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Background: Soybean is important oil seed crop. Poor seed germination is a major constraint for increasing the productivity of soybean. Seed quality enhancement will enhance the germination. Treating the seeds with chemicals may cause harmful effects to ecosystems and also to human beings. Using botanicals for seed treatment is safe. The present study was taken with a view to assess the seed quality of soybean by using different botanicals treatments (ball milled and commercial grade) along with shaking and without shaking. Methods: Experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of seed treatment with different ball milled botanicals and commercial grade along with shaking (60 min) and without shaking of soybean seeds on quality attributes. Botanical powders of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) seed, leafs of ashwagandha (Withania somnifera), tea (Camellia sinensis) and noni (Morinda citrifolia) were ball milled for 1 h to bring into near nano size and treated with seeds @ 2 g kg-1 for 60 min. Without ball milling was served as commercial grade. Among these two methods (commercial grade and near nano size) highest values were observed in seeds treated with near nano size powder. Generally shaking of seeds with botanicals was performed better than without shaking. Result: In this experiment, botanical fenugreek seed powder perfrmed well. In interaction, soybean seeds treated with near nano size fenugreek seed powder @ 2 g kg-1 with shaking of 60 min showed highest seed quality parameters. The per cent increase over control for germination, shoot length, root length, dry matter production and vigour index were 17.8, 27.7, 43.9, 47.6 and 45.3%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was conducted to evaluate in vitro efficacy of seaweed (Sargassum myriocystum and Sargassum wightii) and seagrass (Cymodocea serrulata and Syringodium isoetifolium) extract against the mycelial growth of Macrophomina phaseolina at different concentrations of 5, 10, 15 and 20% along with control by poison food technique. The result revealed that, the extract of S. wightii (20%) exhibited the highest suppression of mycelial growth (10, 25 and 38 mm) at 24, 48 and 72 h after incubation. Among the antagonists tested against Macrophomina phaseolina, the fungal Trichoderma viride was found to be the most effective in reducing mycelial growth than the bacterial antagonist Pseudomonas fluorescens. Both the antagonistic fungi and bacteria have compatibility with seaweed and seagrass extracts in the concentrations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes occurring in seed during aging are very significant for determining seed quality, i.e. seed longevity. An experiment was conducted in Department of Seed Science and Technology, TNAU, Coimbatore to standardize suitable seed dry dressing treatments, using near nano size botanicals that can alleviate the deleterious effect of accelerated ageing and to improve the enzyme activities of soybean aged seeds. Five days aged seeds were treated with 1 h ball milled fenugreek seed powder, leaf powders of ashwagandha, tea and noni @ 2 g kg with 60 min. shaking and evaluated for enzyme activities and field emergence (naturally and artificially aged seeds). Among the treatments seeds treated with fenugreek seed powder has the highest dehydrogenase activity (OD 10 min), protein (%), oil content (%), catalase activity, peroxidase activity (OD 10 min) (μg H2O2 mgmin) with minimum values of electrical conductivity (dSm), free fatty acid (%), lipid peroxidation (OD value), lipoxygenase activity (g mol s mg). Field emergence (%) was also higher in fenugreek seed powder treated seeds (2 g kg with 60 min). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of seed treatment with botanicals was evaluated on storability of soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill). Seeds treated with fenugreek seed powder, leaf powders of ashwagandha, tea and noni (ball milled for 1 h) @ 2 g kg-1 with 60 min shaking and stored in cloth bag for 6 months under ambient conditions. Seeds were evaluated for physiological parameters such as speed of germination, germination per cent, root length, shoot length, vigour index and dry matter production and for biochemical parameter the electrical conductivity at monthly interval. Results revealed that seed dressing with fenugreek seed powder manifested the physiological parameters at higher order with lesser electrical. Hence seed dry dressing with fenugreek seed powder obtained on ball milling for 1 h @ 2g per kg of seed maintained the germination and vigour in storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the field experiment Sargassum myricocystum extract at 1% concentration for 3 h soaking with foliar spray 5% at vegetative and flowering stages were effective by recording higher plant height, total chlorophyll content, leaf area index, crop growth rate, relative growth rate and yield attributes, such as pod yield plant-1 and seed yield ha-1 in both kharif, 2014 and rabi, 2015 seasons. The per cent increase of pod yield plant-1 and seed yield ha-1 was 13.4 and 18.3%, respectively. The other seaweeds viz., Gracilaria edulis, Caulerpa racemosa were less effective, but the effect was better than water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The field experiment was carried out at Department of Seed Science and Technology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore to know the influence of polymer seed coatings on growth and productivity of soybean seed under various moisture stress conditions viz., stress at 50 % flowering stage, stress at pod formation stage and stress at both 50% flowering and pod formation stages along with normal irrigation. The experiment consisted of six seed treatments (untreated control, Genius coat 171, Genius coat 172, Arcus, Myconate and Quick roots) with three replications and was laid out in split plot design. Seeds coated with Quick roots were found to be significantly superior in growth and yield parameters viz., field emergence, plant height, took less days for first and 50 per cent flowering, less disease incidence, higher number of pods plant-1 and seed yield both under normal and moisture stress conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]