The effects of soybean seed size upon its physiological quality during storage - DOI: 10.4025/actasciagron.v27i3.1398

Abstract

The purpose of this work was to control the effect of soybean seed size on the physiological quality during storage, using seeds from the cultivars Splendor and UFV-19 harvested in 99/2000 growing season, produced by the company Coopadap (Cooperativa Agropecuária do Alto Paranaíba) in São Gotardo, State of Minas Gerais. The seeds were manually classified using a set of screens with oblong holes, packed in cotton bags and stored for over eight months at the Seed Processing Unit of the Federal University of Viçosa (UFV). Seed quality was evaluated by the tests of germination, accelerated aging, tetrazolium, percentage and speed of seedling emergence. In general, physiological quality was influenced by seed size during storage. The seeds retained in screens 14 and 13 showed the highest storage potential whereas the seeds retained in screens 16 and 11 of both cultivars showed lower germination and vigor at the end of storage. For both cultivars and their respective seed sizes, percentage and speed of seedling emergence in the field decreased markedly with storage.