Seed priming to improve germination and seedling growth of ...

EurAsian Journal of BioSciences 6: 76-84 (2012)
Germination experiment was conducted in the
laboratory of High Institute of Agriculture Chatt
Mariem, Tunisia. Safflower seeds were primed with 5
g/L NaCl and KCl solutions for 12 and 24 h
respectively, at 20°C. After priming, seeds were
washed with distilled water and than left to dry in air
between two filter papers. Primed and non-primed
seeds were placed in 9 cm petri dishes on a layer of
filter paper (Whatman # 41). Twenty seeds were
placed in each Petri dish. Petri dishes were irrigated
with five different saline solutions consisted of 0, 5,
10, 15 and 20 g/L concentrations of NaCl. The Petri
dishes were placed in germinator at 20°C. The
experiment was a factorial with two factors which
are salinity at 5 levels (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 g/L) and
priming with 3 levels (non primed seeds (control),
NaCl priming, KCl priming), arranged in a completely
randomized design with five replications and 20
seeds per replicate. Seed germination was recorded
daily up to day 7 after the start of the experiment. A
seed was considered germinated when the radicle
emerged by about 2 mm in length.
Parameters measured in this experiment were:
• Total germination (TG) measured in the seventh
day using the formula TG (%)= (total number of
germinated seeds/ total seed) x 100.
• Mean germination time (MGT) calculated
according the formula of Ellis and Roberts (1981).
MGT= ∑ (ni/di). With ni: number of germinated seeds
and di: day of counting.
• Germination index (GI) according to the
equation of Kader and Jutzi (2004). GI= ∑(TiNi). Ti:
number of day after sowing and Ni: number of
germinated seeds in the day.
• Coefficient of velocity (CV)= (number of
germinated seeds per day) according to Kader and
Jutzi (2004) formula. CV= (∑Ni /100) x (∑ Ti Ni).
• Seedling length (SL) in (mm), Radicle length (RL)
in (mm), Seedling fresh weight (SFW), Seedling dry
weight (SDW). Seedling dry weight was determined
after placing seedlings, after the 7th day, in oven to
dry at 70°C for 48 h.
• Vigour Index (VI) using the formula of Abdul-
Baki and Anderson (1970). VI= [TG (%) x seedlings
length (mm)]/100.
77
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Elouaer and Hannachi
All the data were subjected to an analysis of
variance, using SPSS 13.0 software and the
difference between means were compared by
Duncan tests (P