BACKGROUND AND AIMS Alpine plants are considered one of the groups of species most sensitive to the direct and indirect threats to ecosystems caused by land use and climate change. Collecting and banking seeds of plant species is recognized as an effective tool for providing propagating material to re-establish wild plant populations and for habitat repair. However, seeds from cold wet environm...

BACKGROUND The phytohormone gibberellic acid (GA3) is widely used in the table grape industry to induce seedlessness in seeded varieties. However, there is a paucity of information concerning the mechanisms by which GAs induce seedlessness in grapes. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS In an effort to systematically analyze the cause of this GA3-induced seed abortion, we conducted an in depth char...

this study evaluated direct drilling planters used for wheat cultivation in khorasan-e razavi province. a randomized complete block design with three replications was used. the treatments were direct drilling of wheat plants into wheat residue using the following direct planters: (1) sfoggia (13-25), (2) baldan (spd3000), (3) tondar (spd 2500), (4) semeato (shm 11/13). the parameters measured w...

Soil seedbanks drive infestations of annual weeds, yet weed management focuses largely on seedling mortality. As weed seedbanks increasingly become reservoirs of herbicide resistance, species-specific seedbank management approaches will be essential to weed control. However, the development of seedbank management strategies can only develop from an understanding of how seed traits affect persis...

Seed ageing during storage is one of the main causes of reduction in seed quality and this results in loss of vigour and failure to thrive. Finding appropriate storage conditions to ameliorate deterioration due to ageing is, therefore, essential. Ultrastructural changes in cellular organelles during storage and seed germination rates are valuable indices of damage that occurs during seed ageing...

We determined efficacy of AV-1011 (a 50% anthraquinone product; Arkion Life Sciences, New Castle, Delaware) on drill-planted rice seed to reduce blackbird damage and determine residue levels of anthraquinone (AQ) in rice seeds and seedlings and in the mature rice crop under field enclosures at the University of Missouri-Delta Center farm near Portageville, Missouri. Red-winged blackbird (Agelai...

Conservationists often propagate rare species to improve their long-term population viability. However, seed dormancy can make propagation efforts challenging by substantially lowering seed germination. Here I statistically compare several pretreatment options for seeds of Astragalus cicer L.: unscarified controls and scarification via physical damage, hot water, acid, and hydrogen peroxide. Al...

In the years 1999-2001 two-factor fi eld experiments were carried out in which the effects of spring triticale seed sprouting damage on fi eld emergence, elements of the structure of yield and the yield were investigated. The research covered three cultivars: Gabo, Migo and Wanad. The statistical analysis of the results showed signifi cant effects of years and sprouting damage on fi eld emergen...

Ant-aphid interactions may affect host plants in several ways, however, most studies measure only the amount of fruit and seed produced, and do not test seed viability. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the effects of the presence of ant-aphid interactions upon host plant productivity and seed viability in two different contexts: isolated and within an arthropod community. For this...

BACKGROUND The extract from Moringa oleifera seeds is used worldwide, especially in rural areas of developing countries, to treat drinking water. M. oleifera seeds contain the lectins cmol and WSMoL, which are carbohydrate-binding proteins that are able to reduce water turbidity because of their coagulant activity. Studies investigating the ability of natural products to damage normal cells are...