After the planting materials are selected they are prepared in different ways before they are planted. Some of the methods used to prepare planting materials include the following:
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(a) Breaking the seed dormancy.
Some seeds undergo a dormancy period between maturity and the time they sprout. The dormancy period is the stage whereby a seed cannot germinate, the stage of inhibited growth of seed. It should be broken before the seed is planted.
Methods of breaking seed dormancy.
The following methods are used to break seed dormancy:
(i) Mechanical method: This is a method which aims at scratching the seed coat to make it permeable to water. Scarification is done by rubbing small sized seeds against hard surface such as sand paper, while filling or nicking the seed coat with a knife is done to large sized seeds such as croton seeds.
(ii) Heat treatment: this involves the use of hot water or burning the seeds lightly. It softens the seed coat making it permeable to water and thus is able to germinate. The seeds are soaked in hot water about 80’c for 3-4 minutes after which the water is allowed to drain off. Example of seeds treated in this way include: leucean 7a2 + 32 = 22 calliadra and acacia.
Light burning also serves the same purpose as hot watertreatment. In this case trash is spread over the seeds which are already covered with a thin layer of soil. The trash is burned, after which the seeds are retrieved and planted. Examples include acacia and wattle tree seeds. Overheating should be avoided as this will cook the seeds.
(iii) Chemical treatment: seeds are dipped in specific chemicals such as concentrated sulphuric acid, for two minutes and then removed. The chemical wears off the seed coat making it permeable to water. Care should be taken not to leave the seeds in the chemicals for too long as this will kill the embryo. Cotton seeds are normally treated with chemicals to remove the lint or fibres.
- iv) Soaking in water: seeds are soaked in water for a period of between 24 — 48 hours until they swell. They are then removed and planted immediately. The seeds treated thus germinate very fast. Pre-germinated seeds are used when raising rice in the nurseries.
- b) Seed dressing
This is the coating of seeds with fungicides or an insecticide or a combination of the two chemicals. This is particularly common with cereals, sugar-cane and legumes. The chemicals protect the seedlings from soil-borne diseases and pests. Certified seeds which are sold by seed merchants in Kenya have been dressed with these chemicals. Farmers can also buy the chemicals and dress their own seeds.
- c) Seed inoculation
In areas where soils are deficient in nitrogen, legumes such as beans, clovers and peas should be coated with an inoculant. An inoculant is a preparation which contains the right strain of Rhizobium depending on the type of legume and encourages nodulation, hence nitrogen fixation. Below is a table showing different legume crops and their right strain of Rhizobium.
Crop inoculation group
- Lucerne
- Clover
- Pea
- Bean
- Lupin
- soyabean
Rhizobium Species
- melioti
- trifoli
- leguminosarum
- phaseoli
- lupini
- japonicum
When handling inoculated seeds, care should be taken to prevent them from coming in contact with chemicals. This means that inoculated seeds should not be dressed with chemicals as these will kill the bacterium. They should also be planted when the soil is moist to avoid dehydration which kills the bacterium.
- d) Chitting
This practice is also referred to as sprouting. The selected seed potatoes ‘setts’ which are used as planting materials are sprouted before planting to break their dormancy. The setts of about 3-6 cm in diameter are arranged in layers of 2 or 3 tubers deep in a partially darkened room. The setts should be arranged with the rose» end facing upwards and the heel-end downwards. Diffused light encourages the production of short, green and healthy sprouts.
If Chitting is done in complete darkness, long, pale thin sprouts develop which break easily during planting. During Chitting potato aphids and tuber months should be controlled by dusting or spraying the sett with dimethoate.
Sometimes a chemical known as Rendite is used to break dormancy, thus inducing sprouting. Chitting is done mainly to make sure that growth commences immediately the seed is planted so as to make maximum use of rains for high yields.
See also
Dirty environment and starvationCares for young animals