: Good storage is the basic requirement in seed production programme as maintenance of high seed viability and vigour from harvest to planting is of utmost importance in a seed production programme. Therefore, inexpensive, simple and practicable technology to prolong the shelf life of seeds under ambient condition is immensely needed. Hence, an experiment was carried out to study the effect of seed treatment with neem oil, nimbicidin, emamectin benzoate 5 SG, deltamethrin 2.8 EC, novuluron EC on black gram seed quality under ambient conditions. The seeds without any seed treatment were included as control. The treated and untreated seeds were stored in cloth bag and polylined cloth bag. The results revealed that, botanicals and emamectin benzoate seed treatments were significantly superior in controlling the storage insect and maintaining higher seed quality up to 10 months of storage when compared to control. Among the chemicals, the emamectin benzoate 5 SG @ 40 mg kg -1 of seed found better by recording significantly higher germination percentage (80.28), vigour index I (2124) and dry weight of seedlings (43.14 mg) and lower electrical conductivity (0.939 dSm-1) and seed damage (0.00 %) compared to control (78.78%, 2012, 38.90 mg, 0.942 dSm-1, respectively) at the end of 10 th month of storage. The emamectin benzoate 5 SG and nimbicidintreated seeds stored in polylined cloth bags were considered as effective seed storage management approach in blackgram.

A laboratory experiment was conducted at the Department of Seed Science and Technology, GKVK, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. The results revealed that, application of recommended dose of NPK (30:80: 37.5 kg ha -1 ) + Recommended dose of FYM (10 t ha -1 ) +Brady rhizobium (250 g ha -1 )+PSB (250 g ha -1 ) significantly improved the seed quality parameters viz., 100 seed weight (35.51g), seed size (0.76 cm³), seed density (1.55 g/cc), total dehydrogenase activity (4.80), germination (92.00 %), seedling length (30.69 cm), seedling dry weight (90.75 mg), seedling vigour index-I and II (2820 and 836 respectively), protein content (36.30 %) and field emergence (89.33 %) with lowest electrical conductivity (0.49 mScm -1 ) as compared to control and other treatments. Further, artificially aged seeds through accelerated ageing method also recorded higher seed quality parameters in the same treatment at the end of six days of ageing period.

Paddy plays a pivotal role in Indian agriculture. It also possesses dormancy which needs to be studied thoroughly. Duration of dormancy usually ranges from 7 to 35 days. Environmental conditions that facilitate after-ripening in paddy is generally cool, moist substrate conditions referred to as stratification, chilling, or moist chilling, oxygen and other gases. 12 paddy genotypes were selected for the present investigation with various physical and chemical dormancy, breaking methods for freshly harvested seeds and the standard germination test was conducted thereafter. At 1% level of significance, heat treatment at 45°C for 72 h showed significantly highest mean germination (82.86%), seedling vigour index (2753), dehydrogenase activity (0.0449) and alpha amylase activity (12.14 mm) compared to other treatments and control.. The vigour index increased to 2753 (GA3 @ 50 ppm) from 985 in control. Significantly higher EC leachates was recorded in control (0.602) and lowest in heat treatment at 45°C for 72 hr (0.182) followed by HNO3 @ 1.5% (0.202) and GA3 @ 50 ppm (0.250) irrespective of the genotypes at 1% level of significance. Pre-heat treatment was followed by, HNO3 @ 1.5% and GA3 @ 50 ppm for germination (80.75%, 77.72%), dehydrogenase activity (0.0446,0.0443) and alpha amylase activity (12.10 cm,11.60 cm) respectively. The study is an exploration of cost effective treatment to alleviate seed dormancy in paddy with the background of biochemical observations for scientific explanation.

No abstract