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Two experiments were undertaken in 1977 and 1979 to promote flowering of 5- and 7-ycar-old field-grown seedlings of Larixleptolepis Gord. and L. decidua Mill. A gibbcrellin A4/7 mixture (GA4/7) was applied alone or in combination with GA3 and naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) to both girdled and nongirdled trees or branches by two methods, perfusion into the xylem and spraying with an aqueous cationic surfactant solution. Perfusion was most effective, especially on girdled branches, although spraying was reasonably effective for male flowering in L. decidua. Only GA4/7 alone significantly increased flowering. Male flowering was doubled and female flowering increased eightfold by GA4/7 in the best treatments, over all application dates. Generally, male flowering doubled and female flowering increased eightfold by GA4/7. Even more flowering was obtained at optimal application dates. May and June applications were best, especially for treatments associated with girdling. However, some flowering occurred with applications as late as August and September. More strobili of both sexes develop in the upper crown. However GA4/7 treatment induced seed cone buds to appear in the lower crown, an abnormal location. An unusual effect occurred in that a positive flowering response of the 1977 experiment occurred only in 1979, whereas the 1979 experiment yielded enhanced flowering in 1980. Soil mulching with a plastic film, with or without hormone treatment, was a very effective adjunct treatment for both male and female flowering.

Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco, seeds exhibit relative dormancy as they do not germinate at suboptimal temperature (15°C), whereas at optimal temperature (20°C) some germination occurred. Thus, germination at 15°C was chosen to estimate dormancy release. In the first experiment, seeds were prechilled at 32% moisture content (MC) for 0-34 weeks at 3°C. Long chilling treatments enhanced germinability and, more markedly, germination speed both at 20°C and at 15°C. Seeds pretreated for the longest periods were then dried to 6.7% MC and stored up to 6 months without any detrimental effect on germination at 15°C. In the second experiment, seeds from a second seedlot were prechilled for 18 weeks and then stored at three different MCs over a period of 17 months. Seeds stored at the lowest MC (6.7%) germinated fastest and to the highest percentage both at 15 and 20°C. In the nursery, seedling emergence tests confirmed results from this experiment. In most cases, comparisons between seeds prechilled at controlled MC before storage and those stratified with the traditional method resulted in better performance of the first ones, both in the laboratory and in the nursery.

We review developments in cone and seed production research during the past decade. We conclude that although cone induction techniques, including hormonal and cultural procedures, have been refined, they still do not fully overcome juvenility or noninductive environmental effects. The role pollen plays in enhancing seed production and the genetic quality of seed is discussed. Techniques for handling pollen are described, in vitro viability assays are reviewed, and we also examine recent developments in pollen collection and its artificial ripening.

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