Dormancy in Oil Palm Elaeis guineensis

Oil palm seeds pose difficulties in terms of commercial germination due to a strong
dormancy. Dormancy could last several months or years, depending on the
environmental conditions before and after harvesting. In the wild, seeds may
remain viable and begin germination even after 25 years in the soil. The dormant
period is affected by various factors such as moisture, light, and the concentration of
gases and other substances, which can sometimes be manipulated to effect changes
in dormancy. Due to these difficulties and to the importance of the crop, methods of
accelerating the germination process have been the object of investigation since
1922.

Dry heat method

One of the most extensive reviews of methods for achieving uniform oil palm
germination was carried out by Galt (1953), who had, at that time, already described
the dry heat method for accelerated germination. In 1959, Rees detailed the dry
heat process, a commercial method for large-scale plant production, for interrupting
seed dormancy in Deli dura palms on a commercial scale in Malaysia. This method
consists of subjecting the seed to temperatures of between 38°C and 40°C for 40 to
60 days, although the authors originally indicated periods of 70 to 80 days. This
method can be inconvenient in terms of the high cost of maintaining the
temperature, as well as the amount of time necessary to break dormancy.

Chemical treatments
The experiments carried out by Ramiro and Guevara (1998) identified chemical
treatments stimulating different levels of germination. The best results were
obtained with treatments of H2SO4 followed by immersion in 1.5 % CH2N2 for 24
hours or in 0.6% or 1.8% ethephon for 48 hours, as well as with CH 2N2 immersion
only. These treatments had significant effects on germination over short, but
variable, timeframes (15 to 43 days) and success rates are as high as 80%. Use of this
chemical involves some difficulties, such as the quantities required to carry out large-
scale seed treatments, as well as the harmful effect of the residue and the danger to
those handling it, all of which make it necessary to look for alternative solutions.

Accelerated aging
Accelerated aging (AA) performed by Murugesan et al. (2005) according to the Seed
Vigour Testing Handbook of the Association of Official Seed Analysts. One subsample
was AA treated without initial water soaking and another was presoaked for five
days prior to the AA test. Presoaked AA treated seeds recorded 40%, 72%, and 80%
germination after 50, 60, and 70 days; whereas, unaged seeds had no germination
during the same period. Furthermore, the five day presoak followed by aging
treatment significantly improved germination.

References
Addae-Kagyah, K.W. 1988. Effect of Seed Storage, Heat Pretreatment and its
Duration on Germination and Growth of Nursery Stock of the Idolatrica Palm, Elaeis
guineensis var idolatrica (Chevalier). Tropical Agriculture. 65(1): 77-83.
Galt, R. 1953. Methods of Germinating Oil Palm Seeds. Journal of West African
Institute for Oil Palm Research. 1: 76-87.

Murugesan, P., Mathur, R.K., Pillai, R.S.N., and Babu, M.K. 2005. Effect of Accelerated
Aging on Seed Germination of Oil Palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq. var. dura Becc.). Seed
Technology. 27 (1): 575-587.

Ramiro, J.H. and Guevara, A.E. 1998. Use of Chemical Treatments to Induce Seed
Germination in Oil Palm Elaeis guineensis. ASD Oil Palm Papers. 18 (1): 1-16.

Rees, A.R. 1959. Germination of Oil Palm Seed: Large Scale Germination. Journal of
West African Institute for Oil Palm Research. 3:76-82.