Effect of Zinc and Boron Foliar Application on Maternal Plant and Seed Enrichment on Vigor and Germination Indices of Sesame (Sesamum indicum cv. Darab 1)

Micronutrients play a great role in the production of high quality seeds, especially in terms of germination. Therefore, providing seeds with sufficient amounts of these is an important consideration in seed production. The present study was conducted as two separate experiments in the Seed Laboratory of Yasouj University in 2015. In the first experiment, the sesame seeds (cv. Darab 1) obtained from a previous split plot experiment based on RCBD, consisting of three irrigation levels (after 75, 110 and 145 mm evaporation from class A pan) and four foliar applications comprising water, zinc sulfate, boric acid and mixture of zinc sulfate and boric acid, were investigated in germination experiments in the minimum temperature (i.e., 15°C). The second experiment was a factorial based on RCD with three replications. The first factor in the eight levels included seeds soaked in water, ZnSo4, H3Bo3 and ZnSo4 + H3Bo3 and seeds with high contents of Zn (159 m Kg-1), B (15.3 m Kg-1) and Zn (139.5 m Kg-1)+ B (14 m Kg-1) and dry see as the control. The second factor was accelerated aging periods at three levels (0, 2 and 4 days) at 45°c and RH = 100%. The results showed that with a delay in irrigation time, compared with water foliar application, foliar application of micronutrients (Zn, B, Zn+B), and significantly increased germination traits. The results also suggested that, compared with seeds soaked in nutrients, seeds with high Zn and B contents significantly increased germination indices and antioxidant (catalase and peroxidase) activities, especially under accelerated seed aging. Highlights:  The role of maternal sesame plant (cv. Darab 1) foliar application by zinc and boron elements in germination, vigour and storage capability of seeds was studied. The effect of seeds soaked in solutions enriched with zinc and boron elements on germination, vigour and storage capability of seeds was examined.