Environmental seasonality influences on reproductive attributes of <em>Moringa oleifera</em>

Abstract

Moringa oleifera Lam (Moringaceae) is a species tolerant to arid and semi-arid environments, such as the Brazilian Northeast. In this region climatic conditions make water a scarce resource. Water limitation affects plant growth and development where its impact will depend on its duration, intensity and the plant’s development stage. During the reproductive period water deficit can be critical since there is high water demand in this phase. The present study had as objective to verify how M. oleifera reproductive attributes respond to the Brazilian semiarid (Brazilian tropical dry forest) seasonality. We hypothesize attributes such as fruit size, seed number and physiological quality are different between dry and rainy seasons, with lower values for the dry season. The biometric characteristics of the fruits and M. oleifera seed germination produced in the two seasons were analyzed. It was observed differences in fruit weight, length and seed number, as well as for speed and germination percentage, with greater values during the rainy season. Seasonality affected important reproductive aspects for the successful recruitment and establishment of the specie, showing that, even tolerating drought, water deficit may limit M. oleifera reproductive success.

Keywords

• Abiotic stress
• Germination
• Seasonality