Testing Seed Viability by Chemical Means (A biochemical method of testing seeds for germinability)

The standard method of testing the germination capacity of seeds is by germinating 100 seeds in either moist sand or blotting paper and counting the number that actually germinates. There are however two drawbacks in this method. One is that a period of 4 to 10 days is often needed to get the full count of seeds that germinate out of every 100 that are kept; the actual number of days required being different for different crops. The other is that in the case of certain crops and varieties, the seeds seem to have a period of "after- after-ripening" or dormant stage, during which the germination is poor and often nil. In such cases, the ordinary germination tests become inconclusive and valueless.