Seed structure and germination pattern of sugar palm [Arenga pinnata L.]

Abstract

Sugar palm is a type of palm plant, which can grow at various altitudes with different soil types. Sugar palm plants have high prospects because all parts of the plant can be used as traditional medicine, building materials, ingredients for making brown sugar, vinegar, starch, or flour, and as ingredients for various foods. In the cultivation of sugar palm plants, there are several problems found, one of which is the seeds that have a period of dormancy. The reason is the hard and impermeable seed coat that prevents water imbibition. This study aims to determine the structure and germination pattern of sugar palm seeds. This research was conducted at the Seed Technology Laboratory of the Faculty of Agriculture, Campus 3 Dharmasraya Universitas Andalas from April until September 2022. The observations obtained were the structure of the sugar palm seed consists of parts namely tip cap, testa, perisperm, endosperm, embryonic chamber, and embryo. The outer coat of the sugar palm seed is black and slippery. Each sugar palm seed has a small circle that spreads outside the seed coat where the small circle is the embryo. The duration of the sugar palm seeds’ germination from the beginning of germination until the leaves are fully open takes up to 120 days after planting.