Longevity of Paddy Seeds as Influenced by Priming with Organic Solutions

Abstract

The present experiment was conducted to evaluatethe longevity of paddy seeds primed with different organic solutions. The seeds of paddy variety Sonamasoori were pre-soaked inwater, coconut water, custard apple leaf extract, cow urine, panchagavya, vermiwashand Trichodermaat different concentrations, either alone or in combination. Among the treatments, seeds primed with 12.5% coconut water + 3% custard apple leaf extract showed significantly superior field emergence (92.8, 86.9 and 70.6 %), seed germination (98.8, 93.7 and 78.9%), speed of germination (27.9, 24.6 and 20.0), seedling length (28.6, 27.1 and 24.1 cm), seedling dry weight (179, 170 and 157 mg), SVI (2819, 2539 and 1905), dehydrogenase activity (0.665, 0.621 and 0.578 OD value), a-amylase activity (12.1, 11.9 and 9.3 mm), lowest seed moisture content (10.8, 10.9 and 11.9) and electrical conductivity (0.164, 0.191 and 0.295 dSm) at initial, 6 and 12 months after storage respectively, which was followed by seeds primed with 12.5% coconut water + 3% panchagavya treatment. Lowest seed quality parameters were recorded in control. From this study, it is concluded that soaking of seeds in 12.5% coconut water + 3% custard apple leaf extract for 16 h improves the longevity of paddy seeds.