Quality Seed Production

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Quality Seed Production of Field Crops and Seed Health & Quality
Research · April 2017

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.28088.55046
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Training Manual
Quality Seed Production of Field Crops

and Seed Health & Quality
Course Director
Ram Kumar Yadav
Course Coordinators
Sher Singh Verma
Surender S Dhankhar
Students’ Councelling & Placement Cell

Directorate of Students’ Welfare
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar
www.hau.ernet.in
2014
Contents
Sr # Topic (s) Author (s) Pages

1 Germination and moisture testing in field crop RPS Kharb 1-7
2 The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Sher Singh Verma 8-17
Rights Act-2001 and Variety Registration
3 Hybrid seed production in sorghum SK Pahuja 18-23
4 Hybrid Seed Production Technology in Cotton RS Sangwan et al 24-26
5 Seed Production Technology in Wheat and Barley IS Panwar 27-30
6 Detection and management of seed borne diseases SS Jakhar 31-39
7 Quality Seed Production in Pulse Crops Axay Bhuker 40-45
8 Storage fungi and their deterioration in seed quality SS Jakhar 46-51
9 Seed Production Technology of Rapeseed-mustard NK Thakral 52-58
10 Maintenance of seed quality during storage Axay Bhuker 59-65
11 Planning and Management of a Seed Production OS Dahiya 66-69
Programme
12 Principles of Seed Production in self and cross RC Punia 70-73
pollinated crops
13 Quality seed production technology in forage crops VP Sangwan 74-80
14 Seed dormancy and its alleviation Sher Singh Verma 81-86
15 Sampling and Physical Purity Analysis for Quality RC Punia 87-91
Testing
16 Seed Formation and Development VS Mor 92-96

17 Seed legislation and certification – A quality OS Dahiya 97-103
control system
18 Seed viability and vigour testing RPS Kharb 104-111
19 Hybrid seed production technology in pearl millet Ramesh Kumar 112-118
GERMINATION AND MOISTURE TESTING IN FIELD CROPS
RPS Kharb
Department of Seed Science and Technology
Seed testing, the science of evaluating the planting value of seed has been developed
to achieve the following objectives for minimizing the risk of planting low quality
seeds:
 To gain information about the field planting value of the seed lot.
 To obtain result that can be used to compare the value of different seed lots.
 To identify the seed quality problems and their probable cause (causes of seed
deterioration).
 To determine the need for drying, processing and specific procedure that
should be used.
 To determine whether seed meets IMSCS or labeling specification.
 Determination of selling price of seeds.
 Predicting storability of seeds.
Important components of seed testing:
 Moisture test
 Germination test
 Physical purity test
 Dormancy test
 Seed Vigour & viability Tests
 Seed health test
 Genetic purity test
MOISTURE TESTING:
From the time of harvest to time of planting, seed moisture varies and if it rises above
certain critical levels for any appreciable time period at any stage there is danger or
undesirable stimulation of physiological processes within the seed with consequent
weakening and loss of seed viability. Knowledge of moisture content, therefore is
needed to decide whether seeds should be dried down before storage or packing. Seed
moisture content can be expressed either on wet weight basis or on dry weight basis
but in seed testing, it is always expressed on a wet weight basis. Moisture content
testing must commence within 24 hours of receipt of the seed as the seed is
hygroscopic in nature. For all crops, seed moisture content should not more than the
prescribed limit given in the IMSCS.
Seed Certification requirement for moisture content in major field crops
Sr.no. Name of crop Ordinary container Vapour proof containers
1 Wheat 12 8
2 Barley 12 8
1
Training on Quality Seed Production of Field Crops &
Seed Health & Quality
3 Paddy 13 8
4 Maize 12 8
5 Sorghum 12 8
6 Bajra 12 8
7 Gram 9 8
8 Lentil 9 8
9 Urd 9 8
10 Pea 9 8
11 Cowpea 9 8
12 Green gram 9 8
13 Pigonpea 9 8
14 Cotton 10 6
15 Rape seed 8 7
&mustard
16 Groundnut 9 5
17 Sunflower 9 7
18 Oat 12 8
19 Guar 9 8
Seed Moisture Analysis Methods:
Weight of submitted sample: Minimum weight of submitted sample for moisture
determination should be 100g for crop that have to be ground and 50 gram for all
other crops.
Working sample size: Five gram working sample should be taken when the
container diameter is less than 8 cm. if container diameter is 8cm or more, 10 gm
sample should be taken in the container.
Seed moisture content can be determined either by air oven or moisture meter.
However, if prescribed standard for moisture content is less than 8%, air oven method
shall be used. The following are the important methods for seed moisture analysis:
1. Director methods
2. Indirect methods
1. Direct/non destructive Method: In this method seeds remain as such
(undamaged) and can be used after test. Although this is quick method but not an
accurate method. Different types of moisture meters are available in the market to
determine the moisture content of the seeds e.g. Universal moisture meter, Steinlite
moisture meter, Digital moisture meter, Infrared moisture meter, Agromatic mark-II,
Koster moisture tester, Farmi-35 grain moisture tester etc.
2
2. Indirect/ destructive Methods: In this method, seeds are damaged (viability

completely lost) and cannot be reutilized. Principle of these methods is the
elimination of water from the sample by heating, drying or chemically treating the
seeds e.g. Karl Fisher method, toluene titration method, phosphorous pentaoxide
method, hot air oven method etc. The officially hot-air oven method is recommended
by ISTA for determining moisture in seed.
Hot-Air Oven Method: The following two methods of hot-air oven methods are
prescribed depending upon the drying temperatures and duration:
A. High constant temperature method: In this method most of the crop
varieties are dried at 130oC±1oC in oven for 1 hour, cereals (2 hours) and
maize (4 hours).
B. Low constant temperature method: The oil containing seeds are dried at
103oC±1oC for 17 hours without grinding.
Some requirements for moisture test:
Grinding: Fine grinding is essential for cereals and cotton before determination of
moisture content of seed. In case of pulses coarse grinding is recommended.
Pre-drying: If the moisture content of the sample to be tested is more than 17% (or
10% in case of soybean & 13% in rice) pre-drying before grinding is necessary.
Desiccators: The desiccators should be of good quality, the edges of the cover & the
main body should have good ground glass joints & good quality grease should be
used on these joints. The bottom compartment should have indicating type silica gel
as a desiccant.
Procedure: weigh the empty container along with its lid (M1). The submitted sample
is ground and thoroughly mixed with a small spoon and 4-5 g of the sample is
weighed in duplicate directly into the container (M2). Set the oven to pre-heat sample
at the required temperature and put the sample in oven for required time period. At
the end of the drying period, the lid is placed on the containers and is allowed to cool
for 30 to 45 minutes in a desiccator and then weighed again (M3). The moisture
content (M) is calculated in percentage to one decimal place by using the following
formula:
M2 - M3
SMC (%), M = x100
M2 - M1
3
Where, M1 = Weight of empty container with lid

M2 = Weight of container with lid and seed before drying, and
M3 = Weight of container with lid and seed after drying and cooling.
Germination Test:
According to Seed Analysts ‘Germination is the emergence and development
from the seed embryo of those essential structures, which indicates the ability of seed
to produce a normal plant under favourable conditions’ (AOSA 1981).
Working sample
Four hundred seeds in replicate of 100, 50 or 25 seeds are taken at random from pure
seed.
General requirements for seed germination: For successful germination, the
requirements are: substrate, adequate moisture and favourable temperature.
Substrate: It serves as moisture reservoir and provides the medium for seeds
germination and the seedlings growth. Substrates are of following three types: paper,
sand and soil.
I. Paper: Paper substrates are: Filter papers, blotters or towels (Craft paper),
Germination paper
II. Sand substrate: All the particles of silica sand should pass through a sieve of 0.05
mm diameter. It should have sufficient water holding capacity, free from toxic
substances and pH between 6.0-7.5. Add 75 ml water to 500 g sand.
Re-use: For re-use, the silica sand should be washed, dried and sterilized again. If
chemical treated seed samples are tested in sand, do not re-use it.
III. Soil substrate: Good quality non-caking soil, free from clods, weed seeds,
bacterial fungi, nematodes or toxic substances and pH should be between 6.0-7.5. It
should allow good aeration for germination, when irrigated. Before the use, soil must
be sterilized and is not recommended for re-use.
Adequate moisture: The mobilization of food requires water for hydrolysis (break
down of reserve food materials in the storage organ) and transport of soluble
materials to growing tissues. Water should be free from organic or inorganic
impurities and pH between 6.0 - 7.5.
Favourable temperature: The seeds of most of agricultural and horticultural, crops
germinate in the temperature range of 10oC - 35oC. Both constant (15, 20, 25, 30oC)
and alternate temperatures (15-20, 20-30 oC) are prescribed by ISTA for germination
testing of different seeds. In general constant temperatures are preferred however,
where alternating temperatures are indicated, the lower temperature should usually be
maintained for 16 hours and the highest for 8 hours. Summer crops are tested at 25-
30oC whereas, winter crops are tested at 20oC. Various types of germinators e.g.
cabinet type, walk-in room germinator are used for maintaining required temperatures
Germination Methods: On the basis of substrate, the following methods are
commonly used for germination test:
(a) Top of paper (TP) method: In this method the seeds are placed directly
on one or more layers of moist filter paper in petridishes. These
petridishes are covered with lid and placed in the germinator cabinet. The
4
relative humidity in the cabinet must then be maintained as close to

saturation to prevent drying out.
(b) Between papers (BP) method: In this the seeds are germinated between
two layers of paper. This may be acehived by loosely covering the seeds
with an additional layer of paper or by placing the seed in rolled level. The
rolls are then placed in side the germination in an upright position.
(c) Sand (S) method: The seeds are planted on a leveled layer of moist sand
and covered with 10-20 mm of uncompressed sand depending on the size
of the seed. The bottom layer of sand is loosened by raking before sowing
to ensure good aeration.
TP Method BP Method S Method

SEEDLINGS EVALUATION
At the end of germination test, the samples are taken out and evaluated and classified
into the following:
a) Normal seedlings:
Seedlings which show the capacity for continued development into normal plants,
when grown in good quality soil and under favorable conditions of water supply,
temperature and light. These are the seedlings which possess all the essential
structures with a well developed root. These can be one of the following categories:
i. Intact seedling: seedling with all their essential structures well developed,
complete in proportion and healthy.
ii. Seedling with slight defects: Seedlings showing certain slight defects of their
essential structures provide they show an otherwise satisfactory and balanced
development comparable to that of intact seedlings at the same test.
iii. Seedling with secondary infection: Seedlings which would have conformed to
(i) or (ii) above, but which have been affected by fungi or bacteria from
sources other than the parent seed.
5
b) Abnormal seedlings:
Abnormal seedlings are those which do not show the capacity for continued
development into normal plants, when grown in good quality soil and under favorable
conditions of water supply, temperature and light. These can be one of the following
categories:
i. Damaged seedlings: These consist of a) Seedlings with no cotyledons. b)
Seedlings with constrictions seedlings with splits, cracks or lesions of the
essential structures. c) Seedlings without a primary root for those species where a
primary root is an essential structure except for large seeded legumes, maize and
all species of Malvaceae and Cucurbitaceae, when several vigorous adventitious
and lateral roots have developed sufficiently to support the seedling in soil.
ii. Deformed seedlings : Seedlings with weak or unbalanced development of the
essential structures (spirally twisted or stunted plumules, hypocotyls or epicotyls,
swollen shoots and stunted roots, split plumules, coleoptiles without primary
leaves). Seedlings are soft, watery and glassy seedlings, or without further
development after emergence of the cotyledons.
iii. Decayed seedlings: Seedlings with any of the essential structures so diseased or
decayed that normal development is prevented.
6
c) Dead seeds: Seeds which at the end of test period are neither hard nor fresh
and have not produced seedlings are classified as dead seeds.
d) Hard Seeds:Seeds of legumes and Malvaceae, which remain hard until the
end of the prescribed test period, because the impermeable seed coat prevent
them from absorbing water, are classified as hard seeds.
e) Fresh seeds: These are the seeds other than hard seeds which remain firm
and apparently viable at the end of the test period. Such type of seeds results
from physiological dormancy.
Reporting of results: The percentage germination is calculated to the nearest whole
number. If the result is nil for any type of category, it is reported as zero instead of
leaving the appropriate column blank. The sum of the percentage of the normal,
abnormal seedling, hard and dead seeds must be 100.
(i) Germination (%) = Normal seedling/ No. of seeds per rep. x 100
(ii) Germination (%) = Normal seedling + Hard seeds/ No. of seeds per rep. x 100
Table 1. Permissible substrate, temperature and duration for germination test of
major field crops.
Crop Substrate Temperature ( 0C) Duration of test
(days)
Wheat S,BP,TP 20 8
Barley S,BP 20 7
Paddy BP, TP,S 20-30, 25 14
Maize BP,S 20-30, 25 7
Sorghum BP,TP 20-30, 25 10
Bajra BP,TP 20-30 7
Gram BP,S 20-30,20 8
Lentil BP,S 20 10
Urd BP,S 20-30, 25 7
Pea S,BP 20 8
Cowpea BP,S 20-30, 25 8
Green gram BP,S 20-30, 25 8
Pigonpea BP,S 30 6
Cotton BP,S 20-30 12
Rape seed TP 20, 20-30 7
&mustard
Groundnut BP,S 20-30,25 10
Sunflower BP, S 20-30, 25,20 10
Oat BP,TP 20 10
Guar BP 20-30, 25 14
7
The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act-2001

and Variety Registration
Sher Singh Verma
CCS Haryana Agricultural University,
Hisar-125004, India
The question of Plant Varieties Protection has attained worldwide focus in view of
the agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs), which is a part
of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that established the World
Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995 and India is the signatory to World Trade
Organization. Having ratified the Agreement on TRIPs, India made provisions under
Article 27.3 (b) of said agreement relating to Protection of Plant Varieties with the
objective of providing an effecting system of protection of plant varieties, the rights
of farmers and plant breeders and to encourage the developments of new varieties of
plants. In pursuance of India‘s commitments under Article 27.3(b) of the TRIPs
Agreement, India has enacted a legislation on protection of plant varieties in August,
2001 after wide consultation of planners, experts, policymakers, farmer’s
organizations, public and private institutions etc. This legislation is called”
Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights (PPV & FR) Act, 2001”. The Indian
legislation while sharing similarities with International Union for Protection of New
Varieties of Plant (UPOV), 1978, additional provisions have been included to protect
the interests of public sector breeding institutions and farmers. The legislation
recognize the contribution of both commercial plant breeders and farmers in plant
breeding activity and also provides to implement TRIPs in a way that supports the
specific socio-economic interests of all the various producer groups in India: private
sector seed companies, public corporations and research institutions, as well as
resource-constrained farmers.
The PPV&FR Act, 2001 has come into force on 30th October 2001, which provides
the registration of new varieties of plant if it conforms to the criteria of distinctness,
uniformity and stability (DUS). The Rules under the Act were notified on 12 th
September 2003. The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority
was established by the Government of India on 11th November, 2005. The PPV & FR
Regulations, 2006 were notified on 7th December 2006 containing duties and
jurisdiction of the Registrar, registration of plant varieties and essentially derived
varieties, quantity of seed material to be deposited in the National Gene Bank of the
8
Authority, limitation and conditions for authorization and Technical Questionnaire.

The Authority initiated the process of registration of plant varieties of notified crop
species since 21st May, 2007.
OBJECTIVES OF THE PPV AND FR ACT, 2001
 To recognize and protect the rights of farmers in respect of the contribution made
at any time in conserving, improving and making available plant genetic resources
for the development of new plant varieties.
 To accelerate agricultural development in the country, protect plant breeders’
rights, stimulate investment for research and development in public/private sector
for development of plant variety.
 Facilitate the growth of seed industry which will ensure the availability of high
quality seeds and planting material to the farmers.
GENERAL FUNCTIONS OF THE AUTHORITY:
1. Registration of new plant varieties, essentially derived varieties, extant
varieties following the principles of distinctness, uniformity and stability.
2. Promote, encouragement the development of new varieties of plants and
protect the rights of the farmers’ and the breeders.
3. Indexing of varieties registered under this Act.
4. Documentation, indexing and cataloging of farmers’ varieties.
5. Ensuring the availability of seeds of the registered varieties under the
provisions of compulsory licensing.
6. Recognizing and rewarding farmers, community of farmers, particularly tribal
and rural community engaged in conservation, improvement and preservation
of plant genetic resources of economic plants and their wild relatives,
particularly in areas identified as agro-biodiversity hot spots.
7. Ensuring the maintenance of the National Register of Plant Varieties and
update of database of all plant varieties.
8. Maintenance of National Gene Bank.
9. Developing DUS (Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability) test criteria and
formulation of general, specific and special test guidelines for plant species.
RIGHTS PROVIDED UNDER THE ACT:
Breeders’ Rights
Breeders will have exclusive rights to produce, sell, market, distribute, import or
export the protected variety. Breeder can appoint agent/licensee and civil remedy in
case of infringement of rights
9
Researchers’ Rights
Researcher can use the variety using such variety for conducting experiment or
research, use of the variety as an initial source of variety for the purpose of creating
of another variety but repeated use needs permission.
Farmers’ Rights
 A farmer who bred or developed a new variety is entitled for registration and
other protection in like manner as a breeder of a variety.
 Farmers’ Variety can also be registered as an extant variety.
 A farmer can save, use, sow, exchange, share or sell his farm produce including
seed of a variety protected under the PPV &FR Act, 2001 in the same manner as
he was entitled before the coming into force of this Act provided the farmer shall
not entitled to sell branded seed of a variety protected under the PPV & FR Act,
2001.
 Farmers’ who conserve Genetic Resources of land races and wild relatives of
economic plants shall be rewarded from the “Gene Fund”.
 There is also a provision for compensation to the farmers for non-performance of
variety under Section 39(2) of the Act, 2001.
 Farmers shall not be liable to pay any fee in any proceeding before the Authority
or Registrar or the Tribunal or the High Court under this act.
REGISTRATION
Section 29.2 of the Act provides that the Central Government shall by notification of
official Gazettes specify the genera and species for the purpose of registration of
varieties. So far, Central Government has notified 34 crops species for the purpose of
registration. For these crop species PPV and FR Authority has developed “Guidelines
for the Conduct of Species Specific Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability”, tests or
“Specific Guidelines”, for individual crop species. So far, Authority has published 47
specific DUS test Guidelines out of which 45 crop species have been notified.
The examination of a variety for DUS generates a description of the variety, using its
relevant characteristics (e.g. plant height, leaf shape, time of flowering etc.).
Novelty, Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability are essential requirements for grant of
Protection to the Candidate varieties under the above Act. Plant varieties seeking
protection need to be registered with PVP & FR Authority and its apex office is
responsible for the implementation of this act. Being prerequisite for registration, the
varieties have to be enrooted through DUS test as it ensures distinctness of a character
over generations across locations. Registration of Plant Varieties was launched on
20th Feb 2007 by the honorable Minister of Agriculture, Govt. of India.
10
Testing of DUS through ICAR-SAU system

Since the Govt. of India or the Plant Variety Protection Authority does not have
infrastructure for DUS Testing, hence, ICAR has been given this responsibility. To
start preparation for implementation of this activity, ICAR started exercise in this
direction since 1999. A team of Excellence in Seed Technology was established in the
Division of Seed Science and Technology, with the primary mandate to facilitate
DUS testing system for implementation of PVP in the country. A ‘Core Group’ was
constituted for the development of DUS Test Guidelines and other advisory role to
the ICAR. Later on Project Coordinator, NSP, which is now upgraded to Directorate
of Seed Research, was asked to formulate a complete project on various
mandates/activities, identification of centers, facilities required for them etc. through
which activities of DUS testing can be implemented, coordinated and monitored.
To begin the activity, 35 crops were selected on priority. Out of these, 25 are field
crops, eight vegetable crops and two flower crops. Looking into the various
requirements for DUS testing, a full fledged project of DUS Testing was developed
under the main scheme “Implementations of Protection of Plant Varieties & Farmers’
Right Legislation”.
DUS Test Guidelines
In executing DUS test, development of National Test Guidelines for
individual crops bears immense importance since it provides the base to distinguish
varieties for establishing of distinctness. The responsibility of developing National
Test Guidelines was entrusted to ICAR through the respective crop Institutes
(PDs/Directors/PCs) in consultation with Core Group and submitted to
ICAR/PPV&FR Authority. This challenging task for all 35 prioritized crops was
taken up at 53 DUS testing centers involving ICAR institutes and SAUs and within a
short time draft guidelines of all the crops have been developed. The table of
characteristics chosen by crop experts form the major portion in the test guideline
(TG) required for testing of DUS of a new plant variety. These characteristics are
chosen as being known by experience to be least affected by the environment. Such
characteristics may be morphological, physiological, biochemical or of another
nature. These are not selected on the basis of any commercial value for a variety.
These draft guidelines would enable the PPV & FR Authority to derive the final
version of the guidelines for implementation, which would be instrumental in
facilitating registration of candidate varieties. The test guideline (TG) provides the
following requirements with respect to the characteristics.
a. Minimum number of plants to be grown in a comparative trial/test
11
b. Number of replications in a trial

c. Sample size for assessing distinctness, uniformity and stability
d. Number of years for growing the variety in a trial
e. Clear definition of characteristics and the notes of its states of expression
f. The method of observation
g. The stage (of growth) and time of recording the observation
h. Example varieties for more clear definition of characteristics of particular
interest.
For DUS testing, there are well defined UPOV guidelines which can be adopted as
such or may be modified as per experience and need of a member country. Currently
DUS testing involves the comparison of new variety against existing varieties for
recording a number of phenotypic characters or descriptors in tests in which new and
existing varieties are grown side by side.
Rules for conducting DUS tests
1 The Authority shall charge separate fees for conducting DUS test and special test
on each variety.
2. If the Registrar, after initial scrutiny of the application for registration, is satisfied
that the application is in order, he shall notify the applicant to deposit the requisite
fee within a period of two months for conducting the DUS test.
3. On receipt of the fee, the Registrar shall consider the application for further
processing.
4. The DUS test shall be necessary for all new varieties except essentially derived
variety.
5. The manner of testing essentially derived varieties shall be decided by the
Authority on a case-to –case basis.
6. The DUS test shall be conducted on a minimum of two locations.
7. The Authority may recognize and empanel institutions having adequate facilities
for conducting DUS or special tests in the country for conducting such tests.
Identification of DUS Test Centers and their strengthening
There are several factors to be considered in deciding where the DUS tests should be
carried out. These include:
1. Where the species can best display its characteristics; examination at one site
may reveal characters which are less obvious at another site;
2. Where there is least risk of damage from pests, diseases and weather;
3. Where most of the seed crop and main crops are grown; this gives DUS testing
a link with the region where the characters will be expressed most often,
through a high volume of seed certification and commercial crop production;
12
4. Where there is ease of breeders’ access; breeders may like to see how their
varieties are performing in test and to discuss any problems with the testing
authority staff;
5. In order to have better control and efficient data collection on DUS characters,
less number of test locations are desirable. The test location should be situated
in a place which has representative climate of agro-ecological regions for which
the varieties have been developed.
In the initial years of DUS testing, two locations per agro-ecological zones are
desirable, so that if test fails in one location, the data from another is available.
Although test location can be different but the data analysis should be at the central
place of DUS test for a given crop.
The identification of DUS centers is complete and these centers have been provided
with necessary funds for operationalization of the programme. The facilities at these
centers will be such that there is assured crop growth/production and there is no
chance of failure.
CRITERIA FOR PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION
A new variety will be registered if it conforms to the criteria of novelty, distinctness,
uniformity and stability.
Novelty
A new variety shall be deemed to be novel, if, at the date of filling of the application
for registration for protection, the propagating material or harvested material of such
variety has not been sold or otherwise disposed off by or with the consent of its
breeder or his successor for the exploitation of such material earlier than one year in
India and in case of trees and vines earlier than six years or in other cases earlier than
four years outside India.
Distinctness
The variety must be clearly distinguishable by one or more essential characteristics
from any other variety whose existence is a matter of common knowledge at the time
when the protection is applied for. Common knowledge may be established by
reference to various factors such as; cultivation or marketing already in progress,
entry in an official register of varieties already made or in the course of being made,
inclusion in reference collection, or precise description in publication.
Article 15.3 (b) of PPV & FR Act states that the candidate variety must be
distinguishable from any other variety at least by one essential characteristics whose
existence is a matter of common knowledge at the time of filling of the application.
The candidate varieties is generally compared with the varieties available in reference
13
collection of DUS testing or can be easily obtained and are considered similar to the
variety applied for Plant Variety Protection. However, it may not be required to
compare a candidate variety against all other varieties in reference collection and the
comparison can generally be made with only most similar varieties by using the
variety description and the information on the most similar varieties supplied by the
breeder at the time of filling the application for protection of his variety. For making
the decision on distinctness, choice of proper characteristics is necessary.
Uniformity
The variety is deemed uniform if, subject to the variation that may be expected from
the particular features of its propagation, it is sufficiently uniform in its relevant
characteristics. Relevant characteristics include at least all characteristics used as a
basis for establishment of distinctness or included in the variety description
established at the date of grant of protection of that variety.
According to article 15.3 (c) of PPV & FR Act, a variety is deemed uniform if,
subject to the variation that may be expected from the particular features of its
propagation, it is sufficiently uniform in its relevant characteristics. To be considered
uniform, the variation shown by a variety, must be as limited as possible to permit
accurate description and assessment of distinctness and to ensure stability. This
requires a certain tolerance, which will vary according to the reproductive system of
the variety.
Stability
According to the article 15.3 (d) of PPV & FR Act, the variety is said to be stable if
its essential characteristics remain unchanged after repeated propagation or, in the
case of particular cycle of propagation, at the end of such cycle. If the variety is not
stable, it will no longer be the same variety but a different one, since the variety
description has changed after repeated propagation.
PLANTING MATERIAL FOR DUS TESTING
The required quantity and quality of planting material is specified for each crop. It is
recommended that plant material should not have undergone any treatment. If the
seed has been treated full details should be supplied to the authorities. The quantity of
planting material requirement is indicted in the individual Test Guidelines of
respective crops. The quantity of planting material should cater the need of two years
of DUS tests and deposit in reference collection. The material submitted for DUS test
should be representative of the candidate variety. For seed propagated varieties and
especially for cross-pollinated varieties the material tested should be of the same
generation as that to be placed in the market. The plant material should be visibly
healthy, not lacking in vigour or affected by any important pests or disease. Because
14
several characteristics of the variety may be affected by external factors such as pests
and diseases, chemical treatment etc. Therefore, the authorities must ensure that the
planting material is free from such factors. In case, where the seed is to be stored, the
germination capacity should preferably be higher than the Minimum Seed
certification Standard of the crop.
DURATION OF DUS TESTS
Usually the DUS examination requires more than one independent growing cycle
with reference to ecosystem of the variety for studying the consistency of results.
There are several options for multiple growing cycles.
I ) The candidate varieties are studied in a given location, over at least two
successive seasons.
ii) For many crops, it is possible to complete two growing cycles in the same year.
The two growing cycles should be independent of each other.
iii) For some crops such as fruit trees, the same plants are examined over successive
years. The condition of independence of growing cycle is also satisfied in this
case.
iv) In some circumstances authorities can allow testing in only one growing season.
Such a possibility is mentioned in crop specific guidelines.
TEST LOCATIONS
Breeders throughout the world now are demanding the Plant Variety Protection
Authorities for the availability of the DUS test results within the shortest possible
time. For a country adopting Plant Variety Protection for the first time it is, however
appropriate to conduct DUS test at more than one location in the same season for
some times. There are different reasons why authorities may consider to have more
than one location.
1. Varieties of different geographical regions may require different agro-climatic
growing conditions.
2. Some DUS testing centers might have a primary location, backed by a safety
location. Normally, only the data from primary location will be used, but in case
this location has major problem then the data from the second one will be
available to prevent the loss of one year’s results.
3. Some testing office may have more than one location for a given crop for
testing candidate varieties at all these locations. Each location in this case is
considered as completely a separate test. When all examination result in the
positive conclusion, the variety is accepted for protection.
15
4. Even UPOV is currently exploring the circumstances in which more than one
location might be used in order to obtain independent growing cycles in a given
year. In such cases, the locations must have different environments.
5. In order to provide double-check for consistency, authorities may grow the
varieties in more than one location. In this case, the consistency over cycles and
between locations is checked.
TECHNICAL QUESTIONNAIRE
A proforma containing Technical Questionnaire about the candidate variety is to be
submitted by the applicant seeking plant variety protection. The applicant is asked the
following points to be answered:
1. Name of the Applicant/breeder/company
2. Year of Establishment
3. If registered company under Company’s Act 1956 (Give details)
4. Location of Corporate office and address
5. Tel/fax/e-mail
6. Name of candidate variety
a) Has it been released in any Convention Country earlier
b) Pedigree/Genealogy
c) Breeding of candidate variety
7. Particulars of comparative trials conducted by the applicant
8. Characteristics of the candidate variety
a) Give grouping characteristics
b) Distinguishing characteristics (descriptive or elaborate)
c) Table of characteristics between candidate denomination and reference
variety.
9. Characteristics of the reference variety
a) Most similar variety
b) Other reference variety
10. Statement of distinctness of candidate variety
11. Statement of uniformity and stability of candidate variety
12. Method of maintaining the candidate variety
13. Information on variety registered in Convention countries
a) What were the grouping characters in that application for this candidate
variety?
b) What was the Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability parameter on which it
was registered?
16
c) What is the variation in important traits with respect to first filling and the
present one (Attach Photographs)?
d) Has the Variety been withdrawn in the first filled country from cultivation or
banned or from any of the subsequently released country?
e) If so, the reasons (Supplement with information)
Application of Biochemical and molecular markers in DUS Testing
BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS;
The biochemical markers, especially the electrophoresis profiles of isoenzymes and
proteins have been widely used for identification of crop varieties (Cook, 1995).
Variety Testing Working Group of the ISTA and Biochemical and Molecular
Techniques Working Group of the UPOV have recommended electrophoresis
methods for the verification of varietal identity in many crops. Moreover, it provides
additional information for establishing distinctness of varieties, when it is not possible
to resolve the same on the basis of morphological descriptors. Though
protein/isoenzyme markers alone may not be sufficient in resolving the identity of the
variety, these can provide useful supplementary information, which in combination
with morphological descriptors provide identification keys. For the purpose of
establishing distinctness in DUS testing, the discontinuous nature of protein banding
patterns makes them readily observable and easy to record. Thus selection of an
appropriate electrophoresis technique provides a potential tool for variety
identification, DUS test or grouping of varieties.
The reference methods of electrophoresis for verification of species and cultivar
identity have been standardized by ISTA (2004).
MOLECULAR MARKER:
Although biochemical techniques have overcome the limitations of field tests to some
extent, these still have certain shortcomings such as the low level of polymorphism
and limited genome coverage. Thus, the analysis variability in the form of DNA
profiling is now becoming reality. The advent of these methods has widened the
possibilities for applying such technologies to the problem of varietal
identification/characterization and variety protection (Smith, 1995). The two
commonly adopted approaches in the use of molecular markers are essentially either
probe based i.e. examination for Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism
(RFLPs) or amplified based i.e. Random Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPD),
Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) etc. The introduction of
molecular methods to characterize and define varieties for DUS is an ongoing
process.
17
HYBRID SEED PRODUCTION IN SORGHUM

SK PAHUJA
Forage Section, Department of Plant Breeding
Hisar-125 004
Being the dual purpose crop, sorghum is grown as a grain crop for human
consumption and feed and fodder for livestock in different parts of the world. Hence
this crop has special significance after wheat, rice and maize among world’s cereals.
Sorghum is one of the main stale food for the world’s poorest and most food-insecure
people across the semi-arid tropics of the world. It is mainly produced and consumed
by the rural poor. India is the largest sorghum grower in the world (9.33 m ha)
followed by Nigeria and Sudan (Anonymous 2005). In case of sorghum production,
the situation is reverse, India ranked 7th among the nine countries growing more than
1 m ha under sorghum. During 2005-06, USA topped in productivity with 4000
kg/ha. Indian sorghum productivity during the same period was 20% of productivity
of USA. In India, Sorghum area decreased from 18 m ha (1950’s) to 9.2 m ha (2005-
06).
Sorghum is one of the main staple food for the world’s poorest and most food-
insecure people across the semi-arid tropics of the world. Sorghum is one of the
earliest crops where in cytoplasmic male sterility system was deployed to fix yield
heterosis. First commercial hybrid, CSH 1 was released in 1964 using the parental
lines bred in USA and supplied by the Rockefeller Foundation. With the release of
CSH 1, the first conmmercial hybrid in 1964, sorghum became the second crop after
maize in developing high yielding hybrids
Important facts regarding sorghum seed industry:
 Market size of Indian seed industry is worth Rs. 3500-4000 crores.
 Seed production of sorghum hybrids is done during rabi only as Kharif crop
is prone to midge attack.
 Decline in area under public sector hybrids during 1997-2005.
 In seed industry, vegetable seeds major share is 19% followed by 13 % each
of cotton, sunflower and wheat.
 Sorghums accounts for 7% of the total industry.
 Out of total 9.2 m ha, hybrid seeds occupy 22 % with a value of Rs. 70 crore.
 The most potential sorghum seed markets are Maharashtra (7800 tonnes),
Karnatka (2400 tonnes), MP (800 tonnes), AP (720 tonnes), TN (400 tonnes),
Gujarat (240 tonnes), Rajasthan (200 tonnes).
18
 The major players are Mahyco, Emergent genetics, Proagro, Pioneer,

Advanta, Bioseed, JK Agri. Genetics, Ganga kaveri, Zuari seeds, Nuziveedu
seeds, Ajeet seeds, Nath seeds etc.
In northern parts of India the sorghum is grown mainly for fodder production,
whereas, in the central and southern parts of the country this crop is the major source
of staple food.
It is not possible to increase the area under this crop because in comparison to
other crops it is considered to be less economic. The total livestock population in
India has increased from 292.8 million heads in 1951 to 430.71 million heads in 1987
(Anonymous, 1987). Further the total livestock population of the country as per 1992
census (Anonymous, 1997) was 470.14 million. However, recent estimates, projected
on growth rate of livestock (Table 1) during last decade i.e. 2002, are 897.9 million
which may further increase up to 1020.5 in 2010 (Pathak, 2003). The availability of
green and dry fodder is in deficit on an average to the extent of 40% (Seth and
Kumar, 1999) which may further increase (Table 2) to the extent of 45% in 2025
(Anonymous, 2001). To narrow down the gap between demand and supply of fodder
for the increasing livestock population, scientists have brought significant
improvement in the yield levels of single cut varieties but that is not enough.
Therefore, to increase the fodder yield of forage sorghum per unit area per unit time,
the concept of breeding multicut hybrids was coined. Paroda et al. (1974) had
advocated the developments of hybrids in forage sorghum for quantum jump.
Recently, with the active participation of private sector, the forage sorghum hybrid
development programme has received the required emphasis.
I. PARAMETERS OF MULTICUT TRAITS
In general, plant height, leafiness, fodder yield and its quality and resistance to
biotic stresses are important traits in forage sorghum. But following parameters needs
special attention for breeding multicut forage sorghum varieties/hybrids.
1. Early vigour
2. Faster growth
3. Number of tillers
4. Regeneration
5. Earliness
6. Seed production potential
II. PRE-REQUISITES FOR FORAGE SORGHUM HYBRID
DEVELOPMENT
1. Availability of good combining male sterile lines and restorers.
19
2. Presence of dominance component of genetic variance for forage yield and its
quality.
3. High degree of heterosis for economic and multicut traits.
III. MALE STERILITY IN SORGHUM
Genetic male sterility was first reported in 1937 by Stephens in USA. The
utilization of genetic male sterility increased the cost of seed production as it requires
removal of half of female heads before pollination (Quinby and Martin, 1954).
Commercial exploitation of heterosis was possible after the discovery of cytoplasmic
male sterility. Stephens and Holland (1954) found that milo cytoplasm interacted with
kafir nuclear factors resulting in male sterility. Cytoplasmic-genetic male sterile lines
have been developed by substituting the entire milo genome with that of kafir by
repeated backcrosses. The existence of new cytoplasms has been reported (Quinby,
1980; Rao et al., 1984 and Stephens and Holland, 1954) but milo cytoplasm has been
extensively utilized for commercial hybrid seed production in various countries. The
Indian cytoplasms were classified into two distinct groups (i) those of M 35-1 and M
31-2A (A2 tentative), (ii) those of VZM 2A and G 1A (A3 tentative) in addition to
milo (A1) cytoplasm in CK 60A (Rao et al., 1984). The restores on CK 60A (milo)
are non-restorers on these cytoplasms.
A single cytoplasm (milo) is present in nearly all forage sorghum hybrids
(Pahuja et al., 1999). Cytoplasms other than milo could not be utilized due to lack of
fertility restoration. Other cytoplasmic genetic male sterility systems are being
sought. One purpose is to improve diversity so as to avoid hazards that might be
related to single cytoplasm use. With additional cytoplasmic genetic sterility systems,
new parental combinations should be possible (Quienby, 1980).
Efforts in this regard have been made but little success has been achieved.
Some male sterile lines based on A2 and A3 cytoplasms have been released (Chen et
al., 1996; Jia, 1997; Pedersen, 1997; Pedersen and Toy, 1997 and Tripathi et al.,
1980), which are being utilized in grain sorghum. Efforts are required to utilize such
line for the forage sorghum improvement programme. Very limited studies have been
made in the utilization of non-milo sources of cytoplasm and devoted efforts are
required to develop stable non-milo cms lines and their fertility restorers should be
available (Senthil and Khan, 1997).
IV. HETROSIS, COMBINING ABILITY AND GENETIC
ARCHITECTURE
To initiate any breeding programme for a particular objective the knowledge
of genetic basis of yield and the related character is the pre-requisite. Similarly for the
hybrids breeding programme the knowledge of heterosis for various traits, combing
20
ability and stability of the parents and genetic architecture of different parameters is
essential.
The extent of heterosis has been observed up to 300% for green fodder and
273% for dry fodder, up to 66% for morphological and 184% for multicut traits
(Grewal and Paroda, 1974; Saini and Paroda, 1975; Mistry and Patil, 1994; Pathak
and Sanghi, 1988; Patel et al., 1996; Patil and Bapat, 1991 and Mukesh Mohan,
2000). The heterosis for quality traits has been noticed ranging from –81 to 43%
(Dangi and Paroda, 1979 and Lodhi et al., 1987). The expression of heterosis was
more in kharif season than the summer season (Grewal and Paroda, 1974).
On the basis of studies for combining ability effects by various workers, the
good combining and stable parents for forage yield and quality as well as multicut
parameters and resistance parameters have been reported in forage sorghum (Paroda
and Lodhi, 1981; Lodhi et al., 1987; Lodhi and Grewal, 1988; Grewal et al., 1996;
Karam Chand, 1999 and Mukesh Mohan, 2000).
Both additive as well as dominance components of genetic variance have been
observed for each trait in forage sorghum. But in general, it has been observed that
there was preponderance of non-additive gene effects for yield and quality traits
except HCN and NDF. The heritability was low for yield and IVDMD as well as for
sugar contents. For rest of quality characters heritability was high. Low HCN and low
tannin were dominant over high HCN and high tannin, respectively, otherwise over-
dominance was the pattern (Paroda and Lodhi, 1981; Grewal, 1983 and Khatri, 1996).
Reverse was the case with morphological (Paroda and Lodhi, 1981) and multicut
traits (Khatri, 1996) where preponderance of additive gene effects and moderate trait
observed by most of the workers of forage sorghum (Khatri et al., 1997 and Het Ram,
1986). Similarly foliar diseases and insect-pest resistance also revealed
preponderance of additive gene effects coupled with medium heritability (Grewal,
1983 and Het Ram 1986). Resistance to foliar diseases and insect-pests was partially
dominant over the susceptible (Grewal, 1983).
V. ACHIEVEMENTS
For about two decades after the initiation of All India Coordinated Sorghum
Improvement Project (AICSIP) by ICAR, very limited efforts had been done to
develop multicut forage sorghum hybrids inspite of the knowledge that we were short
of supply of fodder to meet the demand of increasing livestock population and area
under forage crops can not be increased because of economic reasons.
21
1. Varieties/hybrids released
In 1990s when required emphasis was given for the development of multicut
forage sorghum hybrids/varieties. During this period private sector also came forward
to contribute for the sacred goal of increasing quality fodder production of forage
sorghum through the development of forage sorghum hybrids. Since then many
hybrids like PC-6, Punjab Sudex Chari, Pro-agro Chari, MFSH-3, Hara Sona, Safed
Moti, CSH 20MF and variety like UPMCH 503 has been released. There improved
varieties/hybrids have certainly helped to narrow down the gap between demand and
supply of forage requirement.
Constraints:
• Uniformity of cultural practices is required for obtaining good seed yield of
hybrid.
• Selective use of N fertilization and irrigation for nicking.
• Clipping of top 2-3 leaves of earlier parent.
• Seed set can be enhanced by spraying boron @ 65 g/ha.
• Technical labour and contingencies.
• Birds scaring for atleast 40 days is required which is very costly affair.
• Break down of male sterility under high temp.
• Govt. policies on production, pricing, procurement and distribution favour
fine cereals
• Production and marketing of hybrid seed.
VIII. FUTURE STRATEGIES
1. Exploitation of promising genetic stocks.
2. Evaluation of elite genetic stock and ms lines for quality and multicut traits.
3. Development of new forage type ms lines with diverse cytoplasm and
multicut behaviour
4. Development of multicut forage sorghum hybrids with more number of tillers,
regeneration and faster growth, better quality, synchronous flowering and
high seed potential
5. Development of Seed production technology for forage sorghum hybrids
6. Resistance to biotic (especially stem borer) and abiotic stresses
7. Use of diverse gene pools like maize
Minimum seed certification standards have been provided in following two
tables
22
Table 1 & 2.Minimum seed certification standards
Crop Field Isolation distance (m) Minimum Standards

Inspection Crop Disease Other varieties plants Pollen Shedders Plants of seed born Obnoxious weeds Other crop plants
diseases
Found. Certi. Found. Certi. Found. Certi. Found. Certi. Found. Certi. Found. Certi. Found Certi.
.
Berseem/Lucerne 2 400 100 - - 0.20 1.0 - - - - Nil 0.05 - -
Sudan grass/sorghum 3 200 100 - - 0.10 0.20 - - 0.05 0.10 - - - -
400 400
(For Johanson grass)
Guar 2 10 5 - - 0.10 0.20 - - 0.10 0.20 - - - -
Oat 2 3 3 150 150 0.05 0.20 - - 0.10 0.50 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.05
Cowpea 2 10 5 - - 0.1 0.20 - - 0.10 0.20 - - - -
Pearlmillet (Variety) 3 400 200 - - 0.05 0.10 - - 0.05 0.10 - - -
(Hybrid) 4 1000 200 - - 0.05 0.10 0.05 0.010 0.02 0.04 - - -
Maize (Hybrid) 4 - 200 - - - 0.5 - 1.0 - - - - - -
Variety 2 400 200 - - 1.0 1.0 - - - - - - - -
Crop Pure Seed Matter Other crop seed Other variety Weed Seed Obnoxius weeds Seed germination Moisture (%) (%)
(%) (%) seeds (max.) (%) (%) Simple box Moisture box
(%)
Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert. Foun. Cert.
Berseem/Lucerne 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 10/kg 20/kg - - 10/kg 20/kg 5/kg 10/kg 80 80 10 10 7 7
Sudan grass/sorghum 97.0 97.0 3.0 3.0 5/kg 10/kg 10/kg 20/kg 5/kg 10/kg - - 75 75 12 12 8 8
(Seeds affected with ergot 0.02 and 0.04 %)
Guar 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 10/kg 20/kg 10/kg 20/kg Nil Nil - - 70 70 9 9 8 8
Oat 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 10/kg 20/kg 10/kg 20/kg 10/kg 20/kg 2/kg 5/kg 85 85 12 12 8 8
Cowpea 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 Nil 10/kg 5/kg 10/kg Nil 10/kg - - 75 75 9 9 8 8
Pearlmillet (Variety) 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 10/kg 20/kg - - 5/kg 10/kg - - 75 75 12 12 8 8
(Hybrid) 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 10/kg 20/kg - - 5/kg 10/kg - - 75 75 12 12 8 8
Maize (Hybrid) - 98.0 - 2.0 - 10/kg - 10/kg - Nil - - - 90 - 12 - 8
Variety 98.0 98.0 2.0 2.0 5/kg 10/kg 10/kg 20/kg Nil Nil - - 90 90 12 12 8 8
23
Hybrid Seed Production Technology in Cotton
RS SANGWAN, SOMVEER, O SANGWAN AND SR PUNDIR
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar - 125004
Seed production is an important component in any breeding programme. Cotton being an

often cross pollinated crop and its pollen being sticky and heavy and honey bee being the main
pollinating agent. Due to intensive spray schedule the population of honey bees in cotton fields is
very less particularly in North India. Under such situation hybrid seed is mainly produced by
hand emasculation and pollination known as conventional method. This method of hybrid seed
production is more tedious and costly. Therefore some other methods of hybrid seed production
were tried. In the year 1995 first genetic male sterile line (GMS-1) in Gossypium arboreum was
developed at CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar. The development of this GMS line
opened the door for hybrid seed production in North India. By using GMS-1 one G. arboreum
hybrid i.e. AAH-1 was developed, released and notified in the year 1999 for commercial
cultivation in North India. This hybrid became very popular among the cotton farmer due to its
high yield potential and its hybrid seed demand increased tremendously. To meet requirement of
hybrid seed of cotton, it was thought the seed growers should be trained in hybrid seed
production technology. Keeping this in view two trainings on this aspect were imparted every
year by CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar to the farmers, private and public seed
producing agencies. The distribution of seed of male and female parents of hybrid and sowing
plan regarding hybrid seed production were given in the first training during first week of April,
whereas second training is imparted in second fortnight of July. In this training field operations
were demonstrated like uprooting of off types in both the parents, and fertile heterozygotes in the
female parents on the basis of phenotypic characteristics of flower. Method of hybrid seed
production is given below:-
Method of hybrid seed production: Using genetic male sterility system
Grow GMS line as a female and pollen parent as a male in 4:1 ratio as given below: -
M F F F F M
(M=Male, F=Female)
 Male lines are spaced at 67.5 cm and females lines at 135 cm apart
 The optimum sowing time for desi cotton is middle of April, whereas for Upland cotton is 25
April to 15 May.
 Seed requirement for an acre is about 750 g for female and 250 g for male.
 Rogue out off type plants as and when they appear in male and female lines
 In the genetic male sterile line (female line)a t flowering stage 50 per cent male sterile and
50 per cent male fertile plants will appear.
 Uproot the male fertile plants from female lines by observing yellow pollen grains
24
colour and keep only male sterile plants.Pollinate remaining 50 per cent male sterile plants
with the pollen parent grown on both sides of hybrid seed production plot.
 Pick up the seed cotton from female lines at regular interval before it falls on the
ground.
 Sun dry the picked seed cotton and obtain the seed after ginning which is hybrid
seed.
Precautions
1. Land selected for hybrid seed production should be free from volunteer plants
2. Hybrid seed production programme should be taken under assured Irrigation system
and seed plot should not be prone to water logging
3. Keep the isolation distance of 30 meters from the fields of other varieties/hybrids of
the same ploidy level and 5 meters from the other ploidy level species
4. Pollination should be done between 8.30 A.M. to 12.00 Noon
5. Crossing programme should be started around 20th July and must be completed by
30th September
6. Roguing of off-type plants in the parents should be done before the start of
crossing programme
7. Use one flower of male parent to pollinate only 3-4 sterile flowers of female parent.
8. Pollinate only upper part i.e. (tip) stigma of flower
9. Remove all the bolls from female parent before starting the crossing programme
10. Uproot the pollen parent as and when crossing programme is over to avoid the mixture
MINIMUM SEED CERTIFICATION STANDARDS
Cotton Varieties: Land requirements:
Land to be used for seed production of cotton shall be free of volunteer plants.
Field Inspection: A minimum of two inspections shall be made from the time crop
approaches flowering until it is ready for harvesting.
Field Standards A. General requirements
1. Isolation: Cotton seed fields shall be isolated from the contaminants shown in column 1
of the Table below by the distances specified in columns 2 and 3 of the said Table:
Contaminants Minimum distance (meters)

Foundation Certified
Fields of other varieties of same 50 30
spp.
Fields of the same variety not 50 30
conforming to varietal purity
requirements for certification
Fields of other varieties of 5 5
(different ploidy levels)
25
B. Specified requirements
Factor Maximum permitted (%)*

Off types 0.10 0.20
* Maximum permitted at any inspection at and after flowering.
Seed Standards
Factor Standards for each class
Pure seed (Minimum) 98.0% 98.0%
Inert matter (Maximum) 2.0% 2.0%
Other crop seeds (Maximum) 5/kg 10/kg
Weed Seeds (Maximum) 5/kg 10/kg
Germination (Minimum) Varieties 65.0% 65.0%
Germination (Minimum) Hybrids 75.0% 75.0%
Moisture (Maximum) 10.0% 10.0%
For vapour proof containers (Max.) 6.0% 6.0%
Ginning: Ginning of seed cotton shall be done on the gins approved by the certification Agency
and store the seed at recommended moisture level.
26
Seed Production Technology in Wheat and Barley
IS Panwar
Wheat & Barley Section
Deptt. of Genetics & Plant Breeding, CCS HAU, Hisar
India is the second largest producer of wheat in the world next only to China, contributing about
35 per cent of the total cereals produced in the country. The wheat production of India has
increased from 9.5 mt in 1963-64 to 92.45 mt in 2012-13. This un-presidential growth in wheat
production could have been possible because of continuous replacement of old wheat varieties
with new high yielding varieties as a result of untiring effort of wheat breeders and a systemic
and effective seed replacement mechanism.
A systemic seed production programme is must to ensure availability of good quality seed in
sufficient quantities. The quality of foundation and certified seed is directly dependent upon the
quality of breeder seed and the breeder seed itself depends on the purity and status of the nucleus
seed. Therefore, production of breeder seed and maintaining a strong nucleus seed (maintenance
breeding) production will all contribute towards making available to farmers good quality seed to
reap a better harvest.
Production of Nucleus Seed
First Year (Ear-head Collection)
1. Grow seed sample from original stock source in space planting using dibbling method.
2. Select 500 true to type ear-heads.
3. Thresh selected ear-heads separately. It will be better if these selections of ear-heads are
serially numbered.
4. Reject ear-head produce i.e. seeds on basis of grain characters such as shape, size, color
variation.
Second Year (Nucleus Seed Stage-1)
1. Grow ear-head progenies using dibbling method in row of 3 m length in isolation of 5 m
from other varieties.
2. Take critical observations at different growth stages of the crop i.e. early vegetative
growth, 75 per cent ear emergence and maturity.
3. Rejection of progenies showing variation or admixture. To ensure the high quality seed
production ruthlessly reject the row even if a single plant in a row appears to be different.
The off types that appear can be with respect to any character such as auricle
pigmentation, days to flowering, plant height, waxy bloom, ear color, ear shape, various
outer glumes character, leaf width, leaf orientation, foliage color. When an off type is
detected after flowering stage then ear-rows on either side of row having off type should
also be rejected to avoid any chances of contamination at harvest time.
4. Each ear row-progeny is to be harvested separating and store them in small cloth bag
safely i.e. bulk separately. From these ear rows, normally about 75-100 kg seed is
obtained which is sufficient to produce NSS-II seed in about 0.75 ha and around 25-30
quintals of breeder seed.
5. Select fresh ear-head (about 500) of uniform true to type plant for successive crop season
to continue the NSS-I cycle.
27
Third Year (Nucleus Seed Stage-2)
1. Grow NSS-I harvest plot separately i.e. seed harvested from each ear row of NSS-I is
drilled separately in a plot of 3 m 1.20 m size.
2. Observe each plot critically for any type of deviation from its described distinguished
features. This second cycle of nucleus seed multiplication provides yet another
opportunity to eliminate any off type in ear to row progeny which might have escaped
during NSS-I at different growth stages.
3. Discard plots showing variation.
4. Thresh selected plot individually.
5. Reject plot harvest on the basis of grain characters.
6. Bulk retained plots produce as breeder seed.
Breeder Seed Production (Important steps)
1. Land Requirement: The land that is to be put under seed production should be free from
drainage problem and should be well leveled and avoidance of volunteer plant and avoid
fields that have a history of tundu disease.
2. Method of Sowing: A low seed rate of 80 kg/ha is recommended with lower nitrogenous
fertilizers to avoid lodging of the crop. Seed production plots being large in size are to be
sown using a seed drill which should be thoroughly cleaned. Leave one row unsown after
every 8 row. Sow breeder seed plots in one direction with seed drill to have easy internal
operation and monitoring etc.
3. Isolation: Breeder seed plot should be isolated from other wheat plots by a minimum
distance of 3 m and no loose smut infected wheat, triticale or rye field should be there
within 150 meters. The precaution is necessary to ward off infection by seed borne
pathogen.
4- Rogueing: Rogueing of seed production plots is done to remove the off type plants that
arise due to segregation of residual heterozygousity, out crossing with other varieties,
admixtures or mutations etc. Aneuploidy may also be sometime problem in some semi-
dwarf wheat varieties off types are identified based on the variation noticed for ‘DUS’
feature of a variety like auricle pigmentation, days to flower, plant height, waxy bloom,
ear color ear shape etc. Rogueing is to be done at least tree times i.e. one each at early
vegetative growth. 75% ear emergence and maturity. The rogued plant, particularly after
seed development, should be removed from field and disposed at one place far away from
seed production plot to avoid chances of mixing of already rogued plant with general
seed bulk.
5. Grow out Test: To monitor the genetic purity of the breeder seed plots a sample of basic
seed lot is drawn. The samples, thus collected from different varieties and from different
location are grown at one place and kept under constant supervision of any type of rogue
plant emergence or deviation from original variety.
6. Harvesting: Extra care is receded to avoid mechanical mixing at times of harvesting,
threshing seed treatment and packing. Threshers and combine harvesters trailers,
processing machinery etc. should be thoroughly cleaned before harvesting. Seed
production plots of more than 2 ha are suited for combine harvest by machine and Plots
that are smaller can be harvested manually and threshed by machine.
7. Seed Treatment: The seed treatment with Vitavax@ 2g/kg or Raxil@ 1g/kg seed should
be done to check loose smut.
28
8. Storage: Harvested bags need to be kept in shade in farm till seed moisture comes down
from 14% to 9-10%. It may to be 3 weeks times after harvest to reach this moisture level
in shade. At low moisture level seed viability loss and damage due to storage pests and
fungi is very low.
9. Bagging Detail: The breeder seed of wheat and barly is packed 40 kg in gunny bags with
necessary varietal detail, producing agency along with stitched golden yellow label (No.
356) of the size 12x6 cm with following information:
Crop Varity Label No.

Lot No.
Date of Test
Physical purity (min)
Genetic purity (min)
Inert matter
Treated with
Germination (%)
Producing Institute (Name & Address)
Weight
Breeder has to follow much more stricter minimum seed certification standards for nucleus and
breeder seed production than what the Indian Seed Certification Board has prescribed foundation and
certified seed production. (Table 1& 2).
Table 1: Minimum certification requirements for field standard in wheat and barley
Field Field Standards Specific Requirements Limits

Selection
Field Isolation distance Off type Inseparable Seed born
inspection (m) plants (%) other crop disease
Crop Disease plants (%) infested
plants (%)
F C F C F C F C F C
Free of Two 3 3 150 150 0.05 0.2 0.01 0.05 0.1 0.5
volunteer
plants
F-Foundation Seed Certified Seed
29
Table 2. Minimum Certification requirement for seed standard in cereal crops
Factors Standard
Pure Seed (minimum) 98% 98%
Inert material (Minimum) 2% 2%
Other crop seed (maximum) 10/kg 20/kg
Other distinguishable varieties (maximum) 10/kg 20/kg
Total weed seed (maximum) 10/kg 20/kg
Objectionable weed seed (maximum) 2/kg 5/kg
Germination (minimum) 85% 85%
Moisture % (maximum) 12% 12%
For vapour proof containers (maximum) 8% 8%
30
DETECTION AND MANAGEMENT OF SEED BORNE DISEASES
SS Jakhar
Department of Seed Science & Technology
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar -125 004
Seed health refers to the presence or absence of disease-causing organisms such as fungi,
nematodes, bacteria, viruses and insects. It refers to the status of seeds in a seedlot. Seed status is
also affected by the presence of non disease-causing contaminants in the particular seedlot.
These include contaminants like weed seeds, other crop seeds, plant parts other than the target
seeds, soil particles and insect eggs that can degrade the quality of the seedlot
1. Examination of dry seeds:
This is a quick method for detection of seed borne fungal pathogens, which cause
discoloration of the seed or change the shape and size of the seed. Also applicable for detecting
fungal structures present in, on or with seed. Insect and mechanically damaged seed can also be
detected by this method. It provides partial to complete information about seed health status of a
seed sample where pathogen is detectable.
Procedure: Working sample-2000 seeds.
Individual seed sample is examined carefully by naked eye or low magnified hand lense
or stereomicroscope for the presence of discoloration and fungal structures. Infected seed and
other non-seed material are removed, identified and counted and per cent infection is calculated.
The following diseases can be detected and identified by this method.
CROP DISEASE PATHOGEN
Wheat (Triticum aestivum) Karnal bunt Neovossia indica
Ear cockle Anguina tritici
Black point Alternaria alternata
Drechslera sativum
Curvularia spp
Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) Ascochyta blight Ascochyta rabiei
Wilt Fusarium oxysporum f. sp.
Ciceri
Rice (Oryza sativa) Bunt or kernel smut Neovossia horrida
False smut Ustilaginoidea virens
Maize (Zea mays) Cob rot Fusarium moniliforme
Pearl millet Ergot Claviceps fusiformis

(Pennisetum glaucum)
Soybean (Glycine max) Purple seed stain Cercospora kikuchii
31
2 Washing test:
The washing test is a qualitative test. This test is a quick procedure used only for detection of
those types of pathogens which adhere to the seed surface in the form of identifiable spores.
Hence, it does not have a wide application. This method is used particularly for smut and bunt
fungi in gramineous hosts except loose smut of wheat and barley. It can also be used for
detection of Peronospora manshurica (downy mildew of soybean) and Protomyces macrosporus
(tumour disease of coriander).
Procedure : No standard working sample has been prescribed so far by ISTA (International
Seed Testing Association) for this test. Therefore, sample size i.e. number of seed vary from crop
to crop. A fixed number of seeds are placed in a conical flask containing sufficient water and a
few drops of detergent like tween-20. The flask is shaken for 5-10 minutes by hand or on a
mechanical shaker depending upon facilities available. Seeds and washing water are separated by
passing through cheese cloth into a beaker. Drops from the washing water are examined under
microscope for identification fungal spores. A haemocytometer can be used for counting the
number of spores per ml. Similarly, spore load per seed is calculated. The following diseases can
be detected and identified by this method.
Wheat (Triticum aestivum) Karnal bunt Neovossia indica
Flag smut Urocystis agropyri
Hill bunt Tilletia foetida
Tilletia caries
Pearl millet Smut Tolyposporium penicillariae
(Pennisetum glaucum)
Barley (Hordeum vulgare) Covered smut Ustilago hordei
3. NaOH seed soak method

This method is applied to detect Karnal bunt (Neovossia indica) of wheat and bunt
(Neovossia horrida) of rice when infected portion of seeds is not visible.
Procedure : Working sample - 2000 seeds.
Seeds are soaked in 0.2% NaOH for 18-24 h, at 20-25oC. The solution is poured off and
swollen seeds are spread over blotter paper to remove excess water/moisture. The individual seed
is examined. The embryonic portion of the seeds will give a jet black appearance, if it is infected
but not by the brown to dull coloured seeds. Infection is confirmed by puncturing each
discoloured seed with a fine needle in a drop of water for release of spores. Identify the spore
under compound microscope for their confirmation. Calculate the per cent infection of the seed
lot.
32
4. Embryo count method:
This method is specifically used to detect loose smut of wheat and barley. Downy
mildew (Seclerospora graminicola) of bajra can also be detected by this method. The method
described here is for loose smut of wheat and consists of four step viz. embryo staining and
extraction, separation, cleaning and examination for fungal hyphae.
Procedure: 2000 seeds or 100 g seeds are soaked in 5% solution of NaOH and 0.01% (100
ppm) trypan blue solution for 24h at 25-30oC. Pass the material through different sieves of 3.5,
2.0 and 1.0 mm size along with showers of tap water. Dehydrate the embryos with methylated
spirit or 95% ethyl alcohol for 2- 3 minutes. Transfer the embryos in 200 ml of lactic acid +
glycerol + water mixture (1:2:1). After that transfer the embryos into a 250 ml beaker containing
75 ml of lactic acid + 150 ml glycerol (1:2) and then embryos are boiled for 2 minutes. Then the
mixture is allowed to cool down. Observe the embryos under stereomicroscope for the presence
of mycelium and calculate the per cent infection.
5. Blotter method
This method is widely practiced in seed health testing and is one of the incubation
methods. It is used for detecting those fungi which are able to produce mycelial growth and
fruiting structures under incubation. Identification of fungi is done based on habit character
under stereomicroscope. The fungi which are not identifiable under stereomicroscope can be
identified under compound microscope at higher magnification for their confirmation. All kinds
of cereals, vegetables, crucifers, legumes, ornamentals and forests seeds can be tested by this
method.
Procedure: Generally, a working sample of 400 seeds is tested. However, if sample size is less
than 400 seeds, then whole sample or part of it may be tested. The number of seeds are to be
plated depending upon the size of the plate, seed and type of infection. Depending on the size of
the seed, 10, 25 or more seeds are plated in a petri plate of 9 cm diameter. Seeds are placed
equidistantly on three layers of well water soaked filter paper (blotters). Excessive water is
drained off before placing the seeds. In fast germinating seeds 2, 4-D (2, 4-dichlorophenoxy
acetic acid) @ 0.10 to 0.20% solutions is used to check the growth of the seedlings. The plates
are incubated at 20±2oC usually for 7 days in alternating cycles of 12 h near ultra violet (NUV)
light or fluorescent light and 12 h darkness. After incubation, all seeds are examined under
stereo-microscope at different magnification (6-60 times) for identification of the fungi.
Sometimes fungi are not identified under stereo-microscope, under such conditions; fungi can be
identified by making slides under compound microscope at higher magnification. Infected seeds
with fungi are counted and per cent infection is calculated. In case of cereals, this can be
replaced by deep freeze blotter method (10oC for three days,s then at 20oC for four days, then at
-20oC for overnight and at 20oC for five days). The following diseases can be detected and
identified by this method.
Crucifers Black and grey leaf spot Alternaria brassicicola
A. brassicae
Radish Alternaria leaf spot A. raphani
Chickpea (Cicer arietinum) Ascochyta blight Ascochyta rabiei
Grey mould Botrytis cinerea
33
Rice (Oryza sativa) Brown spot Drechslera oryzae
Blast Pyricularia oryzae
Stack burn Trichoconiella padwickii
Chilli (Capsicum sp) Anthracnose or fruit rot Colletotrichum capsici
Soybean (Glycine max) Purple seed stain or Cercospora kikuchii
Purple blotch
6 Agar plate method
This method is used for detection of same type of fungal pathogens as in blotter method.
Those fungi, which are not easily detectable in blotter method, can be detected by this method.
This method is costlier however, less time consuming than blotter test. In this method, specific
agar media for specific fungi are used because of different growing ability of different fungi,
under specific incubation conditions. This method provides quick identification of seed infection
with specific fungi.
Procedure: Working sample - 400 seeds
Two nutrient agar media viz. malt extract agar (MEA) and potato dextrose agar (PDA)
are generally used for seed health testing. The media is prepared, sterilized and poured into
sterilized petriplates.
Seeds are planted on specific medium after treating with 1 to 2 per cent sodium hypochlorite
(NaOCI). Normally 5-10 seeds are placed per 9cm diameter petriplates and incubated in the
same way as in blotter method. The seeds can be treated with 0.1 per cent mercuric chloride
(HgCl2) instead of sodium hypochlorite. However, mercuric chloride treated seeds are washed in
sterilized distilled water, 3 to 4 times to remove excess mercuric chloride. Fungi are identified
based on colony characteristics. Colonies with doubtful identity should be examined under
compound microscope. The following fungi can be easily detected by this method.
Pathogen Medium
Alternaria triticina Nutrient Agar
Botrytis cinerea Nutrient Agar
Fusarium oxysporum Nutrient Agar (Czapek-Dox Agar)
Drechslera oryzae Guaiacol Agar
Pyricularia oryzae Guaiacol Agar
D. sorkiniane Potato Dextrose Agar
7 SEEDLING SYMPTOM TEST
This test is applicable for those fungi which are capable of producing symptoms on the
root and shoot of the young seedlings. It is used for screening of germplasm in post entry
quarantine control, demonstrating seed transmission of certain pathogens that cause symptoms
on seedlings. The testing and evaluation of efficacy of fungicides for seed treatment can be done.
This test can predict the field performance of the seed lot, infected by certain pathogens.
34
Procedure: This test can be conducted in the laboratories, growth chambers or glass houses,
using a variety of containers such as test tubes, petri plates, trays, earthen/plastic pots and
substrates like soil, gravel, sand and similar material. Substrates/media are sterilized by
autoclaving at 15 pound pressure (121°C) for different time depending upon the substrates/media
and seeds are sown on them. The container containing seeds are incubated under optimum
conditions, generally at 20oC for 14 days under 12h of alternating cycles of artificial light and
darkness. The incubation period and conditions vary from crop to crop and fungus to fungus. At
the end of incubation, developed seedling symptoms of seed borne infection by pathogen may be
compared with those produced under field conditions. The individual seedling is examined and
per cent infection is calculated. The following fungi can be detected in crops given below by this
method.
Pathogen Crops
Alternaria spp. Crucifers and carrots
Colletotrichum spp. Sorghum and chilli
Fusarium spp. Chickpea and other hosts
Drechslera spp. Rice and wheat
Pyricularia oryzae Rice
Septoria nodorum Wheat
8. Non destructive seed health test:
This test is conducted on high valued germplasm that cannot be sacrificed as in conventional
method. This test is easily applicable in large seeded crops such as corn, soybean and common
bean; however, it can also be applied in small seeded crop like alfalfa, cabbage and lettuce. It
consists of extracting tissue from dry seed with a metallic drill or cork borer (1 to 3 mm) and
testing extracted tissue for the disease. This test does not decrease germination rate and also help
in detection of the disease.
Examples: Ustilago segetum in wheat
Phoma betae in beet
9. Fluorescence method:
The fungus to produce a fluorescent substance under Nuv light.
Example: Ascohyta pisi in pea seeds exhibits yellow green fluorescence.
Table1. Summary of various techniques for detecting seed-transmitted pathogens and

insect pests
Techniques Fungi Bacteria Virus Insects Nematodes

Conventional
Dry seed examination + + + + +
35
Seed washing test + + - - -
Soaked seed test + - - - +
Whole embryo test + - - - -
Incubation tests + + - - -
Phage sensitivity test - + - - -
Staining of inclusion bodies - - + - -
Electron microscopy - - + - -
Growing-on test + + + - -
Infectivity test + + + - -
X ray radiography - - - + -
Transparency test - - - + -
Serological
Enzxyme-linked - + + - -
immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
Dot-immunobinding assay - - + - -
(DIBA)
Immunosorbent electron - - + - -
microscopy (ISEM)
Molecular
Polymerase chain reaction + + - - +
(PCR)
REverrse transcription-PCR - - + - -
(RT-PCR)
Immunocapture-RT-PCR (IC- - - + - -
RT-PCR)
Real-time PCR + + - - +
Real-time RT-PCR - - + - -
Table2. Diseases introduced in India from the other country
Crop Pathogen Disease Year Origin
Wheat Urocystis tritici Flag smut 1906 Australia
Rice Fusarium moniliforme Foot rot 1930 South-East
Asia
Maize Sclerospora philippinensis Downy mildew 1912 Java
Sorghum Phyllosticta sorghi Leaf spot 1934 South Africa
Tomato Phytophthora infestans Late blight 1883 Europe
Potato Phytophthora infestans Late blight 1883 Europe
36
Potato Synchytrium endobioticum Wart 1953 Netherlands
Potato Heterodera pallida Nematode 1961 Scotland
Potato Heterodera rostochiensis Golden Nematode 1961 Scotland
Coffee Hemileia vastatrix Leaf disease 1879 Sri Lanka
Chrysanthem Puccinia carthami Rust 1904 Japan or
um Europe
Grape vine Plasmopara viticola Downy mildew 1910 Europe
Cucurbits Pseudoperonospora Powdery mildew 1938 Malaya
cubensis
Tobacco Phytophthora parasticia Black shank 1938 Netherlands
var. nicotianae
Pear Erwinia amylovora Fire blight 1940 England
Pear Agrobacterium tumefaciens Crown gall 1940 England
Pear Agrobacterium rhizogene Hairy root 1940 England
Apple Agrobacterium tumefaciens Crown gall 1940 England
Apple Agrobacterium rhizogene Hairy root 1940 England
Apple Spaeropsis malorum Canker 1943 Australia
Apple Venturia inaequalis Scab 1940 -
Banana Virus Bunchy top 1940 Sri Lanka
Sunflower Plasmopara halstedii Downy mildew 1985 -
Onion Peronospora destructor Downy mildew 1977 -
Groundnut Puccinia arachidis Rust 1972 -
Table3. Important seed borne fungal diseases of major food and vegetable crops
Crop Disease Pathogen
Wheat Loost smut Ustilago segetum var. tritici
(Triticum aestivum) Karnal bunt Neovossia indica
Flag smut Urocystis agropyri
Chickpea Ascochyta blight Ascochyta rabiei
(Cicer arietinum) Wilt Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceri
Crucifers Grey & black leaf spot Alternaria brassicae and
A. brassicicola
Rice Bunt Neovossia horrida
(Oryza sativa) False smut Ustilaginoidea virens
37
Blast Pyricularia oryzae
Stackburn Trichoconiellla padwickii
Cotton Anthracnose Colletotrichum indicum
(Gossypium spp.) Wilt F. oxysporum f. sp. vasinfectum
Maize Black kernel rot Botryodiplodia theobromae
(Zea mays) Cob rot Fusarium moniliforme
Southern leaf blight Drechslera maydis
Pearlmillet Downy mildew Sclerospora graminicola
(Pennisetum glaucum) Smut Tolyposporium penicillariae
Sorghum Anthracnose Colletotrichum graminicola
(Sorghum vulgare) Kernel or grain smut Sphacelotheca sorghi
Downy mildew Peronosclerospora sorghi
Soybean Anthracnose Colletotrichum dematium
(Glycine max) Pod & stem blight Phomopsis sojae
Purple seed stain Cercospora kikuchii
Cucumis spp. Anthracnose Colletotrichum lagenarium
Brinjal (S. melongena) Fruit rot Phomopsis vexans
Carrot Black root rot or Alternaria radicina
(Daucus carota) Seedling blight A. dauci
Onion Damping off Botrytis allii
(Allium cepa) Downy mildew Peronospora destructor
Purple blotch Alternaria porri
Stemphylium blight Stemphylium vesicarium
Pepper chilli Anthracnose Colletotrichum capsici
(Capsicum annuum)
Radish (Raphanus sativus) Grey leaf spot Alternaria brassicae raphani
Tomato Buck eye rot Phytophthora parasitica
(Lycopersicon esculentum) Damping off Pythium aphanidermatum
Early blight Alternaria solani
Late blight or Fruit rot. Phytophthora infestans
Disease management
1. Selection of seed production areas
2. Eradicatiion or reduction of soil borne pathogens
(i) Crop rotation
(ii) Fallow
(iii)Burning
(iv) Water management
38
3. Modification of cultural practices
(i) Preparation of the seed bed
(ii) Date of sowing
(iii)Depth of sowing
(iv) Rate of seedling.
(v) Proper dose of fertilizers
(vi) Selection of disease resistant/tolerant varieties
4. Reduction or elimination of seed-borne inoculum
(i) Certification and field inspection of seed crops
(ii) Biological control
(iii)Seed treatment
(iv) Isolation distance
5. Eradication of other hosts
6. Chemical protection of seed crops
39
QUALITY SEED PRODUCTION IN PULSE CROPS
Axay Bhuker
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar- 125004
[email protected]
The old Indian scripture says “Subeejam Sukshetre Jayate Sampadyate” i.e. Good seed in good
soil yield abundant (Manu Samriti). Seed is one of the basic inputs for enhancing production.
With technological advances in modern agriculture, each and every seed should readily
germinate and produce a vigorous and healthy seedling ensuring maximum yield. Availability of
viable and vigorous seeds at planting time is important for achieving targets of agricultural
production because good quality seeds act as a catalyst for realizing the full potential of other
inputs.
Pulses are the major sources of dietary protein in the vegetarian diet in our country. Besides
being a rich source of protein, they maintain soil fertility through biological nitrogen fixation in
soil and thus play a vital role in furthering sustainable agriculture. They occupy a prominent
place in their diets, since they are the major sources of proteins for them. They also provide
carbohydrates, certain minerals (Ca, Mg, Zn, Iron, K and P), water soluble vitamins like
carotene, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin (concentration of which increases on germination) and
vitamin ‘B’ complex.
India is the largest producer of pulses in the world accounting for 25-26 per cent of total global
production from about 34-35 per cent area. India is also the largest consumer of pulses and
accounts for about 30 per cent of total world consumption. About 90 per cent of the total global
pigeonpea, 65 % of chickpea and 37 % of lentil area falls in India with corresponding production
of 93 %, 68 % and 32% of global production, respectively. Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are the major pulses producing states
accounting together for about 80 per cent of total production of India. The main reasons of low
production and productivity of pulses in India are that they are predominantly grown in rainfed
conditions, more than 40% area under marginal land cultivation, forced maturity due to rising
temperature, incidence of terminal drought – besides diseases & pests, choice of inappropriate
varieties, low or no input use, lesser plant protection measures, shortage of quality seed (poor
seed replacement rate) and limited resources for research. This is mainly due to differences in the
use of quality inputs particularly seed and improved cultivation technology. The supply of
quality seeds in adequate quantity, in time and at reasonable prices to the farmers is major factor
that can lead to a quantum jump in the production of pulses in India. For achieving desirable
levels of SRR, adequate seed needs to be produced first. There is need for a breakthrough in
seeds production so as to improve productivity.
In India, pulse crops are grown during kharif (mungbean, urdbean, pegionpea, cowpea), rabi
(chickpea, lentil, fieldpea), spring/summer (mungbean). All these crops are self pollinated except
pigeonpea (often cross pollinated), hence their seed production is not difficult and even farmers
can produce the seed easily. Seed production programme requires the application of good
40
farming practices along with careful management of crop. Thus, the following practices should
be adopted for quality seed production of pulse crops:
1. Selection of fields: The field selected for seed production of pulse crops should be free from
volunteer plants. The field plot should have loamy soil without salinity & alkalinity with well
drained facility.
2. Field Preparation: Good land preparation is very important for getting uniform germination
and stand establishment. For which 2 to 3 harrowing followed by leveling should be done.
Leveling is essential for moisture conservation, uniform irrigation and drainage in case of
excessive water.
3. Isolation Distance: All pulses are self-pollinated except pigeonpea, hence less isolation
distance is required to avoid contamination. For production of foundation and certified seed
of all these crops isolation distance is 10 m and 5 m respectively while for pigeonpea it is 250
m and 100 m for foundation and certified seed production respectively.
4. Selection of variety:
Name of crop varieties
chickpea Desi- H -208, C-235, HC-1, HC-3, HC-5
Kabuli- HK-1, HK-2
Field pea Aparna (HFP-4), HFP-529, Jayanti (HFP 8712), Uttara (HFP 8909),
Haryal (HFP 9907 B)
Lentil Haryana Masar-1 (HM-1), Sapna and Garima
Mungbean MH-421, Basanti, Sattya, SML-668
Urdbean UH-1, Uttara
Pigonpea Manak, Paras Type-21, UPAS-120
Cowpea CS-88, S-450 (Kohinoor), UPC-5286
5. Source of seed: Seed must be procured from a reliable source and it should be pure, new and
healthy.
6. Seed Treatment: For nodulation and nitrogen fixation, the seed must be treated with specific
Rhizobium culture before sowing. The inoculation should be done 10-12 hours before
sowing. To inoculate 10 kg seed, 100 g Gur be added in one liter of water followed by
heating up to prepare homogenous mixture. After cooling the mixture at room temperature,
one packet of Rhizobium culture is added in it and mixed up thoroughly. Rubbing this
mixture of the culture solution on seeds provides a uniform thin coating all over. After drying
in shade for about 6-8 hours, seeds can be used for sowing. Different Rhizobium spp. are
recommended for different pulse crops are as follows:
Chickpea Mesorhizobium spp
Mungbean, Urdbean & Pigeonpea Rhizobium &Bradyrhizobium
Fieldpea, Lentil Rhizobium leguminosarum
Cowpea Rhizobium spp.
Some time hard seeds can occur in some varieties due to initial dormancy. Such variety
seeds must be identified and treated with acid. For identification of hard seeds take 100
41
seeds in a small vessel and fill the vessel with 100 ml of water. Wait for 2 hrs and at the end
count the number of seeds that have swollen upon imbibition. The number of seeds not
imbibed is termed as hard seeds. If the hard seed quantity is more than 10% the seeds can be
given acid treatment. Seeds possessing hard seeds are treated with 10% commercial
sulphuric acid. The seeds are placed in plastic bucket and acid is added at 100 ml/kg seed.
The acid added seed is stirred with wooden stick for 2 minutes and then immediately washed
with water three times to remove acid completely. The seeds are then dried in shade for 4
hours.
7. Sowing Time: Early sowing not only leads to invasion of diseases and insect-pests e.g. wilt
in chickpea; stem fly in peas but also it leads to over growth in crops like chickpea moong.
Late sowing results in poor growth, poor seed development, pod borer attack, powdery
mildew in peas, late maturity, shriveled grains and also the delay in next crop. Optimum time
as recommended for getting maximum production of quality seed is as follows:
Crop Sowing Time
Mungbean 1st week of July (with the onset of monsoon) - kharif
March 1st week to March end - summer
Urdbean 1st week of July (with the onset of monsoon)
Pegionpea Mid March to Mid June (Mid June is best)
Chickpea Desi- 25th Oct. to Mid Nov.
Kabuli- Mid November
Lentil November
Fieldpea 1st Fortnight of November
Cowpea June- July
8. Sowing and seed rate: Line sowing as per recommendations should be done. Optimum
depth should be maintained for uniform germination and for this Seed-cum-Fertilizer drill or
Zero tillage drill can be used effectively. Seed rate should be kept 10-15% less than
commercial crop as roguing operations can be effectively carried out. Recommended seed
rates for different crops are as follows:
Mungbean 6 kg/acre (Kharif)
10 kg/acre (summer)
Urdbean 6 kg/acre
Pegionpea (arhar) 5 kg/acre
Chickpea (desi) 15 to 18 kg/acre
20 to 22 kg/acre (Late Sowing)
30 to 32 kg/acre (Bold Seeded)
Chickpea (kabuli) 36 kg/acre
Lentil Bold seeded: 12 kg/acre &
Small seeded: 15 kg/acre
Fieldpea Tall: 30 kg/acre and Dwarf: 36 to 40 Kg/acre
Cowpea 10-12kg/acre
42
9. Row Spacing: Following row to row spacing must be kept to obtain a good harvest.
Name of crop Row to row distance (cm)

Chickpea 30-45
Lentil 18-22
Fieldpea 25-30
Mungbean 30-45 kharif
22-25 summer
Urdbean 30-45
Pegionpea 40-50
Cowpea 45-60
Thinning is an important operation to maintain the proper gap between plants. This will
provide optimum space for growth of the plants and it should be carried out at about four leaf
stage.
10. Fertilizers: Basal application of Nitrogen @ 15 kg/ha and P2O5 @ 40 kg/ha are sufficient for
all these pulse crops. ZnSO4 @ 25 kg/ha should be applied once a year.
11. Weeding and hoeing: This operation not only controls the weeds but also conserves
moisture and improves aeration around the roots which is desired for proper nodulation.
Chemical weed control can be practiced by pre-emergence application (just after sowing) of
Pendimethalin @1 kg /acre. Mechanical weed control is also very effective and it should be
done at following days after sowing in the different pulse crops to obtain maximum
production:
Mungbean/urdbean 1st at 20-25 and 2nd at 30-40 days after sowing
Pigeonpea 1st at 25-30 and 2nd at 45-50 days after sowing
Chickpea 1st at 25-30 and 2nd at 45-50 days after sowing
Lentil 1st at 25-30 and 2nd at 45-50 days after sowing
Fieldpea 1st at 25-30 and 2nd at 45-50 days after sowing
Cowpea 1st at 20-25 and 2nd at 30-40 days after sowing
12. Irrigation: Pulses are very sensitive to saline/brackish water therefore; use only good quality
water for irrigation. Need based light irrigation should be given. Generally 1st irrigation
should be given at pre-flowering stage and 2nd at pod development stage.
13. Roguing: Adequate and timely roguing is most important for quality seed production. The
rogues (off-types, weed plants, other crop plants, diseased plants) which differ from the
normal plant populations may cause in genetic deterioration in seed stock, so these should be
removed as early as possible. rouging may be done at following stages:
 Vegetative stage
 Flowering stage
 Maturity stage
14. Plant protection: A number of diseases affect all the pulse crops therefore, their control is
necessary to obtain the desired yields. Most important is to grow resistant varieties.
Important diseases of different pulse crops along with their control are given hereunder:
43
Mungbean and urdbean: Yellow Mosaic is most important disease of these crops and there is no
control of this disease. It is spread by white fly; therefore, control of white fly is suggested by
spraying Metasystox, Rogor etc. Rogue out the diseased plant and bury it deep in the soil so that
fresh inoculum is not available. For leaf spot, Blitox-50 or Endofil M-45 @ 1.5-2.0 kg/ha in 500
l water can be sprayed. For the control of Leaf crinkle virus spray Copper oxychloride @ 1.5-2.0
kg/ha in 500 l water. Root rot can be controlled by treating seed with Thiram @ 4g / kg seed.
Pigeonpea: Wilt, Sterility mosaic, Phytophthora blight and Alternaria leaf blight are the common
diseases. Seed treatment, crop rotation & water drainage must be practiced to control these
diseases.
Chickpea: Blight, Wilt and Root rot are the major diseases and seed treatment is best solution for
these. For the control of wilt seed treatment with Bavistin @ 2.5 g/kg seed is suggested for
effective control.
Fieldpea: Root rot, Powdery mildew, Downy mildew and Rust are major diseases of this crop.
Seed treatment with Bavistin @ 2.5 g/kg seed is suggested for effective control.
Cowpea: Root rot and Collar rot: can be controlled by seed treatment with Agrosan / Ceresan /
Thiram @ 3g/ kg seed, cultivation of resistant varieties coupled with crop rotation are useful in
its management to certain extent.. Mosaic virus disease is also a serious seed borne disease of
cowpea. The symptoms appear as chlorotic patches on cotyledons, that later cover entire foliage.
The secondary infection spreads through aphids. Selection resistant varieties, use of healthy
seeds, control of aphids and rouging of infected plants are useful in its management.
Major Insects: Many insect pests attack the pulses; therefore, protection against these insect
pests is must. Following insecticides can be sprayed in proper quantity at the time of insect
attack to avoid losses. The recommended quantity of water should be used otherwise the spray
will not be effective.
Crop Insect Insecticide Quantity of Quantity of
insecticide/ water / acre
acre
Chickpea, Pod borer Monocrotophos 36 EC 200 ml 100
Lentil,
Cypermetharin 10 EC 125 ml 100
Fieldpea,
Quinalphos 25 EC 400 ml 100
Pigeonpea, Pod borer Monocrotophos 36 EC 300 ml 300
Mungbean
Fenvelerate 20 EC 125 ml 300
and Urdbean
Cypermetharin 10 EC 100 ml 300
Whitefly Dimethoate 25 EC 250 ml 250
cowpea Jassids Malathion 50 EC 200 ml 200
Hairy caterpillar Dichlorovos @ 0.05%
Cowpea stem fly Monocrotophos @ 0.05%
44
15. Harvesting & Threshing: The crop should be harvested at a proper stage. Pulse crops are
generally indeterminate types, therefore, fresh flush of flowers appear whenever the crop gets
moisture and hence all the pods do not mature at the same time. Therefore, harvesting should
be done when about 80% pods are mature. After harvesting leave the crop for 5-7 days in
field for proper drying. When the crop has dried up sufficiently thresh the crop to obtain the
seed. Proper care should be taken at the time of harvesting and threshing to avoid mixture
with other varieties.
16. Storage: Adequate precautions should be followed to prevent seed lot from deterioration
while in transit or storage. Before storing the seed it must be dried to safer moisture level i.e.
9 %. After that store the seed in new gunny bags on wooden crates. The store must be dry
and without any crack. The floor and walls of the store should be sprayed with melathioan 50
EC @ 1 ml/liter water one day prior to storage. For storage in bins clean and dry the bins
properly before storage.
Field standards for different pulse crops
Crop Isolation No. of Off-types (%) Inseparabl Objectiona Plants

distance field e other ble weed affected by
(m) inspection crop plants seed borne
s plants diseases (%)
FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS
Chickpea 10 5 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - - -
Fieldpea 10 5 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - - -
Lentil 10 5 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - - -
Mungbean 10 5 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - 0.10 0.20
Urdbean 10 5 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - - -
Pigeonpea 250 100 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - 0.10 0.20
Cowpea 10 5 2 2 0.10 0.20 - - - - 0.10 0.20
Seed standards for different pulse crops
Crop Germin Physical Moisture content Other Objectio Weed Other
ation purity (%) crop nable seed distingui
(%) (%) seed weed shable
seeds varieties
(ODV)
F CS FS CS ordinary Vapour FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS
S proof
FS CS FS CS
Chickpea 85 85 98 98 9 9 8 8 - 5 - - - - 5 10
Fieldpea 75 75 98 98 9 9 8 8 - 5 - - - - 5 10
Lentil 75 75 98 98 9 9 8 8 5 10 - - 10 20 10 20
Mungbean 75 75 98 98 9 9 8 8 5 10 - - 5 10 10 20
Urdbean 75 75 98 98 9 9 8 8 5 10 - - 5 10 10 20
Pigeonpea 75 75 98 98 9 9 8 8 5 10 - - 5 10 10 20
Cowpea 75 75 98 98 9 9 8 8 5 10 - - 5 10 10 20
45
Storage fungi and their deterioration in seed quality
SS Jakhar
There are a number of fungi which can invade and cause damage to grains and seeds. In general
terms we can divide these fungi into two groups- field fungi and storage fungi.
Field fungi invade the seeds before harvest while the crop is still in the field. Field fungi may
affect the appearance and quality of seed or grain. Usually damage caused by field fungi occurs
before harvest, can be detected by routine inspection and does not continue to increase in storage
if grain is stored at the proper moisture content and temperature. Most field fungi are more
prevalent when rainfall is above normal during grain fill and harvest. Invasion by field fungi may
be more severe is the crop has been damaged by insects, birds or hail. With corn, ears well
covered by husks and maturing in a downwards position usually have less rot than ears with open
husks or ears maturing in an upright position. Field fungi common on corn in Missouri include
species of Alternaria, Cladosporium, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Diplodia, Fusarium and
Gibberella.
Storage fungi (also called storage molds) are fungi which invade grains or seeds during storage.
Storage fungi are usually not present to any serious extent before harvest. Small quantities of
spores of storage fungi may be present on grain going into storage or may be present on spilled
grain present in harvest, handling and storage equipment or structures. Under improper storage
conditions this small amount of inoculum can increase rapidly leading to significant problems.
The development of storage fungi in stored grain is influenced by the moisture content of the
stored grain, the temperature of the stored grain, the condition of the grain going into storage, the
length of time the is grain stored and the amount of insect and mite activity in the grain. The
most common storage fungi are species of Aspergillus and Penicillium. These fungi are widely
distributed and almost always present.
Conditions under which storage fungi are likely to damage stored grains
The major factors that determine when stored grains will be damaged by storage fungi are:
1. Moisture content- Moisture content below 13.5 percent in starchy cereal seeds such as
wheat, barley, rice, corn and sorghum and below 12.5 percent in soybean prevents
invasion by storage fungi regardless of how long the grains are stored. As the moisture
content rises above these levels, invasion by storage fungi increases with temperature and
time. It is also important to be aware that there is variation in moisture content through a
grain mass. Storage fungi will grow where moisture is suitable and not according to the
average moisture content of the grain mass. These moisture content limits for safe storage
imply that nowhere in the bulk of grain is the moisture content higher than that specified.
2. Temperature- In the range of temperature between 40 to 50 degrees F, storage fungi
grow very slowly. At 80 to 90 degrees F, they grow much more rapidly.
3. Cracked and broken kernels and foreign material - Broken or cracked kernels are
more likely to be contaminated with storage fungi going into storage and more likely to
be invaded once they are in storage than sound kernels. Foreign material may restrict air
movement through the grain mass leading to temperature and moisture problems which
may favor storage mold development.
4. The extent to which grain in already invaded by storage fungi when it arrives at a
given storage site- Grain invaded by storage fungi, even if not detected in ordinary
46
inspection, is partly deteriorated and is a much poorer storage risk than grain free of
storage fungi and otherwise sound. Grain moderately invaded by storage fungi develops
damage at a lower moisture content, at a lower temperature and in a shorter time than
does grain free or almost free of storage fungi.
5. Length of time the grain is to be stored- Grain that is to be stored for only a few
weeks before it is processed can be stored safely with a higher moisture content and more
extensive invasion by storage fungi and can be kept at a higher temperature than grain
that is to be stored for months or years.
6. Amount of insect and mite activity in grain- Insects and mites may carry fungal
spores on their bodies thus introducing storage fungi into the grain mass. Insect and mite
activity in a grain mass tends to lead to an increase in both temperature and moisture
content of the grain surrounding the insect infestation. In these 'hot spots' conditions may
be favorable for mold growth.
Management Practices to Minimize Damage from Stored Grain Fungi
Little can be done to prevent or reduce the invasion of crops in the field by field fungi. However,
the following recommendations should help prevent storage fungi problems or minimize damage
from storage fungi in stored grains.
1. Harvest as soon as the moisture content allows for minimum grain damage.
2. Adjust the harvesting equipment for minimum kernel or seed damage and maximum
cleaning.
3. Clean all grain harvesting and handling equipment thoroughly before beginning to
harvest. Clean bins or storage facilities thoroughly to remove dirt, dust and other foreign
material, crop debris, chaff and grain debris.
4. Clean grain going into storage to remove light weight and broken kernels or seeds as
well as foreign material and fines.
5. Moisture content is by far the most important factor affecting the growth of fungi in
stored grain. After harvest grain should be dried to safe moisture contents as quickly as
possible.
6. Aerate grain to safe and equalized temperatures through the grain mass.
7. Protect grain from insect and mite damage.
8. Check stored grain on a regular basis and aerate as needed to maintain low moisture
and proper temperature.
9. High moisture corn can be protected from storage molds with propionic acid or other
organic acids sold under various trade names. It is important to follow label directions on
rate and application methods. Grain treated with propionic acid can only be used for
animal feed and it is not permitted in commercial grain channels.
Storing Seeds and Grains - Principles of Preventive Storage Protection
1. Choice of variety and selection of healthy seeds
Select the most suitable seeds for planting. Indigenous seeds have been developed for hundreds
of generations and are well adapted to the areas where they are grown, whereas some modern
varieties are higher yielding but may be more susceptible to pests. There is a widespread
perception that modern, high-yielding varieties of maize may be more susceptible to storage
pests. These varieties often have open cob husks, allowing insects and birds to easily attack
maize in the field, whereas some of the traditional varieties have closed husks, thus effectively
protecting the crop from insect attack. The same have been observed with some sorghum
varieties. Therefore, the increased yield offered by some varieties should be weighed against the
47
susceptibility to storage pests, the expected period of storage and the price to be expected for
grain of a particular damage level. Efforts are going on to develop high yielding varieties with
resistance to storage pests. Select the best seeds for next years planting avoiding damaged and
sick looking seeds.
2. Choosing harvest time
If planting and harvesting is planned so that harvest falls in the dry season, there are no special
problems with drying the crop. Care should be taken when cultivating new high yielding and
early ripening varieties, since the harvest may fall in the wetter part of the year, and this may
create problems of storage.
Some storage pests (e.g. bean beetles, cowpea bruchids, the larger grain borer and some moths)
infest beans and grains in the field only when the crop is almost dry. Timely harvest can
therefore ensure that these pests are not carried into the store along with the beans or grain. Thus,
timely harvesting (avoiding late harvesting) significantly reduced infestation by the bean bruchid
and cowpea. As a rule, do not leave crops in the field when they are ready for harvest, this
increases the chances of infestation by some storage pests
3. Drying
Drying is an important procedure in storage protection. It prevents seed form germinating and
prevents attack by fungi. Some fungi can cause cracking of seed thereby making the seeds more
susceptible to pest attack. All seed must be dried to 12-13 % moisture in order to be stored
safely. To make sure the seed is properly dried put one seed or kernel in the mouth and chew. If
it cannot easily be cracked it is dry enough - if it crushes between the teeth it is not dry enough.
This is known as the tooth test. Heat used for drying the produce will also kill larvae and chase
away adults of insect storage pests. Care should be taken to avoid overheating since excessive
heat can damage seed or grains. Care should be taken not to exceed the following temperatures:
beans: 35 °C - seeds: 43 °C - cereals: 60 °C.
The following methods of drying are possible:
 Seed can be spread out in the sun on a hard clean surface to dry for several days in dry
weather, until a seed cannot be bitten into when putting it in the mouth. The thickness of the
layers of cobs, panicles, pods or grains must not exceed 5 cm, and the seed must be turned
regularly in order to ensure good and even aeration. In the evening, the produce must be put
in a pile and covered.
 Simple driers. Several designs of solar driers are available.
4. Sorting and cleaning the produce
Check whether the produce is infested by taking samples. Pay particular attention to cracks and
gaps where insects may hide. If the produce is infested, ensure it is stored separately (quarantine)
and treated in order to prevent the pests infesting clean produce. In case of heavy infestation
discard the produce. In case the produce is slightly attacked, heating to no more than 50°C can
kill moths and weevils; use a thermometer, as heating to any higher temperature will destroy the
germination capacity the seeds.
Removal of infested grains or cobs and pests can also be done by hand, sieving, winnowing or
moving the grain (shaking, restacking). When using methods that merely separate the pests from
the stored product, ensure that the pests removed from the produce are killed to avoid
reinfestation.
48
5. Store location
Site stores away from any potential source of infestation. The grain and tuber moths are good
flyers and adults from infested stores often infest growing crops in the field. Separations of stores
from fields may help to reduce attack.
6. Characteristic of store
A good seed store must be airy, shady, cool and dry. Temperature variations should be as small
as possible, because it encourages condensation of water, which promotes fungal development.
Crops in the store should be protected against dampness rising from the ground, and the site
should be safe from flooding in the rainy season. The roof should have no leaks. Keep the
temperature and humidity as low as possible (perform controlled ventilation). There are
indications that storing grain in a dry place may help reduce infestation of grain moths. Prevent
pest entry by sealing the store (windows, doors, ventilation facilities) with insect-proof gauze.
Plastering stores with mud to reduce water uptake was found to be effective.
7. Storage hygiene
Always keep the store and its surroundings clean. It has been said: "the most important,
economic and effective tool for storage hygiene is the broom". Before newly harvested crops are
stored, the store should be carefully prepared well ahead of time. Old stored products should be
removed and the room completely cleaned up. The whole building should be well aired and if
possible fumigated or disinfected (see store fumigation and disinfection below). The walls roof
and floor should be both watertight and rat proof, and small holes and cracks, which are potential
breeding places for storage insects, should be sealed.
8. Inspecting the store
Periodic inspection (weekly to fortnightly) and removal of any infested produce is essential.
Check for droppings and footprints of birds and rodents. Look for flying moths at dusk. Brush
stacks of bags with a stick or broom to disturb and discover resting moths. Lift bags in order to
detect moth cocoons along the line where bags touch each other. When looking for beetles, pay
particular attention to cracks, bag seams and ears where they often hide. Empty individual bags
in a thin layer onto a sheet and examine the contents for beetles and larvae. This should be done
in the shade so that the insects do not flee immediately. Insects can be also be sieved out using a
box sieve with a mesh of 1 to 2 mm. Identify the insect found in order to perform the correct
treatment. These measures should prevent the breeding of carry-over insects from former crops.
The surroundings should also be cleared to discourage easy re-infestation by insects and rodents.
Infection with fungi can be detected by the mouldy smell, which is noticeable even before any
visual changes to the product can be seen. Pay attention to water marks on bags, which can be
still noticed after the bags have dried.
9. Store fumigation
Farmers in the Philippines as well as in Benin lit fires in which powdered chilli pepper is burnt
underneath grain stores once a month to keep away storage pests. One disadvantage is that the
smoke is very sharp and uncomfortable for human eyes and respiratory system.
10. Store disinfection
After the store has been cleaned completely and all old deposits of dust (possibly containing
insect eggs) has been removed, it is good practice to dust the whole store with diatomite earth,
lime or ashes as a further prevention of problems. Where larger grain borer has attacked the
wood in the construction, the wood should be treated with any of the approved wood
preservatives or thoroughly sprayed with kerosene, oil mixture to get rid of any surviving grain
borers.
49
Additives are useful to protect stored produce from pest attack
Introduction
The use of mineral substances such as fine sand, clay dust, lime and wood ash cause invisible
injuries to the stored food pest leading to dehydration. They also fill the spaces between the
grains, making difficult for the pest movement and respiration. When using mineral substances
the amounts required are around 50 to 100 g per kg of stored product, except for sand, of which
larger amounts are required.
The addition of ashes, fine sand, lime, diatomite earth, and mineral or vegetable oils is
particularly useful for protecting small farm seed storage, or for storing small amounts for
replanting. However, this is not always practical for large quantities of seed in terms of labour
required. For larger amounts of grains and seeds it is often more practical to simply mix the seed
with any strong smelling plant material available to repel insects. Some plants such as pyrethrum
and derris can actually kill storage insects.
Wood ash
Wood ash either alone or mixed with powdered chilli pepper is an efficient method of pest
control. However, ashes may have an effect on the taste of the treated product. The success of
this method depends on the amount of ashes being added. Ashes at 2 to 4 % by weight of grain is
said to give 4 to 6 months protection if the moisture content of the grain is below 11%. Ashes
from casuarinas, derris, mango and tamarind are particularly suitable. Any other ash mixed with
powdered pyrethrum, Mexican marigold or syringa seeds will increase the protection against
insects. Ashes do not control the larger grain borer.
Lime
Mixing seeds with 0.3% lime have given good results in weevil control.
Sand
In districts where fine sand is easily available it can be used for protection of stored products. It
is best used with bigger seeds, the intention being that all the spaces between the larger seeds
should be filled by sand, which can easily be removed again by sieving. The more sand used the
better, but at least equal amounts of sand and seed should be used.
Diatomite
Diatomite or diatomaceous earth (DE) is mined in Kenya and can be obtained at a very
reasonable price. It consists of tiny fossil diatoms whose skeletons, made mostly of silica, form
the diatomite deposits. Diatomite is a very effective and non-poisonous insect killer. As a dust it
can absorb a lot of water, and it kills insects by drying them out. Farmers using ½ kg DE/ bag of
grain do not experience any problems with weevils.
Bt. (Bacillus thuringiensis)
Bt in powder form mixed with fine sand is effective against potato tuber moth. It may also be
effective against grain moths as well. For more information see on potato datasheet
Vegetables oils
Oils of coconut, castor bean, cottonseed, groundnut, maize, mustard, safflower, neem and
soybean affect egg laying, and egg and larval development of stored pests. The addition of
vegetable oil is particularly useful in protecting legumes against pulse beetles (bruchids). Losses
in pulses can be prevented with the addition of 5 ml oil per kg of grain/seed. To be effective the
seed must be coated properly with oil. Sunflower oil is not very effective. The effect of oil
treatment decreases with time, so seeds stored this way should be treated again at any new sign
of infestation. Small seeds may loose some of their germination capacity after oil treatment. If
50
neem seed oil or any other non-food oil is used the bitter taste can be removed by immersing the
seed in hot water for a few minutes before food preparation.
Admixture of plant parts
Traditionally many different types of plant parts are used against store products pests.
Examples of plant materials that help protecting the stored grain/seed:
Plant names Plant parts Treatment
Aloe Whole plant Parts dried, ground and dust mixed with the
grain
Chilli peppers Ripe, dried pods with ashes, Whole pods mixed with grain or dusted as
dung or fine clay powder on beans
Pyrethrum Flower heads Pick on hot days. Dry in the shade. Crush to
powder and mix with grain/seed.
Sunnhemp Seeds Mix seed between gaps in stored larger size
(Crotolaria) grains.
Datura (thorn Leaves and stems (careful - Dry and mix with produce
apple) seed are very poisonous)
Derris All parts Stored produce dusted or sprayed
Eucalyptus Leaves Layered or mixed with stored produce
Lantana sp. Leaves Crushed and placed among seeds
Syringa (Melia Leaves, ripe seeds Dried, powdered, mixed with stored grain
Azedarach) using 2% if powder from seed,
4% if powder from leaves
Mexican Marigold Whole plants Add dried plants in layers, or mix in
powdered plant or place 3-5 cm layer
of crushed plants in base of grain bins
Spearmint Whole plant 4% leaf powder will give good protection
for more than 4 months
Neem Leaves, crushed seeds and their -
extracts and oils
The dosages of plant substances required are generally around 50 g per kg of stored product .
51
Seed Production Technology of Rapeseed-mustard
NK Thakral
Oilseeds Section,
Deptt.of Genetics & Plant Breeding,
CCSHAU, Hisar
Oilseed crops play an important role in agricultural economy of India next only to food grains.
Therefore, oilseeds constitute the principal commercial crops of India. Oil and fats apart from
forming an essential part of human diet, serve as important raw material for the manufacture of
soaps, paints, varnishes, hair oil, lubricants, textile auxiliaries , pharmaceuticals etc. Oil cakes
and meals are used in animal feed and as manures. India is home of oilseed diversity. The bulk of
vegetable oil production in India is derived from nine oilseeds namely; groundnut, rapeseed
mustard, sesame, sunflower, niger, soya bean forming the edible group and linseed and castor
forming the non edible group. The oilseeds complex in India is undergoing visible changes in the
new environment of liberalized trade. Consumption pattern are changing, as new consumers are
being added and amount of consumption is increasing. Changing in cropping patterns has also
taken place with the help of technology mission and price support. Although India ranks among
the largest producers of oilseeds in the world such as USA, China and Brazil, its productivity is
low. Three oilseeds groundnut, soya bean and rapeseed mustard account for 80% of the
aggregated cultivated oilseeds output.
Importance and Trends in Rapeseed–mustard production
Brassicas play an important role in the world agriculture as oilseed, vegetable, forage and green
manure crops and condiments. Genus Brassica of family Brassicaceae (syn. Cruciferae), exists in
a vast diversity of crop forms, unparalleled by any other genus in the family. Oilseed Brassica is
commonly known as Rapeseed and Mustard and occupy an important position in the rain fed
agriculture of our country Rapeseed mustard seeds are known by different names in India.
Rapeseeds are termed as Sarson, Toria or Lahi and Mustard is termed as Rai, Raya Rayda or
Laha. The oil content of its different form ranges from 30 to 45 percent.
India is the fourth largest oilseed economy in the world. Among the seven oilseeds cultivated in
India, rapeseed-mustard contributes 28.6% in the total oilseeds production and ranks second after
groundnut sharing 27.8% in the India’s oilseed economy. Rapeseed mustard group of crops are
important oilseeds grown in the cooler and temperate part of the world and rank third in oilseed
production. The major rapeseed mustard growing countries are China, Canada, India, Germany,
France, U.K. and the highest production comes from China followed by Canada. In India
rapeseed mustard is grown in an area of 5.89 M ha with production and productivity of 6.60 MT
and 1121 Kg/ha, respectively (Anonymous, 2012). Indian mustard the major crop of the group
rapeseed-mustard in the country, occupying more than 90% of the total cultivated area mainly in
the states of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal
and Assam. In Haryana, rapeseed mustard grown on an area of 0.53 M ha with production and
productivity of 0.74 MT and 1396 Kg/ha, respectively. (Anonymous, 2012). Haryana has
achieved the highest productivity of 1869 (kg/ha) in India during 2010-2011.
The crop is globally gaining importance relative to other crops due to higher oil content in the
seed and higher yield potential, with higher return at low cost of production, low moisture
requirement, wider adaptability for various farming conditions. Despite, these facts the area,
production and yield of rapeseed mustard in India is fluctuating due to various problems
associated with this crop. Nevertheless, the crop has the potential to ensure nutritional security
52
and to bring about the Yellow Revolution. The oil of rapeseed and mustard is used as the main
medium for cooking throughout Eastern India and parts of Northern India. The oil is used as
condiments in preparation of pickles and for flavoring curriest vegetables. It is also used for
preparation of hair oils and medicines. Oilseed cake is used for cattle feed and manure. The
demand of oils and fats is increasing in India due to growing population, increasing rate of
consumption and increasing per capita income. Presently, the edible oil consumption has been
growing at a rate of 6.5 percent per annum.Oil consumption is expected to increase to 23.9
kg/annum. To meet out this requirement about 200 per cent increase in rapeseed mustard
production is to be achieved within two decades. India’s productivity is quite low as compare to
the world’s average. The comparatively lower yields are mainly due to the fact that the quality of
seed varieties is generally poor and oilseed crops mostly cultivated in the un-irrigated areas with
low input use.
Seed production technology
Seed production technology mainly depends upon the nature of pollination of the crop. among
the oilseed crops soya bean, groundnut, sesame, and linseed are self pollinated crops.; Sunflower,
Castor, Niger, and some species of Brassica are cross pollinated and Safflower, Indian mustard
and some other species of Brassica are often cross pollinated. Therefore, seed production
technology should be followed accordingly. however, in this lecture, I shall focus my attention to
the seed production of rapeseed mustard, important oilseed crop of the state and second
important crop of the country.
Diversity of cultivated rapeseed-mustard species.
General crop Local name Botanical name Genome Chromosome Oil
name/common name number(2n) content
of English name (%)
Mustard/Indian Rai/Raya Brassica juncea AABB 36 40
mustard/Brown (L.) Czern &
mustard Coss.
Indian rape/ Toria Brassica rapa AA 20 44
Mustard/Toria (L.) var. toria
Brown Brown B.rapa (L.) var. AA 20 43
sarson/Rapeseed Sarson brown sarson
mustard/Turnip rape
Colza/Yellow sarson/ Yellow B.rapa (L.) AA 20 44
Rapeseed/ Brassica Sarson var.yellow sarson
rape
Black mustard Banarsi Rai B.nigra (L.)Koch BB 16 -
Rapeseed/Rutabags Gobhia B.napus (L.) AACC 38 44
Sarson
Taramira/Rocket Salad Taramira Eruca sativa Mill. EE 22 30
Abyssian Karan B.carinata A.Br. BBCC 34 32
mustard/Ethiopian Sarson
mustard
53
The major distinguishing features of rapeseed(B.rapa L.) and mustard (B.juncea)
Characteristics Rapeseed Mustard

1. Leaves Leaf blade encircle the stem Leaf blade does not
encircle the stem
2. Plant height Short to medium (1 to 1.5 m) Medium to tall
3. Days to maturity 90-140 125-150
4. Surface of siliqua Uniform and smooth Beaded or wavy
5. Seed surface Smooth Reticulate
6. Somatic chromosomal, 20 36
number
Recommended varieties of rapeseed and mustard by Oilseeds Section, Department of Plant

Breeding,CCS HAU, Hisar
Sr. Crop Variety Pedigree Year of Maturity Avg Oil Special features
No release (days) yield content
. (q/ha) (%)
A Toria Sangam Synthetic 1974 110 15 44.0 Profuse
variety branching,pod
narrow, seeds
brown and medium
in size.
TH-68 Improved 1990 89 14 43.9 Best for toria-
population wheat rotation,
of early early maturing,
plants medium seed size
B Raya Prakash (RL-18xT9) 1974 150 20 39.0 It has become
obsolete now
RH-30 Selection 1983 135 21 39.0 Early
from P- maturing,non-
26/1-1 shattering ,bold
seed, tolerant to
mustard aphid.
RH-8113 (T-59 x - 1988 150 22 40.0 Moderately,
782) resistant to foliar
diseases.
RH-819 (Prakash x 1990 148 20 40.0 Suitable for rainfed
Bulk pollen) area, medium seed
size.
RH-781 (RL-18 x P- 1990 148 20 40.5 Resistant to frost
26/3-1,RL- injury, medium
18) size.
RH-8812 (PN-15 x 1996 142 23 40.0 High yielding
(Laxmi) RH-30A) ,bold seed size and
blackish seed
colour.
54
RH9304 RH- 2002 142 23 40.0 Thermo tolerant
839xRH-30
RH-9801 Sel.RC- 2002 130 18 40.0 Suitable for late
1670 sown
RB 9901 Selection 2002 147 18 40.0 Tetralocular
RH 0119 Pusa 2010 147 18 40.0 Drought tolerant
BoldxPCR-
RB 50 Laxmi xRH 2008 146 18 40.0 -do-
9617
RH 0749 RH 781 x 2012 146 26 39.5 Timely sown,
RH9617 irrigated
RH 0406 RH 2012 145 23 39.5 Timely sown ,
9608XRH30 rainfed conditions
C Brown BSH-1 Selection 1966 136 9 45.0 Recommended for
Sarson from Mewat rainfed and
local irrigated areas,pod
long and bold.
D Yello YSPb24 Selection 1966 160 10 45.0 Recommended for
w from Mewal loamy soils under
sarson local irrigated
conditions,seeds
medium bold.
YSH040 Selection 2008 120 15 45.0 Dwarf and long
1 from thick siliquae
germplasm
E Tarami T-27 Selection 1975 150 6 32.0 Recommended in
ra from whole Haryana
Gurgaon state for rainfed
local areas.
varieties
Rapeseed-mustard varieties suited for different conditions and/or situations
Sr. Condition/Situation Crop Variety Recommended for

No.
1. Rainfed/Drought Indian RH30,RH819,RLM514 J&K, HP,Punjab,Haryana
mustard ,RB 50,RH 9901,RH and Rajasthan
119,Vaibhav, RH 0406,
RGN 229
Vaibhav U.P. and M.P.
Brown Tobin H.P.
Sarson
2. Frost Indian RH781 Haryana
mustard
3. Late sown Indian Pusa Bold, Vardan and Bihar,Orissa,West Bengal
mustard Sarma and Assam
Varuna and Kranti M.P., U.P. and North Bihar
55
Vardan,RH 9801,RGN J&K, H.P., Punjab,
145,RGN 236, Pusa Haryana and Rajasthan
mustard 26
4. Saline areas Indian Narendra Rai(NDR Haryana ,UP and Rajasthan
mustard 850),CS52, CS 54
5. High altitude Toria TL 15 H.P.
6. Diara land Indian Pusa Bold Bihar
mustard
Toria M 27 Assam
RAUTS 17 Bihar
7. Non-traditional areas Indian Seeta,Kranti and Pusa Andhra Pradesh
mustard Bold
Vardan,Varuna,Kranti Karnataka
and Seeta
Vardan and Seeta Tamil Nadu
Rajat and Pusa Jaikisan Maharashtra
8. Non-shattering Indian RH30, Rajat, RLC Punjab, Haryana,
mustard 1021,RH 9304, Pusa Rajasthan, U.P., M.P. and
Bold, Rohini, RL 1359 Gujarat
, Varuna, RH 406,
RH0749, RH 0119,
RGN 236, RGN 229
9. Cropping system
*Intercropping Indian Sanjucta,Asech and U.P. and Bengal
mustard Varuna
*Miultiple cropping Toria Bhawani U.P.
*Mixed cropping Toria Bhagirathi West Bengal and Assam
*Crop rotation Toria TH 68 Haryana
10. Alternaria blight and Indian Saurabh (RH 8113) J&K, HP, Punjab, Haryana
white rust tolerant mustard and Rajasthan
(moderate)
11. Orobanche tolerant Indian Durgamani Rajasthan and Gujarat
mustard
12. Quality genotypes Indian Pusa mustard 21, HP, Haryana, Punjab
mustard NUDB 26-11,Pusa
mustard 24
13. Early maturing Indian Pusa Agarni, JD 6,Pusa Haryana,Pun jab,Delhi
mustard mustard 28
14. Hybrids Indian NRCHB- UP,Raj.,Haryana,Punjab
mustard 101,506,DMH-1
Seed Production Technology in Rapeseed mustard

The availability of quality seed is most vital and crucial input for sustainable production in
agriculture. The seed production chain and the ultimate availability of quality seed to the farmers
had been poor in rapeseed-mustard and large area under this crop is still sown with the seed
saved by the farmers. The nucleus and breeder seed are the initial steps of the seed chain to
56
ensure the availability of quality seed to the farmers and to keep pace in the progress of
agriculture production. Accordingly, the nucleus and breeder seed production has assumed an
important place in the crop improvement programme of country.
Nucleus seed production: Nucleus seed refers to first generation of seed produced by the
breeder who developed the particular variety by any other breeder of the institution where the
variety was developed. Nucleus seed has high genetic & phenotypic purity and directly used for
multiplication as breeder seed.
Various steps to be followed in the production of nucleus seed are:
1. Grow the original population of given variety in isolation of 200m.
2. Select 400 to 500 true to the type plants before flowering. Self these plants to avoid
any contamination from the insects.
3. Harvest and thresh the selfed plants separately.
4. There should not be preceding crop of mustard in the field selected for seed
production to avoid mechanical mixture through volunteer plants.
5. Grow the self seed of individual plants in progeny to rows in isolation of 200 m.
6. Inspect the progenies periodically at the pre-flowering, flowering & at maturity stage.
7. Progeny rows having off type plants or phenotypic variation, may be rejected and
uprooted.
8. Arrange inspection of the seed plot by monitoring team as per the norms.
9. The single plant progenies which meet all standards are bulked to get the nucleus
seed.
10. Follow grow out test to ascertain the genetic purity of nucleus seed.
Breeder Seed Production:
The improved seed increased from the nucleus seed under the guidance and supervision
of plant breeder is called breeder seed. It has very high genetic & phenotypic purity as used as
source of foundation seed.
1. Use good quality nucleus seed after ascertaining high genetic purity for seed
production.
2. There should not last two preceding crop of rapeseed-mustard in the field selected for
seed production.
3. Maintain a minimum isolation distance of 200 m.
4. Provide rich crop management with recommended package of practices.
5. Inspect the field at early growth stage, flowering, siliquae formation and maturity
stage.
6. Apply required plant protection measures.
7. Arrange inspection of the seed plot by monitoring team as per the norms.
8. Prior to harvesting, select another batch of true to the type single plants for the next
cycle.
9. Report the periodical information of breeder seed production in various proforma
prescribed as per the schedule.
10. Apply grow-out test to ascertain the genetic purity.
11. The seed should be completely dried in sun to bring down the moisture level to 8%.
57
Foundation and certified seed production:
Land to be used for seed production of rape seed and mustard shall be free of volunteer
plants. A minimum of three inspections shall be made, the first before flowering, the second
from flowering to fruiting and the third at maturity and prior to harvesting.
Field standards for certification

Contaminants Foundation(metres) Certified(metres)
Self Self Self Self
compatible incompatible compatible incompatible
Field of other varieties 200 100 50 50
Field of same varieties 50 100 25 50
not confirming to variety
purity
Field of rocket salad 50 100 25 50
% Off types 0.10 0.50
Objectionable weed 0.05 0.10
plants*
* Satyanashi (Argemone mexicana L.)

Seed Standards
Factors Foundation Certified
Pure seed(minimum) 97.0% 97.0%
Inert matter(maximum) 3.0% 3.0%
Other crop seeds(maximum) 10/kg 20/kg
Other distinguishable varieties(max.) 10/kg 20/kg
Total weed seeds (maximum) 10/kg 20/kg
*Objectionable weed seeds 5/kg 10/kg
(maximum)
Germination(minimum) 85% 85%
Moisture(maximum) 8.0% 8.0%
For vapour-proof containers (max.)
Mustard 5.0% 5.0%
Rapeseed 7.0% 7.0%
58
Maintenance of seed quality during storage
Axay Bhuker
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar- 125004
[email protected]
Seed possesses maximum vigour at the time of physiological maturity. There after the seed
gradually ages and declines in viability and vigour. The loss of vigour precedes loss in
germination. Seed ageing leads to reduction in seed quality, performance and stand
establishment. Every seed operation has or should have a purpose. The purpose of seed storage
is the maintenance of high seed germination and vigor form harvest until planting. It is important
to get adequate plant stands in addition to healthy and vigorous plants. The loss in vigour and
viability cannot be prevented completely but it can be slow down by proper storage conditions.
Seeds have to be stored because there is usually a period of time between harvest and
planting. During this period, the seed have to be kept somewhere. Seed suppliers are not always
able to market all the seed they produce during the following planting season. In many cases, the
unsold seed are “carried over” in storage for marketing during the second planting season after
harvest. Problems arise in connection with carryover storage of seed because some kinds,
varieties, and lots of seed do not carryover very well. Depending on the longevity of seeds during
storage, seeds can be divided into two categories;
1. Orthodox Seeds: Orthodox seeds are long-lived seeds. They can be successfully dried to
moisture contents as low as 5% without injury and are able to tolerate freezing temperatures. At
physiological maturity they contain moisture content of 30 – 50%. Most of the field crops like
cereal, pulses, oilseeds etc. are the example of orthodox seeds.
2. Recalcitrant Seeds: They are short -lived seeds, which cannot be dried to moisture contents
below 30% without injury and are unable to tolerate freezing. They are difficult to store
successfully because of their high moisture content encourages microbial contamination and
results in more rapid seed deterioration. Storage of these seeds at subzero temperatures causes
the formation of ice crystals, which disrupts cell membranes and causes freezing injury. These
seeds are from perennial trees in the moist tropics such as coconut, coffee, cacao, citrus etc.
These seeds mature and exist in their fruits and are covered with fleshy or juicy ariloid layers and
impermeable testa. At physiological maturity they contain more moisture content (50-70%) than
orthodox seeds, even though their embryos are only about 15 % of the size of an orthodox seed
embryo. In general recalcitrant seeds never go into dormancy but instead continue their
development and progress towards germination.
Types of seed storage:
 Short term storage (6-8 months): Storage of seed from harvest to next sowing season
 Intermediate storage (12-36 months): Storage of carry over seed
 Long term storage (5-20 years): Storage of germplasm, nucleus seed, sample tested in
seed testing laboratories for regulatory purposes
Factors influencing seed storage: Biotic and abiotic
1. Biotic factors:
a. Factors related to seed
 Genetic makeup of seed
 Initial seed quality
 Provenance
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 Seed Moisture content
b. Other biotic factors
 Insects and mites
 Bacteria and Fungi
 Rodents and birds
2. Abiotic factors
 Temperature
 Relative humidity
 Seed store sanitation
 Gaseous atmosphere
 Packaging material
1. Biotic factors: (Seed factors)
Genetic factors: The storage is influenced by the genetic makeup of the seed. Based on the
genetic makeup seeds are classified into: Micro biotic – short lived, Meso biotic- medium
lived and Macro biotic – long lived. Seeds of some species are genetically and chemically
equipped for longer storability than other under comparable conditions. Most long-lived
seeds belong to species possessing hard, impermeable seed coat. Generally seed species
possessing high oil content do not store well as those with low oil content. Quantity of oil
present in embryo portion of seed is responsible for storability e.g. Whole seeds contain only
about 3 % oil, but their embryo portion has about 27% oil. Seeds of different species may
also be chemically similar but have greatly different storability due to differences in genetic
potential e.g. chewing fescue and annual ryegrass seeds are similar in appearance and
chemical composition, how ryegrass seeds have much better storability under comparable
conditions. These genetic factors affect seed storability and have led to classify the seeds
based on their relative storability. Differences in seed storability may also occur among
cultivars. Some cultivars store long than others. Some inbred lines of maize have shown to
germinate 90% after 12 years of storage while others were completely dead at the same
storage period. Inheritance clearly exerts a marked effect on seed longevity. Environment
strongly alters the genetic potential for seed longevity.
Very Strong Seed: Rape Seed, Linseed, Barley, Radish
Strong seed: Field Peas, Green Peas, Paddy, Bajra, Safflower
Less Strong Seeds: Wheat, Sorghum, Castor, French beans
Weak Seeds: Corn, Sunflower, Sesame
Very Weak Seeds: Onion, Groundnut, Soyabean
Initial seed quality:
The physical condition and physiological state of seeds greatly influence their life span. Seeds
that have been broken, cracked deteriorate more rapidly than undamaged seeds. Several kinds of
environmental stresses during seed development and prior to physiological maturity can reduce
the longevity of seeds. For example deficiency of minerals (N,K,Ca), water and temperature
extremes. Immature small seeds within a seed lot do not store as well as mature and large seeds
within a seed lot. Hard seediness also extends seed longevity.
Effect of provenance: It has already been stated that a number of factors operating before and
during harvest can affect seed viability. The samples obtained from different sources may show
differences in viability behaviour. The seeds harvested from regions of high relative humidity
and temperature at the time of maturation or harvesting store less than the seed harvested from
the regions of low relative humidity with moderate temperature. The place where the seed crop
60
was produced greatly influences the storability e.g. red clover seeds grown in Canada stored for
4 years with 80% germination whereas seeds grown in England and New Zealand stored only for
3 years with 80% germination. This is due to different climatic conditions and soil types
prevailing in different places.
Seed moisture content
Most important factor influence the storability. The amount of moisture in the seeds is the most
important factor influencing seed viability during storage. Over the moisture range, the rate of
deterioration increases with increase in moisture. In general for every 1% decreases in moisture
the store potential of the seed doubles (when the seed moisture is in the range of 4 – 14%). If the
seed moisture content is in the range of 12-14 %, losses occur due to increases mould growth and
if the moisture content is above 18-20% due to heating of the seed. Moreover within the normal
range, biological activity of seeds, insects and moulds further increases as the temperature
increases. The higher the moisture content of seeds the more they are adversely affected by both
upper and lower ranges of temperature. At very low moisture content of 4 per cent seeds may be
damaged due to extreme desiccation, or breakdown of membrane structure hastens deterioration.
This probably a consequence of reorientation of hydrophilic cells membranes due to loss of
water molecules necessary to retain their configuration. Since the life span of seeds largely
depends on the moisture content it is necessary to dry to safe moisture limits before storage.
However the safe moisture content again depends on length of storage, type of storage structure
and kind of the seeds to be stored. For cereals in ordinary storage conditions for 12-18 months
the seeds should be dried to 10 – 12 % moisture content. However for storage in sealed
containers (Hermetic packing) the seeds should be dried to 5 to 8 per cent moisture content.
Length of seed storage in relation to seed moisture content and relative humidity. The data above
are based on averages of different vegetable seed crops. Note that grain crops have higher seed
moisture content than do oily seed crops. (Adapted from Copeland, 1976; and Nakamura, 1958;
with additions by the author)
Micro flora, Insects and Mites
There are six main types of organisms associated with seeds in storage. They are bacteria, fungi,
mites, insects, rodents and birds.
61
Bacteria: Bacteria probably do not play a significant role in seed deterioration. As germination
is rarely reduced unless infection has progressed beyond the point of decay. Since bacterial
populations require free water to grow, they cannot grow in stored seeds as the seeds are dry.
Fungi: Two types of fungi invade the seeds; field fungi and storage fungi. The field fungi invade
seeds during their development on plants in the field or following harvesting while the plants are
standing in the field. They cannot invade seeds during storage. Field fungi associated with wheat
or barley in the field are Alternaria, Fusarium, and Helminthosporium spp. Storage fungi, mostly
belong to the genera Aspergillus and penicillium. They infect seeds only under storage
conditions and are never present before, even in seeds of plants left standing in the field after
harvesting. Major deleterious effects of storage fungi are to decrease viability, cause
discoloration, produce mycotoxins, cause excessive heat and develop mustiness and caking
Insects and Mites: Deterioration of seeds by insects and mites is a serious problem, particularly
in warm and humid climates. Weevils, flour beetles or borers are rarely active below 8%
moisture content and 18-20oC, but are increasingly destructive as the moisture content rises to
15% and the temperature to 30 – 35oC. Mites do not thrive below 60% RH, although they have
temperature tolerance that extent close to freezing. Hence for protecting the seeds from insects
and mites, the seeds should be stored at moisture content of less than 10%, at a temperature of
less than 20oC and the R.H. of less than 60%.
Rodents and Birds: Birds are constant source of seed loss in even small openings exists. All
openings should be sealed or screened, if needed for ventilation. Rats and other rodents are more
serious problems. Rodents may result into a complete loss of seed. Rodents can be prevented
from entering the store by elevating the floor by 90 cm above the ground level and it should have
a lip like structure of 15 cm around the building at 90 cm level. A removable deck should be
provided at the entrance for loading and unloading of seeds into the store.
2. Abiotic factors:
Relative humidity
Relative humidity is the amount of H2O present in the air at a given temperature in proportion to
its maximum water holding capacity. Relative Humidity and temperature are the most important
factors determining the storage life of seeds. Seeds attain specific and characteristic moisture
content when subjected to given levels of atmospheric humidity. This characteristic moisture
content called equilibrium moisture content. Equilibrium moisture content for a particular kind
of seed at a given Relative Humidity tends to increase as temperature decreases. Thus the
maintenance of seed moisture content during storage is a function of relative humidity and to a
lesser extent of temperature. At equilibrium moisture content there is no net gain or loss in seed
moisture content.
Temperature
Temperature also plays an important role in life of seed. Insects and moulds increase as
temperature increases. The higher the moisture content of the seeds the more they are adversely
affected by temperature. Decreasing temperature and seed moisture is an effective means of
maintaining seed quality in storage. The following thumb rules by Harrington are useful
measures for assessing the effect of moisture and temperature on seed storage. These rules are as
follows.
1. For every decrease of 1% seed moisture content the life of the seed doubles. This rule is
applicable between moisture content of 5-14%.
2. For every decrease of 5oC in storage temperature the life of the seed doubles. This rule applies
between 0oC to 50oC.
62
3. Good seed storage is achieved when the % of relative humidity in storage environment and the
storage temperature in degrees Fahrenheit add up to one hundred but the contribution from
temperature should not exceed 50o F.
Oxygen Pressure during storage: Increase in oxygen pressure during storage tends to decrease
the period of viability. Use of antioxidants has increased the storage period in some of the crops.
If seeds are not maintained in hermetic storage at low moisture contents or even under conditions
of constant temperatures and moisture the gaseous environment may change as a result of
respiratory activity of the seeds and associated microflora.
Packaging material
Packaging material plays important role during storage so it should be selected on the basis of -
quantity of seed desired in each package, period of storage, type of seed, cost of the package and
value of the seed, storage conditions into which the container is to be placed etc. Packaging
material is divided into following three categories:
(1) Moisture previous
These containers are unable to check the exchange of moisture content between the seeds and the
surrounding atmosphere and the moisture can penetrate into these containers from the walls and
floor of the store e.g. cloth bags, gunny bags, jute bags etc.
(2) Moisture impervious
Moisture impervious packing materials are not fully moisture proof. A small amount of moisture
can still penetrate into these containers. It is not suitable for recalcitrant seeds e.g. polythene
bags< 700 gauge.
1. Moisture resistant
They include polyethylene or other plastic films and aluminum foil. These are resistant to the
passage of moisture but over a long period of time, these will be a slow passage of water vapor
tending to equilibrate the relative humidity inside and outside the container. Polyethylene is not
suitable for long-term storage of orthodox seeds for genetic conservation, because there is no
absolute control over moisture uptake by the seeds. It is very much suitable for short or medium
term storage and has given excellent results.
Moisture previous Moisture impervious Moisture resistant
Instead of gunny bags low cost interwoven polythene bags should be used to prolong the life of
seed. Use new gunny bags for seed storage, if new bags are not available then the gunny begs
should be dipped in 0.1% malathion 50EC (1 part malathion 50 EC+500 parts of water).
63
The effect of different types of seed storage containers on the germination percent of creeping
red fescue seed (Grabe and Isely, 1969). Results do not take into account the thickness of the
container.
Maintenance of seed quality during storage:
To maintain the quality seeds in store following practices must be emphasized:
1. Constructional features of seed store:
Seeds undergo deterioration due to aging in storage. This is accelerated by climatic factors and
external biotic factors like insects and pathogen. In addition to seed borne pathogen and storage
insects, seeds are damaged by birds and rats for their feed. Clean and hygienic stores protect the
seed from external insects and preserve the seed. Hence care should be taken in construction of
seed stores. The points to be noted are as follows:
1. Seed stores should be in a place where transport facilities are easily available.
2. Seed stores should not be constructed in areas near seashore. Since the high RH of
atmospheric air accelerate the deterioration of seed.
3. Seed stores should not be constructed in low lying water stagnating areas.
4. Seed stores should be constructed in places where atmospheric RH is low, free circulation
of air is possible; sunlight is adequate and elevated in nature.
5. The ventilators should be at bottom for free air circulation.
6. Ground moisture should not reach the floor.
7. Should be rat proof with wire mesh.
8. Should not be near industries as smoke is injurious
9. It should be clean and dry.
10. Seed bags should not be stacked directly on floor. Should be stacked on wooden ballets.
11. The height of the stack should not be more than 6-8 bags.
12. Different seed lot should be kept separately.
13. Before storage, the Store should be sprayed 0.1% malathion 50EC (1 part malathion 50
EC+500 parts of water).
14. Altering the chemicals at weekly intervals will give better control.
64
15. Frequent supervision of each and every lot is must. Based on seed testing result, seeds
can be dried under sun for the removal of moisture. It reduces insect and pathogen
infestation.
16. Seed bag should be restacked once in 3 months for free aeration.
17. Each lot should be labelled accurately and registers for stocks should be maintained.
2. Precautions related to seed:
i) Before storage seed must be dried to a safer moisture level.
ii) The seed must be cool before storage; seed should not be stored in air-tight container
just after crop is threshed.
iii) Pre-storage treatment must be done. Seeds can be treated with combination of
fungicide and insecticide (e.g.) Thiram @ 2 g kg-1 + carbaryl @ 200 mg kg-1.
iv) Pesticides, fungicides, fertilizers, rejects should not be stored with seed.
v) New seed lots should be kept away from old seed lots to avoid secondary infestation
of insects.
vi) Seed lots should be periodically (once in month) tested for seed quality.
vii) Seed lots can be fumigated with Aluminium phophide @ 7-10 tablets (3g each) per
1000 m3 in air tight condition for 7 days.
65
Planning and Management of a Seed Production Programme
OS Dahiya
Hisar-125 004
Seed is just not a carrier of life but an entity that may bring social changes as well. Therefore,
planning a seed program is not only an activity providing farmers with good quality seed, but an
activity for social cause and agricultural development of the country. Unlike other industrial
activities, an entrepreneur entering into seed trade must acquire knowledge, skills pertaining to
seed production and in addition to this a desire to stay in business. He must also develop personal
trust with consumers in his product by ascertaining the quality of a product as his first priority.
What is a Seed Program?
Seed program must be under stood as a service to farmers. Seed programs fulfill their service
function only when millions of farmers are able to obtain and plant better seed. The objective of
a seed program is to establish consistent policies so that seed production and distribution
accelerate agricultural progress rather than impede it. Any progress in local agriculture will result
in the growth of the other businesses as well. An effective seed program is none which is tuned
to the nature of the farming in the area of business and the country. Planning and organization of
seed program differ from that of a industrial program because of following main difference
between the two.
Industrial versus Seed Program
Industry Program Seed Program

Do not depend on nature Nature dependant
Can be organized in short duration Need pre-defined time
Demands fixed articles Demands variable articles
Demand can be perpetuated Demand can’t defined exactly as farmers
save their own seed
Indefinite storage period of products Definite storage period
Planning starts from production to Planning starts from the marketing of the
marketing future produce to production
Why a Seed Program?

Seed plays a central role in agriculture, serving as the means to propagate plants from one
generation to the next as human food, as animal feed and as an important commodity in
international trade. Seeds are the means by which generally improved crop plants can be mass-
produced for the use of farmers. Seed production of modern agricultural varieties is highly
specialized operation and different from general crop production. In the developed countries,
only 20-30% of few crops (wheat and soybean) is planted each year by farmers-saved seed while
in India nearly 80-90% of crop (wheat and soybean) is planted from farmers-saved seed. This
results in realization of poor crop yields. However, an effective seed program can improve this
situation and bring better quality seed under the reach of farmers. The other advantages of a seed
program can be summarized as follows:
 A good quality seed is essential to a nation’s agricultural development.
66
 A farmer is a consumer as well as a grower of seed.
 Seed industry is most closely involved with the development process at farm level.
 Seed is a carrier of the genetic potential for higher crop production.
 A seed supply pipeline is required to provide good quality seed to the farmers.
Before taking up a seed program and deciding the type of crop/variety to be
multiplied for seed production, following questions must be asked to define the future
demand and production strategies.
 How important is improved seed to agricultural development in the area?
 Since most farmers save their own seed, can we really improve our seed situation?
 How can the status of present seed situation be judged?
 What can be done to improve the seed supply position?
Crop Breeding Research and Seed Supply Chain
Crop research is the foundation of seed program and the primary focus of the seed program must
be on the availability of the best varieties possible. The farmer’s acceptance and case of the
multiplication of seed are also considered before deciding a seed program in a particular
crop/variety. Often to reach at a sound decision regarding future grapes in seed supply of any
crop/variety, the current situation of seed supply and future development in agriculture are
reviewed. For seed to be a catalyst of agricultural growth, the crop improvement process and
seed supply pipeline must flow freely. The crop improvement is a continuous process, however,
seed development and multiplication pass through following typical four stages before the
dividends of an improved crop variety may be harvested:
Stage 1 Plant Breeder develops small quantity of seed.
Stage 2 Seed is distributed to a few seed growers for multiplication (little seed in
the market)
Stage 3 Seed comes into seed program chain (production, marketing,
certification & training in operation)
Stage 4 Policy decision are made, program examined strengthening of
commercial seed production and marketing.
Seed Demand Projection
To access the demand, a constant touch with farmers, extension workers, breeders and agro-
industries is essential. Farmers-saved seed meet out nearly 80% of the seed demand over all
crops and seed industry is responsible for only remaining 20% of the projected requirement of
the seed. Evaluation of this 20% demand is a big challenge because of variable nature of crops,
geography, variety, natural forces, crop improvement and sale of seed. to some extent this can be
evaluated by calculating the Demand Not Met (DNM). Though, it is hard to forecast the demand
of seed in a particular crop/variety, however,
DNM gives an idea of demand arising in future and forecasted by:
 Area not covered by improved seed: This provides an idea about the future
improvements in seed replacement rate. The seed replacement rate is directly
correlated with the demand of seed in a particular crop/variety.
 Market not covered: This provides an idea about the market potential of an area. If
seed made available in such market can easily be sold to the needy farmers.
 Crop/Variety not covered under seed program: The crop/variety is under cultivation
but seed is multiplied at some other location. A locally produced seed will be cheaper
and may find a easy market.
67
Seed Multiplication
Once the demand of a particular seed is confirmed, the seed program is developed for the
multiplication of the seed to meet the demand. Plant breeder is responsible for the initial increase
when the program is in developmental stage. However, in the later stage he takes up the
responsibility of variety maintenance only. At this stage capability and capacity must be built to
take up large-scale commercial and certified seed multiplication.
Seed Multiplication Models
A Three generation model - BS - FS - CS
B. Four generation model - BS - FS(I) - FS(II) - CS
- BS - FS - CS(I) – CS(II)
C. Five generation model - BS – FS(I) – FS(II) – CS(I) – CS(II)
Capacity must also be built for effective quality control system. Any seed program needs atleast
three-year advance planning to meet a projected seed demand because production and seed
multiplication take its own time as given below:
Ist year 2nd year 3rd year
Breeder Seed Foundation Seed Certified Seed
Seed multiplication area may also be defined based on the quality and the quantity of the seed
produced. Considerations must also be paid to avoid the demand and production seasons to
coincide. This can be achieved by defining production areas in variable climatic zones away
from the area where seed is in demand.
Marketing of Seed
To increase the acceptability and spread of a genotype seed may be sold/distributed in small
sized packets to a large number of farmers. To plan marketing in a seed program following
aspects must be duly considered.
 What crop? Consideration must be paid to the acceptability of the crop among
farmers and its suitability to the agro-climatic conditions of the area.
 What variety? The variety to be marketed should provide some kind of advantage
over the varieties currently being cultivated by farmers.
 What price? The product to be marketed must be competitively priced and price
should also be under the reach of the majority of the farmers.
 Where to sale? The first point of sale must be a potential market not a market already
saturated with established brands.
 Who is the seller? Marketing strategies also depend on the kind seller. A farmer
would like to sell its product with in a confined area while a commercial seed
producer may be exporting the seed to different country.
What leads to the failure of a Planned Seed Program?
The failure of a planned seed program may result in less profits, poor seed yields, poor seed
quality and non-acceptability of crop/variety as anticipated. The causes of such failure are many
however some can be summarized as follows:
 Unforeseen fluctuations in seed demand during advance planning.
 Crop failure due to natural forces.
68
 Price policy of crop produce.
 Demand & production seasons coincide.
 Shift in cropping pattern.
 Changes sin living standard of farmers.
 Poor source of planting material.
 Error in harvesting/post harvest handling.
 Not locating the ideal production locations.
 No advance planning for quality control.
 No advance planning regarding import of planting material.
 Lack of knowledge about agro-based industries.
Further Readings:
The basis of this chapter are drawn out of the discussion with people involved in seed trade
(farmers, processors, marketers, producers, scientists and administrators) on various occasions
and platforms. Sharing their experiences was like knowing the secrets of the trade. I
acknowledge their help and time spend with me. However, for better understanding of various
technical terms used following books may be consulted.
69
PRINCIPLES OF SEED PRODUCTION IN SELF AND CROSS
POLLINATED CROPS
RC Punia
Director Farms
Seed is the basic input in agriculture since the crops were first domesticated. Quality seed of
improved cultivars are the key to agricultural progress because the production potential and other
desirable characteristic of the seed sets the production limits. A successful seed programme is
able to supply sufficient quantity of high quality seed at the required time, at reasonable cost and
at the required place. Seed production programme requires the application of good farming
practices along with careful management of crop.
What is quality seed?
 High germination and vigour.
 Genetically and physically pure
 Free from seed borne disease and insect pest
 Relatively low moisture content
1. Techniques of seed production
(i) Selection of suitable area
Seed should be multiplied in the most favourable climatic region to obtain full expression of
cultivar characters, maximum possible yield and good harvest conditions. Seed should be
produced in relatively dry and cool location. A point often overlooked is that the area where the
seed is used may not be suitable for producing high quality seed e.g. vegetable seeds.
Selection of seed plot: Seed plot should be selected with several considerations in mind. The
seed plot's soil texture, fertility and pH should fit the crops requirement. Seed plot should be free
from volunteer plant, weeds, weed seeds, other crops, soil borne disease and insect pest, seed
plot soil must be well drained and have proper isolation distance.
(ii) Isolation distance
It relates to spatial separation of seed crop from possible source of contamination during growing
period. The isolation requirement of a seed crop depends on its mode of reproduction, pollen
biology and mode of dispersal. There are two type of isolation distance Spatial isolation and
Time isolation. Time isolation i.e. differential date of blooming of seed crop and that of
contaminants is recommended in few crops with a high degree of precautions so that flowering
in the two fields does not coincide e.g. Maize.
For the seed growers, the method by which cross pollination occurs is important. If wind is
transporting agent, consideration needs to be given to the direction and velocity of prevailing
wind in the area and account should be taken of the physical feature of land scape which might
affect the wind. If insect are main agent for cross-pollination, it is essential to know which kind
of insects are most efficient pollinator to be sure that seed producing area should be suitable
habitat for that. In general cross pollinated cross require greater isolation distance and self-
pollinated crops require lesser isolation distance.
70
(iii) Cultural Practices
(a) Preparation of land: The seed field should be well prepared and leveled. Good land
preparation is very important for getting uniform germination and stand establishment.
(b) Source of seed: First of all select the improved variety of a crop and use the appropriate
class of seed from authentic source for quality seed production. The tag and seal of
breeder/foundation seed bags should be intact.
(c) Seed treatment: Seed to be used must be treated with proper chemicals, legume seed
should be inoculated with rhizobium culture before sowing. In some crops where
dormancy is a problem some seed treatment for breaking dormancy should be followed.
(d) Seed rate and method of sowing: Lower seed rate than normal seed rate for raising
commercial crops are desirable particularly for small seeded crop because they facilitate
rouging operation and gives higher multiplication ratio. The seed crop should be sown in
rows except where the sowing could be done only by broadcasting.
(e) Time of sowing: The seed plot should be sown at normal sowing time. Some
adjustment could be made if necessary to avoid incidence of disease and pest.
(f) Fertilizer: In the nutrition of seed crop, it is advisable to know and identify the
nutritional requirements of seed crops and applies adequate fertilizer (N, P, K) at proper
time. Adequate fertilization results in maximum yield, good seed quality and better
expression of plant character, which ultimately helps facilitate roguing which helps in
maintaining genetic purity as well.
(g) Irrigation: As mentioned earlier, that comparatively drier region are more suitable for
seed production. Even then one should not take the risk of growing seed crop in an un-
irrigated area. An assured source of irrigation is pre-requisite for raising and harvesting
of quality seed. Number of irrigation varies from crop to crop and also depend on types
of soil. In general lighter soil needs more frequent irrigation than heavy soil.
(h) Plant protection: Successful disease and insect-pest management is one of the most
important factors in raising healthy seed production. In addition from reduction in yield,
the quality of seed from diseased and insect damage plant is normally poor. Insect and
disease management varies in different crops. However, the following general principles
may be followed for an effective management of disease and insect-pest:
 Plant only treated seed with proper fungicide/insecticide.
 Application of appropriate fungicide/insecticide in proper quantity at right time.
 Adopt appropriate schedule of spraying.
 Roguing of diseased plant, helps in checking further spread of disease.
(iv) Roguing
The removal of off-type and diseased plants from within the seed plot before they start flowering
is known as roguing. Adequate and timely roguing is most important for quality seed
production. The rogues which may differ from normal plant population may cause quick
deterioration in seed stock by opportunities afforded for cross-pollination and transmission of
diseases etc. Off-types/rogues should, therefore, be removed at the earliest possible. The number
of roguing in seed production plots will vary with the crops. Roguing may be done at any of the
following stages as per needs of the seed crop.
 Vegetative stage
 Flowering stage
71
 Maturity stage
The roguing at vegetative/pre-flowering stage in cross-pollinated crop is more important to avoid
genetic contamination.
(v) Seed Certification: It is a legally sanctioned system for quality control, seed multiplication
and production and entails field inspection; pre and post control test and seed quality test to
verify or check whether seed crop meets the minimum field and seed standard. In seed
certification, field inspection is most important.
a) Field Inspection : The main/basic objective of field inspection is to ascertain that the
seed being produced is of the notified variety not contaminated both physically and
genetically beyond certain specified limit The objectives are achieved by verifying the
seed crop.
 Field meets the prescribed land requirement.
 Seed used for raising seed crop is from approved source.
 Provided with proper isolation or border rows in hybrid seed production.
 Planting ratio in hybrid seed production is followed.
 Properly rogued in confirmation with standard for different factors.
 True to variety's characteristics and no mechanical mixture, proper harvesting.
The field observations are then compared with a set of certification norms, specified for each
crop in relation to different factors. Only the officially notified agency for the region concerned
has the authority to perform the field inspection for seed certification.
b) Crop Stages for Inspection: It is very difficult to verify the different factors affecting seed
quality in the field in a single inspection as these factors don't occur at the same time and all
may not affect at that growth stage. Thus the phased inspection is required for all crops. The
number of inspection and growth stage depends upon crop duration, mode of pollination,
possibilities of contamination, nature of contamination factor and stage of disease
susceptibility. In sexually propagated crop, the convenient stages of crop growth are
classified as follows:
 Pre-flowering
 Flowering
 Post-flowering/at maturity
 Harvesting stage
In general, two, three and four inspections are made for self-pollinated crop, cross-pollinated
crop and hybrid seed crop, respectively.
c) Observation during Field Inspection: Factors observed during field inspection vary among
crops and growth stage. The source of genetically and physical contamination is a general
factor and must be observed. Different factors observed during field inspection are as:
 Off-type
 Objectionable weed plant
 Inseparable other crop plant
 Diseased plant
 Pollen shedder and shedding tassel
d) Taking Field Count: In seed crops, it is not possible to examine all plants in the field.
The number and method of counts vary from crop to crop. For all crops, it is necessary to
take a minimum of five counts upto two hectares of area and an additional count for each
72
two hectares. The number of plants or heads that should make a count for different crop
is as follows:
 For widely spaced and non-tiller crop like cotton and castor minimum number of
plant in a count should be 100.
 Medium spaced and non-tiller crops like cowpea, black gram, green gram 500
plants per count should be considered. For others minimum 1000 plant/ear head
per count should be considered.
(vi) Harvesting and Post Harvesting Handling of Seed Crop
(a) Harvesting and threshing: The crops can be harvested soon after the seed is matured.
Seed quality start deteriorating in the field itself if harvesting is delayed. When harvesting is to
be done mechanically, machine should be thoroughly cleaned and properly calibrated for all its
internal operation according to moisture content of the seed crop. During harvesting and
threshing operation adequate precaution should be taken against mechanical damage and mixture
to seed.
(b) Drying and processing: Normally the seed produced, after harvesting and threshing is
subjected to sun drying to reduce the moisture content before transported to processing plants.
Direct exposure of the seed to sun-light may affect its quality, therefore, if necessary seed may
be dried under diffused sun-light in a shed. In some crop like paddy artificially drying is done by
blowing dry air. It is always advisable to pre-clean the seed stock to remove dirt, chaff, soil
particles etc. before drying operation is undertaken. Seed processing by using different model of
grader should be done over prescribed sieve size or through gravity separator.
(c) Seed treatment: Treatment of seed with prescribed doses of fungicide and insecticide
should be done to control the carriage of disease-causing pathogen and insects with the seed or
their fresh entry into it.
(vii) Sampling and Quality Control
After cleaning and grading, the seed should be sampled with prescribed standard and testing in
the seed-testing laboratory to verify the different minimum seed certification standard.
(viii) Packaging, Labelling and Sealing
To ensure the delivery of seed produced through rigorous system of quality control, it is very
important to use the right type of packaging material or container. If seed is to be packed in
vapour-proof container, the moisture of seed should be brought down to a level of 6-8% while
for non-vapour proof container, moisture content should not exceed 10-12%.
(ix) Storage and Marketing
Adequate precautions should be followed to prevent seed lot from deterioration while in transit
or storage. Greater care should be taken for storage pest and the temperature and relative
humidity of store. The moisture content of seed generally governs the length of time for which
seed can be stored, coupled with the temperature in the store. Harrington and Douglas (1970)
devised two simple rules for storage.
 For every decrease of 1 per cent in seed moisture content the life of seed is doubled.
 For every decrease of 5°C in storage temperature, the life of seed is double.
These rules, however, operate with seed moisture content between 14 and 5 per cent. In general,
seed should be stored in a cool and dry store i.e. a temperature around 60-70°F and RH of 30-40
per.
73
QUALITY SEED PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY IN FORAGE
CROPS
VP SANGWAN
Department of Seed Science Technology
CCS HAU HIsar
There is a wide gap between requirement and availability of forage seeds in the country. The
availability of good quality seeds of cultivated fodders is estimated to be around 15-20 % of the
total requirement (3.55 lakh tonnes). It is evident that low priority is given for fodder seed
production by the major seed sectors. Farmers do not take much interest in forage seed
production due to erratic and low seed setting because of prevailing adverse weather conditions
during flowering, seed filling and maturity. Forage crops are shy seeder and harvested before
seed setting to feed animals. Beside genetic potential, the seed yield and quality of these crops is
greatly influenced by various agronomic and management practices. Therefore, the quality seed
production of these crops needs to be strengthened and the farmers should be educated to use
quality seed for higher forage seed production. An appropriate seed production technology for
obtaining higher quantity and quality of the seed are described below :
Quality seed production technology
The quality seed production technology for launching a successful seed production programme is
summerized as under:
1. Land requirement
Although forages thrive well on a variety of soils, well drained, medium texture and neutral soils
are suited for this cultivation. The field selected for seed production should be free of volunteer
plants (Table 1).
2. Isolation requirement
The isolation requirement of a crop depends on its mode of reproduction, pollen biology and
mode of pollen dispersal. For maintaining the genetic purity of the seed, crop must be kept away
from undesirable pollen source. Therefore, the seed fields have to be planted at a specified
distance from fields of other varieties so that an acceptable level of contamination is expected.
Isolation distance worked out in our country have been presented in Table 1 for forage sorghum
and oats crops and for different classes of seed.
3. Cultural practices
For the maximum seed production, normal recommended cultural practices must be followed
which are presented in Table 2. However, special attention needs to be given to the following
points.
 Seed to be used must be treated with proper chemicals
 Legume seed should be inoculated with specific rhizobium culture before sowing
 The seed crop should be sown in rows except where the sowing could be done by
broadcasting for easier weed control, better plant protection application, better
light penetration, easy rouging and greater access to flowers by pollinator insects
and thus helps to better seed production.
 One or two hoeing and weeding must be practiced to protect soil nutrients taken
by weeds.
 One split dose of N must be applied after each cut for good regeneration.
 Irrigation at regeneration and full bloom is important to harvest potential seed
yield.
74
 Proper measures should be adopted for controlling diseases and insect pets in the
seed crops.
4. Cutting management
The cutting management is the most crucial aspect for getting higher yields of quality seed in
multicut forages. The cutting frequency (Intensity and interval), clipping height, regeneration
capacity and time of leaving the crop for seed production are some of the factors which greatly
influence the growth and development of the seed crop. Leaving the crop early for seed
production leads to excessive vegetative growth while late cut gives poor vegetative growth
resulting in poor seed yield. Further, more number of cuttings reduce the regrowth and seed
production efficiency which consequently affects the seed yield contributing components like
shoot density, flowering, pollination, seed-setting, seed development and maturation.
Nevertheless, it must be managed in such a that the crop left for seed production can coincide
with favourable climatic conditions for profuse flowering and seed-setting.
 Cutting management studies indicated that delayed cutting for fodder in forage sorghum
reduced the seed yield of regenerated crop. Possibility of taking one cut for fodder and then
leaving for seed production showed that one cut at 30 days after sowing could be taken to
obtain maximum seed yield. It was also noticed that one cutting before 15th August or late
sowing even in last week of July gave encouraging results.
 Berseem crop should be left for potential seed production after taking 2-3 cutting, but not
later than 20th March.
 Similarly for the newly established crop Lucerne no cutting should be taken and in an
established crop last cutting of Lucerne should be taken upto 20th March.
 In oats, one cut at 50-60 days after sowing could be taken for green fodder and leaving the
crop for seed production.
 Teosinte crop did not respond to re growth when cut at 60 DAS and hence no seed yield
was obtained after cutting.
 Clipping height : The stubble height is important for protection of buds in collar region and
meristermatic tissue in lower stem portion. Generally, it should be 5-6 cm in forage
legumes, 6-7 cm in oats and 8-10 cm in sorghum and teosinte.
 Mixed cropping should not be encouraged for seed production because in such cases purity
maintenance will be a problem due to contamination of seeds.
5. Nutrients management
Adequate nutrition to plants is vital for seed production. Of the different major nutrients, NPK
are largely used and are of great importance in regrowth/regeneration of defoliated forage crops.
Forages, in general are less responsive to potash. Besides major nutrients, micronutrients are also
useful in fertilization and seed-settings. Thus, nutrient management is one of the important
factors in development of reproductive phase as well as the augmentation of seed production.
Therefore, foliar and basal application of nutrients and uses of growth retardants and hormones
were implicated for ameliorating the physiological processes for potential seed yield in forages
(Table3).
Foliar application of mineral nutrients
 In cluster bean, foliar application of KNO3 (4 Kg/ ha) at 30 and 45 days of crop
growth increased the pod formation, pod retention capacity and seed set weight
which resulted in gaining 53 per more reaping value and 17 per cent high harvest
75
index over control. This is caused due to high water soluble sugar and efficient
chlorophyll synthesis for a longer period.
 In cowpea, foliar application of KNO3 (2 Kg/ha) + superphosphate (2 Kg/ha) at
parenthesis stage augmented the translocation and utilization of sugar in
developing potential flowers with higher sugar content resulting into 26 per cent
more reaping value of cowpea.
 In Lucerne, Boron application in the form of boax (150 ppm ) twice after 3rd cut
improved the synthesis of sugar and enhanced its translocation in reproductive
parts. Its application increases the flower weight, flower number per boll resulting
into higher seed yield by 28 per cent over control.
 In berseem, application of Kcl (10 g/l ) and borox (4 g/l ) appeared to show
synergistic effect of seed yield behavior through characterizing the efficient use of
synthate for grain growth thus yielding significantly higher seed yield over
control. The basal application of 60 Kg P2 O5/ha and foliar application of 2.5 Kg
superphosphate, 2 Kg KNO3 individually increased seed yield of 1.2 quintal more
than control. This increase was due to efficient development of potential flowers
at all sites. Application of molybdenum (1 Kg MoO4/ha) increases seed
production of berseem both in acid and calcarious soil.
 In forage sorghum, foliar application of boron (1g borax-sodium tetraborate/litre)
twice before anthesis increases the NR activity and synthate production which
enhance the seed yield. Besides this it also augment the phosphorus uptake
actively associated synthate formation in bringing out physiologically functional
state.
Basal application of nutrients
 Basal application of Diamonium phosphate (150 Kg/ha ) enhance the seed yield in
berseem because of its participation in carotene synthesis and development of
potential strength of flower sites.
 Response of basal dose of phosphorus (60 Kg P2O5/ha) increase the seed weight
and number of grains/pod and seed yield in cowpea. Application of phosphorus
decrease the ratio of sink number and sink weight which indicated that
phosphorus application increases the seed weight.
Response of growth regulating substances
 In oat, application of linuron (0.5 kg/ha) enhance the physiological processes
(more accumulation of water soluble sugar in flag leaf) leading high grain
formation.
 In berseem 0.2% of planofix applied twice before anthesis, develops the potential
flower by accumulating higher water soluble sugar. This resulted higher seed
yield. The grain weight and yield also increases by application of 500 ppm B-9
followed by 50 ppm phosphon-D.
6. Pollinators
Berseem is an entomophilous cross pollinated crop and insects, especially honey bees, play
important role in good seed setting. 3-8 bee colonies per hectare should be kept near seed plot
for obtaining higher seed yield. Lucerne is a self incompatible cross-pollinated crop and shy in
seed production. The structure of the flower is such that pollination is not possible unless the
visiting insect trip the flower to release the staminal column from the keel. Only a few species
like bumble bees, leaf cutter fly etc. are known to trip these flowers. So, the crop needs frequent
76
visits of the insects at the time of flowering for better seed setting. Approximately 12-15 colonies
per hectare are sufficient for tripping and pollination of flowers .
7. Harvesting and threshing
 Berseem seed crop should be harvested in the first fortnight of May, when leaves
dry up, seed hardened and seed balls turned dark brown or blackish.
 The Lucerne seed crop should be harvested when 80-90 per cent pods turned
brown and seed had acquired lemon-yellow colour.
 Sorghum and oat crops should be harvested at harvestable maturity. Maximum
seed yield is obtained when sorghum varieties are harvested at 12-15 days after
dough stage .
 The optimum time of harvesting of teosinte crop is when three-fourth seeds
become mature i.e. dark grey in colour with hard seed coats. Shattering causes
heavy loss to seed yield in teosinte and Lucerne crops is harvested at full
maturity.
 When threshing is to be done mechanically, machine should be thoroughly
cleaned and properly adjusted according to condition of crop. Adequate
precaution should be taken against mechanical damage and mixture to seed.
8. Seed conditioning
It is always advisable to pre-clean the seed stock to remove dirt, chaff, soil particles etc. before
drying operation is undertaken and moisture content of the seed should not be above the
prescribed level. Seed processing should be done by using air screen, cleaner-cum-grader with
prescribed sieve sizes.
9. Sampling and quality control
After cleaning and grading, the seed should be tested in the seed testing laboratory to verify the
different minimum seed certification standards (Table 4).
10. Seed storage
The seed should be dried before storage and the moisture content of the seed should not be above
the prescribed level (Table. 4). Pack the seed in cloth bag, gunny bag or polythene bag and keep
on racks in a well ventilated store with proper labeling.
Table1: Minimum isolation distance and land requirement for different forage crops.
Crop Land requirement Minimum isolation distance (m)
Forage sorghum and sudan Free of volunteer plants 200 100
grass 400* 400*
Guar and cowpea -do- 10 5
Oat -do- 3 3
150** 150**
Berseem and Lucerne -do- 400 100
* Isolation distance from Johnson grass in forage sorghum and sudan grass.
** Isolation distance for loose smut in oats.
77
Table2: Recommended package of practices for forage seed crops
Crop Sowing time Seed rate Row to row Fertilizer
(kg/ha) spacing (cm) (kg/ha)
N P
Forage Sorghum 15-30 July 25 45 80-120 40
(10-12 for
sudan)
Clusterbean (guar) 20 June-20 July 15 45 20 40
Cowpea June-July 20 45 20 40
Oats 1-15 Nov. 75 25 80 40
Berseem 1-15 Dec. 20 Broadcasting 40 80
Lucerne 15 Oct.-10 Nov. 10 30 40 100
Table3: Maximization of seed production through foliar application of growth regulators

and nutrients.
Crop Chemicals Quantity/Conc. Crop stage/time of
application
Clusterbean (Guar) KNO3 4 kg/ha Flower initiation stage
Cowpea Super phosphate + 1-2 kg/ha Flower initiation stage
KNO3
GA3 10-50 ppm Pre anthesis stage
Phosphon-D 50 ppm Vegetative and
anthesis stage
CCC 50 ppm -do-
Berseem Super phosphate + 2.5 kg+2 kg/ha with 60 Flower initiation stage
KNO3 kg P2O5 as basal
GA3 10-50 ppm -do-
KCL 10 g/litre
Borax 4 g/litre
Planofix 0.2% Twice before anthesis
Lucerne Borax 150 ppm Twice after 3rd cut
Forage Sorghum Boron (Borax-sodium 1 g/litre Twice before anthesis
tetrborate)
78
Table 4: Field standards prescribed for certification for different forage crops
Crop Minimu Off-type Insepara Object Plant Remarks

m No. of plants/ ble other able affected
inspectio ear heads crop weed by seed
n plants plants borne
diseases
FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS
Forage 3 0.1 0.2 - - - - 0.05 0.1 Kernel smut or
sorghum 0 0 0 grain smut and
and Sudan head smut
grass
Cluster 2 0.1 0.2 - - - - 0.10 0.2 Diseases:
bean 0 0 0 Bacterial blight,
(guar) Anthracnose,
Ascoiclufta
blight
Cowpea - - - - - - - - - -
Oats 2 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.10 0.5
5 0 1 5 1 2 (loos 0
(wi e
ld smut
oat) )
Berseem 2 0.2 0.1 - No 0.0 - - - Chicory (Kasni)
0 0 ne 5 is an objection
able weed
FS= Foundation seed, CS Certified seed
79
Table 5: Seed standard (%) for foundation and certified seed classes and minimum limits
of germination and purity for labeling.
Crop Pure Inert Other crop Total weed Germinatio Moisture (Max.)
seed matter seed (Max.) seeds n (Min.)
(Min.) (Max.) (Max.) Ordinar Vapor
y proof
containe containe
r r
F C F C FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS
S S S S
Forage 97 97 3 3 5 10 5 10 75 75 12 12 8 8
sorghu
m and
Sudan
grass
Cluster 98 98 2 2 10/k 20/k Non Non 70 70 9 9 8 8
bean g g e e
(Guar)
Cowpe 98 98 2 2 Non 10/k Non 10/k 75 75 9 9 8 8
a e g e g
Oat 98 98 2 2 10/k 20/k 10/k 20/k 85 85 12 12 8 8
g g g g
Bersee 98 98 2 2 10/k 20/k 10/k 20/k 80 80 10 10 7 7
m g g g g
Lucern 98 98 2 2 10/k 20/k 10/k 20/k 80 80 10 10 7 7
e g g g g
Teosint 98 98 2 2 5/kg 10/k Non Non 80 80 12 12 8 8
e g e e
Standards are in percent, unless indicated otherwise, FC = Foundation Seed, CS = Certified Seed
Note :- In sorghum other variety seeds (max.) may be double than other crop seeds
In berseem and Lucerne objectionable weed seeds (#/kg) should not be more than 5/kg & 10/kg
for FS & CS respectively
80
SEED DORMANCY AND ITS ALLEVIATION
Sher Singh Verma

Department of Seed Science & Technology,
CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar - 125 004
Many seeds do not germinate when placed in conditions which are normally regarded as
favourable to germination namely an adequate water supply, a suitable temperature and an
atmosphere of normal composition. Nevertheless seeds can be shown to be viable, as they can
be induced to germinate by various special artificial treatments, or under specific external
conditions. Such seeds are said to be dormant, or to be in a state of dormancy. Plants with a
long history of domestication generally show less seed dormancy than wild or recently
domesticated species. When domesticated species exhibit dormancy, they become a problem to
the seedsman, his customers, and the seed analyst. However, a degree of dormancy in certain
crops is desirable since it prevents pre-harvest sprouting and helps in maintaining seed quality.
However, dormancy may cause seeds of numerous species to remain ungerminated in the soil for
many years. This explains the presence of unwanted crop plants or weeds in fields that are
cultivated regularly.
According to Wareing (1965) the term 'dormancy' will be used in the sense where the viable
seed of a given species fails to germinate under conditions of moisture, temperature and oxygen
supply which are normally favourable for the later stages of germination and growth of that
species.
A common misconception of seed dormancy is that it is merely a resting state in the absence of
suitable germination conditions. This state is often called quiescence. However, true dormancy
is defined as a state in which seeds are prevented from germinating even under environmental
conditions normally favourable for germination.
MECHANISMS OF SEED DORMANCY
Several workers have previously published classifications of the mechanisms of seed dormancy.
The most noteworthy accounts are by Harper (1977), Bewley and Black (1982) and Mayer and
Poljakoff-Mayber (1982). According to them, the main identified mechanisms of seed dormancy
may reside in the following two distinct sites.
A. Dormancy caused by the embryo coverings (Pericarp, testa, perisperm and
endosperm)
1. Restriction of gaseous exchange
2. Restriction of water uptake
3. Mechanical restriction of embryo growth
4. Water-soluble inhibitors in the embryo coverings
5. Dormancy from the failure to mobilize extra-embryonic food reserves.
B. Embryo dormancy
1. Under developed and undifferentiated embryos
2. Block to nucleic acid and protein synthesis
3. Failure to mobilize food reserves of embryo
4. Deficiency of plant growth substances
5. Presence of inhibitors
A. Dormancy caused by embryo coverings
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The coverings which are part of the seed are the endosperm, the perisperm when present, and the
testa, although endosperm and perisperm do not always completely enclose the embryo.
However, since many seeds are not released from the fruit in nature, it is necessary to consider
the whole dispersal unit rather than the seed and to include, where appropriate, the embryo
coverings arising from the pericarp and the other persistent fruit, flower and inflorescence parts.
1. The restriction of gaseous exchange by embryo coverings:
There is no doubt that embryo coverings provide a barrier to gaseous exchange, although it has
yet to be proved that such a limitation to gaseous exchange can cause a seed to be dormant. The
several layers of tissue surrounding the embryo might limit the capacity for gaseous exchange by
the embryo in two ways. First, entry of oxygen may be impeded, second, escape of carbon
dioxide may be hindered. One important consequence could be the inhibition of respiration.
Gaseous impermeability of seed coat or pericarp is considered principal mechanism of dormancy
in seeds of gramineae and in some members of compositae family.
2. The restriction of water uptake by embryo coverings:
Seeds that exhibit water impermeability are known as hard seeds. The impermeability to water
may be due to the presence of a cuticle and a well-developed layer of palisade cells or both.
Heavy deposits of suberin, lignin, or cutin are common in the integuments of many legume seeds
as well as those of other hard-coated species such as malvaceae and many tree and shrub seeds.
The hard seed coat does not allow penetration of water into seed but embryo is not dormant.
Water impermeability is caused by both genetic and environmental factors.
3. Mechanical restriction of embryo growth:
The embryo coverings frequently provide a mechanical restriction to embryo growth. This
assumes that the thrust developed during imbibition and growth is inadequate to rupture the seed
coat and permit germination. In some species, it has been shown that development of embryo
overcomes the mechanical restriction of the embryo coverings, thus implying that there are two
aspects of this form of dormancy, the mechanical restriction of the coverings and the
physiological ability of embryo to overcome this restriction.
4. Water soluble inhibitors in the embryo coverings:
Bradbeer (1968) inferred that papery testa contained water-soluble inhibitors which prevented
the germination of the non-dormant newly harvested embryo. These inhibitors were presumed to
be transferred from the dead cells of the testa to the embryo during imbibition. Many of embryos
fail to germinate and dormancy is almost complete if each embryo is actually covered by a piece
of pericarp. The inhibitor ABA is present in these coat tissues. In several cases, where repeated
washing (leaching) of the seeds relieves dormancy, inhibitors are known to be removed. Some
trees, shrubs and woody plants have large seeds which permit the easy separation of embryo
from the covering structures.
5. Dormancy from the failure to mobilize extra-embryonic food reserves:
In dormant seeds whose major food reserves are extra-embryonic (in endosperm or perisperm)
detectable mobilization of these reserves may be reduced or absent. In some species, there was
no germination at low temperature because hydrolysis of reserve proteins in the endosperm did
not occur at this temperature but isolated embryos germinated and grew normally in culture in a
mineral medium containing 2% glucose and an appropriate nitrogen source. Thus failure to
germinate may be regarded as a block to the mobilization of extra embryonic reserves, although
the cause of this may be failure of the embryo to secrete an activating factor.
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B. Embryo dormancy
Isolated embryos, which are capable of germination and growth when supplied with sufficient
moisture and a suitable constant temperature, are clearly not dormant. Embryos, which require
basic nutrients (minerals and a carbon and nitrogen source) for germination, are also not
dormant. However, as the embryo may not, at this stage, be capable of mobilizing the extra-
embryonic food reserves, the cause of the seed dormancy may lie within the embryo. It is a
complicated type of dormancy and common in woody species especially in Rosaceae but is
sometimes found in herbaceous plants such as some grasses. One identified mechanism of
embryo dormancy is due to under developed and undifferentiated embryos in which embryo
immaturity to be a cause of dormancy. Deficiency of nucleic acid or protein synthesis may result
from a failure to mobilize food reserves, which may in turn have resulted from a lack of plant
growth substances or the presence of inhibitors.
In addition to above mechanisms of seed dormancy, light stimulates the germination of many
kinds of seed. Continuous light is reported to inhibit both onion and leak seeds. The seeds of
some species respond to short days, other to long days while still others are unaffected by day
length. In some cases, the combination of some of/many of the above factors may cause
dormancy.
TYPES OF DORMANCY
a) Primary dormancy:
Primary dormancy prevents germination development and maturation of the seed on the mother
plant and usually also for some time after shedding and harvesting. Seeds with impermeable
coats represent one form of innate dormancy/primary dormancy. Primary dormancy is the most
common form of dormancy and takes two forms namely Exogenous and Endogenous dormancy.
(i) Exogenous/Enforced/Relative Dormancy: It is a condition in which the essential
germination components (e.g. water, light and temperature) are not available to the seed
and thus it fails to germinate. This type of dormancy is generally related to physical
properties of the seed coat.
(ii) Endogenous/Innate/True Dormancy: It is the most prevalent dormancy found in seeds
and is due to inherent properties of the seed. The seed may possess an excess of inhibitor
that must be removed or reduced prior to germination. The physiological changes such
as rudimentary embryo maturation, response to growth regulators, changes in
temperature, exposure to light etc. will relieve endogenous dormancy in seeds.
b) Rudimentary embryo dormancy:
Seed of some species are shed before they are morphologically mature. This results in
dormancy because the immature embryo is unable to germinate.
c) Physiological dormancy:
Seed dormancy in higher plants is generally believed to be regulated by a balance of
endogenous growth inhibitors and promoters. Thus, dormancy may be considered a
result of the presence of growth inhibitors, the absence of growth promoters or a
combination of both. The level of these endogenous compounds are controlled by certain
environmental stimuli such as light and temperature.
Khan (1971) has advanced the inhibitor-promoter concept and suggested a model for
hormonal mechanisms of seed dormancy and germination using gibberellin, cytokinin and
inhibitor. Gibberellins must be present for germination to occur and only an inhibitor can
prevent this expression. To account for breaking of dormancy in some seeds, another class of
hormones, cytokinin plays a permissive role by selectively antagonizing the inhibitors when they
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are present. If inhibitors are not physiologically active, cytokinins have no effect on the breaking
of dormancy since this role is governed by the gibberellins.
GIBBERELLIN CYTOKININ INHIBITOR
1 + + +
HORMONAL SITUATIONS
2 + + -
3 + - + Dormancy
4
- - -
5
6 + - -
7 - - +
8 - + - Germination
- + +
Fig. 1: A model for the hormonal mechanisms of seed dormancy and germination.
d) Embryo dormancy
When embryo is dormant then it completely fails to germinate. Embryo dormancy can be
complicated by other factors such as seed with dormant embryos and hard seed coats and seeds
with dormant epicotyls, which require development of root system. Radical growth readily
occurs but epicotyl of embryonic axis remains dormant so called epicotyl dormancy.
e) Secondary dormancy
Sometimes non-dormant seeds encounter conditions that subsequently cause them to
become dormant. This may be caused by exposure of the seed to conditions that favour
germination in all respects except one.
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ALLEVIATION OF SEED DORMANCY:
The majority of dormant seeds require the application of more than one factor before
dormancy can be broken. The investigation of the mechanism of dormancy breaking may be
mere straight forward in seeds where the application of single factor is sufficient. With these
qualifications in mind we can now consider the factors that operate in dormancy breakage.
1. LOW TEMPERATURES (CHILLING)
Chilling involves the exposure of imbibed seed to low temperature, normally between 1o
o
and 10 C for what may be a substantial period. Chilling of seeds to break dormancy is a long-
stranding practice in horticulture and forestry. Chilling is effective in seeds with embryo, coat
imposed, primary, relative and secondary dormancy.
2. DRY STORAGE
It is quite common for seeds to be dormant when they are fully mature on the parent
plant, and for this dormancy to decline during the dry storage of these seeds. Dry seed change
and these changes somehow lead to the termination of dormancy. The rate of drying depends on
the temperature that is sometimes exploited to accelerate the loss of dormancy in agriculturally
imported species such as barley and wheat.
3. OTHER EFFECTS OF TEMPERATURE ON DORMANCY
In the field, dormant seeds are commonly subjected to fluctuating temperature i.e. low
night temperatures and high daytime temperatures. Such temperature fluctuations or temperature
alternations are frequently effecting in dormancy breakage.
4. LIGHT
Light is an extremely important factor for releasing seeds from dormancy. Almost all light
requiring seeds have coat-imposed dormancy. Seeds of many species are affected by exposure to
white light for just a few minutes or second ( e.g. lettuce), whereas others require intermitent
illumination. The light requirement frequently depends on the temperature and various
temperature alternations and temperature shifts also interact with light.
5. LEACHING
Various compounds can frequently be observed to be leached from seeds. If the leaches contain
germination inhibitors, such leaching must be considered to be a contributor to the dormancy
breaking process. The effectiveness of leaching will depend on the rate of diffusion of the
inhibitors from the seed and on the volume and rate of flow of the surrounding water.
6. SEEDS WITH IMPERMEABLE COATS
The environment is important in softening hard coats that are impermeable to water. Microbial
attack is thought to be important, as well as abrasion by soil particles. During exposure to heat,
cracks appear in the seed coat of some species, especially in the region of the micropyle.
7. SCARIFICATION
Where seed dormancy is brought about by hard-seediness, in which the seed coverings act as
physical barrier to germination through the prevention of embryo expansion or radicle growth or
through the restriction of water uptake or perhaps of gaseous exchange, the obvious dormancy-
breaking mechanism involves damage to the seed coverings. Natural scarification is brought
about by such means as trampling by hoofed animals, uncompleted predation by animals (e.g.
rodents, birds, insects), damage by fungi and soil micro-organisms, passage through an animal's,
digestive tract and extreme changes in temperature.
Artificial methods have been used with considerable success in breaking the dormancy of hard
seeds. Scarification may be carried out manually by cutting or nicking the seed coverings with
sharp knife or by abrading the seed with sand paper. Physical methods of scarification have been
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mechanized and scaled-up so as to subject seeds to abrasion and grinding through a roller-mill so
that the seed covering is cracked. A rather more convenient scarification method involves
treatment of seeds with conc. sulphuric acid, normally from 5-60 minutes. This operation
requires caution as seed turn-black and emit fumes. Excessive exposure will, of course, damage
the embryos, and care in necessary to see that the seeds are washed well at the end of the
treatment.
8. STRATIFICATION (EXTREME COLD)
Extreme cold i.e. -50oC to -100oC will cause fractures in the seed coat.
9. BREAKING OF DORMANCY BY CHEMICALS
Application of a chemical has been found to bring about the germination of a dormant seed.
Plant growth substances have been prime suspects as regulators of dormancy. ABA normally
imposes seed dormancy while gibberellins (usually gibberellic acid) frequently break dormancy.
Cytokinins are less frequently reported to break dormancy and C2H4 may be involved in both the
imposition and breaking of dormancy in different species.
When farmers provide a young and growing crop with a top-dressing of nitrate in the spring, a
great flush of weed seedlings frequently results. 0.2% KNO3 is routinely used to break
dormancy in viability tests of many of the seeds which are available commercially. In addition
to this, application of HNO3 in rice, hot water treatment (80oC±1oC for 1-2 minutes) in chickpea,
cowpea, pigeonpea, urdbean and lentil, KNO3 in groundnut and sunflower and ethanol (50 ppm)
in rapeseed & mustard were found more effective to release dormancy.
ADVANTAGES
 It plays an important role in the survival of plant species as it distributes germination in time
and allows seeds to overcome adverse sowing conditions such as heavy frost, dry weather or
excessive moisture.
 Impermeable seeds maintain seed quality under adverse conditions of harvest (damp seasons)
and storage (high humidity) particularly in cotton.
 A degree of dormancy in certain crops is desirable since it prevents pre-harvest sprouting
(Vivipary) and helps in maintaining seed quality.
DISADVANTAGES
 The condition of seed dormancy poses problems and a challenge to the seed analyst and seed
technologist.
 Dormancy may cause seed of numerous species to remain ungerminated in the soil for many
years, to appear as unwanted plants in later crops, even after years of intensive cultivation.
 Dormancy interfere planting schedule and create uneven and delayed field emergence.
 When domesticated species exhibit dormancy, they become a problem to the seedman, his
customers and seed analysts.
86
SAMPLING AND PHYSICAL PURITY ANALYSIS FOR QUALITY
TESTING
RC Punia
Director Farms
CCS, Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar
Seed testing is the science of evaluating the seed quality to determine its value for planting
purpose. In India, the testing of seed samples was made obligatory under the Seeds Act 1966 for
the purpose of certification and for law enforcement.
Seed Sampling
It is very difficult to test each and every seed harvested from field, so a representative sample is
drawn from seed lot. Hence a small quantity of seed lot (seed sample) is sent in the seed testing
laboratory for quality testing parameters. Seed sampling refers “to obtain the sample of a size
sufficient for tests in which the same constituents are present as in the seed –lot and in the same
proportion”. The sample should be truly representative of the bulk of seed-lot. A seed-lot is a
specified physically identifiable quantity of seed which is homogenous.
Classification:
The classification of samples drawn at different stages is listed below:
1. Primary Sample: A primary sample is a small portion from a lot at a particular stage,
with the object of forming a composite sample.
2. Composite Sample: A composite sample is formed by combining and mixing all the
primary samples taken from a lot and a part of this sample is sent to laboratory for test.
3. Submitted Sample: A composite sample is usually larger in quantity than what is
required for testing and so needs to be reduced it in quantity as per requirement. A
composite sample, when so reduced in quantity for being sent to the testing station, is
called submitted sample. It should have details as follows:
1. Variety
2. Class of seed
3. Quantity of lot
4. To whom it belongs
5. Sampled by
6. Date of sampling
7. Kind of tests required
4. Working sample: The working sample is a part taken from the submitted sample in the
laboratory, to be subjected to quality tests as described in the rules.
Sampling equipments:
Trier/Probes: are recommended to take sample out of bags and bins of seed. They vary
in size and construction.
1. Stick or sleeve type trier: The stick or sleeve type trier consists of a hollow brass tube
divided in to a number of components inside closely fittings outer shell, or sleeve, which
has a solid pointed end. The tube and sleeve have open slots in their walls so that when
the tube is turned, until the slots with tube and sleeve are in line, seeds can flow into the
cavity of tube. When the tube is given a half turn, the openings are closed. The trier may
87
be used horizontally or vertically. For seed in bulk, the vertical insertion is more
practicable. The trier is thrust into the bag diagonally in a closed position. It is then
opened and turned couple of times or gently agitated to allow it to fill completely. It is
closed again, withdrawn and emptied into a suitable seed pan. Care should be exercised
in closing the trier so that seeds are not damaged. When the trier is removed, the point
should be run across the hole a couple of time in opposite direction so as to pull the
threads together and close the hole. Closed paper bags may also be sampled by
puncturing the bag and afterwards sealing the hole with a special adhesive patch.
2. Bin samples: These are constructed on principles similar to those described above but
are much larger.
3. Nobbe trier: This trier is made in different dimensions to suit various kinds of seeds, it is
a pointed tube, long enough to reach in centre with an oral hole near the pointed end.
Sampling Intensity:
a) Seed in Containers
No. of containers No. of samples
Up to 5 sample from each container but not less than 5
6-30 At least one from every 3 container but not less than 5
31-400 At least one from every 5 container but not less than 10
400 and more At least one from every 7 container but not less than 80.
b) Seed in bulk (loose)/processing line:

Quantity of seed No. of samples
Less than 50 kg At least 3 primary samples.
50 to 500 kg At least 5 primary samples.
Above 500 upto 3000 kg One primary sample for each 300 kg but not less than five
primary samples.
Above 3000 upto 20,000 kg One primary sample for each 500 kg but not less than ten
primary samples.
20000 and above One primary sample for each 700 kg but not less than 40
primary samples.
B. Sampling by hand: In certain cases and for certain species especially chaffy, non free
flowing species hand sampling is sometimes the most satisfactory method e.g. Agropyron,
Bromus, Lolium, Panicum, etc.
The sampling should be varied from top, middle and bottom of the bags. To sample the
bottom of standing bags they may be raised off the floor and placed on top of other bags.
88
Storage of Sample:
(a) Before testing: Every effort should be made to start testing of the sample on the day of
its receipt. If day is unavoidable the sample should be stored in cool and well ventilated
room so as to minimize chances of change in the quality of the seed.
(b) After testing: To make it available for a possible retesting at the same or another station,
the submitted sample should be stored. When a sample needs to be retested a portion
should be withdrawn from the submitted sample and sent to the designated testing station.
The remaining portion of the sample should be retained in the store.
Precautions in Sampling:
1. Other things being equal, a large sample is more representative of a lot, than a small
sample, so larger quantity should be submitted.
2. The sample should determine that all seed bags sampled are identified as belonging to
single lot either by a label or stencil mark on the bag.
3. Sampler must sample the prescribed number of bags for size of lot at hand.
4. Care must be exercised in reducing composite samples. Careless splitting of the sample
can't be expected to produce two similar portions.
5. Any seed known to have been treated with a poisonous fungicide should be identified, so
that the person who subsequently may handle the sample will be informed of the potential
hazard.
Sampling in Laboratory:
The submitted sample is divided in the laboratory to obtain working samples required for
various tests. Following types of samples received in seed testing laboratories:
Service sample: These types of samples are sent by officials of deptt.of agriculture to help the
farmers to know the quality of seed. These are tested free of cost.
Official sample: These samples are sent by seed certification agency, these are charged for
testing.
Charged sample: These are the samples sent by dealers. These are also charged.
Methods:
1. Mechanical Divider Method:
(i) Boerner seed divider (iii) Rotary type seed divider
(ii) Gamet precision seed divider (iv) Soil type divider
These types of dividers are suitable for all kinds of seeds except chaffy seeds.
89
2. Hand techniques/methods:
(i) Random cups/thimbles method: Upto 10 gm working sample as brassica etc.
(ii) 6-8 small cups placed at random on a tray and picked up randomly.
1. Modified halving method:
Tray-filled a grid of equal sized cubical cells open at top and every alternate having no
bottom.
2. Spoon method:
For single small seeded species needs tray, spatula and spoon with straight edge.
PHYSICAL PURITY ANALYSIS:
The objective of the purity test is defined as follows:
a) To determine the composition by weights of the sample being tested and by inference the
composition of the seed lot. In other words, the composition of the sample is ascertained and
the results are expressed as weight percentages. When the sample has been drawn from the
lot in representative way, these results also apply to the lot.
b) To determine the identity of the various species of seeds and inert matter particles
constituting the sample, which means that all seeds and other particles not only have to be
separated from the good crop seed and determined by weight as prescribed in(a) but also that
all seeds have to be given scientific name.
Analysis of purity components:
The working samples are divided into different components of purity such as pure seed,
other crops seeds, weed seeds and inert matter with the help of purity work board, spatula and
magnifying glasses etc.
(i) Pure Seed: Pure seed refers to that species which is stated by the sender to be, in or
found to be dominant in the seed lot. Such seeds as immature, undersize, shriveled,
diseased, or germinated seeds unless transformed into fungal sceloratia, smut balls or
nematode gall, are regarded as pure seed, provided they can be identified as of that
species.
(ii) Inert Matter: Inert matter includes such seed like structures as pieces of broken or
damaged seed, empty glumes or any other extraneous matter such as soil, sand, stone,
chaff, stems, leaves, pieces of bark, flower, nematode galls, fungal bodies, insect larvae
etc.
(iii) Other Crop Seeds: These refers to any kind of seed or seed like structures of any plant
species other than of pure seed. The distinguishable characteristics set out for pure seed
shall also be applicable to other crop seeds except certain weed seeds, which are
classified separately.
(iv) Weed Seeds: Seeds bulblets or tubers of plants recognized as weed by laws or official
regulations or by general usage shall be considered as weed seeds.
The procedures for purity analysis (apart from sub-sampling, weighing and blowing is as
follows:
1. The sub-sample purity-working sample is spread on the working table.
2. Each particle is judged individually, the criterion, therefore, being its external appearance
(shape, size, colour, luster, surface structure etc.) under transmitted light.
3. All kinds of other crop, weed seeds seed and inert matters present therein are separated while
selecting the pure seed.
4. Each component is weighed and the weights are recorded to determine their percentage by
weight.
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5. Component may be retained for future reference though some of the pure seed may be used
for germination test.
The percentage of the components is determined on the basis of sum of weights of the
components, not on the weight of the original sample.
Wt. of pure seeds
i) Pure seed (%) = ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– x 100
Total weight of all components
Wt. of other crop seeds

ii) Other crop seed (%) = –––––––––––––––––––––––––– x 100
Total weight
Wt. of weed seeds

iii) Weed seed (%) = –––––––––––––––––––––––––– x 100
Total weight
Wt. of inert matter

iv) Inert matter (%) = –––––––––––––––––––––––––– x 100
Total weight
These should not be more than 1.0% variation between the weight of the original sample and the
total weight of the components. If the gain or loss is greater than this, another test should be
made.
The result of purity analysis shall be given to one decimal place and the percentage of all
components must total 100. The components of less than 0.05% shall be reported as 'trace', the
percentage of pure seed, other crop seed weed seeds and inert matter must be reported, if the
result of the component is nil, this must be shown as '0.0' in the appropriate space. The number
of each spps. Found be reported with actual weight and by number seed per kg.
91
Seed Formation and Development
VS Mor
CCS HAU, Hisar
Seed contain a mysterious source of life of plant, mysterious time and place mechanisms which
signal next growth stage. The mystery of seed is intriguing as the religion of men. Seed provides
a link with the past, a bridge between the old and new and hope for tomorrow. Plant does not
produce seed for our use but to maintain itself. Seed is a amazing product of the nature. In the
life cycle of every plant there is a point when the balance of the physiological processes shifts
from vegetative growth to the development of reproductive structures. The plant growth
originates in the tissues with the buds where cell division and elongation occur resulting in the
development of specific plants parts. The reproductive meristems give rise to floral organs that
ultimately produce fruits and seeds.
In agriculture, the seed is any part or organ of a plant which has the capability of regenerate a
new plant and can be sown. Botanically, a true seed is a ripened ovule containing embryo which
has developed after fertilization of the egg cell (female gamete) by the male gamete (of the
pollen) in the embryo sac of the ovule in the ovary of a flower. The developing embryo is
supported by stored food material (endosperm and cotyledon) and protected by seed coats.
The important events involved in the seed formation and development include:
1. Pollination
2. Fertilization
3. Development of the fertilized ovule by cell division
4. Accumulation of reserve food material
5. Loss of moisture content
Pollination
The mature anthers dehisce and release pollen grains (haploid microspore) when pollen grains
are transferred from an anther to the stigma of the same flower the process is self pollination e.g.
pea. If they are transferred to the stigma of another flower, the process is cross pollination e.g
carrot, onion.
Microsprogenesis and Microgametogenesis: Pollen is produced in microsporangia. Within the
sporangia certain cells become the microspore mother cell which undergo a two step reduction
division (meiosis) or microsporogenesis resulting in the four microspores (1N). Each microspore
undergoes two division known as microgametogenesis which give rise to a microgametophyte or
mature pollen grain. (Fig. 1).
Megasporogenesis and Megagemetogenesis: The process of development of megaspore, the
seeds of angiosperms originates from meristematic tissue of the ovary wall called ovule
primordial. The ovule primordia is located near the surface of ovary wall where carpel is fused.
Within the specialised tissue of the carpel or nucellus one cell known as archesporial cell
increase in size, nucleus become larger, cytoplasm grows dense in preparation for cell
division.The development of female gametophyte or embryo sac from megaspore through
successive nuclear divisions within an enlarging cell which becomes embryo sac. Three
successive free nuclear divisions (Mitosis) occur. This result in seven celled embryo sac with
eight nuclei (3 antipodal cells, 2 polar nuclei, 2 synergids with one egg cell). The resulting seven
celled and eight nuclei structure is called mature female gametophyte or megagemetophyte (Fig-
92
1). The egg cell is positioned near the small opening (micropyle) of the ovule formed by the
surrounding integument. The embryo sac is the heart of the ovule.
The Ovule Development: Occurs within the ovary which provides a location for nuture and
development of the female gametophyte, fusion with male gametophyte and ultimately a package
for embryo development survival and eventual regrowth. Ovule starts developing in Nucellus.
Megasporogenesis and megagametogenesis continue. Nucellus enlarges differentiates. Collars
(integuments), inner and outer integuments which ultimately become the testa (seed coat) of
mature ovule. Developing ovule attached to placenta by funiculus. The scar on the ovule made
where funiculus detaches at maturity is known as hilum. The point where the integuments meet
at the nucellar apex is the micropyle. The point of integumentary origin and attachment,
opposite the micropyle is the chalaza. Between the chalaza and the hilum in many species is an
area known as raphe.
The Nucellus: The nucellus provides tissue for the origin and nurture of female gametophyte
from archesporial cell to the mature megagametophyte. During development nucellus is partially
consumed but in sugarbeet it develops as storage tissue as perisperm. In some species
integumentary tissues remain as appendages. The micropyle is an integumentary pore or
opening in the ovule through which the pollen tube grows to fertilize the egg cell of the female
gametophyte.
93
Fertilization
After landing on the stigma, the pollen grain germinates and pollen tube grows through the style.
The surface of the stigma secretes substances, which may provide optimum conditions for pollen
germination. The pollen tubes traversing the style pectinase which dissolves intercellular
substances of the style tissue. After traversing the style, the pollen tube enters embryosac of the
ovule. The embryosac consists of eight cells. The end near the micropyle has the egg apparatus,
which consists of egg cell and two synergids. There are two polar nuclei in the centre and the
chalazal end has three antipodal cells.(Fig.1)
In angiosperms, fertilization involves the participation of two male nuclei (double fertilization).
One fuses with the egg nucleus to form the diploid zygote and the other with two polar nuclei to
produce a triploid nucleus, which is the primary endosperm nucleus.
Development of the fertilized ovule by cell division
The first division of the zygote is transverse in dicots and it results in a small apical cell and a
large basal cell. Cell divides vertically forming two just aposed cells and undergoes a transverse
division forming two superimposed cells. These results in a T-shaped, four celled proembryo.
Cell divides transversely. These two cells divide further resulting in a row of three or four cells,
forming suspensor. Cell and its derivatives undergo vertical divisions forming a group of four to
six cells. This group divides by oblique-perclinal wall forming a set of inner cells and a row of
outer cells. The inner cells form the initials of the root apex and the outer cells form the root cap.
The two cells formed as a result of the division again divide vertically forming quadrant. Each
cell of the quadrant divides transversely and thus an octant containing two tiers of cell is formed.
The cells of the octant undergo vertical division resulting in a globular proembryo. Periclinal
divisions occur in the peripheral cells of the globular proembryo that delimit an outer layer, the
dermatogen. The tier gives rise to cotyledons and shoot apex and forms hypocotl-radicle
axis.Certain deviations from the above pattern of embryo development are found in different
plants. Different types of embryogeny are distinguished depending on the plane of division of the
apical and the extent of contribution of the basal cell towards embryo development.
In monocotyledons, the cell remains undivided and develops into a haustorial of the suspension.
Cell divides into two by a transverse division. The terminal cell of these two by repeated
divisions in different planes gives rise to a single cotyledon. The embryo development in grasses
is different from that of other monocotyledons. A dorsiventral symmetry is established as a result
of the peculiar oblique position of cell walls early in the embryogeny. The single cotyledon is
reduced to absorptive scutellum and additional structures like coleptile and coleorrhiza are
formed.
Accumulation of reserve food material
There are 3 types of endosperm development (a) nuclear - where the endosperm nucleus
undergoes several divisions prior to cell wall formation, e.g., wheat apple, squash, (b) cellular -in
which there is no free nuclear phase, and (c) helobial where the free nuclear division is preceded,
and is followed by cellularization as in some monocots. During the course of seed development,
reserve food materials are accumulated in the endosperm from the adjacent tissues.
In endospermic dicot seeds, endosperms are retained as a permanent storage tissue. In non-
endospermic dicot seeds, endosperm reserves are depleted and occluded by the developing
embryo. The reserves are then reorganized in the cotyledons, which in turn act as the source of
stored reserved food for embryo after germination. A part of the endosperm is depleted in cereals
during embryo maturation and this lies as a layer between the starchy endosperm and scutellum.
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Loss of moisture content
The seed development process is completed at the time of physiological maturity, at this stage
the seed is complete in respect of all components. Due to high moisture content at this stage, it is
not possible to harvest the seed. So, it become necessary to dry the seed for proper storage and
maintain the vigour & viability for longer time. The seed is harvested at harvestable maturity
after proper development.
Components of Seed
There are various components of a mature seed (Fig.2)
Seed coat: It is the outer covering of seed and gives protection. It develops from the two
integuments of ovule. Outer layer of the seed coat which is smooth and rough is known as the
testa and is formed from the outer integument. The inner layer of the seed coat is called the
tegmen and is formed from inner integument.
Embryo: It is the mature ovule consisting of an embryonic plant together with a store of food,
all surrounded by a protective coat, which gives rise to a plant similar to that of its mother. It is a
miniature plant consists of plumule, radicle and cotyledon. The plumule and radical without the
cotyledon is known as primary axis.
Radicle: Rudimentary root of a plant compressed in the embryo is the radicle, which forms the
primary root of the young seedling. It is enclosed in a protective cover known as coleorhiza.
Plumule: It is the first terminal bud of the plant compressed in the embryo and it gives rise to the
first vegetative shoot of the plant. It is enclosed in a protective cover known as coleoptile.
Cotyledon: Cotyledons are the compressed seed leaves. A single cotyledon (Scutellum) is
present in monocots while two cotyledons are present in dicots, hence they are named as
monocots and dicots, respectively. In dicots they serve as storage tissue and are well developed,
while scutellum is a very tiny structure in monocots.
Endosperm: Endosperm develops from the endosperm nuclei which is formed by the two polar
nuclei and one sperm nuclei. It stores food for the developing embryo.
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Appendages of seeds
Some seeds will have appentages that are attached to the seed coat. They vary with kind of seed.
The appendages sometimes help in dispersal of seeds or in identification of genotypes. Some of
the appendages are Awn, Hilum, Caruncle, Aril, Hair and Wings.
Awn: The thorn like projection at tip of the seeds. (eg) Paddy - The bract tip was elongated into
the awn.
Hilum: It is the scar mostly white in colour present on the lateral side of the seed. It represents
attachment of the seed stalk to placenta of the fruit to mother plant (eg) Pulses.
Micropyle: The point where the integuments meet at the nucellar apex has been referred as
micropyle.
Chalaza: At region of integumentary origin and attachment opposite to micropyle is called
chalaza.
Rapha: The area between the micropyle and chalaza is the rapha. The rapha may be visible on
the seed coat of some species.
Caruncle: It is the white spongy outgrowth of the micropyle seen in some species (eg) Castor,
Tapioca.
Aril : It is the coloured flesh mass present on the outside of the seed (eg) Nutmeg.
Hairs: They are the minute thread like appendages present on the surface of the seed (eg)
Cotton.
Wings: It is the papery structure attached to the side of the seed coat either to a specific side of
the seed coat or to all sides (eg) Moringa.
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SEED LEGISLATION AND CERTIFICATION – A QUALITY
CONTROL SYSTEM
OS Dahiya
Seed is one of the most critical inputs for agriculture. A sustained increase in agriculture
production and productivity has become dependent upon the development of new improved
varieties and the supply of quality seed to farmers. Even at the turn of century, it was realised
that a new variety could degenerate and polluted into 4-5 years after its release to farmers if it
was not properly maintained. This leads to field verification and approved system of seed
production, which ultimately gave birth to system of seed certification.
Quality Seed: A seed technologist expects the term good quality seed-true to kind and variety,
high analytical purity, germination percentage, free from seed borne diseases and moisture
content. To meet these criteria, there is a need of certification.
Seed Certification: is scientific and systematical designed process to secure, maintain, multiply
and make available to farmers seeds of superior crop plant varieties so grown to ensure:
(a) Genetical identity of a variety with respect to DUS testing.
(b) High degree of genetical purity.
(c) Maximum germinability.
(d) Free from all designated seed-borne diseases, weeds and other crop seeds.
Principles: For quality seed production, seed certification is a necessary process. The
fundamental principles involved in this process are:
(i) Secure basic seed from a recognised source.
(ii) Maintain genetical identify of a variety with respect to "DUS"
(iii) High degree of physical purity, no mechanical/genetical contamination.
(iv) High standard of germinability.
(v) Multiply seed free from designated seed-borne diseases.
(vi) Seed produced must qualify the minimum standards under field and laboratory
conditions.
(vii) To make available quality seed to the farmers.
However, seed certification under the certification schemes of the OECD (Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development) and some agencies in North America, AOSCA (The
Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies) is based wholly on trueness to variety, that is
the seed lots are certified true to the variety's characteristics, described by the breeder. Trueness
to variety does not necessarily mean extreme uniformity. Evidence of stability in a variety's
composition and performance is also expected.
Mostly the seeds produced in India are certified, except for vegetable seeds which are truthfully
labelled. The generation system of seed production is followed. For hybrids where rapid
deterioration is expected the generation system is: Foundation and Certified.
Seed multiplication models
(a) Three generation models- BS-FS-CS
(b) Four generation models- BS-FS(I)-FS(II)-CS
-BS-FS-CS(I)-CS(II)
(c) Five generation models- BS-FS(I)-FS(II)-CS(I)-CS(II)
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Since Breeder seed is not Certified, but its quality is monitored through field inspection by a
team (crop co-ordinator; Breeder; State Seed Certification Agency and NSC, respectively). In
our country the responsibility for the production of breeder seed rests with ICAR.
The comparison of seed certification terminology used with two International Seed
Organisations is given below:
Responsibility and use OECD AOSCA

Multiplied by plant breeder for Pre-basic seed Breeder seed
multiplication (generation may be one)
Multiplied under Breeder's care or a Basic Seed Foundation Seed
special agency
Seed growers, seed farms etc. for Certified seed Ist Registered Seed
multiplication and sale generation
Seed growers, seed farms etc. for Certified Seed, IInd Certified Seed
multiplication and sale generation
Seed growers, seed farms etc. for Certified seed IIIrd and Certified seed IIIrd and
commercial sale subsequent generation subsequent generations
depending on the used with some crops.
variety involved.
Legal Status: Seed certification is a legally sanctioned system for quality control, seed
multiplication and production (Delouche and Potts, 1971). It covers field inspection, pre and
post-control tests and seed quality tests. In several countries having organised quality control
programmes, seed certification has achieved three basic objectives, i.e. identification of new
varieties, the systematic increase of better varieties and their careful maintenance (Douglas,
1971). In our country with the promulgation of the seed Act, 1966, the certification system has
acquired legal status.
Pre-requisites for a successful seed certification programme:
For a seed certification programme to be successful it is essential to have:
(1) Sound crop improvement programmes for regular flow of stable, superior varieties of
known pedigree
(2) Well-qualified and trained staff to develop sound seed certification standards and
procedures.
(3) Infrastructure for efficient management of post-harvest processing of seed crop.
(4) To have trained seed producers, arranging financial resources, marketing system,
enforcement responsibilities and constant liaison with related agencies.
Seed certification procedures:
Seed certification is a system that incorporates certain basic steps, which can also be
termed as phases, and these are listed below:
(i) Eligibility of variety for certification:
According to the Indian Seeds Act (1966) only those varieties are eligible for certification which
are notified by the Central Seed Committee on the recommendation of its Sub-Committee on
Crop Standards, Notification and Release of Varieties. The names of these varieties should be
published annually, and they should be well publicized. The varieties released but not notified
are not eligible for certification.
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(ii) Verification of seed source:
The breeder seed used as source for the foundation seed must come from a recognized
source. The source of the seed planted must be verified for each generation of multiplication.
There is no need to limit the number of generations of certified seed as long as varietal purity is
maintained and seed source is documented through certification. Varietal maintenance and
breeder seed production is the responsibility of the Agricultural University/ICAR. It has also
been given to NSC and SFCI, sponsored for the multiplication of the breeder seeds under
supervision of breeders, followed by inspection. It is important for the certification agency to
satisfy itself about the seed source. In cross-pollinated crops, biological reasons may limit the
number of generations.
(iii) Verification of land requirements
To know the history of the seed field where the proposed crop to be grown under
certification programme is essential. The objective is to avoid the appearance of volunteer plants
or the spread of disease inoculum, which might happen due to the cultivation of an inferior
variety of the same crop in the previous season. However, the condition can be modified by pre-
irrigation or crop rotations.
(iv) Field inspections
An inspection is made of the standing seed crop. Later tests are done in the laboratory on
seed lots, which come from seed crops that were inspected and approved at the field stage for
conformity to the prescribed standards.
The basic objective of field inspections is to ascertain that the seed being produced is of
the designated variety, not contaminated genetically and physically beyond certain specified
limits.(Table-1) The objectives are achieved by verifying that:
(a) The field meets/satisfied the prescribed land requirements
(b) Crop raised from seed with approved source
(c) Provided with prescribed isolation or border rows in cross pollinated crops (hybrid seed
production)
(d) For hybrid seed, planting ratio ( female : male ) is followed
(e) Properly rogued (other plants, objectionable weeds) in confirmation with standards for
different factors.
(f) True to the variety's characteristics
(g) No mechanical mixtures, proper harvesting
(h) Special requirement for the crop concerned were adopted during crop season.
The field observations are then compared with a set of certification norms, specified for
each crop (in relation to previous crops, isolation, purity, other crop plants, and objectionable
weeds, designated diseases, physical quality). For official certification only the officially
notified agency for the region concerned has the authority to perform the inspection.
Certification tags for certified seed not eligible for further increase shall be labeled "not eligible
for further seed increase under certification", but can be lifted as long as the genetic identify and
purity is maintained.
(b) Crop stages for inspection/inspection timing:
In a single inspection the verification of different factors affecting seed quality in the
field is normally not possible as these factors don't occur at the same time or all may not affect at
that growth stage. Thus phased inspection is required for all crops. The number of inspections
and growth stage depends upon:
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 Crop duration
 Nature of pollination
 Possibilities of contamination and nature of contaminating factor, stage of disease
susceptibility.
In sexually propagated species the convenient stages of crop growth at which inspections are
generally made are classified as follows:
Pre-flowering stage: The period preceding flowering. For inspections this includes, the
seedling, vegetative and flower bud initiation stages, all growth stages prior to the emergence of
the panicle, say in wheat this extends up to the emergence of the flag leaf.
Flowering stage: Flowers or spikelets of the inflorescence have opened, stigma is receptive and
anther is shedding pollen.
Post-flowering stage: Fertilized ovule starts to develop in to a seed, milk stage and the dough
stage (seed contents being transformed in to a more solid, pasty substance that yield to pressure).
Pre-harvest stage: Seed becomes harder, approaches or reaches physical maturity, fully formed,
but high moisture content.
Harvest stage: Seed physiologically mature, can be dried for relatively safe storage.
In asexually or vegetatively propagated crops e.g. potato, these classifications/stages may
not be appropriate. The other stages used are sprouting, seedling, tuberization, tuber hardening
and haulm-cutting/de-haulming stage.
In root and bulb crops, the enlarged root/bulb formation stage precedes pre-flowering,
lifting and replanting are done after complete root formation. In these crops, inspection at lifting
and replanting is essential. In cross-pollinated crops, inspections during flowering are essential
to verify freedom from genetic contamination.
(c) Observations during field inspections:
Factors observed during field inspections vary among crops and growth stages. The
source of genetic and physical contamination is a general factor and must be observed and the
degree of occurrence is estimated. Genetic contamination is common in cross-pollinated crops.
Physical contamination sources are: different varieties of the same species, other crop
plants, weed plants, plants carrying disease-causing pathogen. Genetic repurification is tedious
and takes several generations where as physical repurification is easier and mechanical.
For self-pollinated crops, source of contamination, can be broadly classified in to one of
the following categories:
(i) Off type: A plant of the same species as the seed crop but differ in the expression of
morphological characteristics. Before a plant is designated as on off-type, it is not
necessary to identify it definitely as another variety. Plants of other varieties are also
called off-types.
(ii) Inseparable other crop plants: Cultivated crop plants found in seed field and so similar
to the crop seed that it is difficult to separate them mechanically in an economical way.
(iii) Objectionable weed plants: Plants of weed species that are harmful to the seed crop
being grown.
(iv) Disease: Plant diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses or nematodes. Seed is known
to transmit seed-borne diseases from generation to generation (internally seed borne or
externally seed borne or both ways). But practical and effective methods are not
available to prevent seed transmission of some disease causing pathogens, therefore, the
effective method is to ensure that infected seed is not mixed with the clean seed by
eliminating from seed fields all those plants whose seed is suspected to carry pathogens.
100
(v) Taking field counts:
In thickly planted row crops it is impossible to examine all plants in a field. The methods
of counts vary from crop to crop. For all crops, five counts up to two hectares of area and an
additional count for every additional two hectares. If the first count indicates that the prescribed
limits has been exceeded then go for second count immediately.
Procedure: The procedure of taking counts in thickly sown rows crops such as wheat, oats,
paddy, sorghum and berseem is as follows: (i) Enter the seed field from any side at a randomly
selected site. Determine the average number of heads/plants per step. Repeat this process at five
random locations and average the observations.
(ii) Determine the number of steps required to include sufficient plants/heads (e.g. 1000 earheads
for wheat, oats and barley or 500 for food legumes).
(iii) In order to represent all portions of the field, walk through the field according to one of the
patterns shown in Fig. A
(iii) Randomly select any row, and from any point in that-row take consecutive steps
to include the desired number of plants or earhead.
(iv) Within these steps count the number of off type heads/plant, inseparable other
crop plants, objectionable weeds, heads/plants affected by designated diseases.
(v) Cross over to the pre-determined number of row and repeat the process as many
times as required to include the desired number of plants/earheads. This
completes one count.
(vi) Repeat entire process until completing number of counts required for field size.
It is very important that the seed field meets the minimum isolation requirements and
confirms to other minimum field standards. If the field does not meet these standards at the first
inspection, a second inspection may be made.
(d) Reporting the results
The results of the field inspection after verification of field standards, must be filed with
certification agency till the crop is harvested and a report is handed over to seed producer / seed
producing agency
Post harvest inspection of seed crop: It covers the operation carried out at threshing floor,
transportation of raw seed to processing plant, pre-cleaning, drying, cleaning and grading, seed
treatment, bagging and post processing of storage of seed lots.
Transportation:
The first step is to transport the raw seed to the nearest designated processing plant. The
stock should always accompany:
(1) The final field inspection report and,
(2) A slip for supervised harvesting operation issued by inspection official.
Intake of raw produced and lot identification:
The officer incharge of seed processing plant may after verification of above stated
documents accept the produce for processing. Incharge processing plant issue a receipt to seed
grower and each seed grower is allocated a separate lot number for identification.
Processing of seed lot:
Seed processing is carried out mainly for upgrading the seed quality and remove the
impurity of seed lot.
Seed testing against quality standards: After the seed processing, seed sample is drawn with
prescribed standards and tested in the seed testing laboratory to verify the different minimum
seed certification standards for the important quality parameters.
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Labeling: When a seed lot meets the minimum standards for a certain quality class, certification
labels are put on every seed container. The certification label is the document that shows the
standards have been met as given below.
Class of seed Tag colour & size Label colour & size
Breeder Golden yellow 12x6 cm -
Foundation White, 15x7.5 cm Opaline green, 15x10 cm
Certified Blue, 15x7.5 cm Opaline green, 15x10 cm
Table-1 Field Standards for forage crops
Sr. No. Crop Field Land Isolation distance (m)
inspection requirement F C
1. Barseem (Trifolium 2 Free from 400 100

alexandrinum L.) volunteer
plants
2. Sorghum (Sorghum 3 Do 200 100
bicolor) 400 (Johnson 400
Sudan grass grass)
3. Clusterbean 2 Do 10 5
(Cyamopsis
tetragonaloba)
4. Indian Clover 2 Do 50 25
(Melilotus spp.)
5. Guinea grass (Panicum 3 Do (C) 20 10
maximum) 5 yrs for F
6. Lucerne (Medicago 2 Free from 400 100
sativa) volunteer
plants
7. Oats (Avena sativa) 2 Do 3, [150 for 3, [150]
loose smut]
8. Teosinte (Euchlaena 3 Do 200 100
mexicana)
9. Stylo (Stylosanthes 3 Do (C) 50 25
spp.) 5 yrs for F
10. Buffel grass (Cendhrus 3 do 20 10
ciliaris)
Birdwood grass
(Cenchrus setigerus)
11. Dinnath grass 3 Do 20 10
(Pennisetum
pedicellatum)
102
103
SEED VIABILITY AND VIGOUR TESTING
RPS Kharb

(A) SEED VIABILITY

Although the concept of seed viability is well known, there is a considerable disagreement and
confusion as to its precise meaning. To most seed technologists and commercial seeds men,
viability means that a seed is capable of germinating and producing a normal seedling. In
another sense, viability of seed denotes the state of being aliveness, metabolically active, and
possesses enzymes capable of catalyzing metabolic reactions needed for germination and
seedling growth. In this context, a given seed may contain both live and dead tissues and may or
may not be capable of germination. This meaning deals with tissue viability as well as viability
of the entire seed.
A germination test is usually the best method of estimating seed viability. However, a number of
difficulties can arise in deciding why a particular seed has not germinated when a test is
concluded, viz. dormant seeds, hard seeds, empty seeds and slow germinating seeds. Occasions
may well arise when the results of germination tests could be misleading because the dormancy
breaking treatments applied were ineffective or only partially effective. In such cases it is
necessary to carry out a viability test on the seeds, which remain un-germinated at the end of the
test.
For a crop species the basic need of certain minimum environmental conditions and time
required for germination test has necessitated the research for a quick and effective biochemical
test to predict seed viability which helps in timely processing and marketing of the seed. This
has become more relevant in the fast expanding seed trade and marketing of costly seeds.
Hence, tetrazolium test and other rapid viability tests are the outcome of the efforts to search for
a quick and reliable method of determining seed viability.
A. Tetrazolium Test
1. Principle
The principle of Tz test (Lakon, 1942) is based on the response of all living cells of the seed
which can reduce a colorless solution of 2, 3, 5-Triphenyl Tetrazolium chloride or bromide in to
a red coloured compound called formazan.
The reduction of the chemical takes place in the seed by the action of a group of enzymes known
as dehydrogenases. These enzymes are involved in H-transfer during respiratory activity of
biological systems. Since the reaction takes place with in the respiring (living) cells and the
formazan is non-diffusable, a clear topography of living land non-living tissues with in the seed
can be developed by following proper procedure. For this reason this test is designated as the
topographical tetrazolium test.
2. Preparation of tetrazolium solutions
Mixing of the Tz solution itself is calculated on a weight/volume (grams per ml) basis. The
desired concentration in percent is easily derived. Occasionally, however, the tetrazolium
powder contains enough impurities to cause the resultant solution to be too acidic. In either case
a tetrazolium solution with a pH which is not with in the recommended range (6-8) will not
104
produce satisfactory staining and it will be necessary to buffer the solution to maintain a
relatively neutral pH.
3. Temperature
The temperature between 20oC - 45oC have no adverse effect on the accuracy of the tetrazolium
test, but staining proceeds faster at the higher temperature. When short test periods are desired
then heat can be supplied by placing the test samples in a 30oC or 35oC germinator. The use of
temperature warmer than 45oC is not suggested. As a general rule of thumb, staining will take
place twice as fast at 30oC as at 20oC and twice as fast at 40oC as at 30oC.
4. Light
Tests may be placed in subdued light or in the dark for staining, however, light has little effect on
the tetrazolium test and may be disregarded as a factor affecting accuracy of results.
5. Preparation of seeds for testing
At least 200 seeds should be tested (3 or 4 replicates). The seeds that are extremely difficult to
prepare for staining, the number of seeds can be less than 200.
5.1 Conditioning
Before staining, conditioning is required for most of the seeds. The seeds that are not readily
permeable to water must be made permeable by alteration of seed coats. The moistening of
living tissues promotes: the activation of enzyme system, the advancement of embryo activities
and the improvement of staining and evaluation qualities.
5.2 Preparation
The preparation assures timely and adequate penetration of the staining solution and accelerate
the rate of staining. The water-soaked monocot seeds are then cut longitudinally (e.g. wheat,
maize, etc.) or laterally ( e.g. small seeded grasses), nick diagnosally with razor (e.g. spinach),
cut a thin slice off the side of the seed (e.g. radish) to expose the embryo, seed coats of dicots
should be removed (e.g. cicer).
5.3 Treatment
Adequately prepared seed samples should be completely covered with the testing solutions and
should be stained in darkness. The prolonged exposure to strong light oxidizes the testing
solution and results in abnormal tissue colour.
5.4 Clearing
After staining, clearing is required with some seeds in order to have better visibility of stained
embryos with the help of lactophenol.
5.5 Evaluation
When the colour has developed, the Tz solution should be drained, the seed/sample should be
rinsed 2-3 times with water and evaluated. During evaluation, seeds should be immersed in
water. If it is not possible to evaluate seeds the same day, the stained seeds may be kept in a
refrigerator in water for 1-2 days. Examine small seeds under stereomicroscope
For accurate interpretation of the tetrazolium test, the basic knowledge of seed and seedling
structure is a prerequisite. Some of the major features as index of seed viability of monocot and
dicot seeds are as follows:
Monocot
i) Growing tips of the embryonic axis especially pulumule.
ii) Point of attachment of the embryo to scutellum
iii) Region of seminal root emergence.
Dicot
i) Radicle and hypocotyl develolpment
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ii) Cotyledons themselves
iii) The plumule region
Improper staining in these areas indicates non-germinable or abnormal seeds.
6. Accuracy of results
The discrepancies between the results of the tetrazolium and the germination tests may be
due to several reasons, such as :
- Sample differences
- Improper germination testing
- Improper Tz testing
- Dormant seed
- Hard seed
- Seed borne organisms
- The chemical injury, fumigation injury and over treatment with mercurial seed
dressings may not be detected with the Tz test. The chemical damage that prevents
normal germination may not inhibit the Tz staining process.
However, the results of properly conducted Tz and the germination tests are generally in close
agreement. The differences in the results are usually less with the high quality seed than the low
quality seed.
7. Advantages
- Quick estimate of seed viability can be obtained.
- When the seed is dormant or very slow in germination, a viability test is
extremely useful.
- Seeds are not damaged (in dicots only) in analysis, therefore, they could be
germinated.
8. Disadvantages
- It is difficult to distinguish between normal and abnormal seedlings.
- It does not differentiate between dormant and non dormant seeds.
- Since the Tz test does not involve in germination, thus the microorganisms
harmful to the germinating seedlings are not detected.
- The knowledge of the seed and the seedling structure is essential for the conduct
of this test. Understanding the mechanisms of the test and combining
interpretation of straining patterns with other visible aspects of the seed quality is
required.
(B) SEED VIGOUR
Seed Vigour alongwith germination level are the two aspects of seed quality which indicate the
capability of seed lots to emerge in the field. Estimates of vigour give assurance as to the
reliable emergence which is especially important for costly seed of new improved cultivars in
less than ideal sowing conditions. Vigour test are commonly evaluated according to their ability
to predict some aspect of potential seed performance, particularly seedling growth rate, seedling
emergence in the field, plant uniformity, crop yield and seed storability. Seed vigour is just one
of several estimates of quality and is not an absolute term but is a relative measure. Differences
in vigour are only revealed in practice when germination tests fail to indicate emergence
differences in the field. There are also, however, many reports where seed lots having similar
high laboratory germinations reveal large differences in their ability to emergence in field
(Matthews, 1980)
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Deficiencies of the germination test
The germination test is universally accepted and used as a seed quality test. The AOSA "Rules
for Testing Seeds" (1978) defines germination as "the emergence and development from the seed
embryo of those essential structures which, for the kinds of seed in question,are indicative of the
ability to produce a normal plant under favourable conditions".
This is made on artificial, standardized, essentially sterile media, in humidified, temperature
controlled germinations for period sufficiently long to permit rather "weak" seeds to germinate.
The failure of germination percentage to properly and adequately reflect the lesser consequences
of determination is the main cause of the dissatisfaction of farmers with germination as a
measure of the plant producing ability of the seed. Therefore, it should not be surprising that
farmers are demanding high quality seed so as to reduce the probability of stand failure. Due to
these reasons, vigour tests for assessing the quality of the seed will become popular among the
Indian farmers.
Definitions and concepts of seed vigour
Vigour is the close association of the term with animal properties, e.g., intense activity, active
strength and force, robustness, stamina which at best can be applied only awkwardly to seed.
Difference in seed vigour were observed by the first seed analyst and observations about
"germination energy" were reported by Nobbe, 1876. Since then, our knowledge of the nature
and importance of seed vigour has increased steadily. The general strategy in determining seed
vigour is to measure some aspect or seed deterioration or genetic deficiency. The degree of
deterioration of the seriousness of genetic deficiency is universally proportional to the vigour of
the seed.
(a) ISTA definition of seed vigour
"Seed vigour comprises those seed properties which determine the potential level of activity and
performance of the seed or seed lot during germination and seedling emergence (Perry, 1978).
(b) AOSA definition of seed vigour
"Seed vigour comprises those seed properties which determine the potential for rapid, uniform
emergence, and development of normal seedlings under a wide range of field conditions"(Mc
Donald 1980b).
(c) Degree of being aliveness is called seed vigour
Factors influencing seed vigour:
The development of a seed encopases a series of important stages from fertilization to
accumulation of nutrients, to seed dry-down, to dormancy. At physiological maturity seed
achieves its maximum dry weight, maximum germination and vigour (Delouche, 1974).
However, since seeds generally achieve physiological maturity at high moisture levels unsafe for
storage, seed is typically not harvested until it attains harvest maturity. Among the factors that
influence seed vigour are:
1. Genetic constitution
2. Environment and nutrition of the mother plant
3. Stage of maturity at harvest
4. Seed size
5. Mechanical integrity
6. Deterioration and ageing
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7. Soil moisture and fertlity
8. Postmaturation - Preharvest Environment
9. Pathogen
Characteristics of a practical seed vigour test:
- Reproducibility of test results
- Interpretable and correlated with emergence under certain field conditions
- Rapid
- Objective
- Simple
- Economically practical
Common seed vigour tests
A standard germination test is conducted under optimum laboratory conditions. A seed vigour
test is a laboratory method to evaluate seed vigour. At the biochemical level, it involves
biosynthesis of energy and metabolic compounds such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids etc.
which coordinate cellular activity, membrane integrity and transportation and utilization of
reserve foods. At the germination level, it involves speed and totality of germination,
mechanical rupture force of seedlings, tolerance of seedlings to environmental stress. A vigour
tests can be a measurement or one of more of these events. Nearly all major vigour tests can be
grouped in to three general categories as described below:
(a) Seedling growth and evaluation tests
Some vigour tests are conducted under the same conditions as the standard germination test;
however, seedling growth is measured or evaluated in a different way. They are inexpensive,
relatively rapid, required no specialized equipment but for those seeds, which are dormant, this
type of test will be wholly unacceptable.
(i) Seedling vigour classification
This vigour tests is similar to the standard germination test. The only difference between
the two tests is that normal seedlings are further classified as "Strong" and "Weak".
(ii) Seedling growth rate
Rapid and uniform emergence is an important component of the seed vigour. Therefore,
measurement of seedling growth is a logical vigour test. At the end of germination
period, seedling growth is measured. Two kinds of measurements, linear growth and dry
weight are usually dtermined.
(iii) Speed of germination
Seed lots with similar total germination often vary in their rate of germination and growth
(Maguire, 1962).
No. of normal seedlings No. of normal seedlings
X =
Days of first count days of final count
Similar germination indexes were suggested by Czabator (1962) and Djavanshir and Pourbeik
(1976) for tree seeds based on the following formula:
108
Commulative number of normal seedlings
Germination value= Peak value of
Days of germination counts
Total number of normal seedlings
days of final count

(iv) First count
The number of normal seedlings should be identified and counted on the Ist count day
and removed, gives an idea of level of seed vigour in the sample.
(v) Seed vigour index
This can be incorporated in regular germination test by two ways.
V.I.-= S.G.(%) x seedling length (cm)
V.I.-= S.G.(%) x dry weight (mg)
The seed lot showing higher seed vigour index is considered to be more vigorous
(Abdul-Baki and Anderson, 1973b).
(b) Stress tests
Usually field conditions are less than optimum when seeds are sown. Under suboptimum
or stress conditions, high vigour seeds have a greater potential for emergence and stand
establishment. In these tests, seeds are stressed either prior to imbibition or during
germination. However, seed germination remains the criterion for evaluation.
(i) Accelerated aging
Seeds are placed in termperature of 40-45oC and nearly 100% relative humidity for
varying lengths of time, depending on the kind of seeds, after which a germination test is
made. The basis for this test is that higher vigour seeds tolerate the high temperature-
high relative humidity treatment and thus retain their capability to produce normal
seedlings in the germination test. The test was first developed by Delouche (1965) for
predicting the relative storability and later on developed for forecasting stand
establishment in field. This test is rapid, inexpensive, simple, useful for all species, it can
be used for individual seed evaluation and requires no additional training for correct
evaluation.
(ii) Cold test
Seeds are placed in soil in a plastic box or in paper towels lined with soil and incubated at
10oC for a specified period. At the end of the cold period, the seeds are transferred to a
favourable temperature for germination. The emergence percentage is considered as an
indication of seed vigour e.g. corn.
(iii) Cool germination test
This test was developed for the vigour testing of cotton seed but has also been used for
sorghum and cucumbers. Seeds are germinated in darkness at a constant temperature of
18oC for seven days since the minimal temperature for cotton seed germination is about
15oC. The influence of low temperature on germinating cotton seed might also induce
radicle injury, a lower rate of hypocotyl elongation. Normal cotton seedlings having a
109
total length of four cm or longer after seven days of germination are considered high
vigour seedlings.
(iv) Brick grit test
This test is also known as Hiltner test. Seeds are planted on sand in a box and covered
with three cm of damp brick grit and germinated in darkness at room temperature for a
specific time. Seeds infected by pathogenic fungi, injured, or low in vigour are unable to
penetrate the brick grit layers. The percentage of normal emerged seedlings is considered
to be an indication of the vigour level. The has several disadvantages including high
cost, large space requirement and variability in test results, as well as difficulties in
obtaining, washing and drying of brick grit.
(v) Osmotic stress
When seeds are sown in the field, they are often subjected to drought stress which results
in poor field emergence. Such as drought condition can be stimulated in a laboratory test.
A vigorous seeds can tolerate a more severe osmotic stress.
(vi) Paper piercing test
Place seeds on 1.5 cm moist sand and cover with dry filter paper and then with 2 cm of
moist sand then keep trays in a germinator at a required temperature for specific time. A
seed lot having maximum number of seedlings coming out of paper is considered most
vigourous.
C. Biochemical tests
Biochemical tests, which measure certain metabolic events in seeds, associated with germination
can be used to measure seed vigour. These tests have the advantage of requiring less time than
other methods.
(i) Dehydrogenase activity test (DHA)
(ii) Electrical conductivity
Poor membrane structure and leaky cells are usually associated with deteriorating low vigour
seed. These results in a greater loss of electrolytes such as amino acid and organic acids from
imbibing seeds and increase the conductivity of the soak water. Higher soak water conductivity,
therefore, may indicate a low vigour seed lot. Measurement of the conductivity of leachates
from seeds is a rapid, precise, inexpensive and simple procedure. However, initial seed moisture
and seed size can affect the rate of solute leakage. Additionally, treatment of seeds with
antibiotics may influence conductivity measurements, necessitating their removal before
determinations are made. One limitation of the present conductivity test is that it expresses
results as an average conductivity evaluation of bulk seeds. Such an expression presumes that all
seeds are equally deteriorated and will provide the same quantity of electrolyte leakage.
(iii) Respiration
Seed germination and seedling growth require the use of metabolic energy acquired from
respiration. Thus, a decrease in the rate of respiration of germinating seeds has been shown to
precede a decline in the rate of seedling growth (Woodstock, 1968). Positive correlation have
been reported between rate of oxygen uptake during imbibition and seedling growth (Woodstock
and Grabe, 1967). Respiration tests are rapid and quantitative but require a respiro meter and
trained personnel. Furthermore, mechanical injury, which lowers seed vigour, may increase
rather than decrease respiration rates thus producing confusing results.
110
(iv) Glutamic acid decarboxylase activity (GADA)
During seed germination, proteins are hydrolyzed into a amino acids by proteolytic enzymes.
Amino acids decarboxylases are widely distributed in seeds, each of these transaminases
catalyzes the removal of CO2 from the 1-carbon of a specific L-x-amino acid. GADA is
normally measured by the amount of CO2 produced in the presence of glutamic acid. Higher the
CO2 evolved, greater is the seed vigour
(v) Adenasine triphosphate (ATP) content
The energy for biochemical reactions in living cells is stored in high energy compounds such as
ATP. ATP can be extracted from inhibited seeds by boiling water. The extracted ATP is then
quantitatively measured by a photometer. Higher the ATP content more will be vigour.
111
HYBRID SEED PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY IN PEARL MILLET
Ramesh Kumar
Bajra Section, Dept of Genetics & Plant Breeding
CCS HAU Hisar
Pearl millet, grown on 26 million ha in some of the most marginal arid and semi-arid
tropical environments of Asia (11 million ha) and Africa (15 million ha), is a major
source of dietary energy and nutritional security for a vast population in these regions. It
was cultivated in an area of 5.7 lakhs hectares with a production of 11.77 lakh tones with
an average productivity of 2040 kg/ha during the penultimate quinquennium (2011-12) as
against 1091 kg/ha of India. There have been wide variations in production and
productivity. This variation is mainly due to quantum and distribution of rainfall.
Pearl millet is a bisexual, protogynous highly cross pollinated grass. For the commercial
production of seed of hybrids natural mechanism of emasculation is essential. Male
sterility is an important natural phenomenon endowed with abortion of anthers. Both
cytoplasmic-genic (CMS) and genic (G) male sterility are available in pearl millet.
Burton (1958) first reported the (CMS) in pearl millet and developed first male sterile
line Tift 23A in 1962. The use of CMS in pearl millet paved the way for grain yield
augmentation with the development and release of first grain hybrid HB 1 (Tift
23AxBIL-3B) by Althwal (1965) which registered 75-100% higher productivity over the
improved varieties of that time. This attracted the farmers to cultivate hybrids on a large
scale. The tremendous increase in productivity has mainly been due to cultivation of high
yield cultivars (82% coverage), of which hybrids are cultivated in 85-90 per cent area.
For higher sustained productivity and production of pearl millet good quality seed of
hybrid should be reliably at the right time, in the right time, in the right place, and at a
reasonable price.
The concerted efforts of the scientists and farmers have contributed significantly in
increasing the total production and productivity of pearl millet in the state. As a result of
this the Haryana state ranks number one in the country in the productivity of pearl millet
(2040 kg/ha). A number of hybrids namely, HHB 67, HHB 94, HHB 117, HHB 67
Improved, HHB 197, HHB 216 and HHB 223, HHB 226 and HHB 234 have been
developed mainly for Zone A and A1 of the country, where pearl millet cultivation is
mainly dependent on rainfall. In spite of availability of hybrids with high production
potential there is a wide gap in potential and realized yield. The major reasons
enumerated below
Reasons for low productivity in pearl millet
• Low adoption of production technology
• Poor plant stand
• Shortage of seed
• Poor quality of seed
• Poor knowledge of farmers
• Wrong choice of hybrids
• Mainly rain fed cultivation
112
Haryana with an area of 6 lakh hectares under pearl millet requires 25000q seed.
Achieving this target needs increasing the productivity through seed based technology
and transfer of technology.
Reasons for exploitation of heterosis in pearl millet
 Very high heterosis (5-250%)
 Highly cross pollinated crop
 No emasculation is required
 High seed to seed ratio
 Low cost of seed production
 Availability of CMS lines
Types of hybrids:
• Single cross hybrids: F1 generation involving Inbred x Inbred cross
• Double cross hybrids: F1 x F1
• Three way hybrids: F1 x Inbred
• Top cross hybrids: Inbred x Open pollinated variety
• Hybrid blends: Mixture of three/four hybrids
• Inter population hybrids: Open pollinated variety x Open pollinated variety
For successful hybrid seed production knowledge of following aspect will be useful in
understanding the seed production aspects
1. Seed classes
2. Seed production Planning
3. Seed production technology
a) Seed production procedures
b) Seed production Management
4. Seed processing and storage
5. Seed marketing.
1). Seed classes
• Nucleus seed
• Breeder seed
• Foundation seed
• Certified seed
• Truthfully labeled
2). Seed production Planning
i). Need assessment
 To quantify the production of various classes of seed meeting the seed
requirements
 To determine the seed and land requirement to produce foundation and certified
seed
 To determine the Planting density, distance from pollen source, planting direction,
planting ratio, Planting time and presence of off types.
ii). Carry over strategies
The quantity of seed of any class produced in excess of what is actually required for
season or the year is known as carry over seed and it is stored for future use. The
objective of carry over seed is to provide insurance against sudden demand or unseen
113
shortfall in production because of vagaries of nature e.g. drought, hail storm, disease or
insect pest.
3). Seed Production technology
A). Seed production procedures
1. Nucleus seed production
Nucleus seed refers to the seed produced by the breeder who developed the particular
variety and the parental lines of hybrids or by any other breeder of the institution where the
variety was developed which is directly used for multiplication of breeder seed.
Nucleus seed production of parental lines of hybrids (B-line, A-line, R-line)
a) Maintainer line( B-line)
Season I
 Grow the B-line in an isolation plot (0.05ha)
 Select and self about 1000 plants at the time of flowering.
 Finally select about 200 selfed plants & divide it into two lots.
Season II
 Grow plant-to-row
 The progeny rows are studied for the diagnostic characters
 Identify the best progeny rows (25-30%).
 Bulk the seed of the second lot for the progenies corresponding to those
 Bulk seed of selected progenies
Season III
 Grow the bulk seed prepared above in isolation.
 Bulk the open-pollinated seed of the plants after harvest.
 This forms the Nucleus seed bulk of B-line.
Season V
Cytoplasmic male sterile line (A-line)
 Make A x B paired crosses.
 Grow respective paired crosses involving A-line (crossed seed) and B-line (selfed
seed) in alternate rows.
 Retain a portion of seed of all the A-line plants (crossed seed) and B-line plants
(selfed seed) as remnant seed.
 Observe critically the pairs of A- and B-lines for : height, flowering and typical
morphological characters
 Observe for pollen shedders in A-lines. The A-lines progenies showing pollen
shedders and corresponding B-lines should also be rejected.
 Remnant seed of the A-lines of the selected pure pairs is bulked.
 This forms Nucleus seed bulk of A-line.
Restore line (R-line)
Season I
 Grow the R-line in an isolation plot (0.05 ha)
 Self about 1000 plants
 Finally select about 400 selfed plants based on: Field studies ,observation in
laboratory for seed color, shape, etc
 Divide it into two lots.
114
Season II
 Grow plant-to-row using one lot of the seeds.
 The progeny rows are studied for the diagnostic characters.
 Bulk the remnant seed of best lines.
Season III
 Grow the bulk seed of remnant seed in isolation.
 Bulk the seed of all the plants after harvest.
 This forms the Nucleus seed bulk of R-line.
2). Breeder/Foundation seed production
Breeder seed of a released hybrid parents is produced by or under the direct control of the
sponsoring plant breeder. This class of seed is the base of the first and recurring increase of
Foundation seed production plot of this class of seed is inspected by a monitoring team
consisting of a breeder, seed certification officer, representatives of National Seed Corporation
(NSC) and State Seed Corporation (SSC).
Breeder seed production of A-lines
 Multiply A-line by planting A- and B-lines in alternate set in 4:2 ratios.
 Plant 4-8 border rows of the B-line.
 Strict rouging is necessary in A- and B-lines.
 Harvest the B-line rows immediately after completion of flowering.
 Carefully harvest the A-line rows and bulk the seed.
Breeder seed production of B- lines
 For Breeder seed production of B-lines a separate production plot of 0.1 ha under
isolation (1000m) is planted using the Nucleus seed stock. Foundation seed is produced
by planting Breeder seed.
 Follow rouging and other procedures as detailed in the Nucleus seed production method.
Breeder/Foundation seed production of Restore (R) line
Breeder/Foundation seed production of R-lines is done by bulk planting under isolation (1000
m). Nucleus seed stock is used to produce Breeder seed, and Breeder seed is used to produce
foundation seed.
 Seed plots should be 0.1-0.2 ha for R-lines and at least 3000-5000 plants should be
maintained.
 The crop is inspected at the following different stages of growth to identify deviants for
different characters.
Stage of crop Characters to be specifically observed
18 days after sowing Identify deviants for early vigor
30-35 days after sowing Identify deviants for tillering, plant height and other
traits
Boot leaf stage Identify deviants based on early flowering
50% flowering Identify deviants for late flowering, panicle exertion and
panicle type (and pollen shedders in A-line)
Maturity stage Identify deviants for panicle and Seed type and seed
color
 Select 500-1000 panicles (depending on the requirement) from the bulk planting.
 Harvest and bulk the seed.
 After harvest, the seed should be dried, processed and stored in safe containers.
115
Wind pollination
Cytoplasmic male Maintainer line

sterile line
Seed of CMS line Wind pollination
Cytoplasmic male Inbred restorer

sterile line line
F1 seed
Pearl millet hybrid
Scheme for pearl millet hybrid seed production in isolated fields
3). Certified hybrid seed production

 Synchronization of A- and R-lines is an important consideration for certified hybrid seed
production. This can be manipulated by
 Differential dates of sowing.
 Controlling water and fertilizer application to one of the hybrid parents.
 Removal of extra-early tillers in A- or R-lines to synchronize the pollen shedding and
stigma receptivity
116
B). Seed production management
a). Selection of seed production fields.
 Uniform, well leveled area
 Free from disease inoculums
 Free from weeds
 Free from wild species
 No rain during seed development stage
 Previous crop
b). Land preparation:
 Cultivate soils 15 to 20 cm deep which is having adequate moisture for germination of
seed.
 Good tilth provides good contact between the seeds and soil for better water absorption.
c). Planting methods: The sowing in seed production plot is done north to south direction by
either of following methods
 Drilling
 Dibbling method
 Transplanting
d) Seed rate: The optimum plant population is 1.6 lakh/ha, with 45 cm spacing between rows
and 12 cm between plants. To ensure optimum population, 4.0 kg/ha seed is required for
multiplication of restorer lines, while 3kg of A-line and 1kg of B-line or (R-line) for
multiplication of A-line (or hybrid), respectively
e). Fertilizer application.
 Application of FYM at 5 ton/ha besides meeting the fertility requirement also reduced
soil temperature by 3-4˚C.
 Apply fertilizer on soil test basis, in case it is not possible then apply 125 kg N + 62.5 kg
P2O5/ha for irrigated condition.
 Seed inoculation with Azosprillum is found to save between 10-20 kg N/ha therefore,
pearl millet seed should be treated with this strain culture.
 Apply irrigation at tillering, flowering and grain formation under irrigated conditions if
rain is not received at these stages.
f). Weed control.
 Competition with weeds could reduce yield by 50-80%.
 To avoid the costly manual weeding, chemical weed control is also an effective and
economical method. Atrazine (50%WP) when applied as the pre-emergence @1.0 kg/ha
in 600 L water controlled 70-96% of the broad leaved weeds and increase the yield by
30-40% over the unweeded control.
i). Disease control.
• Downy mildew: Seed treatment with metalaxyl (Apron SD 35) @ 6g/kg seed for
protection of bajra plants from downy mildew up to 30 days. If parents show the
susceptibility, seed treatment followed by spray of 0.2% Zineb or Mancozeb after 20-25
days of sowing is effective in management of downy mildew.
• Ergot : Before sowing the seed should be checked for freedom from ergot sclerotia
which should be removed by hand picking. Destroy the sclerotia. Remove the infected
ergot heads before harvesting and spray with Cuman L (0.2%) i.e 400 ml in 200 liter of
water / acre if ergot is there.
117
• Smut: Spray of Plantvax or Vitavax @ 0.2% at boot stage reduces smut incidence.
j). Harvesting.
 Make sure all the male rows should be removed before female harvesting.
 Check the physiological maturity of the seed before harvesting.
 The moisture content of ear heads should be less than 25%.
4). Seed processing and storage
After harvesting the next most important step is its processing and their after storage.
a). Seed processing: .
 Seed drying (12% or less)
 Cleaning and grading.
 Seed treatment.
 Seed packing and labeling.
b). Seed storage.
 Certified seed may be stored at room tempt. For one year. For two years at 20o C
 Check quality before stacking
 Stacking should be done hybrid wise
 Use 3 tablets of Celphos /t
5). Marketing
The marketing should be done with specification and standards. The hybrid seed generally
packed in 1.5 or 3.0 kg capacity cloth bags. Bag must be labeled before marketing and should
contain the following information
Label
 Crop --------- Label no. ---------------
 Variety ------- Pure seed* (%) -------
 Class of seed --- Inert matter* (%) ----
 Production institutes --------------
 Germination* (%) -----------------
(Name, address and seal)
 Genetic purity * ----

 Date of test --------------------------------
 Net contents -------------------------------
 (When packed ------------------% moisture)
Seed Certification Standards

 Germination 75%
 Pure seed 98%
 Inert matter 2%
 Other crop seed 0.1%
 Moisture 8%
118
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Quality Seed Production of Field Crops

Students’ Councelling & Placement Cell

Sr # Topic (s) Author (s) Pages

16 Seed Formation and Development VS Mor 92-96

2. Indirect/ destructive Methods: In this method, seeds are damaged (viability

Where, M1 = Weight of empty container with lid

relative humidity in the cabinet must then be maintained as close to

TP Method BP Method S Method

The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act-2001

Authority, limitation and conditions for authorization and Technical Questionnaire.

Testing of DUS through ICAR-SAU system

b. Number of replications in a trial

HYBRID SEED PRODUCTION IN SORGHUM

 The major players are Mahyco, Emergent genetics, Proagro, Pioneer,

Crop Field Isolation distance (m) Minimum Standards

Seed production is an important component in any breeding programme. Cotton being an

Contaminants Minimum distance (meters)

Factor Maximum permitted (%)*

Crop Varity Label No.

Field Field Standards Specific Requirements Limits

Maize (Zea mays) Cob rot Fusarium moniliforme

Pearl millet Ergot Claviceps fusiformis

3. NaOH seed soak method

Table1. Summary of various techniques for detecting seed-transmitted pathogens and

Techniques Fungi Bacteria Virus Insects Nematodes

Name of crop Row to row distance (cm)

Crop Isolation No. of Off-types (%) Inseparabl Objectiona Plants

Characteristics Rapeseed Mustard

Recommended varieties of rapeseed and mustard by Oilseeds Section, Department of Plant

Sr. Condition/Situation Crop Variety Recommended for

Seed Production Technology in Rapeseed mustard

Field standards for certification

* Satyanashi (Argemone mexicana L.)

Moisture previous Moisture impervious Moisture resistant

Industry Program Seed Program

Why a Seed Program?

Table3: Maximization of seed production through foliar application of growth regulators

Crop Minimu Off-type Insepara Object Plant Remarks

Sher Singh Verma

b) Seed in bulk (loose)/processing line:

Wt. of other crop seeds

Wt. of weed seeds

Wt. of inert matter

Responsibility and use OECD AOSCA

1. Barseem (Trifolium 2 Free from 400 100

Department of Seed Science & Technology

(A) SEED VIABILITY

Total number of normal seedlings

days of final count

Cytoplasmic male Maintainer line

Seed of CMS line Wind pollination

Cytoplasmic male Inbred restorer

Pearl millet hybrid

Scheme for pearl millet hybrid seed production in isolated fields

3). Certified hybrid seed production