Ecophysiology of Mimosa pudica L. at Biratnagar, Eastern Nepal

Abstract

All the freshly collected mature seeds of M. pudica were greenish in colour, whereas 7 year old stored seeds were a mixture of greenish and brownish seeds. The greenish seeds had hard seed coat and acid treated as well as sand rubbing for 6-10 min greatly enhanced their germination percentage. The brownish seeds were simply the deteriorated form of greenish seeds. Leaves and pods had higher contribution to total plant dry weight in ungrazed field and in pot-cultured plants clipped a month before flowering. The young shoots of the plant had 18.9% crude protein, 0.46% phosphorus and 25.4% crude fibre on dry weight basis.

Key words: Hard seed coat, Mimosa pudica, scarification, dry matter production

DOI: 10.3126/on.v7i1.2568

Our Nature (2009) 7:177-181