The knowledge about the reproductive phenology of Araucaria angustifolia has applications to the seed harvest for "ex situ" conservation, for commercial use of the seeds and to understand the dynamic and regeneration of its natural populations. The reproductive phenology and seed production of A. angustifolia were evaluated for a natural population occurring at Parque Estadual Campos de Jordão, São Paulo State, Brazil. The present study investigates: (i) how is the reproductive cycle and the phenological pattern of araucaria? (ii) how is the potential of seed production and its variability? Sixty adult plants (30 males and 30 females) were marked for phenological observations. Seed production was estimated based on the number of female plants in a 10 ha area, number of cones per plant, number of seeds per cone and seed weight. The reproductive cycle of A. angustifolia extended for 20 to 24 months, from the observation of the first cone to seed fall. The pollination occurred between September and October and seed maturation and seed fall from March to June. Seed production was significantly different between years (117 kg.ha-1 in 2001 e 160 kg.ha-1 in 2002). The duration of ripe seed offer was also different between years. The variation observed in the amount and availability of seeds suggests that the observation of reproductive phenology and estimation of seed production are important to guide strategies for conservation and management of this resource.
Araucaria angustifolia; Araucaria forest; reproductive phenology; seed production
