Low Vigor Seeds Research Articles

A atividade de enzimas hidrolíticas (fitase e alfa amilase) é decisiva no metabolismo germinativo de sementes de milho sob estresse salino

ABSTRACT The mobilization of reserves is essential for seedling formation and can be influenced by seed vigor. This work evaluated how seed vigor and reserve mobilization influence maize seedling formation under salt stress. The high-vigor seeds comprised the seeds directly from the lot, while the low-vigor seeds were subjected to an artificial aging process to reduce the vigor. Seeds were germinated in a substrate moistened with water (control) or saline solution (100 mmol L-1 NaCl) and were submitted to germination and vigor tests (first germination count, cold test, and seedling performance). Biochemical profiling (phytic acid and inorganic phosphorus, total and soluble protein, starch and soluble sugars, α-amylase and phytase activity) was determined at 0 (quiescent seeds), 2, 4, 6, and 8 days after sowing. High-vigor seeds had better physiological performance and higher reserve hydrolysis rates under salt stress than low-vigor seeds. High-vigor seeds also showed earlier enzymatic activity than low-vigor, demonstrating a temporal difference in reserve hydrolysis during the stress. The highest differences in reserve hydrolysis occurred 2 days after sowing and differentiated the germinative metabolism of high and low-vigor seeds under salt stress.

Effect of Seed Dressing with Gibberellins and Brassinosteroids on Enzymatic Activity and Seed Quality of Soya Bean at Different Vigour Levels Under Low Temperature

Gibberellin (GA3 ) and brassinosteroid (EBL) interactions can stimulate germination, extend seedling growth and induce low temperature stress tolerance. The effects of GA3 and EBL on seed quality, α-amylase and total dehydro genase activities of soya bean seeds at different vigour and temperature levels were studied. The results showed that medium vigour seeds dressed with 100 ppm GA3, 0.25 ppm EBL plus 50 ppm GA3, and 0.50 ppm EBL plus 100 ppm GA3 had significantly higher germination (GP) and seedling vigour rates (SVR) than those of untreated seeds. Similarly, 0.50 ppm EBL resulted in higher SVR of low and medium vigour seeds when compared to the control under low temperature. All soya bean seeds dressed with 100 ppm GA3 had higher GP, vigour, shoot and root lengths, and SVR under both temperatures than those of the untreated seeds, and mean germination time decreased. At 15°C, all seeds dressed with 0.50 ppm EBL plus 100 ppm GA3 had higher α-amylase activity than the untreated seeds, whereas seeds with low and medium seed vigour dressed with 100 ppm GA3 and 0.25 ppm EBL plus 50 ppm GA3 had higher total dehydrogenase activity than the untreated seeds.

Effect of priming on enhancing storability of high and low vigour brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) seeds

The present study was on brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) seeds var. Punjab Nagina. The quality of brinjal seeds in terms of vigour and viability severely declines due to natural ageing during storage between harvesting and the next sowing season. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of various priming treatments on the quality and storability of brinjal seeds. The freshly harvested seed was divided into two lots. One of these seed lots was subjected to accelerated ageing to obtain low vigour seed and the other lot was considered to be high vigour. The high and low vigour seeds were primed with KNO3 (1%), GA3 (100ppm), KH2PO4 (0.1M), PEG 6000 (30%) and H2O, respectively for 12 hours at 25oC. The seeds were stored in moisture-impervious bags for 12 months in a refrigerator (4oC). The objective was to observe whether the priming treatments improve the seed vigour and retain the advantages obtained during storage. The seeds were drawn at three monthly intervals, viz., zero, three, six, nine and twelve months of storage to study germination percentage, speed of germination, mean days to germination, seedling length, root length, shoot length, seedling dry weight and seedling aand vigour index. With an increase in storage duration, a decline in the physiological aspect of seed quality was observed in both high and low vigour seeds. All the priming treatments improved the germination-related parameters in both high and low vigour seeds over control but the extent of improvement varied. Seed priming with GA3 (100ppm) and KNO3 (1%) were the best treatments for both high and low vigour seeds, even after storage for 12 months.

Soybean seeds treated with zinc evaluated by X-ray micro-fluorescence spectroscopy

Zinc (Zn) is a micronutrient considered essential to plants which can be supplied through seed treatment. The treatment of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] seeds with Zn, however, is still not well known as regards the uptake and mobilization dynamics of the nutrient during the germination process. This study aimed to evaluate the uptake and distribution dynamics of Zn applied to soybean seeds at two levels of vigor during germination using X-ray micro-fluorescence spectroscopy (µ-XRF). Zinc treatments corresponded to 0, 2, 4 and 8 g of Zn per kg of seeds. High and low vigor seeds that had been treated were located appropriately so as to promote germination. Zn intensity measurements with µ-XRF were taken in different parts (“regions”) of the seeds (seed coat, cotyledon, and embryonic axis) after 8, 16 and 24 h of imbibition and seedlings (primary root, hypocotyl, plumule, cotyledon, and seed coat) after 48, 72 and 96 h of germination. High vigor seeds showed higher Zn intensity in the embryonic axis in the first 16 h, while low vigor seeds showed higher intensity after 24 h. After 48, 72 and 96 h of germination low vigor seedlings showed higher Zn intensity than high vigor seedlings in the primary root. It was concluded that µ-XRF is an efficient technique for identifying variances in the dynamics of Zn uptake and mobilization during the germination of soybean seeds with different vigor levels.

Potential of two hydration treatments for improvement of sunflower seed vigour

Seed deterioration is an unavoidable process to which seeds of oilseed plant species such as sunflower are especially sensitive. This study aimed to determine whether different invigoration techniques can improve the attributes of germination in sunflower and alleviate the effects of seed ageing. Both aged and non-aged seeds were subjected to invigoration by pre-soaking with distilled water and with 3% of KH2PO4for 24 hours at 25°C. Germination performance, seedling growth and SDS-PAGE protein profile were determined. The outcome of invigoration depended on the condition of the seeds: invigoration of seeds with both water and KH2PO4reduced the percentage of germination in non-aged seeds, while in aged seeds there was an increase in germination compared to the control. The SDS-PAGE seed protein profiles revealed that the low molecular weight proteins produced high-intensity bands and the high molecular weight proteins were in low concentrations. After accelerated ageing followed by H2O treatment, some bands of proteins appeared in the region of 2S albumins and were associated with a higher percentage of germination. Our results point out that invigoration treatments were more effective in low vigour seeds which can provide wide practical benefits.

High-Vigor Maize Seeds Resist Fusarium graminearum Infection through Stronger Ca2+ Signaling

Seeds with high vigor have strong resistance to various adverse environmental conditions. However, little is known about how seed vigor affects the resistance of seeds to biotic stress. In this study, newly harvested seeds that had high vigor and seeds with low vigor, achieved via an artificially accelerated aging treatment, were used in the germination test after inoculation with Fusariumgraminearum for 24 h. The results showed that high-vigor seed-related germination and seedling growth were not significantly affected by F. graminearum infection, while those related to low-vigor seeds were significantly inhibited. Analysis of transgenic maize seeds expressing the luminescent Ca2+ probe encoded by aequorin indicated that the concentration of free Ca2+ in the cytoplasm and nucleus of the embryo cells of high-vigor seeds was significantly higher than that of the low-vigor seeds. Through an experiment with Ca2+ inhibitor treatment and exogenous Ca2+ application, we further confirmed that Ca2+ played an important role in seed germination and seedling growth. Interestingly, in the presence of F. graminearum, the Ca2+ required for seed germination and seedling growth mainly came from the vacuolar calcium pool, while in the absence of F. graminearum, the required Ca2+ mainly came from the apoplastic calcium store. This study helps understand how high-vigor seeds resist disease and provides theoretical support for the wide application of high-vigor seeds in agricultural production.

Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Associated with the Design of Experiments and Machine Learning for Discrimination of Brachiaria brizantha Seed Vigor.

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) associated with machine learning algorithms (ML) was used to evaluate the Brachiaria seed physiological quality by discriminating the high and low vigor seeds. A 23 factorial design was used to optimize the LIBS experimental parameters for spectral analysis. A total of 120 samples from two distinct cultivars of Brachiaria brizantha seeds exhibiting high vigor (HV) and low vigor (LV) in standard tests were studied. The raw LIBS spectra were normalized and submitted to outlier verification, previously to the reduction data dimensionality from principal component analysis. Supervised machine learning algorithm parameters were chosen by leave-one-out cross-validation in the test samples, and it was tested by external validation using a new set of data. The overall accuracy in external validation achieved 100% for HV and LV discrimination, regardless of the cultivar or the classification algorithm.

Performance of wheat varieties grown from seeds with different vigor levels

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of wheat plant grown from seeds with different vigor levels. The experimental design was randomized blocks in a 3 x 3 factorial design (cultivar x vigor level) with four replications. The wheat cultivars were Tbio Toruk, Tbio Mestre and Tbio Iguaçu. The classification of vigor levels was high, medium and low, determined by several vigor procedures. The following evaluations were performed: plant height, number of spikelets in the main tiller, number of seeds in the main tiller, seed mass in the main tiller, number of fertile tillers, number of seeds in tillers, seed mass in tillers, number of plants.m-2, number of spikes.m-2, and grain yield per hectare. The use of high vigor seeds provides a greater number of wheat plants and spikes per area. Grain yield is affected significantly by seed vigor level: there is an increase of up to 11% by using high vigor seeds compared to low vigor seeds.

The seed vigour of spelt produced at the Maize Research Institute “Zemun Polje”

Spelt (Triticum spelta L.) has been increasingly attracting producers due to the biological properties and chemical composition of its seeds. As high-quality seeds are necessary for successful production, the vigour of organically and conventionally produced spelt seeds has been studied and results are presented in this paper. The seeds of the variety Nirvana produced by both methods at the Maize Research Institute ?Zemun Polje? in 2015 were observed. According to the results, the germination energy of conventionally and organically produced seeds amounted to 30% and 69%, respectively. The total germination of conventionally and organically produced spelt seeds amounted to 99% and 93%, respectively. The percentage of abnormal seedlings of spelt produced by both methods amounted to 1% on average. The participation of diseased and dead seeds was higher in organically produced seeds (6%) than in conventionally produced seeds (0%). After the seed accelerated ageing test, a higher germination was observed in conventionally produced seeds (75%) than in organically produced seeds (68%). The electric conductivity of conventionally produced seeds amounted to 189.4 ?S/cm and 195.2 ?S/cm in the first and the second replication, respectively, while the values of organically produced seeds amounted to 95.5 ?S/cm and 98.6 ?S/cm, in the first and the second replication, respectively. The results obtained by the electrical conductivity test indicated that the conventionally produced spelt seeds (32.33 ?S/cm g) were classified into the category of low vigour seeds in comparison to organically produced spelt seeds (27.65 ?S/cm g).

Autofluorescence-spectral imaging as an innovative method for rapid, non-destructive and reliable assessing of soybean seed quality

In the agricultural industry, advances in optical imaging technologies based on rapid and non-destructive approaches have contributed to increase food production for the growing population. The present study employed autofluorescence-spectral imaging and machine learning algorithms to develop distinct models for classification of soybean seeds differing in physiological quality after artificial aging. Autofluorescence signals from the 365/400 nm excitation-emission combination (that exhibited a perfect correlation with the total phenols in the embryo) were efficiently able to segregate treatments. Furthermore, it was also possible to demonstrate a strong correlation between autofluorescence-spectral data and several quality indicators, such as early germination and seed tolerance to stressful conditions. The machine learning models developed based on artificial neural network, support vector machine or linear discriminant analysis showed high performance (0.99 accuracy) for classifying seeds with different quality levels. Taken together, our study shows that the physiological potential of soybean seeds is reduced accompanied by changes in the concentration and, probably in the structure of autofluorescent compounds. In addition, altering the autofluorescent properties in seeds impact the photosynthesis apparatus in seedlings. From the practical point of view, autofluorescence-based imaging can be used to check modifications in the optical properties of soybean seed tissues and to consistently discriminate high-and low-vigor seeds.

Effectivity of Pseudomonas fluorescens TBT214 in increasing soybean seed quality in different seed vigor

The research aims to assess P. fluorescens TBT214 as biopriming to increase seeds quality. Research conducted in Field Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Halu Oleo University. Research arranged in randomized block designs. The first factor is the level of seed vigor consisting of 2 levels: V1= low vigor seeds (60-65% germination rate), and V2= high vigor seeds (86-100% germination rate). The second factor is the seed bio-invigoration technique which consists of 6 levels: B0=without seed bio-invigoration (control), B1=KNO3 1%, B2= KNO3 1% + P. fluorescens TBT214, B3= P. fluorescens TBT214, B4= P. fluorescens TBT214 + red brick powder, B5= P. fluorescens TBT214 + husk charcoal powder. (B5). So that obtained 12 treatment combinations. The variables observed in this study were (1) The total number of pods, (2) The number of filled pods, (3) the weight of 1,000 grains (g), and (4) Grain production (ton ha-1). The results showed that biopriming treatment could improve seed quality in seeds with low vigor levels or seeds with high vigor. Increasing seed quality resulted in the high potential of pod production, the weight of 1,000 grain seed, and yield. It can conclude that the biopriming treatment can improve the quality of seeds, both seeds with low vigor and seeds with high vigor.

Osmopriming, antioxidative action, and thermal stress in sunflower seeds with different vigor levels

The osmopriming technique can reduce the period between sowing and the emergence of seedlings in the field, as well as favor seed performance under stress conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of osmopriming on the physiological performance and antioxidative enzymatic activity of sunflower seeds with different vigor levels and exposed to thermal stress. Three sunflower seed lots of the cultivar Hélio 250 were used. Initially, the seeds were evaluated by germination and vigor tests to characterize the lots. Subsequently, they were primed in a polyethylene glycol 6000 solution at -2.0 MPa and 15 °C for 8 h. Then, the primed and unprimed seeds were tested for physiological quality (germination, first germination count, percentage and emergence speed index of seedlings, and seedling dry matter) and determination of the activity of the enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and peroxidase (POX) under three temperatures: 15 °C (sub-optimal), 25 °C (optimal), and 35 °C (supra-optimal). The physiological tests allowed classifying lots 1, 2, and 3 into three different vigor levels, i.e., high, medium, and low, respectively. Osmopriming favored the performance of sunflower seeds in terms of germination and vigor at all the analyzed temperatures. This effect was more pronounced in lots of lower physiological quality at sub-optimal and supra-optimal temperatures. Sub-and supra-optimal temperatures led to a reduction in the physiological performance of seeds, mainly in less vigorous lots. In general, osmopriming favored an increase in the activity of the enzymes SOD, CAT, POX, and APX, mainly in low vigor seeds exposed to sub and supra-optimal temperatures. Osmopriming of sunflower seeds in PEG 6000 at -2.0 MPa for 8 hours is efficient to improve the performance of less vigorous lots under stress due to the sub- and supra-optimal temperatures, favoring an increase in the activity of enzymes of the antioxidative system.

Magnetic Field Treatments Improves Sunflower Yield by Inducing Physiological and Biochemical Modulations in Seeds.

Magnetic seed enhancement has been practicing as a promising tool to improve germination and seedling growth of low vigor seeds stored under suboptimal conditions, but there is still ambiguity regarding the prospects for magnetism in oilseeds. Present study elucidates the potential of magnetic seed stimulation to improve sunflower germination, growth and yield. Germination and emergence tests were performed to optimize the strength of the magnetic field to sunflower seed enhancement. The seeds were directly exposed to magnetic field strengths of 50, 100 and 150 millitesla (mT) for 5, 10 and 15 min (min) and then standard germination tests were performed. Secondly, the emergence potential of untreated seeds was compared with seed exposed to hydropriming, priming with 3% moringa leaf extract (MLE), priming with magnetically treated water (MTW) for 10 min and priming with 3% MLE solution prepared in magnetically treated water (MTW + MLE). Germination, emergence, seedling growth and seed biochemical properties were used to select the best treatment for field evaluation. The results of the study revealed that magnetic seed treatment with 100 mT for 10 min and seed priming with 3% MLE solution in magnetically treated water (MTW + MLE) significantly improved emergence, crop growth rate and sunflower yield.

Effect of seed vigor and sowing densities on the yield and physiological potential of wheat seeds

Abstract: Initial seed vigor and sowing density interact in establishment of plants in the field, and can thus affect expression of the plasticity of the wheat crop and the yield and physiological quality of the seeds produced. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of seed vigor levels in combination with sowing densities on the yield and physiological potential of wheat seeds. The cultivars BRS Gralha-Azul and BRS Sabiá were used in a randomized block experimental design in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement, with four replications. The treatments consisted of seeds of high and low vigor and four sowing densities (150, 250, 350, and 450 seeds.m-2). The following evaluations were made: seed yield, germination, first germination count, seedling length, seedling dry matter, accelerated aging, emergence speed index, and seedling emergence in sand. An increase in sowing density favors the seed yield of both cultivars; however, it reduces the vigor of the seeds produced by the cultivar BRS Gralha-Azul, especially of the seeds produced by plants originating from high vigor seeds. For the cultivar BRS Sabiá, an increase in sowing density decreases the germination performance of seeds produced by plants originating from low vigor seeds.

Integrating Optical Imaging Tools for Rapid and Non-invasive Characterization of Seed Quality: Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) and Carrot (Daucus carota L.) as Study Cases.

Light-based methods are being further developed to meet the growing demands for food in the agricultural industry. Optical imaging is a rapid, non-destructive, and accurate technology that can produce consistent measurements of product quality compared to conventional techniques. In this research, a novel approach for seed quality prediction is presented. In the proposed approach two advanced optical imaging techniques based on chlorophyll fluorescence and chemometric-based multispectral imaging were employed. The chemometrics encompassed principal component analysis (PCA) and quadratic discrimination analysis (QDA). Among plants that are relevant as both crops and scientific models, tomato, and carrot were selected for the experiment. We compared the optical imaging techniques to the traditional analytical methods used for quality characterization of commercial seedlots. Results showed that chlorophyll fluorescence-based technology is feasible to discriminate cultivars and to identify seedlots with lower physiological potential. The exploratory analysis of multispectral imaging data using a non-supervised approach (two-component PCA) allowed the characterization of differences between carrot cultivars, but not for tomato cultivars. A Random Forest (RF) classifier based on Gini importance was applied to multispectral data and it revealed the most meaningful bandwidths from 19 wavelengths for seed quality characterization. In order to validate the RF model, we selected the five most important wavelengths to be applied in a QDA-based model, and the model reached high accuracy to classify lots with high-and low-vigor seeds, with a correct classification from 86 to 95% in tomato and from 88 to 97% in carrot for validation set. Further analysis showed that low quality seeds resulted in seedlings with altered photosynthetic capacity and chlorophyll content. In conclusion, both chlorophyll fluorescence and chemometrics-based multispectral imaging can be applied as reliable proxies of the physiological potential in tomato and carrot seeds. From the practical point of view, such techniques/methodologies can be potentially used for screening low quality seeds in food and agricultural industries.

Seed vigor level in association to fertilizer distribution

This work aimed at evaluating yielding responses of soybean seeds production fields in response to the association between seed vigor level and fertilizer distribution systems at the sowing line.Experimental design was randomized blocks design, with two growing environments (Passo Fundo - RS and Ernestina - RS) x three vigor levels (high = 90%, medium = 70% and low = 60%) x three fertilizer distribution systems (absence, conventional and by transhipment), arranged in four replicates, grain yield (GY). For grain yield (GY), it was applied the method genotype main effects and genotype environment interaction (GGE). Seed vigor levels and fertilizer distribution systems influence on seed yield, first pod insertion height, plant height, number of pods in the main stem and ramifications, magnitude and length of ramifications in soybean.The high vigor level in the conventional and by transshipment fertilization systems provided an absolute increase of 10.9 and 5.6% in seed yield, respectively, in Ernestina-RS. The conventional fertilizer distribution system, in Passo Fundo-RS, increased seed yield in 12.5% in plants originated from low vigor seeds.

Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy as a Powerful Tool for Distinguishing High- and Low-Vigor Soybean Seed Lots

The tests commonly used to determine seed vigor are often laborious and time-consuming; thus, rapid methods are highly required for identifying high-vigor seeds among different batches. In this paper, we describe a novel approach able to distinguishing among batches of soybean seeds of different physiological quality based on their nutrient content measured by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) assisted by multivariate analysis and machine learning algorithms. These include principal component analysis (PCA), support vector machine learning (SVM), linear and quadratic discriminant analyses (LDA and QDA), and nearest neighbor methods (KNN). A total of 92 measurements, 46 collected from batches marketed as low-vigor seeds and 46 as high-vigor seeds, were analyzed. The SVM method performed the best in discriminating among the batches. In particular, the quadratic SVM function could classify correctly 100% of the high-vigor samples and 97.8% of the low-vigor samples, whereas the cubic function yielded the opposite result; i.e., 97.8% of the high-vigor samples and 100% of the low-vigor samples were classified correctly. The best LIBS spectral region for the analysis was in the range of 350–450 nm, with calcium being the main distinguishing element. Thus, the LIBS technique combined with machine learning classification methods showed a promising potential for classifying soybean seed batches according to their physiological quality.

Fingerprinting of volatile organic compounds for quick assessment of vigour status of seeds

AbstractSeed is a fertilized mature ovule, which possesses an embryonic plant. When the dry, mature seeds are subjected to imbibition, they release a wide range of organic substances, which include low molecular weight carbonyl compounds (gases and volatiles) and water-soluble organic substances (enzymes and polysaccharides). The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are molecules of low molecular weight (300 g mol−1) and high vapour pressure (0.01 kPa at 20°C) and include diverse chemical compounds. The nature and emission kinetics of volatiles produced from seeds vary, depending on the moisture content of the seeds. Orthodox seeds stored at ‘low seed moisture content’ undergo seed deterioration, predominantly due to lipid peroxidation, initiated by autoxidation or enzymatic oxidation of unsaturated or polyunsaturated fatty acids. This peroxidation leads to emission of volatile compounds. The quantity of VOCs emitted is positively correlated with the advancement of seed deterioration. With respect to the seed germination process, exposure of seeds to ‘high moisture conditions’ leads to increased respiration, triggers glycolysis and mobilization of storage reserves, resulting in the emission of volatile metabolic products. The quantity of VOCs emitted on commencement of metabolic activity in germinating seeds depends on (1) vigour status and (2) amount of storage reserves. Since it has been established that there is a significant difference between high and low vigour seeds with respect to quantity and profile of VOCs emitted, there is great potential for utilizing the VOC profile to obtain a quick and reproducible test of vigour status of crop seeds. In order to harness the VOC profile for quick assessment of vigour status of seeds, research has to be taken up to develop standard protocols for fingerprinting of VOCs for the purpose of seed vigour assessment and to fix the standard volatile biomarker(s) specific to crop and vigour status of seeds.

Effect of Pre-germination Technique on Enhancing Seed and Seedling Vigour in Ridge gourd (LuffaacutanglaRoxb.)

Sowing pre-germinated seeds has proved to be an effective techniqueto obtain early emergence, optimum field stand and high germinationpercentage. Before sowing, the pre-germination method could be used toseparate dead seed and as dead low vigor seeds to get high vigor seeds,which can be taken for sowing. With this notion, an experiment was conductedwith ridge gourd seed var. PKM 1 with two factors, one as soaking duration(6, 9, 12, 16, 20, and 24 h) and other as the incubation periods (1, 2, 3and 4 days). Seeds were soaked in distilled water for the above-mentioneddifferent durations in a 1:1 ratio on a volume basis. After a specified periodof soaking, the seeds were placed in between the moist gunny bags andkept for incubation under dark conditions. Data were collected for differentparameters viz., sprouting percentage, germination percentage, root length,shoot length, dry matter production and vigor index I & II and analyzed.Results obtained from the study showed that there is a significant differencebetween the treatments and seeds soaked in water for 20h with one-dayincubation recorded the highest values in all the parameters. The seedsthat were incubated without soaking performed similar to that of absolutecontrol because of the presence of hard seed coat. Whereas, seeds thatwere soaked but not incubated had performed better than dry seed andonly incubated seeds. This might be because, soaking seeds in waterstimulates the pre-germinative metabolism, activates enzymes earlier andalso releases the physical dormancy of ridge gourd seeds which makes theseed to germinate easier and faster. Hence, the study concluded that thistechnique might be considered as farmer’s friendly method that can beused to separate live seed in a seed lot, which will be useful for producinghealthy seedlings, maintaining optimum plant population and uniformity inseedling emergence of ridge gourd.

Physiological potential of corn seeds with different sizes and vigor levels subjected to micronutrient treatment

Micronutrients are used in small amounts by plants and changes in metabolic processes of seeds can improve germination and vigor; however, little is known about the effects of the combination of Zn, Co, and Mo on corn seeds. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the application of Zn, Co, and Mo on the physiological potential of corn seeds of different sizes and levels of vigor. A randomized 2×2×3 factorial design was adopted, with two levels of vigor (high and low), two seed sizes (18 and 22 mm), and three doses of liquid fertilizer containing micronutrients (0, 2, and 4 mL kg-1). The physiological potential of the seeds was evaluated based on germination and vigor tests. High vigor corn seeds had greater physiological potential compared to low vigor seeds. Regarding size, small seeds (18 mm) had higher percentages of germination and vigor than the large seeds (22 mm). Seed treatment with micronutrients (Co, Mn, and Zn) resulted in improved emergence in the field, shoot length, and dry mass of large and small seeds with the application dose of 2 mL kg-1, and the application dose of 4 mL kg-1 enhanced emergence in the field of large seeds and germination after the cold test of low vigor seeds of both sizes.