Participatory Evaluation by Farmers of on-Farm Seed Priming in Wheat in India, Nepal and Pakistan

Abstract

The mean time for 50% germination at 20 8C of 12 Indian wheat (Triticum aestivum) cultivars was nearly halved, from 51 h to 27 h, by soaking seed in water for 8 h prior to sowing. A delay of 24 h without further soaking, intended to simulate postponement of sowing, reduced the time saved by priming to 16%. Priming had no effect on ®nal germination percentage. These results were used in the design of 275 on-farm, farmer-managed, participatory trials of seed priming in wheat during the 1997±98 and 1998±99 rabi (post-monsoon) seasons.In forty-one trials in tribal areas of Bihar and West Bengal states of India, seed priming gave a 13% grain yield advantage for farmers growing wheat in marginal areas with low levels of agricultural inputs. Mean bene®ts from seed priming of wheat in nine trials in Chitwan, Nepal were 17%. In high potential areas of Gujarat, India, 205 trials had higher rates of input use. Yield bene®t from priming in these trials averaged only 5% but constituted an extra 200 kg ha 71 grain at little or no cost. In 20 trials on marginal land, with slightly saline irrigation water in Ahmadwala, Pakistan, an average yield increase of 36% was obtained using seed primed with a 0.2% gypsum solution. Collaborating farmers reported that priming wheat seed overnight resulted in faster, more complete emergence, more vigorous early growth, better tillering, earlier owering, larger ears, earlier maturity and higher yields. In addition, many farmers also reported that foliage in primed plots was a darker shade of green than that in non-primed plots, suggesting that primed plants may have been using nitrogen more ef®ciently.Seed priming was popular with farmers, most of whom reported that they would prime wheat seed the following year. A survey in Gujarat in 1998±99 of 63 farmers who had tested priming in 1997±98 showed that, while 65% had primed some of their own seed, none had primed more than 50 kg, suggesting that there were practical dif®culties in priming larger volumes of seed.introdution Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is grown widely in South Asia in the rabi (post-monsoon season) after the harvest of kharif (rainy season) crops (Hobbs and Morris, 1996).

Effect of Seed Priming on Maize in the Western Hills of Nepal

“…Highest grain yield was obtained from the variety Manakamana 5 both in primed (5449 kg ha-1 ) and non-primed (4890 kg ha-1 ) environments. Our research findings from both mother and baby trials conducted at nine sites in three districts of Nepal agreed and supported the findings of previous research results carried out in various countries that direct benefits of seed priming in maize are faster emergence, better and more uniform stands, less need to re-sow, more vigorous plants, earlier flowering, earlier harvest and higher and stable grain yield (Chivasa et al, 1998;Harris et al, 1999Harris et al, , 2001bHarris et al, , 2002Rashid et al, 2002). These results were confirmed for maize in Pakistan and Zimbabwe (Harris et al, 1999.…”

“…There has been much research during the last several years to test, develop and promote on-farm seed priming in a range of crops, countries and agro-environments. The beneficial effects of seed priming on crop establishment, development and yield have been documented (Parera and Cantliffe, 1994;Chivas et al, 1998;Kulkarni and Eshanna, 1998;Harris et al, 1999Harris et al, , 2001aHarris et al, , 2001bHarris et al, , 2002Anonymous, 2002;Jasi et al, 2000;Krishi, 2058). Currently, seed priming research is ongoing in Bangladesh, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Thailand and Zimbabwe.…”

Effect of Priming on Seed Germination of Cucurbita Pepo under Copper Stress

“…Similar to other priming techniques, hydropriming generally enhances seed germination and seedling emergence [24]. This simple, low-cost, low-risk intervention also had positive impacts on the wider farming system and livelihoods and the technology has proved highly popular with farmers [25]. In the present work, we noticed that hydropriming does not improve the germinative quality of cucumber seeds treated or no with toxic doses of copper.…”

Response of three Bambara groundnut landraces to pre-sowing hydration in Botswana

“…Heckel (1964); Scotte et al (1973); Harris et al (2001c) reported that early emergence from primed seed might have enhanced yield by increasing the amount of light intercepted by the canopy. Farooq et al (2006) is in agreement that osmo-hardening improved germination, emergence and yield of rice crop.…”