A Handbook of Seed Testing

Contents 1 Introduction 2 History of Seed Testing 3 Principles and Procedures of Seed Testing 4 Sampling 5 Purity Analysis 6 Seed Weight Determination 7 Moisture Test 8 Germination Test 9 Viability Test 10 Vigour Test 11 Seed Dormancy 12 Seed Health Test 13 Cultivar Purity Test 14 Testing of Pelleted Coated Seed 15 Testing of Tree and Shrub Seeds 16 Tolerances in Seed Testing 17 Modelling of a Seed Testing Laboratory 18 ReferencesSeed is the unique biological input in agriculture which imbibes in it the productivity potential of the crop This potential in terms of both quantity and quality is realisable by the timely use of other inputs It is therefore important to plan and produce adequate quantities of good quality seed to realise enhanced agricultural production and higher income to farmers The use of high quality seed will enable to reduce the gap between potential and actual yield of all cropsSeed industry in India has made great strides especially during last twenty years The Government of India through its policy initiatives has encouraged development of this industry A lot of attention has been paid to organizational legislative and financing aspects resulting in enhanced seed multiplication Today after the introduction of genetically modified crops the Seed Industry has acquired a paradigm shiftThis situation warrants proper functioning of effective quality control system to assure the quality of the seeds through standard seed analysis system In this view knowledge on recent approaches in seed testing is highly essential for a seed men seed testing and seed law enforcement officials and seed scientists Keeping this in mind the book A hand book of seed testing designed clearly explains the scientific methods of analysing different seed quality traits The book details procedures of routine seed testing methods and recent approaches in seed testing 197 pp.…