Physiological and sanitary quality of kale seeds

Abstract

Vigorous seeds may be viewed as the first line of defence against unfavourable conditions. The need for knowledge of the physiological and sanitary quality of seeds before sowing is essential, therefore, it is important to know the efficiency of different tests that measure these attributes, which may complement the information from the germination test. Many vigor tests may be used to measure the potential for rapid and uniform emergence of seeds under a wide range of field conditions. A study was performed to evaluate the sanitary condition and physiological quality of kale seeds (Brassica oleracea var. acephala). The tests used to evaluate physiological and sanitary quality were germination, first germination count, accelerated ageing, electrical conductivity, root length, shoot length, transplant emergence and seed sanitary condition. The first count of germination and accelerated ageing tests permitted the ranking of seed lots of kale seeds with a similar tendency to transplants emergence, because they have sufficient sensitivity to assess the seed's physiological potential. Incidence of different fungi such as Aspergillus spp., Fusarium spp., Penicillium spp., Rhizopus spp., Alternaria spp., and Cladosporium spp. were detected for most of the seed lots. The incidence of fungi may have negative effects on the physiological quality of kale seeds that presented less vigor.