Vigor and viability during seed storage of three Campomanesia species endemic to southern Brazil

Key message Campomanesia spp produce seeds with high viability and vigor which are tolerant to desiccation but not to cold temperature. The genus Campomanesia has ecological and economic importance in the Atlantic Forest, but 19 of its species are on the red list of threatened species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). There is a lack of studies on seed biology and considerable urgency in developing strategies for their ex-situ conservation and subsequent use in restoration. In this study, we analyzed the viability and vigor in seeds of three Campomanesia species under different temperatures to determine the ideal conditions for storage. Additionally, we analyzed the factors that influence their response in storage. Differences in germination, tetrazolium and germination speed index were compared for three Campomanesia species with different distributions in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest ( C. xanthocarpa , C. reitziana and C. littoralis ). Seeds of three species were stored in two water contents, three temperatures, for six period and liquid nitrogen. The three species presented seeds sensitive to freezing (−20 °C and liquid nitrogen). C. xanthocarpa seeds showed a short life during storage at 25 °C and 8 °C. C. reitziana and C. littoralis seeds with initial water content showed high germination up to 120 days of storage at 8 °C and these values were higher than seeds with water content of 0.16 g H 2 O. g dw − 1 stored under the same conditions. Finally, our results of the characterization of the tolerance to drying and the behavior during storage at different temperatures of C. xanthocarpa , C. littoralis and C. reitziana are the base line for the generation of successful conservation strategies, both in situ and ex situ.