Dormancy has at least three functions: (1) immediate germination must be prevented even when circumstances are optimal so as to avoid exposure of the seedling to an unfavourable period (e.g., winter), which is sure to follow; (2) the unfavourable period has to be survived; and (3) the various dispersing agents must be given time to act. Accordingly, the wide variation in seed and diaspore longevity can be appreciated only by linking it with the various dispersal mechanisms employed as well as with the climate and its seasonal changes. Thus, the downy seeds of willows, blown up and down rivers in