Studies On Apple Seed Germination And Survival Of Seedlings As Affected By Gibberellic Acid Under Cold Arid Conditions.

Abstract Ladakh the land between earth and sky is known for its remoteness difficult terrain and short agriculture season. Nearly 50 of its total land lies between 16500 and 19500 feet above mean sea level. It is virtually unfit for human life and vegetation. The experiment was undertaken with an objective to investigate the effect of various concentrations of plant growth regulator GA3 under cold arid conditions to standardize the procedure for seed germination of Apple Malus x domestica Borkh. so as to increase the dearth of apple seedling plants which can easily acclimatize under these tough conditions with better survival for maximum benefit to nursery growers and orchardists. One of the effects of cold arid conditions is the reduction in seed germination seedling establishment survival and seedling growth but research reveals that pretreatment with growth regulators improves some aspects of seed germination and seedling establishment. Hence to investigate the effect of pretreatment with Gibberellic acid on the seed germination and survival of apple seedlings as well as to standardize the technique under cold arid conditions the experiment was conducted in Horticulture research field of High Mountain Agriculture Research Institute Leh Ladakh India. The study clearly indicated that apple seed treated with GA3 500 ppm for 40 hours gave best response regarding seed germination better growth of seedlings and survival of saplings.