A manual of rice seed health testing - IRRI books - International Rice ...
A manual of rice seed health testing - IRRI books - International Rice ...
A manual of rice seed health testing - IRRI books - International Rice ...
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CHAPTER 1<br />
<strong>Rice</strong> <strong>seed</strong> <strong>health</strong> and quarantine<br />
J.K. Misra, T.W. Mew, and S.D. Merca<br />
What is <strong>seed</strong><br />
The term <strong>seed</strong> connotes both immature<br />
and mature fertilized ovules,<br />
and <strong>rice</strong> <strong>seed</strong> generally refers to the<br />
whole fruit (caryopsis). However, for<br />
purposes <strong>of</strong> this <strong>manual</strong>, <strong>seed</strong> will<br />
refer specifically to mature ovules<br />
that contain an embryo, and <strong>rice</strong><br />
<strong>seed</strong> will refer only to the <strong>rice</strong> grain.<br />
Seed history<br />
Seed, the germ <strong>of</strong> life, has received<br />
worldwide attention due to global<br />
agricultural cooperation and the increasing<br />
need to develop good, highyielding<br />
food plants. Good <strong>seed</strong>s are<br />
essential to good crop production.<br />
They are today’s treasure and the<br />
hope for feeding future generations.<br />
Our nomadic ancestors gathered<br />
<strong>seed</strong>s. Neolithic farmers planted and<br />
cultivated food crops. They<br />
selectively collected <strong>seed</strong>s <strong>of</strong> plants<br />
that suited their environments. They<br />
brought <strong>seed</strong>s when they moved.<br />
Thus, they helped spread crop plants<br />
to different parts <strong>of</strong> the world.<br />
Agriculture and animal<br />
husbandry diffused from centers in<br />
the Middle East and Asia to other<br />
parts <strong>of</strong> the world. Beginning in the<br />
17th century, people brought cereal<br />
crops to the New World. Europeans<br />
returned home with maize acquired<br />
in Mexico. Numerous American<br />
crops were moved through Europe<br />
to Asia, while Asiatic and European<br />
crops were introduced into the<br />
Americas.<br />
Farmers and enthusiastic plant<br />
lovers initiated plant and <strong>seed</strong><br />
selection. During the late 19th and<br />
early 20th centuries, scientists<br />
followed suit.<br />
Seed exchange<br />
Since its inception, <strong>IRRI</strong> has been<br />
conscious <strong>of</strong> the need for a <strong>rice</strong><br />
genebank large enough to permit<br />
crop improvement. As <strong>of</strong> 1990, <strong>IRRI</strong><br />
had collected and conserved about<br />
82,000 varieties <strong>of</strong> <strong>rice</strong>. This huge<br />
collection was achieved through the<br />
efforts <strong>of</strong> <strong>IRRI</strong> scientists with the<br />
collaboration <strong>of</strong> and donations by<br />
many national centers.<br />
Samples are cared for by the<br />
<strong>International</strong> <strong>Rice</strong> Germplasm<br />
Center (IRGC). IRGC sends out as<br />
many <strong>seed</strong> samples as it receives.<br />
IRGC multiplies incoming samples<br />
and conserves the germplasm to<br />
meet an ever-increasing demand<br />
from researchers the world over.<br />
Other <strong>IRRI</strong> divisions and<br />
programs, such as Plant Breeding,<br />
Genetics, and Biochemistry; Plant<br />
Pathology; Entomology; Agronomy,<br />
Plant Physiology, and Agroecology;<br />
and the <strong>International</strong> Network for<br />
Genetic Evaluation <strong>of</strong> <strong>Rice</strong> (INGER,<br />
formerly IRTP), also disseminate<br />
germplasm. The Plant Breeding,<br />
Genetics, and Biochemistry Division<br />
multiplies improved <strong>rice</strong> germplasm<br />
in various stages <strong>of</strong> development<br />
and disseminates them among<br />
researchers and farmers. The<br />
divisions sent 1, 411, 261 <strong>seed</strong> packets<br />
<strong>of</strong> breeding materials to 87 countries<br />
from 1983 through 1990. Seed<br />
movement to collaborative countries<br />
was boosted further by the<br />
introduction <strong>of</strong> shuttle breeding<br />
projects for better germplasm.<br />
Since its inception in 1975, INGER<br />
has undertaken a vigorous, farreaching<br />
<strong>seed</strong> exchange program to<br />
evaluate different germplasms under<br />
varying <strong>rice</strong>-growing environments<br />
around the world. Through this program,<br />
<strong>IRRI</strong> has worked with more<br />
than 800 <strong>rice</strong> scientists from 75 countries<br />
in Asia, Latin America, Africa,<br />
North America, Europe, and Oceania<br />
(Seshu 1985). Seventy-five percent <strong>of</strong><br />
INGER’s outgoing nursery varieties<br />
are tested in Asia. Thus, INGER has<br />
proved an effective link through<br />
<strong>seed</strong> exchanges among regional, national,<br />
and international scientists.<br />
INGER’s activities will increase in<br />
the future (Chang et al 1988).<br />
The importance <strong>of</strong> <strong>seed</strong><br />
<strong>health</strong><br />
Seed <strong>health</strong> refers primarily to the<br />
presence or absence <strong>of</strong> disease-causing<br />
organisms such as fungi, nematodes,<br />
bacteria, viruses, and insects.<br />
Physiological conditions such as<br />
trace element deficiency may also<br />
affect <strong>health</strong> (ISTA 1985).<br />
Seed <strong>health</strong> is crucial to crop<br />
production. Seed is an important<br />
exchange material for farming, <strong>seed</strong><br />
production, and research at national,<br />
regional, and international levels. At<br />
the international level, <strong>seed</strong><br />
exchanges help create new varieties<br />
<strong>of</strong> crops and materials for research.<br />
With the exchanges comes the<br />
danger <strong>of</strong> introducing pests and<br />
pathogens. These hazards may<br />
accompany, adhere to, or be inside<br />
the exchange material.<br />
Safeguards are needed to stop the<br />
spread <strong>of</strong> pests and pathogens while<br />
allowing safe, uninterrupted <strong>seed</strong><br />
movement. The safeguards include<br />
rules, regulations, import permits,<br />
phytosanitary certificates,<br />
inspections, treatments, isolation,<br />
passage through quarantine<br />
greenhouses, <strong>seed</strong> <strong>health</strong> <strong>testing</strong>,<br />
and other measures which have been<br />
adopted at national and interna-