seeds Seed priming to improve viability

[j.t.delaney]

As a function of mass, seeds are easily the most value-concentrated stage of a plant's life; you can always clone afterwards, but each seed represents a unique genome for a particular breeding; the more that are successfully carried over to the next generation, the better preserved that strain will be going forward. Anything you can do to improve the seed viability is a big asset. So, the question is: what can be done to ensure that you get as many of your precious seeds to sprout?

In the case of seeds I bring back from my trips, I try DAMN hard to make every last one count.

Peppers are a popular test subject for exactly these kinds of things, and so there's a lot of literature out there. Aside from temperature, there are some other things that can be done to enhance yields. One such thing is osmotic priming (a.k.a. "osmopriming"), where the seeds are treated with a solution containing a solute such as mannitol, inorganic salts [e.g. KNO[sub]3[/sub], KCL, Ca(NO[sub]3[/sub])[sub]2[/sub], etc.], though large hydrophilic molecules such as polyethylene glycol (PEG; 6,000-8,000 mol. wt.) are the preferred material these days. Another approach is to use a hormone like gibberelic acid (GA3), a.k.a. "matripriming".

To get things going, I've included a list of the articles I've found on the topic. Most are capsicum-related, though a couple ancillary ones are in there, too. I've included doi links where I have them in my notes; the Brazilian ones are also mostly open-access, so if you look them up, you should get them easily through google scholar.

[1] D. J. Cantliffe, J. T. Watkins, Proc. Fla. State Hortic. Soc. 1984, 96, 99.
[2] P. T. Smith, B. G. Cobb, Physiol. Plant. 1991, 82, 433, doi: 10.1111/j.1399-3054.1991.tb02929.x.
[3] P. T. Smith, B. G. Cobb, HortScience 1991, 26, 417.
[4] P. J. Stoffella, M. L. Dipaola, A. Pardossi, F. Tognoni, HortScience 1992, 27, 214.
[5] S. Lanteri, H. L. Kraak, V. C. H. R. De, R. J. Bino, Physiol. Plant. 1993, 89, 433, doi: 10.1111/j.1399-3054.1993.tb05195.x.
[6] C. Andreoli, A. A. Khan, Pesquisa Agropecuaria Brasileira 1999, 34, 1953.
[7] J. Buitink, M. A. Hemminga, F. A. Hoekstra, Plant Physiology 2000, 122, 1217.
[8] A. A. Powell, L. J. Yule, H. C. Jing, S. P. C. Groot, R. J. Bino, H. W. Pritchard, J. Exp. Bot. 2000, 51, 2031.
[9] H. Jeller, S. Perez, Pesquisa Agropecuaria Brasileira 2003, 38, 1025.
[10] A. Korkmaz, HortScience 2005, 40, 197.
[11] S. Basay, N. Surmeli, G. Okcu, I. Demir, Acta Agric. Scand., Sect. B 2006, 56, 138, doi: 10.1080/09064710510029231.
[12] K. J. Bradford, D. Come, F. Corbineau, Seed Sci. Res. 2007, 17, 33, doi: 10.1017/s0960258507657389.
[13] E. Cortez-Baheza, F. Peraza-Luna, M. I. Hernandez-Alvarez, G. A. Aguado-Santacruz, I. Torres-Pacheco, M. M. Gonzalez-Chavira, L. Guevara-Olvera, R. G. Guevara-Gonzalez, American Journal of Plant Physiology 2007, 2, 99, doi: 10.3923/ajpp.2007.99.106
[14] H. A. Khan, M. A. Pervez, C. M. Ayub, K. Ziaf, R. M. Balal, M. A. Shahid, N. Akhtar, Soil Environ. (Faisalabad, Pak.) 2009, 28, 130.
[15] A. Korkmaz, Y. Korkmaz, Scientia Horticulturae 2009, 119, 98, doi: 10.1016/j.scienta.2008.07.016.
[16] M. M. Posmyk, M. Balabusta, M. Wieczorek, E. Sliwinska, K. M. Janas, Journal of Pineal Research 2009, 46, 214, doi: 10.1111/j.1600-079X.2008.00652.x.
[17] E. Sliwinska, Seed Science Research 2009, 19, 15, doi: 10.1017/s0960258508186275.
[18] G. Hacisalihoglu, J. White, Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica Section B-Soil and Plant Science 2010, 60, 335, doi: 10.1080/09064710902998077.
[19] G. Kaya, I. Demir, A. Tekin, F. Yasar, K. Demir, Tarim Bilimleri Dergisi-Journal of Agricultural Sciences 2010, 16, 9.
[20] C. Sato, N. Oka, K. Nabeta, H. Matsuura, Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 2011, 75, 761, doi: 10.1271/bbb.100485.

I'm going to try some things out with PEG, and keep you posted.

Cheers,

-j.t.delaney

 

[Bootsieb]

As a function of mass, seeds are easily the most value-concentrated stage of a plant's life; you can always clone afterwards, but each seed represents a unique genome for a particular breeding; the more that are successfully carried over to the next generation, the better preserved that strain will be going forward. Anything you can do to improve the seed viability is a big asset. So, the question is: what can be done to ensure that you get as many of your precious seeds to sprout?

In the case of seeds I bring back from my trips, I try DAMN hard to make every last one count.

Peppers are a popular test subject for exactly these kinds of things, and so there's a lot of literature out there. Aside from temperature, there are some other things that can be done to enhance yields. One such thing is osmotic priming (a.k.a. "osmopriming"), where the seeds are treated with a solution containing a solute such as mannitol, inorganic salts [e.g. KNO[sub]3[/sub], KCL, Ca(NO[sub]3[/sub])[sub]2[/sub], etc.], though large hydrophilic molecules such as polyethylene glycol (PEG; 6,000-8,000 mol. wt.) are the preferred material these days. Another approach is to use a hormone like gibberelic acid (GA3), a.k.a. "matripriming".

To get things going, I've included a list of the articles I've found on the topic. Most are capsicum-related, though a couple ancillary ones are in there, too. I've included doi links where I have them in my notes; the Brazilian ones are also mostly open-access, so if you look them up, you should get them easily through google scholar.

[1] D. J. Cantliffe, J. T. Watkins, Proc. Fla. State Hortic. Soc. 1984, 96, 99.
[2] P. T. Smith, B. G. Cobb, Physiol. Plant. 1991, 82, 433, doi: 10.1111/j.1399-3054.1991.tb02929.x.
[3] P. T. Smith, B. G. Cobb, HortScience 1991, 26, 417.
[4] P. J. Stoffella, M. L. Dipaola, A. Pardossi, F. Tognoni, HortScience 1992, 27, 214.
[5] S. Lanteri, H. L. Kraak, V. C. H. R. De, R. J. Bino, Physiol. Plant. 1993, 89, 433, doi: 10.1111/j.1399-3054.1993.tb05195.x.
[6] C. Andreoli, A. A. Khan, Pesquisa Agropecuaria Brasileira 1999, 34, 1953.
[7] J. Buitink, M. A. Hemminga, F. A. Hoekstra, Plant Physiology 2000, 122, 1217.
[8] A. A. Powell, L. J. Yule, H. C. Jing, S. P. C. Groot, R. J. Bino, H. W. Pritchard, J. Exp. Bot. 2000, 51, 2031.
[9] H. Jeller, S. Perez, Pesquisa Agropecuaria Brasileira 2003, 38, 1025.
[10] A. Korkmaz, HortScience 2005, 40, 197.
[11] S. Basay, N. Surmeli, G. Okcu, I. Demir, Acta Agric. Scand., Sect. B 2006, 56, 138, doi: 10.1080/09064710510029231.
[12] K. J. Bradford, D. Come, F. Corbineau, Seed Sci. Res. 2007, 17, 33, doi: 10.1017/s0960258507657389.
[13] E. Cortez-Baheza, F. Peraza-Luna, M. I. Hernandez-Alvarez, G. A. Aguado-Santacruz, I. Torres-Pacheco, M. M. Gonzalez-Chavira, L. Guevara-Olvera, R. G. Guevara-Gonzalez, American Journal of Plant Physiology 2007, 2, 99, doi: 10.3923/ajpp.2007.99.106
[14] H. A. Khan, M. A. Pervez, C. M. Ayub, K. Ziaf, R. M. Balal, M. A. Shahid, N. Akhtar, Soil Environ. (Faisalabad, Pak.) 2009, 28, 130.
[15] A. Korkmaz, Y. Korkmaz, Scientia Horticulturae 2009, 119, 98, doi: 10.1016/j.scienta.2008.07.016.
[16] M. M. Posmyk, M. Balabusta, M. Wieczorek, E. Sliwinska, K. M. Janas, Journal of Pineal Research 2009, 46, 214, doi: 10.1111/j.1600-079X.2008.00652.x.
[17] E. Sliwinska, Seed Science Research 2009, 19, 15, doi: 10.1017/s0960258508186275.
[18] G. Hacisalihoglu, J. White, Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica Section B-Soil and Plant Science 2010, 60, 335, doi: 10.1080/09064710902998077.
[19] G. Kaya, I. Demir, A. Tekin, F. Yasar, K. Demir, Tarim Bilimleri Dergisi-Journal of Agricultural Sciences 2010, 16, 9.
[20] C. Sato, N. Oka, K. Nabeta, H. Matsuura, Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 2011, 75, 761, doi: 10.1271/bbb.100485.

I'm going to try some things out with PEG, and keep you posted.

Cheers,

-j.t.delaney

Good stuff!

 

[hot stuff]

I thought the test with melanonin was the most interesting abstract. I couldn't read the whole articles. Do you know if there was a control batch where the seeds were place in normal germinating trays at the same temperature for the same amount of time as the pre-treated and compared germination rates. IOW, comparing the time of simply putting it in the ground vs. time pre-treating and germination times?

 

[j.t.delaney]

I thought the test with melanonin was the most interesting abstract. I couldn't read the whole articles. Do you know if there was a control batch where the seeds were place in normal germinating trays at the same temperature for the same amount of time as the pre-treated and compared germination rates. IOW, comparing the time of simply putting it in the ground vs. time pre-treating and germination times?

Ah, yes, Posmyk's 2009 study is a good one. He looks at the effects of osmopriming and hydropriming at different solution strengths, AND as a function of temperature. At 25 C, the cucumber seeds had a germination rate of 99%, so any improvement would be difficult to measure without an enormous sample size; however, at suboptimal/stressful conditions, like germinating at 15 C or 10 C, the control germination rates for the same kind of seeds are 30% and 2-4%, respectively. By using his hydropriming and osmopriming protocols, he was able to improve those values to 70% and 78% respectively at 15 C. At 10 C, hydropriming did nothing, but the osmopriming seemed to improve things by over an order of magnitude: from 2-4% to 43%. The salient message is that pre-sowing treatments can dramatically improve your yields with seeds that are stressed, and are worth the effort.

You might want to also check out his previous study on melatonin and hydropriming in 2008:

Posmyk MM, Kuran H, Marciniak K, Janas KM. Presowing seed treatment with melatonin protects red cabbage seedlings against toxic copper ion concentrations. J Pineal Res 2008; 45:24–31. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-079X.2007.00552.x

 

[Smiter Q]

Very detailed post, and probably helpful to many.

But what would help those that did not want to take the industrial chemical route, or wanted to keep it more organic? A liquid seaweed soak? Vinegar? Tea?

I do not know, but was hoping you might.

 

[armac]

I plant my seeds, works well for me. For me this is a hobby. I do it for relaxation not anxiety, adding too much to the equation for me is not good. Nice simple natural growth. Good for the soul and blood pressure.

 

[armac]

I plant my seeds, works well for me. For me this is a hobby. I do it for relaxation not anxiety, adding too much to the equation for me is not good. Nice simple natural growth. Good for the soul and blood pressure.

 

[j.t.delaney]

I plant my seeds, works well for me. For me this is a hobby. I do it for relaxation not anxiety, adding too much to the equation for me is not good. Nice simple natural growth. Good for the soul and blood pressure.

Heh, YMMV. For some of us (after years of labwork), protocols and method development actually are the fun and relaxing part. I feel a deep sense of joy and satisfaction knowing that each step in my process has been tested, that I'm doing things the right way, and I'm giving my plants the best chance at reaching their fullest potential. I love knowing the "why" behind as much of it as I can. In the cases where there isn't a satisfactory & honest "why", a little empirical data as a stopgap will do nicely. It's a little peculiar, but at the end of the day, a lot of us who spend all day working like this won't/don't/can't turn it off completely.

So, why do it? Why go through the effort?

Sometimes, when you know how much work and effort went into a certain batch of seeds, you just don't want to risk losing them. I've gotten seeds shipped directly from the Guyanas, and they looked like pure Hell: discolored, beat up, and many of them cracked. In that case (and others), a lot of work went into them. Phone calls, emails, and money goes into making them show up in my mailbox. After the ordeal they went through, it's clear that probably most of them are dead, with maybe 5 - 10% of them still hanging on by a thread. Multiple people on different continents spent hours to track them down, they probably won't do it again if it isn't successful. It would be the height of wastefulness and arrogance not to treat them as lovingly as possible, and try to save the few that are still struggling to survive.

Likewise, then there are the cases of rare varieties. A lot of varieties are only available in packets of 5 or 10 seeds; if you have to buy them, the exchange rate is often roughly $1/seed. In other cases, they're only available as gifts or trades from other enthusiaists. In these cases, out of common courtesy, you want to avoid a low yield -- if for no other reason than just to save face. If you only get 5-10 seeds, sacrificing a few needlessly really comes at a price.

 

[armac]

That is what works for me. Different strokes for different folks. Carry on.

 

[j.t.delaney]

Very detailed post, and probably helpful to many.

But what would help those that did not want to take the industrial chemical route, or wanted to keep it more organic? A liquid seaweed soak? Vinegar? Tea?

I do not know, but was hoping you might.

Well... maybe. Sort of. I'll do what I can to give you something you can work with.

First thing's first: there is no avoiding "chemicals", period. Everything you eat, tough, taste, smell, and breath in life is chemical. That's the nature of living in a universe made of "stuff", and its not a bad thing.

The distinction is what you consider "natural" and/or "organic". Deionized water as a presowing treatment (a.k.a. "hydropriming") is already consistently demonstrated to improve viability when compared to control samples, and I'm sure you'll be fine with that. Is table salt (NaCl) okay? Then osmopriming (sometimes called halopriming) is another option; at the right concentrations, it works even a bit better, but of all the salts out there, regular table salt is not the best. What about saltpeter? Now we're talking! A little bath of KNO[sub]3[/sub] solution does a great job improving viability of more challenging seeds. Then we got something better still, but still not nearly as good as polyethylene glycol (PEG). PEG is the main ingredient in a wide range of over-the-counter children's laxatives -- this looks to be the best for stuff you'd have at your disposal.

Synthetic and semi-synthetic additives like melatonin, gibberelic acid, and indoleacetic acid can also be helpful, but I'm pretty certain you're not interested in that business.