Solid matrix priming improves cauliflower and broccoli seed germination and early growth under the suboptimal temperature conditions

Wu Ling-Yun; Yan Jun; Huang Zhi-Wu; Wan Yan-Hui; Zhu Wei-Min

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0275073

Solid matrix priming improves cauliflower and broccoli seed germination and early growth under the suboptimal temperature conditions

PLoS One. 2022 Oct 3;17(10):e0275073. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275073. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Wu Ling-Yun^{1

2}, Yan Jun^{1

2}, Huang Zhi-Wu^{1

2}, Wan Yan-Hui^{1

2}, Zhu Wei-Min^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Horticultural Research Institute, Shanghai Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China.
² Shanghai Key Lab of Protected Horticultural Technology, Shanghai, China.

Abstract

Seed priming is an effective method for imparting stress tolerance to plants. This study aimed to analyze the effects of solid matrix priming (SMP) on cauliflower and broccoli seed germination and early seedling growth under suboptimal temperature conditions. The SMP method used in this study included the following steps: (1) mixing seeds with vermiculite and water at a ratio of 2:3:2.5 (w/w/v) and incubating for 2 days in the dark at 20°C; (2) drying the SM-primed seed; (3) germinating the SM-primed and the nonprimed seeds at 10, 15, 20, and 25°C; (4) analyzing the antioxidant enzyme activities of SM-primed and nonprimed germinating broccoli and cauliflower seeds in the early germination stage at 10, 15, 20, and 25°C; and (5) testing the emergence of SM-primed and nonprimed control seeds in the early spring glasshouse. The results showed that the SMP improved seed germination vigor and early seedling growth and increased the activities of peroxidase and ascorbate peroxidase in the germinating cauliflower and broccoli seeds under the suboptimal temperature conditions in the early germination stage compared with nonprimed seeds. It was observed that the suboptimal temperature conditions (i.e., 10 and 15°C) suppressed SM-primed and nonprimed seed germination and early seedling growth of cauliflower and broccoli. Inside a greenhouse, the SMP improved the emergence of cauliflower and broccoli seeds during the early spring season. SMP is an effective method for improving seed germination and the emergence of cauliflower and broccoli under suboptimal temperature conditions.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Antioxidants / pharmacology
Ascorbate Peroxidases
Brassica*
Germination*
Seedlings
Seeds
Temperature
Water / pharmacology

Substances

Antioxidants
Water
Ascorbate Peroxidases

Grants and funding

Weimin Zhu and Lingyun Wu received the Shanghai Agriculture Applied Technology Development Program, China(Grant No.T20190112 and Grant No.G2016060105). The funders had no role in study design,data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.