Long-term longevity and dormancy persistence were verified in Paspalum notatum Flügge seeds
stored for three years under controlled temperature and air relative umidity conditions, mainly when the seeds were
kept under 10°C. On the other hand, significant increase in germination was observed when the seeds were stored
in uncontrolled conditions for 12 months, but without overcoming all the dormancy. In order to evaluate the high
temperature effect, fresh seeds were kept at 40C in hermetic bottles for 180 days; this condition led to rapid loss
of seed viability. When the seeds were placed at the same 40C but in permeable containers, the dormancy was
almost supressed in 120 days; at that time, the seeds moisture content was 5%. Since the germination ocurred
when the water content of the seeds was low, a sample of seeds was placed in an oven at 60C with air circulation,
where the seed moisture content decreased from 10 to 3% in seven days. There was no improvement in germination
and no damage due to the high temperature effect since the viability was kept unchanged, confirming the tolerance
of the seed to high temperature. So, it was established that drying the seeds at 40C for 120 days is essential to
overcome the P. notatum seed dormancy.