Sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.) seed pre-treatment with water and HCl to improve germination

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of pre-sowing seed treated by soaking in distilled water and two concentrates of hydrochloric Acid (0.03 N HCl and 0.3 N HCl) at three different time ( 2, 4 and 6 h) by factorial arrangement based on completely randomized design with three replications in the University of Mohaghegh, Ardabili (Agronomy Laboratory). For each treatment, 25 uniform seeds were washed with distilled water, dilute hydrochloric acid and concentrated hydrochloric acid at 2, 4 and 6 h. Samples were sterilized using dilute sodium hypochlorite (2%) for 5 min. The treated and untreated seeds (control) were potted on sterilized Whatman paper in Petri-dishes. At the end of experiment, the percentage of germination, rate of germination, time of germination and T10 were evaluated. The results indicated that percentage of germination, mean time of germination, rate of germination and T10, were affected significantly in all treatments in comparison with untreated seeds as well as the type and time of treatment. Results showed that both the type and time of treatment could improve the rate of germination. Soaking six hours with diluted acid (0.03 N) or with water, improved significantly the mean time of germination, rate of germination and T10 in comparison with untreated seeds. Result also indicated that seed treatment with water or 0.03 N hydrochloric acid for 6 h improved seed germination. Ultimately, the highest and lowest level of germination rate was obtained with soaking seeds in diluted acid (0.03 N) and concentrated acid (0.3 N), respectively. Therefore seed treatment with water could be low cost and more effective and thus could be suggested. Key words: Sugar beet, germination, HCl, water, pre-treatment.