Chemical Seed Priming as a Simple Technique to Impart Cold and Salt Stress Tolerance in Capsicum

Yadav, Patade Vikas; Kumari, Maya; Ahmed, Zakwan

Chemical Seed Priming as a Simple Technique to Impart Cold and Salt Stress Tolerance in Capsicum

2011

Yadav, Patade Vikas | Kumari, Maya | Ahmed, Zakwan

Seed priming is a pre-germination strategy that improves seed performance and overcomes the negative effects associated with stress exposure. Seeds of capsicum (Capsicum annuum L.) cv. California Wonder were primed with warm water (WW, 40°C); CuSO₄ (CU, 5mM), potassium nitrate (PN, 300 mM), and polyethylene glycol, PEG-6000 (PG, 16.7 mM), along with hydropriming (NW) and unsoaked (US) control to study the effect of seed priming. The seed priming significantly increased the rate as well as percentage of seed germination. Further, survival response of the seedlings obtained from primed seeds was better than the control on subsequent exposure to salt (NaCl 200 mM) or cold (4°C) stress for 10 days. All the plants obtained from potassium nitrate-primed seeds survived the salt-stress exposure, whereas those obtained from PEG-primed seeds tolerated both the cold and salt stresses. The control seedlings did not survive exposure to either stress. In addition, the growth performance of the plants obtained from primed seeds was better than control, suggesting chemical seed priming was a cost-effective and eco-friendly approach for developing cold or salt-stress tolerance in capsicum.

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