Osmopriming Alleviates Drought Stress in Soybean (Glaycine max L.) Seeds During Germination and Early Growth Stages

Abstract

Germination and seedling establishment are critical stages in the life cycle of plants especially under stress conditions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of osmopriming on germination and seedling growth of Soybean (Glycine max L.) seeds under drought stress. Seeds were primed in aerated solutions of PEG 6000, KNO3 and KH2PO4 have -1.2 MPa osmotic potential. Drought levels were 0 (control), -3,-6,-9 bar. Stress condition was created by using PEG6000. Final germination percentage, time to get 50% germination (T50), seedling vigor index (SVI), germination index (GI), reduction percentage of germination (RPG), seedling dry weight and length were measured. The results indicated that inhibition of germination and seedling growth due to drought stress should be overcome by using osmopriming treatments in soybean. Among the materials used for osmopriming PEG 6000 has the greatest impact on mitigating the effects of drought stress on germination and early growth stages