Many pesticides used against seeds and seedlings microorganisms have a chemical origin so are dangerous for the environment. We conduct this study in view to contribute to the expansion of the culture of Jatropha curcas L. exposed to pathogenic seed attacks and to seedlings melting. So, J. curcas seeds were cultured, according to their age and origin, on soil and in vitro. Seeds from Gampela (in the Sodano-Sahelian zone of Burkina Faso) harvested in 2017 and 2018 and seeds from Solenzo (in the same Sodano-Sahelian zone) harvested in 2018 were used. They were sterilized with 0.75% sodium hypochlorite and 70% ethanol before being placed on cotton soaked in water or sowing on ½ MS medium. Germination was followed for 10 days. A lot of seed was sown in ground and used as control. The results showed that seeds of 2017 did not germinate in opposite to the seeds of 2018, showing that the germination ability depends on the age of seed. Also, germination rates remained below 35%, reflecting an immaturity of freshly harvested embryos. The seeds of Solenzo germinated less (13%) than those of Gampela (33%) showing that the germination depends on the ecotype. Similarly, seeds germinated less on ½ MS (0-11%) than on soil (13-33%) because of seed epidermis that limits the passage of water caught in agar but which may be resolved by a longer soaking of the seeds before their in vitro cultivation. Finally, all not sprouted seeds on soil rotted while on ½ MS some of them remained intact (23-32%): in vitro culture method would have reduced the rate of rotting seeds and remains promising to avoid pathogenic attacks and melting of J. curcas seedlings in field.

Jatropha curcas, semences, culture in vitro, milieu, âge, écotype, Burkina Faso