International Journal of Advanced Research and Development 49 International Journal of Advanced Research and Development ISSN: 2455-4030 Impact Factor: RJIF 5.24 www.advancedjournal.com Volume 3; Issue 4; July 2018; Page No. 49-52 Seed ripening indication in Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus, in Kumaun, Central Himalayan region Kamini Tamta * , Nandan Singh Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, Kumaun University, Nainital, Uttarakhand, India Abstract Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus, a dominant tree species in the Uttarakhand Himalaya region. In the present study analysis the various seed characteristic and germination in different ecological setting. Seeds were analyzed for seed size (length & width), seed weight, number of seed 100 gm -1 , moisture content and germination. Seeds size were larger at lower elevation compare to higher elevation. The mean seed length across the collection dates varied between 8.45±1.2 and 14.88±2.4 mm. The germination was higher in seeds collected from higher elevation than those from low elevations. The range of seed moisture content (53.8±0.8 to 55.4±1.2%) coincided with maximum germination. Keywords: Quercus leucotrichophora, seed characteristic, seed maturity, germination, Himalaya Introduction The Himalayan Mountain is the tallest, most complex and the youngest among the major mountain systems of the world extending for about 2500 km from east to west. The Himalayan range support a variety of forest which vary in species composition from east to west and from low to high elevation. These forests have traditionally played a key role in safeguarding the environment and have provided the long term ecological security to the subcontinent. The tree vegetation is the dominant components of these forests (Singh et al., 2014) [12] . Plants maintain and expand their population over time by the process of regeneration. Regeneration includes seed production and the maturation of seeds so that they readily dispersed (Barnes et al., 1998) [1] . Banj oak (Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus) is the most common broadleaf tree species in the Central Himalayan region. Oak (Quercus spp.) occupy most of the area from 1000 to 3000 m altitude in the Central and Western Nepal, Uttarakhand and Himanchal Pradesh (Singh et al., 2000) [14] . Banj oak is the important tree species in temperate and subtropical component of Himalayan ecosystem for biodiversity conservation view point, maintenance of soil fertility and recharge of spring water. Q. leucotrichophora is a late succession major forest forming tree species in Uttarakhand Himalaya region. The over exploitation of this species for a long time has led to gradual degradation of its natural stands (Nautiyal et al., 2000) [8] . These forests have been under a tremendous biotic stress as they provided fuel, fodder and leaf litter. Concentration of human settlements in the oak forest areas, lopping and felling and occasional fire spreading from pine forest, have reduce the area under oak forest (Champion and Seth, 1968) [3] . Banj oak is used by the villagers mainly for fuel, fodder, leaf litter and timber. Therefore, one of the immediate ecological problem is this region is revival of the oak forests, which is turn involves vegetational study, evaluation of regeneration status and subsequently the factor influencing the regeneration. Seed maturation is one of the most important parts of the life cycle in forest trees. Change in maturity period can change germination and growth rate; hence change the structure and composition of a stand in due time course (Bhatt and Ram, 2015) [7] . Thus, seed maturation study is important for conservation, development, growth, management (Bhatt and Ram, 2009) of a species and its adaptation in changing climatic conditions. Further, the time of maturation is also important for the collection, storage and testing of seeds for its better regeneration (Bhatt and Ram, 2015) [7] . Despite the dominance of Banj oak in Uttarakhand Himalaya seed maturity and germination behavior have received little attention. Seeds play an important role in the regeneration of tree species either by natural or artificial means. The objective of the present study was to analyse the seed maturity indices and seed germination of banj oak along the elevation gradient in Himalayan region. Material and Methods The study area is located between 29 0 8 ’ - 29 0 38’ N latitude and 79 0 20’ - 79 0 45’ E longitude. After a thorough survey two sites were selected namely Bhumiyadhar (1580 m) and Bhowali (1720 m) in Uttarakhand Himalaya. The study was carried in the year 2012-13. The tree height across the selected trees ranged between 15.6±0.6 and 23.4±1.7 m and mean diameter between 17.2±1.4 and 26.5±2.0 cm at Bhumiyadhar whereas, at Bhowali the tree height ranged between 17.4±0.8 and 25.3±0.7 m and mean tree diameter between 20.3±0.6 and 27.4±1.2 cm. At both the study site the associated species were P. roxburghii and R. arboreum. The average rainfall is about 1352 mm and the mean annual temperature is 18.5 0 C (Singh et al., 2015) [15] . The relative humidity being variable from 30.79% in November to 56.15% in August but very often it crosses the 90% marks when individual days were noted (Bhatt and Ram, 2005) [7] . For seed collection, tree were marked based on characteristics of clear bole, good crown, sufficient number of forest seeds