Effect of seed priming durations on growth and yield of wheat varieties

Abstract

The results revealed that the crop treated 1.5 hour seed priming proved to be more effective than the treatments with 87.33% seed germination, 88.00 cm plant height, 3.5367 m² number of tillers, 11.611 cm spike length, 49.667 spikelet’s spike^-1, 46.667 grain spike^-1, 1.3011 g grain weight spike^-1, 46.367 g seed index, 17174 kg ha^-1 biological yield, 4322.4 kg ha^-1 grain yield and 38.478% harvest index. Wheat crop given 1 hour seed priming ranked second 82.556% seed germination, 85.00 cm plant height, 350.11 m² number of tillers, 11.37 cm spike length, 47.11 spikelet’s spike^-1, 45.33 grain spike^-1, 1.2789 g grain weight spike^-1, 45.91 g seed index, 11196 kg ha^-1biological yield, 4128.9 kg ha^-1 grain yield and 37.98% harvest index. While, minimum all parameters recorded at control (no priming) such as reduced 69.22% seed germination, 78.11 cm plant height, 285.89 m² number of tillers, 9.413 cm spike length, 36.11 spikelet’s spike^-1, 35.00 grain spike^-1, 0.8089 g grain weight per spike, 39.567 g seed index, 9718 kg ha^-1 biological yield, 3141.1 kg ha^-1 grain yield and 32.786% harvest index. In varieties, the maximum 82.167% seed germination, 101.25 cm plant height, 347.00 m² number of tillers, 11.834 cm spike length, 44.917 spikelet’s spike^-1, 46.750 grain spike^-1, 1.4867 g grain weight spike^-1, 46.900 g seed index, 16335 kg ha^-1 biological yield, 4238.4 kg ha^-1 grain yield, 39.906% harvest index and 1showed by TJ-83. Secondly 80.66% seed germination, 83.75 cm plant height, 325.25 m² number of tiller, 10.543 cm spike length, 43.900 spikelet’s spike^-1, 37.833 grain spike^-1, 1.4500 g grain weight spike^-1, 44.542 g seed index, 10.676 kg ha^-1 biological yield, 38.67.1 kg ha^-1 grain yield, 39.668%harvest index and showed by Kiran-95. While from interaction point of view, the maximum 91.33% seed germination, 106.00 cm plant height, 365.00 m² numbers of tillers, 12.800 cm spike length, 54.00 spikelet’s spike^-1, 52.00 grain spike^-1, 1.4867g grain weight spike^-1, 51.900 g seed index, 34227 kg ha^-1 biological yield, 4903.3 kg ha^-1 grain yield, 43.370% harvest index and showed by 1.5 hour priming x Kiran-95.