The storage response of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L. Moench) seeds produced under different nutrient sources to pre-storage hydropriming.

Abstract

The effects of different levels of poultry droppings, cow dung, recommended NPK fertilizer and hydropriming on the longevity of seeds of NHAe47-4 and LD88-1 varieties of okra were studied in 2012 at Federal University of Technology, Minna, Nigeria. Seeds samples of the two varieties produced under no fertilizer, 4 and 6 t ha-1 of cow dung and poultry droppings and 100 kg N, 50 kg P2O5 and 50 kg K2O ha-1 were hydroprimed for 12 hours, dried back, packaged in plastic botties and stored at 30oC. Seed germination tests were conducted at two-weekly intervals using the top of paper method. Seeds from plants which received 6 t ha-1 of poultry droppings germinated and stored significantly better than those of the other fertilizer treatments. Hydropriming enhanced seed gemination during the first two weeks of storage. It however reduced seed longevity as unprimed seeds germinated significantly higher than primed ones from 4-14 WAS. The study showed that freshly harvested okra seeds exhibited dormancy which was broken with hydropriming and time in storage.