Abstract
Spinach seeds are sensitive to high temperatures during germination and plant growth. It is known that seed priming with water or with seaweed extract (SWE) may enhance germination and seedling growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of seed priming with SWE (Ascophyllum nodosum) on the germination, seedling growth and antioxidant capacity of spinach seedlings under conditions of heat stress. Five concentrations of SWE (0.0, 0.15, 0.30, 0.60 and 1.2%) were used for priming the seeds under two temperatures (15 and 30 °C). Seeds primed with 0.3% SWE had the greatest activity of antioxidant metabolism and showed improved germination percentage, germination speed and seedling vigor under conditions of heat stress (30 °C) compared to nonprimed controls. Hydropriming and priming with 0.3% SWE resulted in lower contents of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malondialdehyde (MDA) under heat stress than control (nonprimed spinach seeds). This study showed that seed priming with SWE was effective to mitigate stress due to high temperatures and to improve spinach seed germination and seedling vigor.
Highlights
Spinach (Spinacea oleracea) is cultivated mainly during the cool season, with optimal ranges for germination and plant growth between 7 to 24 °C and 15 to 20 °C, respectively (Chitwood et al 2016)
This study showed that seed priming with seaweed extract (SWE) was effective to mitigate stress due to high temperatures and to improve spinach seed germination and seedling vigor
This study evaluated the effect of controlled hydration as a promoter of rapid germination and seedling growth
Summary
Spinach (Spinacea oleracea) is cultivated mainly during the cool season, with optimal ranges for germination and plant growth between 7 to 24 °C and 15 to 20 °C, respectively (Chitwood et al 2016). Seed priming is a process in which seeds are hydrated in different solutions including natural or synthetic compounds as priming agents (Jisha et al 2013). This technique stimulates pregermination metabolic processes, increases the antioxidant system activity and the repair of membranes (Masondo et al 2018) under abiotic stress. Under conditions of heat stress, seed priming was effective on melon (Lira et al 2015), onion (Murili et al 2016), pepper (Alqui et al 2014), spinach (Ziaf et al 2017) and other crops
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