EFFECT OF GIBBERELLIC ACID AND NAPHTHALENE ACETIC ACID ON SEED

GERMINATION OF BERBERIS (BERBERIS ASIATICA ROXB. EX DC.)

MANJU NEGI 1 GOPALMANI2 AND NIKESH CHANDRA3

ABSTRACT
Berberis asiatica DC. commonly known as Kilmora, Indian barberry, "daru haldi" or tree turmeric belongs to
the family of berberridaceae. In India, Berberidaceae is represented by three genera and 68 species (Rao and Hajra
1993). Majority (>95%) of them are distributed in the Himalayan region. Berberis spp were eradicated from the
Himalayan region during the early phase of green revolution and again several species of Berberis have been eradicated
from the Himalayan region in order to reclaim the hill slopes for agriculture or to extract valuable drug ‘Berberidine’
from the roots and stem of B. asiatica, B. aristata and B. lyceum. The present investigation was therefore carried out at
College of Horticulture VCSGUUHF Bharsar during the year 2020, to evaluate the effect of GA 3 and NAA
concentrations on seed germination and seedling growth of Berberis (Berberis asiatica Roxb. DC.), which would be
useful in the managemental strategies for protecting its endangered population. The experiment was laid out in
Randomized Block Design with seven treatments i.e. GA3 50, 75, 100 ppm, NAA 50, 75, 100 ppm and Control with
three replications. The results of present study revealed that for Berberis GA 3 @ 75ppm was found the most effective
treatment to enhance seed germination, height of plant and number of leaves per plant as compared to other treatment.
However, all the treatments were found significant against the control.
Keywords: Berberis, berberidine, germination, kilmora, seed.

INTRODUCTION
Berberis asiatica DC. commonly known as Kilmora, Indian barberry, "daru haldi" or tree turmeric, belongs to
the family of berberridaceae. B. asiatica is usually erect and evergreen, up to 1.8-3.6 meters in height, hard woody spiny
shrub. Spines are in triplex form and approximately 1-2 cm long. Berries (fruits) are usually 7-10 mm in diameter,
globose, enclosed in green persistent calyx, green when unripe and become aconite violet when mature, containing 2-5
seeds (Parmar and Kaushal., 1982; Prajapati et al., 2003). Barberries are highly nutritious. They are rich in carbs, fiber,
and several vitamins and minerals. In particular, the berries are an excellent source of vitamin C, an antioxidant that may
help protect against cellular damage, which can lead to heart disease and cancer. Its berries have been used in traditional
medicine for centuries to treat digestive issues, infections, and skin conditions. They contain several beneficial
compounds, most notably berberine, which acts as an antioxidant and may help manage conditions like diabetes, fight
dental infections, and treat acne.
In India, Berberidaceae is represented by three genera and 68 species (Rao and Hajra 1993). Largest among genera is
Berberis, which has 55 species. Majority (>95%) of them are distributed in the Himalayan region. Only four species are
found away from the Himalayan region, i.e., Nilgiri hills, chhota Nagpur and Pachmarhi hills of Madhya Pradesh (Rao et
al. 1998a). Berberis spp were eradicated from the Himalayan region during the early phase of green revolution and again

1
Department of Fruit Science, VCSGUUHF Bharsar, Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India, 246123
E-mail: manju.negi277@gmail.com
2
Department of Fruit Science, VCSGUUHF Bharsar, Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India, 246123
E-mail: gaurgm97@gmail.com
3
Department of Fruit Science, VCSGUUHF Bharsar, Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India, 246123
E-mail: nikesh2chandra@gmail.com
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 several species of Berberis have been eradicated from the Himalayan region in order to reclaim the hill slopes for
agriculture or to extract valuable drug ‘Berberidine’ from the roots and stem of B. asiatica, B. aristata and B. lyceum.
The present study was therefore carried out to investigate the effect of growth regulator on seed germination of Berberis.
Alternatively, it expected to give information which would be useful in management strategies for protecting its
endangered populations.
METHODS AND MATERIALS
A field experiment was conducted at College of Horticulture, VCSG, UUHF, Bharsar, Pauri Garhwal,
Uttarakhand, India during 2020. The experimental site is located at an altitude of 1900 meters above mean sea level at a
Longitude of 78.990 E and Latitude of 30.0560 N. (Bisht and Sharma, 2014).
The experiment was laid out in Randomised Block Design with 07 treatments i.e. GA3 50, 75, 100 ppm, NAA
50, 75, 100 ppm and Control, with three replications. The seeds were collected from forest areas of Bharsar, Pauri
Garhwal district of Uttarakhand. The seeds were cleaned by rubbing all the extraneous materials and then dipped in water.
All the floating seeds were discarded and only the healthy seeds which settled down were taken for use in these studies.
The extracted seeds were soaked for 24 hours in different Gibberellic acid and NAA concentrations.
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
1. Seed Germination
Days taken for initial germination
Data present in Table 1 revealed that the seeds treated with 75 ppm GA3 (T6) takes minimum days (9.40 days)
to start the germination T3 (NAA 75ppm) which take 10.86 for initial germination. However, the maximum days taken
for initial germination i.e. 19.53 days were recorded with T1 (control). It was also found that all treatments had significant
effect on seed germination as compared to T1 (control). This might be due to the fact that, GA3 plays an important role in
two stages of germination, one at initial enzyme induction and other in activation of reserve food mobilizing system
which help in enhancement of germination (Jha et al ., 1997). Meshram et al. (2015) also reported the significant effect of
GA3 and NAA on seed germination of acid lime.
Table 1: Days taken for initial seed germination
Treatment details Initiation of Seed germination (days)
± SE(m)
T1 Control 19.53±0.63
T2 NAA 100 ppm 13.06*±0.29
T3 NAA 75 ppm 10.86*±0.29
T4 NAA 50 ppm 14.40*±0.41
T5 GA3 100 ppm 11.73*±0.43
T6 GA3 75 ppm 9.40*±0.11
T7 GA3 50 ppm 12.93*±0.35
CD(0.05) 1.28
SE(d) 0.58
CV 5.43
*Significant at 5% level of significance as compared with control

Seed germination percent

The data regarding this trait is presented in Table 2. It is evident from the data that seed germination is
significantly influenced by the Gibberellic acid concentrations. The data revealed that the maximum value i.e. 80.46%,
was recorded in treatment T6 (GA3 75ppm) followed by T3 (NAA 75%) with 69.00% seed germination, while the

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 minimum seed germination per cent (35.00%) was recorded with T 1 (control). All the treatments found significant as
compared with T1 (control).
Table 2. Seed germination per cent
Treatment details Seed germination %
± SE(m)
T1 Control 35.00±1.00
T2 NAA 100 ppm 53.00*±1.52
T3 NAA 75 ppm 69.00*±1.73
T4 NAA 50 ppm 45.86*±1.18
T5 GA3 100 ppm 58.13*±1.73
T6 GA3 75 ppm 80.46*±2.40
T7 GA3 50 ppm 49.66*±1.21
CD(0.05) 4.26
SE(d) 1.93
CV 4.24
*Significant at 5% level of significance as compared with control
Maximum germination per cent was recorded when seeds soaked in GA3 might be due to the fact that GA3 involved in the
activation of cytological enzymes which stimulates α–amylase enzyme that converts insoluble starch into soluble sugars
and it also initiates the radical growth by removing some metabolic blocks (Babu et al ., 2010). GA3 also plays an
important role in leaching out of the inhibitors which in turn helps in breaking the seed dormancy. GA3 was also found
effective in seed germination of Rangpur lime (Dilip et al., 2017) and in acid lime (Meshram et al., 2015)
2. Seedling Growth
Plant height
The plant height was measured 45 days after seed germination. It is evident from the data (Table 3) that the
maximum plant height was recorded in treatment T 6 (GA3 75%) i.e. 2.68 cm, followed by T 3 (NAA 75%) with 2.36 cm
height, while the minimum value (1.98 cm) was recorded with T 1 (control). All the treatments found significant as
compared with control.

Table 3. Plant height after 45 days of seed germination

Treatment details Plant height (cm) ± SE(m)
T1 Control 1.98±0.01
T2 NAA 100 ppm 2.15*±0.10
T3 NAA 75 ppm 2.36*±0.09
T4 NAA 50 ppm 2.02*±0.08
T5 GA3 100 ppm 2.44*±0.14
T6 GA3 75 ppm 2.68*±0.15
T7 GA3 50 ppm 2.23*±0.17

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 CD(0.05) 0.39
SE(d) 0.18
CV 9.72
*Significant at 5% level of significance as compared with control
Plant height was recorded maximum in GA3 because the GA3 increases cell size by stimulating the cell wall to
release and transmit its calcium into the cytoplasm that provides a condition for absorption of water and cell growth. GA 3
is inactivated after growth and calcium returns to the Cell wall to stiffen it. After the absorption of water by the seed and
following the active absorption stage, the embryo produces GA 3 and stimulates aleuronic cells to produce hydrolytic
enzymes such as α and β-amylase that hydrolyse starch to glucose, which can be absorbed by the embryo. GA 3 activated α-
amylase which digested the available carbohydrate in to simpler sugars, so that energy and nutrition were easily available
to faster growing seedlings. GA3 affects the proteins that produce m-RNA and thereby increases DNA replication and
induces analysis of endospermic materials in the seed (Lahuti et al., 2003). Dilip et al. (2017) also recorded significant
increase in plant height at 45 days after sowing in GA3 80 ppm.
Number of leaves per plant
Data on number of leaves per plant presented in Table 3 which show that the maximum number of leaves per
plant (5.46) recorded in the treatment T 6 (GA3 75%) followed by T2 (NAA 100%) with an average number leaves of 5.06.
The minimum number of leaves per plant was recorded with T1 (control) i.e. 4.46. It was also observed that all the
treatments found significant as compared with control except T 4 (NAA 50 ppm). The production of more number of leaves
in Gibberellic acid treatments may be due to the various growth induced by the GA3, more number of branches which in
turn facilitates better harvest of sunshine by the plants to produce more number of leaves (Lahuti et al., 2003).

Table 3. Number of leaves per plant

Treatment details Number of leaves per Leaf area (sq. m.)
plant ± SE(m) ± SE(m)
T1 Control 4.46±0.24 0.26 ±0.02
T2 NAA 100 ppm 5.06*±0.13 0.37*±0.01
T3 NAA 75 ppm 5.00*±0.11 0.35*±0.00
T4 NAA 50 ppm 4.67±0.17 0.27±0.02
T5 GA3 100 ppm 5.00*±0.11 0.40*±0.02
T6 GA3 75 ppm 5.46*±0.67 0.49*±0.02
T7 GA3 50 ppm 5.00*±0.20 0.41*±0.00
CD(0.05) 0.52 0.05
SE(d) 0.23 0.02
CV 5.87 7.94
*Significant at 5% level of significance as compared with control
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Leaf area
Data present in Table 3 also showed that maximum leaf was found when seeds were treated with GA 3 75 ppm (T6) i.e.0.49
m2 followed by T7 (GA3 50 ppm) with 0.41 m2 leaf area and the minimum value (0.26 m2) was observed in T1 (control). All
treatments were found significant as compared with control except T 4 (NAA 50 ppm) which was found to produce the
leaves with 0.27 m2 leaf area.
CONCLUSION
On the basis of experimental findings it is concluded that the among the different concentrations of GA 3 and
NAA, GA3 75ppm was found most effective treatment to enhancing seed germination and seedling growth of Berberis seed
as compared to other treatment. However, all the concentrations of GA 3 and NAA significantly affect the seed germination
and seedling growth of Berberis.
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