HERBAGE SEED TESTING IN CHINA - CURRENT SITUATION AND DEVELOPMENTAL STRATEGIES

There are about 333,000 ha of land specially used for herbage seed pro duction in China, which produces 25,000 to 30,000 tonnes of seeds annu ally. A national seed testing scheme has been developed since the 1980 s and ten seed testing stations have been established. National seed r egulations, seed testing rules and quality grading standards have been issued. However, the quality of sed produced or marketed in China is still far from satisfactory. Seed testing should have a more important role to play in seed quality assurance than it does now. The present paper reviews the current situation and problems of the herbage seed t esting scheme. It covers testing stations, testing capability, testing in relation to seed production and marketing, testing in relation to seed certification and law enforcement, and seed quality. Accordingly, developmental strategies are proposed. These include: strengthening t he power of seed law enforcement, establishing a seed certification sc heme, and improving the existing testing stations.