Longevity of Velvet Mesquite Seed in the Soil

Abstract

One velvet mesquite seed out of 450 that were buried in 1948 on the Santa Rita Experimental Range was sound and germinated after it was dug up 20 years later. The percentage of apparently sound seeds declined fairly rapidly as seeds germinated or decayed (only 10% were sound after 10 years), but viability of the apparently sound seed remained high to the end of the study. Thus, even if no new seed is produced or introduced, some mesquite seedlings may emerge 20 years or more after clearing.