Impact of Priming with UV Radiation on Seed Germination and Seedling Growth of Chakhao Rice Cultivar

Abstract

The development of eco-friendly technology with innovative ideas is always essential to enhance plant growth and improve yield in a sustainable manner. Seed priming methods such as conventional and physical priming are well-known pre-sowing techniques that are considered to be effective in improving the growth and yield of a crop. In view of this, an experiment was conducted to study the impact of physical priming with non-ionizing radiation like UV-C on seed germination and early seedling growth of Chakhao cultivars of rice (Oryza sativa). Three Chakhao rice cultivars namely Black (Amubi) - V1, Red (Angangbi) - V2, and White (Angoubi) - V3 were used, and seeds were initially exposed to UV-C (8.32 KJm-2) radiation for 3 hours. Then seeds were soaked in water at 28 ± 2 ºC for 2 days and the emerging seedlings were again treated with UV-C (8.32 KJm-2) for different durations i.e. 30 mins (T3), 45 mins (T4) and 60 mins (T5). Seeds without any UV-C treatment (T1) and only seed treatment for three hours (T2) were taken as control. The data on germination rate, speed of germination, root length, shoot length, and seedling vigor index were recorded as per standard procedures. The study found that all three types of rice, V1, V2, and V3, had the highest germination percentage (71.07%, 73.63%, and 69.71%), speed of germination (9.53 days, 9.40 days, and 9.320 days), shoot length (9.83 cm, 8.43 cm, and 10.70 cm), root length (9.03 cm, 6.40 cm, and 8.97 cm), and seedling vigor index (1688.50, 1570.23, and 1729.13) when treated with UV-C for 60 minutes followed by 45 minutes of seedling treatment. This indicates that UV-C seed priming is an effective method for enhancing the growth of rice seedlings.