THE EFFECTS OF OSMOTIC SEED PRIMING AND THE TIMING OF WATER AVAILABILITY IN THE SEEDBED ON THE PREDICTABILITY OF CARROT SEEDLING ESTABLISHMENT IN THE FIELD

Seedling emergence from untreated and primed carrot seeds was compared in 37 seedbed environments.
Mean seedling emergence over all seedbed environments was higher, earlier and more uniform from primed seeds than from untreated seeds.
However, the timing and uniformity of seedling emergence across environments was no more predictable from primed seeds than that from untreated seeds, although the variation in percentage emergence was reduced by priming.
It is suggested that much of the variation in seedling emergence from both primed and untreated seeds is due to the timing of water availability in the seedbed.
The use of thermal time to estimate the progress of seed germination in the soil and therefore target irrigation for greatest effect is discussed in relation to reducing the variability of seedling emergence.

VI Symposium on the Timing of Field Production of Vegetables

W.E. Finch-Savage

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1990.267.26