Abstract
Ophipogon jaburan Lodd is an important ground cover plant. We investigated its seed germination, methods of seed storage, and the effects of fertilizer on seedling growth. Seeds collected in late December remained green, while seeds collected in January were bule. Both seed types hardly germinated at 10 °C in an incubator, but showed germination percentages of 85 % or more at 20-30 °C. Therefore, seeds sown immediately after collecting did not emerge as seedlings until June outdoor. Intact seeds and depulped seeds retained their germinability for 1 month and 6 months, respectively, when stored at 4 °C with humidity of 80 % or more. When depulped seeds stored in moist sphagnum peat at 4 °C were sown in the beginning of June, near the suitable temperature for germination, seedlings emerged simultaneously in the middle of July. The starting of emergence was promoted and seedlings grew to sufficient commercial size within a year, when the seeds were sown in a heated greenhouse at 15 °C or more in February and the seedlings were subsequently transplanted in May after fertilizing with 50 mg or more nitrogen per individual.
