Acceleration of germination of tomato seed by applying AC electric and magnetic fields

The effects of different intensities and exposure time of AC electric field and AC magnetic field on tomato seed have been investigated to determine t he optimal conditions for accelerating germination. The percent germination rates of the treated sample seed were compared with those of the untreated seed germinated under normal conditions. The seeds were treated with AC el ectric fields ranging from 4 to 12 kV/cm and AC magnetic flux densities ran ging from 3 to 1000 G, and were exposed to three time periods ranging from 15 to 60 s with corresponding equal rest time periods. It is found that the percent germination rates of the treated tomato seed were accelerated abou t 1.1-2.8 times compared with that of the untreated seed. However, an inhib itory effect on germination was shown in the case of the electric held more than 12 kV/cm and the exposure time more than 60 s. (C) 2000 Elsevier Scie nce B.V. All rights reserved.