Reproductive and phenological aspects of Qualea grandiflora Mart. in Cerrado

Abstract

Qualea grandiflora is a typical species of the ‘Cerradão’ physiognomy, of ecological, floristic and medicinal importance. However, there are few studies regarding to its phenology. In view of the above, the objective was to verify the seasonality and the influence of the climatic variables on the reproductive events of Qualea grandiflora in ‘Cerradão’. Fifteen (15) individuals were visited and visited monthly between July 2016 and June 2018 to record the events: flower buds, anthesis, immature and ripe fruits. Fournier's intensity and synchrony were correlated with precipitation, maximum, average and minimum temperature through the Spearman's correlation, and seasonality using circular statistics. The species itself produced buds and flowers during the rainy season, which resulted in a positive correlation with precipitation. The fruit formation occurred both in the rainy and dry season, whereas the fruit ripening occurred in the dry season. The immature fruit event was the only non-seasonal event due to its duration. The reproductive events of Qualea grandiflora correlated with temperature and precipitation, so the species uses this influence to enhance its chances of reproduction.

Keywords:
Climaticinfluence; Flowers and fruits; Pau-terra-grande; Seasonality