Fruit ripening and pre-germination in seedlings of papaya

Abstract

Papaya is one of the most consumed tropical fruits in the world. The seedling production on a commercial scale is affected by problems in seed dormancy due to sarcotesta and postharvest. Thus, in a greenhouse, we evaluated the effects of combining the maturity stage of fruits and temperature of soaking in water, the emergence and seedling growth of papaya. We adopted a completely randomized design in a factorial 2 x 4, two ripening stages (3 and 5) and four temperatures soaking the seeds in water (25 °C, 50 °C, 75 °C and 95 °C). Seeds from fruits at ripening stage 3 provided higher percentages and speed, mass and seedling fresh matter that at the stage 5. Higher temperatures were more efficient for promoting changes in the structure and composition of the sarcotesta without harming the embryo and, consequently, the emergence of seedlings. Seeds from fruits at ripening stage 3 soaked in water the temperature of 95 °C are suitable for the production of seedlings.