Water Relations of Seed Development and Germination in Muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.)

The initiation of radicle growth during seed germination may be driven by solute accumulation and increased turgor pressure, by cell wall relaxation, or by weakening of tissues surrounding the embryo. To investigate these possibilities, imbibition kinetics, water contents, and water (Psi) and solute (psi(s)) potentials of intact muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.) seeds, decoated seeds (testa removed, but a thin perisperm/endosperm envelope remains around the embryo), and isolated cotyledons and embryonic axes were measured. Cotyledons and embryonic axes excised and imbibed as isolated tissues attained water contents 25 and 50% greater, respectively, than the same tissues hydrated within intact seeds. The effect of the testa and perisperm on embryo water content was due to mechanical restriction of embryo swelling and not to impermeability to water. The Psi and psi(s) of embryo tissues were measured by psychrometry after excision from imbibed intact seeds. For intact or decoated seeds and excised cotyledons, Psi values were >-0.2 MPa just prior to radicle emergence. The Psi of excised embryonic axes, however, averaged only -0.6 MPa over the same period. The embryonic axis apparently is mechanically constrained within the testa/perisperm, increasing its total pressure potential until axis Psi is in equilibrium with cotyledon Psi, but reducing its water content and resulting in a low Psi when the constraint is removed. There was no evidence of decreasing psi(s) or increasing turgor pressure (Psi-psi(s)) prior to radicle growth for either intact seeds or excised tissues. Given the low relative water content of the axes within intact seeds, cell wall relaxation would be ineffective in creating a Psi gradient for water uptake. Rather, axis growth may be initiated by weakening of the perisperm, thus releasing the external pressure and creating a Psi gradient for water uptake into the axis. The perisperm envelope contains a cap of small, thin-walled endosperm cells adjacent to the radicle tip. We hypothesize that weakening or separation of cells in this region could initiate radicle expansion.