Inhibition of Seed-Borne Pathogens in Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) by Fungicide Treatments during Germination Test

Seed-borne pathogens cause incorrect scores determining seed germination rate in safflower. A laboratory experiment was planned to search for an effective fungicide treatment for safflower seeds inhibiting the seed-borne infections during germination and early seedling growth. Two safflower cultivars (Olas and Linas) and five fungicides (Thiram, maneb, mancozeb, metalaxyl, and captan) were tested. Germination, mean germination time, and seedling growth parameters were investigated for determining the effectiveness of the fungicides. Results showed that germination percentage was not adversely affected by the fungicides and a higher germination percentage was obtained from the seeds treated with fungicides. Mean germination time shortened with fungicide treatments and more rapid germination was observed in thiram and metalaxyl. Fungicides increased root and shoot growth, especially in thriam and metalaxyl. The seedling weight of safflower cultivars was not changed by the application of fungicides. The infection rate of two safflower cultivars was different and untreated seeds of cv. Olas were infected. The seeds treated with fungicides successfully prevented the seed-borne infections, the minimum infection rate was obtained from the seeds treated with thiram, maneb and mancozeb. It was concluded that pretreatment of safflower seeds with thriam or mancozeb should be beneficial for avoiding seed-borne pathogens before germination test, and these applications may be tested under field conditions in terms of emergence and seed yield performance.