For nutritional security, the availability of nutrients from food sources is a crucial factor. Global consumption of edible seeds including cereals, pulses, and legumes makes it a valuable source of nutrients particularly vitamins, minerals, and fiber. The presence of anti-nutritional factors forms complexes with nutrients, this complexity of the nutritional profile and the presence of anti-nutritional factors in edible seeds lead to reduced bioavailability of nutrients. By overcoming these issues, the germination process may help improve the nutrient profile and make them more bioavailable. Physical, physiological, and biological methods of seed invigoration can be used to reduce germination restraints, promote germination, enhance early crop development, to increase yields and nutrient levels through sprouting. During sprouting early start of metabolic activities through hydrolytic enzymes and resource mobilization causes a reduction in emergence time which leads to a better nutritional profile. The use of physical stimulating methods to increase the sprouting rate gives several advantages compared to conventional chemical-based methods. The advantages of physical seed treatments include environment-friendly, high germination rate, early seedling emergence, uniform seedling vigor, protection from chemical hazards, and improved yield. Different physical methods are available for seed invigoration viz. gamma irradiation, laser irradiation, microwaves, magnetic field, plasma, sound waves, and ultrasonic waves. Still, further research is needed to apply each technique to different seeds to identify the best physical method and factors for seed species along with different environmental parameters. The present review will describe the use and effects of physical processing techniques for seed invigoration.

【Objective】The study was performed to explore the germination characteristics of Passiflora edulia Sims seeds in order to lay a foundation for seed seedling raising and seed germination and character observation of hybrid offspring of P. edulia.【Method】P. edulia seeds were used as experimental materials to study the effects of different water temperatures (25, 45, 65, 85, 100 ℃), time of soaking in concentrated sulfuric acid (0, 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 8, 10 and 15 min), gibberellin concentrations (0, 200, 400 and 800 mg/L), culture temperatures (18, 28, 35, 18-28, 28-35 ℃), seed shells and different physical treatment methods (acupuncture and sanding) on seed germination of P. edulia. Taking germination rate, germination potential and germination index as test indexes, different germination conditions were evaluated to determine the suitable ones for seed germination.【Result】The germination rate of P. edulia seeds soaked in 65℃ warm water for 24 h was the highest (57.78%). The optimum soaking time in concentrated sulfuric acid was 8 min, the germination rate, germination potential and germination index were 77.38%, 77.38% and 3.39%, respectively. The germination rate was 81.11% when the soaking concentration of gibberellin was 400 mg/L. The optimum culture temperature for germination was 28-35℃, and the germination rate was 64.44%. The seed germination rate of P. edulia was 76.67%. There was no significant difference in seed germination between physical treatment and acupuncture treatment, but acupuncture was not well controlled and easy to hurt seed embryo. Grinding treatment was the best, and the germination rate was 60%.【Conclusion】The seeds of P. edulia are suitable to be soaked in 65℃ warm water for 24 h or soaked in concentrated sulfuric acid for 8 min for 24 h; The seed germination rate can be effectively improved by grinding treatment or soaking in 400 mg/L gibberellin for 24 h. The suitable germination culture temperature is 28-35℃.

The physical characteristics of the fruits are of great importance for the identification and selection of superior genetic materials, appropriate for commercialization or industrial use. Given the above, the objective was to physically characterize the araticum fruit and to verify the influence of accessions and fruit region under seed germination. The work was developed at Unioeste, Marechal Cândido Rondon Campus (PR), and conducted at the University Laboratory of Post-Harvest Technology. Ripe fruits of araticum (Annona sylvatica) were collected from four native plants (accessions A1, A 2, A3, and A4) at the Experimental Farm of the University in February 2019. As for the physical evaluation of the fruits, four repetitions of 10 randomly chosen ripe fruits per access were evaluated. The longitudinal diameter, transversal diameter, fruit biomass, epicarp biomass, fruit pulp, number of seeds, and mass of 100 seeds were the characteristics evaluated. The experimental design used for the germination test was completely randomized, in a factorial scheme 4 x 2 [4 accessions (A1, A2, A3, and A4) x 2 regions of the fruit (proximal and distal) in 500 mg L-1 of acid gibberellic (GA3)], containing 4 repetitions and 25 seeds per repetition. The evaluations were carried out from the 15th day of the experiment setup until 105 days. The characteristics evaluated were: first germination count (%), germination percentage (%), germination speed index, and average germination time (days). The fruits had an average biomass of 63.41 g, an average of 38 seeds per fruit, and fruit pulp with an average of 39.63 g. The germination of araticum seeds was not influenced by the accessions and fruit region. | The physical characteristics of the fruits are of great importance for the identification and selection of superior genetic materials, appropriate for commercialization or industrial use. Given the above, the objective was to physically characterize the araticum fruit and to verify the influence of accessions and fruit region under seed germination. The work was developed at Unioeste, Marechal Cândido Rondon Campus (PR), and conducted at the University Laboratory of Post-Harvest Technology. Ripe fruits of araticum (Annona sylvatica) were collected from four native plants (accessions A1, A 2, A3, and A4) at the Experimental Farm of the University in February 2019. As for the physical evaluation of the fruits, four repetitions of 10 randomly chosen ripe fruits per access were evaluated. The longitudinal diameter, transversal diameter, fruit biomass, epicarp biomass, fruit pulp, number of seeds, and mass of 100 seeds were the characteristics evaluated. The experimental design used for the germination test was completely randomized, in a factorial scheme 4 x 2 [4 accessions (A1, A2, A3, and A4) x 2 regions of the fruit (proximal and distal) in 500 mg L-1 of acid gibberellic (GA3)], containing 4 repetitions and 25 seeds per repetition. The evaluations were carried out from the 15th day of the experiment setup until 105 days. The characteristics evaluated were: first germination count (%), germination percentage (%), germination speed index, and average germination time (days). The fruits had an average biomass of 63.41 g, an average of 38 seeds per fruit, and fruit pulp with an average of 39.63 g. The germination of araticum seeds was not influenced by the accessions and fruit region.

In a climate change scenario, global forest loss had a direct impact on the hydrological cycle, making the protection of soil and water resources a central issue. In the Central Andes of western Argentina, information on Chacay (Ochetophila trinervis) mountain forests is scarce. This tree thrives along river and stream banks, fixes atmospheric nitrogen, and grows in impoverished soils. The seeds of O. trinervis are characterized by physical or physiological dormancy, and germination requires technique application. The main goal was to evaluate the effect of mechanical and chemical scarification, cold stratification, and hot water immersion on the final germination percentage, germination speed index, and the mean germination time of O. trinervis seeds. Our results show that mechanical and chemical scarification are the treatments that best inhibit seed dormancy in this species. Mechanical scarification with sandpaper is the treatment that offers a balance between effective results and an easy-to-apply technique. Sulfuric acid (SA) treatment is also efficient in breaking dormancy, but we recommend applying it under extreme careful laboratory conditions. Highlitghs:  Our findings support the hypothesis that the seeds of O. trinervis show physical dormancy because either mechanical (M) or chemical scarification (SA) techniques achieved the highest germination values. Our results indicate that mechanical scarification (M) might be a practical option for O. trinervis seedling germination in the Central Andes of Western Argentina. Sulfuric acid (SA) treatment is also efficient in breaking dormancy, but we recommend applying it under extreme careful laboratory conditions. | In a climate change scenario, global forest loss had a direct impact on the hydrological cycle, making the protection of soil and water resources a central issue. In the Central Andes of western Argentina, information on Chacay (Ochetophila trinervis) mountain forests is scarce. This tree thrives along river and stream banks, fixes atmospheric nitrogen, and grows in impoverished soils. The seeds of O. trinervis are characterized by physical or physiological dormancy, and germination requires technique application. The main goal was to evaluate the effect of mechanical and chemical scarification, cold stratification, and hot water immersion on the final germination percentage, germination speed index, and the mean germination time of O. trinervis seeds. Our results show that mechanical and chemical scarification are the treatments that best inhibit seed dormancy in this species. Mechanical scarification with sandpaper is the treatment that offers a balance between effective results and an easy-to-apply technique. Sulfuric acid (SA) treatment is also efficient in breaking dormancy, but we recommend applying it under extreme careful laboratory conditions. Highlitghs:  Our findings support the hypothesis that the seeds of O. trinervis show physical dormancy because either mechanical (M) or chemical scarification (SA) techniques achieved the highest germination values. Our results indicate that mechanical scarification (M) might be a practical option for O. trinervis seedling germination in the Central Andes of Western Argentina. Sulfuric acid (SA) treatment is also efficient in breaking dormancy, but we recommend applying it under extreme careful laboratory conditions.

In this study, the aim was to determine some physical and chemical properties of the seeds of Peganum harmala, known as rue or harmel, and to determine the effects of some implementations to break the seed dormancy. The mean length, width, thickness, and surface area values for the P. harmala seeds were 4.78 mm, 1.81 mm, 1.53 mm, and 14.14 mm², respectively. Linked to the dimensions, the arithmetic mean diameter, geometric mean diameter, and sphericity values were calculated as 2.71 mm, 2.34 mm, and 0.50. The bulk density and true density values were measured as 0.5379 and 1.015 g cm⁻³, respectively, and the porosity value calculated linked to these values was 46.98%. The static friction angles on two different surfaces of galvanized metal and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) were measured as 15.67° and 17.67°, and the static friction coefficient values linked to these angles were 0.28 for galvanized metal and 0.32 for PVC. Terminal velocity experiments determined the velocity for P. harmala seeds was 5.03 ms⁻¹. According to analysis results for the chemical structure of P. harmala, dry matter ratio was 89.7%, crude ash ratio was 11.0%, crude protein was 10.3%, crude fiber was 42.0%, and crude oil ratio was 10.8%. In seed dormancy studies, the effects of sulfuric acid, precooling, soaking in water, and mechanical scarification (sanding) applications were determined. Accordingly, the most effective method for germination of P. harmala seeds was sanding with 84.0% germination rate. This was followed by soaking in water (78.0%) and 5 min H₂SO₄ (75.0%) applications. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Turkey is a country with a current account deficit in the seed import–export balance. Therefore, the efficient use of seeds in each step of farming and postharvest operations is essential to reduce the seed waste. Determining the engineering properties of seeds will help to provide more efficient systems. The physical properties of seeds are important to design, develop, and adjustment of planters, storage structures, transporting systems, and postharvest systems. Chemical properties are essential to determine the optimum storage conditions and postharvest chemical processes for optimum utilization of seeds as foods or as raw materials for medicinal and industrial purposes. Seed dormancy‐breaking features will be useful to determine optimum presowing conditions and breeding conditions of the seeds.