Effect of Delinting and of Genetical Factors on the Germination of Cotton Seeds at Low Temperatures1

Abstract

Acid delinting improved and accelerated the germination of cotton seeds at low temperatures in tests conducted both in an incubator (at 12 C and 14 C) and in the field. All the cultivars of Gossypium hirsutum L. and G. barbadense L., tested in these experiments, exhibited this effect, even though seeds of the latter species were covered only by a negligible amount of fuzz. This indicates that acid delinting increases the permeability of the seedcoat.Water was absorbed by the fuzz during the first hours after planting, but later acid‐delinted seeds showed a higher rate of water absorption. The inheritance of the ability of cotton seeds to germinate at low temperatures is probably polygenic and primarily additive, with prominent maternal effects which are associated with characteristics of the seedcoat and the fuzz.