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Germination behaviour, viability and longevity of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) seeds

Aloka Kumari

Germination behaviour, viability and longevity of the seedswere studied in an important oil-yielding crop safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L., Asteraceae) stored in screw capped plastic containers under ambient conditions. Immediately after harvest (May) germination percentage was lower (80%-97%) than that stored between June to October. Thereafter, the germination percentage sharply declined and the viabilitywas completely lost after 14 months of storage. Viability tests with tetrazoliumgave reasonable agreement with the result from germination tests. During winter months with relatively low room temperature, significant increase in germination percentage was observed when the seed were incubated at 28 + 2°C. Loss of viabilitywith ageing was always associated with reduced radicle growth and irregularities and abnormalities in hypocotyl development. 100 seed weight and seed moisture content also decreased during storage. It was concluded that we can able to stored safflower more than a year under ambient conditions.