Effects of gibberellic acid treatment and light conditions on germination of true potato seed

Abstract

The effects of gibberellic acid treatment and light conditions on the germination of true potato seed were investigated. The treatments included pre-soaking with different concentrations of GA3 for 24 h and the addition of different concentrations of GA3 to the MS medium. Different light conditions were also examined. One set of each treatment was placed in 16 hours of light and 8 hours of dark. The other set was placed in 24 h of dark for a week and then placed in the same condition as that of the first set. The percentage of seed germination scored two weeks after sowing was analyzed using the three-way analysis of variance. No interaction between two or three factors was observed, but all three factors were individually significant at a 99% confidence level. Consequently, individual analysis of the three factors revealed that 1) the effect of pre-soaking with 4,500 ppm of GA3 was the best, but not significantly different from that of 500 and 1,500 ppm; 2) the effect of 0.5 ppm of GA3 in the medium was the best, but not significantly different from that of 1 ppm; and 3) the effect of dark condition for one week after sowing was highly significant.