) and control (C). After treatments, seeds were put to germinate for 60 days at 25ºC (dark). Responses differed according to species and native ecosystem. Germination percentage for the Cerrado species did not increase with any of the treatments, while germination of one Mediterranean species increased with all treatments and the other only with treatments that included fire. Although the Cerrado species did not respond to the treatments used in this study, their seeds survived the exposure to heat shock, which suggests they possess tolerance to fire. Fire frequency in the Cerrado is higher than that in Mediterranean ecosystems, thus traits related to fire-resistance would be more advantageous than traits related to post-fire recruitment, which are widespread among Mediterranean species.