Relationships between mature cone traits and seed viability in Juniperus oxycedrus L. subsp. macrocarpa [Sm.] Ball [Cupressaceae]

The study addressed different biological aspects of Juniperus oxycedrus subsp. macrocarpa, including female cone production, biometric analysis of mature cones and seeds, and their viability. The results indicate that the proportion of aborted female cones was very high. In the four populations studied, cone diameter and weight and seed length and weight were closely related. The distribution of numbers of seeds with and without embryos in mature cones was examined, as well as the frequency of numbers of seeds with embryos. The general trend in all populations was three seeds per mature cone, of which only one or two showed embryos. Tetrazolium tests showed the percentage of viable seeds to be lower.