Aa. Hamada et al., EFFECT OF HEAT-STRESS ON SUBSEQUENT GERMINATION AND VIABILITY OF WILDSORGHUM (SORGHUM-ARUNDINACEUM (DEW) STAPF) SEEDS, Angewandte Botanik, 67(1-2), 1993, pp. 56-58
The first indication of seed damage by heat stress was a delay in germ
ination. Exposing unimbibed Sorghum arundinaceum seeds to 60-degrees-C
for 24 hrs had no adverse effect on their viability. Viability was, h
owever, reduced under moist conditions in the incubator or water bath
at 45-degrees-C - 60-degrees-C. At these temperatures, it was found th
at the higher the temperature and/or the longer the exposure period th
e greater was the reduction in seed viability. Seeds with and without
glumes which were previously imbibed at 30-degrees-C were more suscept
ible to a 3 hrs exposure at 60-degrees-C in a water bath than previous
ly unimbibed ones. Viability of seeds without glumes followed the same
trend but were apparently more sensitive to heat stress. Splitting th
e heat exposure period into one or two splits was more deleterious tha
n a single exposure. The results are briefly discussed in relation to
solarization.