This study was undertaken to determine the storability of pre-treated sesame seeds and to compare the effects of inorganic and organic seed treatments on the viability and vigour of sesame seeds during storage. Two hundred grammes of sesame seeds were treated separately with recommended dosages of Neem leaf powder (NLP), Dress force powder (DFP), Dry pepper powder (DPP) and untreated seeds being the control; each treatment placed in air-tight container and stored in a wooden cabinet at average ambient conditions of 26.5°C and 80% RH for a period of 18 weeks. Completely randomized design was used for the experiment, with storage time and seed treatment as factors. Samples were drawn from storage at interval of two weeks and tested for seed viability and seedling vigour. Seed germination, seedling vigour index, speed of germination and rate of germination were evaluated. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was carried out on the data collected, and treatment means were separated using Duncan's Multiple Range Tests (DMRT). Correlation analysis was also carried out to ascertain the kinds of relationships that exist among the variables evaluated. Observations showed that NLP and DPP treatments had better mean seed germination of 89.53% and 82.35% respectively compared to DFP (46.47%) and control (80.76). NLP also enhanced better seedling vigour index (339.24) throughout the strorage time compared to DFP (99.74). It is therefore recommended that natural botanicals like NLP could be adopted for short and medium term storage of sesame seeds; as it maintaned seed viability and seedling vigour optimally among other treatments.
Seed size is a trait of the plant that affects seed germination and seedling survival. This study aims to assess the growth response of J. curcas to different seed sizes. A pot experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of J. curcas seed sizes on the seedling vigour and seed component. The seeds were fractioned into three sizes visually into: large, medium and small and by 1000 seeds weight (SW). Seedling vigour was assessed by: germination % (G%), seedling length cm (SL), seedling vigour index, SVI, seedling growth rate, SGR, and speed of germination, SOG as well as proportion of cake, shell and oil content (OC) expressed as% of the seed. Results obtained shows that G% and the SOG were not affected by seed sizes but by other factors within the seed. However, seedling vigour expressed as SL, SVI and SGR increased significantly (P ≤ 0.05) with increase in seed sizes. Proportion of cake, shell and oil component of J. curcas seeds increased with increasing seed sizes while 60% of the seed is made up of the cake from where the oil is extracted. Dry matter yield, DMY significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased with increase in seed size from 6.41 g/plant in large seeds to 2.61 g/plant in small seeds. There is positive and strong significant correlation between, SW and DMY (r = 0.91**), yield increase (r = 0.82**), OC (r = 0.85**), % cake (r = 0.94**). Findings revealed that larger seed had higher potential of producing vigorous plants with eventual high crop yield and higher OC.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.