Embryonic reaction to sodium biselenite as a test of seed vitality
1947
Johnson, L.P.V.
1. The sodium biselenite method of seed testing as stated by Eidmann, with the presoaking step modified to involve 16 hours presoaking and 8 hours aeration, proved generally satisfactory on seeds of a wide range of agricultural plants. 2. As a prerequisite to the first, use of the method on a particular species, the relation between biselenite reaction on the one hand and seed germinability and seedling vitality on the other should be studied, and any necessary adjustments made in procedure or definition of reaction classes. 3. The biselenite test, suitably adjusted, may be used as an alternative for the standard seed germination test. It would have the advantage of being quicker, the saving in time varying from 4 to 12 days in readily germinable seeds to perhaps several months in seeds which require a period of after-ripening, assuming that the biselenite test could be made early in the after-ripening period. When perfected, the biselenite test might prove more accurate for certain purposes than the germination test. 4. The method, suitably adjusted, has possibilities for use in evaluating the potential seedling vitality of germinable seeds. It is possible, for example, to grade a lot of seed into a number of seed (or seedling) vitality classes. This would have an application in investigational work, for example, in evaluating the relative effects on seed vitality produced by a series of different storage conditions.
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