Pióro-Jabrucka E., Przybył J.L., Komornicka M., Bączek K. and Węglarz Z.

Dropwort is a perennial, naturally occurring in Poland on sunny, semi-dry meadows and neglected lands. Above- and underground organs of this plant have been used for ages in traditional medicine, as diuretic, antirheumatic and anti-inflammatory agents. The cultivation trials of dropwort have been implemented in the Department of Vegetable and Medicinal Plants of Warsaw University of Life Sciences, SGGW. The aim of investigations was to study the influence of ripeness and short-term storage of dropwort seeds on their germination ability. The seeds used in the experiment were collected at two stages of maturity - dough and complete maturity. They originated from main shoots and primary lateral shoots of two-year-old plants. Position of seeds on shoots, stage of seed maturity and one-year storage of seeds significantly affected their 1000-grain weight and germinability. Directly after harvest the germinability of seeds originating from main shoots was slightly higher than the germinability of seeds from primary lateral shoots. After one-year of storage the seeds from main shoots collected at the stage of complete maturity were characterised by the highest rate of germinability. The distinctly higher germination ability of completely mature seeds after one-year storage may result from the decrease of the content of (+)-catechin, (-)-epigallocatechin gallate and gallic acid.

Key words: seed maturity, main and lateral shoots, 1000-grain weight, seed germination, phenolic compounds