Influence of Ammonia Vapors on the Dry Seeds of Soybean, Corn, and Peanut1

Abstract

The toxic effects of ammonia (NH3) on dry seeds of soybean [Glycine max (L) Merr.], corn (Zea mays L.), and peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) were assessed in this study. Soybean seeds were killed after a 24‐h exposure at 15 mg L−1, whereas corn seeds were killed at only 1.5 mg L−1. The toxic effects of NH3 became more severe with exposure duration, e.g., in soybean, 15 mg L−1 NH3 killed seeds after 24 h, but not after a 2‐h exposure. Injury response of seeds to ammonia in the cold (5°C) was less severe than that at 25°C. Conductivity tests of steep water detected the injurious effects of toxic levels of NH3 on seeds. However, nontoxic levels of NH3 also increased leachate conductivity. It is concluded that levels of NH3 like|y to be encountered in refrigerated warehouses following a leak (0.015 to 0.15 mg L−1, i.e., 20 to 200 ppm) are unlikely to have an adverse effect on the germination or growth of soybean, peanut, or corn seeds.