Tabebuia impetiginosa is a tree species of high economical, ornamental and medicinal value. Its seeds present short viability period and they are difficult to be stored. Thus, the objective of this study was to study the ideal conditions of moisture water content and storage temperature for preservation of Tabebuia impetiginosa seeds for one year. Firstly, the initial moisture content of the seed was determined (18.3%) and a sample was taken. The remaining seeds were submitted to drying with air circulation at 30°C, in order to obtain seeds with the water contents of 12.5, 8.4 and 4.2%. After that, the samples were stored in chambers at -10°C and 20°C and evaluated at the beginning and after 90, 180, 270 and 360 days of storage regarding percentage of germination and seedling emergence in sand. The experiment was set up in a complete random design, in a 4 x 2 factorial design with four treatments (water contents) before storage, and eight treatments (four water content x 2 thermal conditions) in each evaluation period during storage. Means were compared by the Tukey test at 5%. The preservation of Tabebuia impetiginosa seeds is favored by maintaining them with moisture degrees ranging from 4.2 and 12.5%, at -10°C, and from 4.2 to 8.4% at 20°C.
Drying; Physiological quality; Storage condition and Tabebuia impetiginosa
