Abstract
During July 2018 and April 2019, the laboratory study was conducted at the Department of Seed Science and Technology and National Seed Project, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru, to investigate the influence of solarization on the seed quality of both bruchid-infested and fresh cowpea seeds (cv. IT38956-1). The findings indicated that subjecting fresh seeds to solarization in clear polyethylene packets (700 gauge) for 3 hours daily over 6 days resulted in the lowest seed moisture content (11.03%), highest germination rate (70.67%), longest mean seedling length (21.80 cm), highest mean seedling dry weight (46.10 mg), enhanced seedling vigour indices I and II (1541 and 3258), improved field emergence (68.33%), elevated TDH activity (1.43), higher protein content (19.73%), and reduced electrical conductivity of leachate (927 µS cm-1) after nine months of storage, compared to the control.
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