Soaking Nebraska sedge seeds in warm, aerated water improves germination

Abstract

Nebraska sedge (Carex nebrascensis Dewey [Cyperaceae]) is a broadly distributed and locally abundant sedge in western North America. The species is commonly used in wetland and riparian restoration and enhancement plantings. Germination is typically achieved by subjecting the achenes with their perigynia removed (hereafter simply referred to as seeds) to 30-d stratification at 3 °C (37 °F); however, personal observations indicate that Nebraska sedge can be germinated using soaking water treatments without a stratification treatment. Staff at the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Aberdeen Plant Materials Center subjected seeds of Nebraska sedge to a number of soaking treatments and compared average germination and germination rates with those obtained using traditional methods. We found that seeds soaked in warm (24–35 °C [75–95 °F]), aerated water germinated significantly faster (3 to 6 times) than all other treatments. We also determined that, in most cases, soaking Nebraska sedge seeds in warm water significantly increased germination percentages compared with seeds germinated using the traditional 30-d stratification treatment (87% compared with 47%, respectively).