Viability and Seed Treatment of Flax¹

Abstract

H IGH germinating power of the seed is one among several important factors in obtaining a good stand of flax. The viability of Kansas-grown flaxseed, some of the causes of low germination, and the effect of treating seed on emergence and yield are discussed in this paper. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Landon (I I) 3 stated that good flax seed should have a germination of more than 95%. He stated further that flax seed was more subject to weather damage than wheat or oats, and in some years the weather conditions at the time of ripening may be such that seed of low germination is produced. Dillman and Stoa (5) advised keeping the seed bolls off damp ground after harvest and cautioned that flax intended for seeding purposes should be recleaned before storing, thus removing shriveled and broken seeds, weed seed, and broken stems. Dillman and Toole (6) reported that flax seed of good quality stored under favorable conditions maintained a high degree of viability for IO years or more, but weather-damaged or low-quality seed lost its viability rapidly, beginning with the first year, and in extreme cases was worthless for planting. Seed stored with more than I 1% moisture gave low germination only 6 months after harvest. The variety Linota gave somewhat higher germination than Bison in the tests. Decker and Reitz (3) showed that viability of stored flax declined rapidly moisture and temperature levels were high. Stored with 13% moisture, Linota flax lost its viability completely after 60 days at 86°F but showed only slight decline when stored at 4°0 or 7o°. Lower moisture levels prolonged viability at all temperatures. Dillman (4) found that seeds collected and cured from bolls 9 to 12 days after flowering did not germinate.between blotters in a moist chamber. Those collected at later periods showed germinations of 38% after 15 days, 8o% after 18 days, 9o% after 24 days, and an average of 95% for samples harvested 27 to 36 days after flowering. Robinson (I7) obtained similar results on bulk seed samples from whole plants instead of selected bolls of known-age. Samples taken at weekly intervals, beginning with the full bloom stage, gave germinations of 4.7, 61.3, 82.6, and 89.6%, respectively, indicating the low viability of immature seeds. These samples were cured slowly in the shade while comparable samples cured in the sunlight in a greenhouse germinated o, 7.3, 15.3, and 93.6%, respectively. Fanning the seed sometimes increased the germination lO% or more as a result of removing light weight, underdeveloped seeds. Landon (I 1) explained that low yields of Bison in some of his tests were due low germination of the seed and subsequent poor stands. Davidson and L~ude (2) reported that more Bison seeds were cracked during threshing than was the case with small-seed varieties such as Linota. Bison seed frequently was lower in test weight per bushel than Linota, indicating somewhat poorer development of the seed. Stevens (19) tested I I samples of Bison flax seed showing four types of mechanical injury. His results from soil tests ...

The effect of autoclaving wilt nursery soil on emergence in flax

“…In the non-autoclaved soil, microorganisms would have been present and could have infected the germinating seed, killing the developing seedling. This is consistent with our knowledge of soilborne microorganisms reducing the germination and seedling stands of flax (Reitz et al 1947;Kommedahl et al 1955;Groth et al 1970).…”

Seed colour and linolenic acid effects on agronomic traits in flax

“…Culbertson and Kommedahl (1956), Culbertson et al (1960) and Comstock et al (1963) all found that yellow-seeded lines of flax had lower seed yield but higher oil concentration than brown-seeded lines. Reitz et al (1947) had found that the lower seed yield of yellow-seeded flax was associated with lower seed germination and poor stands. A slight but significantly later maturity for yellow-seeded lines when compared with the brown-seeded lines also was reported by Culbertson et al (1960).…”