Effects of Climatic Factors and Picking Time on Availability of Seeds of Chamaecyparis obtusa

Seed production and germination could be influenced by some factors. The picking time and climate factors are regarded as the elements to obtain sound seeds. We have observed the seed productivity and germination of seeds from trees of Chamaecyparis obtusa selected in a clonal seed orchard. Depending on picking time, various shapes from liquid material, something jellied to the fully matured one were observed. Germination aspects varied throughout the test days. After 20days of seeding in a glass petri-dish, germinal apparatuses appeared from the all seeds which had been picked from after at the end of August. The highest germination rate of about 30% was observed from the seeds picked from $20^{th}$ of September and $10^{th}$ of October. Seed production was about two times higher in 2005 than in 2006 and the average germination rate was also higher in 2005. We have also analyzed the effects of climatic factors about two consecutive years on seed productivity. Among the climatic factors, monthly sum of temperature and of precipitation were the main factors for maturation of Chamaecyparis obtusa seeds.