Germination

Germination is the emergence of the seedling from the seed. Seeds must be mature and the environmental factors must be favorable before germination can take place.

When mature seed is placed under favorable conditions and fails to germinate, it is said to be dormant. There are two basic types of dormancy. The first, seed coat dormancy or external dormancy, is caused by the presence of a hard seed covering or seed coat which prevents water and oxygen from reaching and activating the seed or prevents seed expansion. The second type of dormancy, embryo dormancy or internal dormancy, is caused by the condition of the seed which prevents germination.

The length of time conifer seeds remain dormant can be reduced or eliminated by a simple seed treatment called stratification.