Varietal response to ferrous toxicity at germination stage in rice

Abstract

Seed germination is the critical stage for the seedling establishment. Direct seedling method for rice cultivation is prevailing due to its advantages over transplantation method. The seeds are directly exposed to environmental stresses which affect the germination. Ferrous toxicity is well documented in rice and severally affects the seed germination. Present studies were conducted to assess the effects of ferrous toxicity on seed germination traits in rice. Four varieties of rice (Mahsuri, Panderas, Firat and Yasmin) were exposed to four levels of ferrous chloride (0, 1.5mM, 3.0 mM and 4.5 mM). Data for five germination traits was recorded and analyzed by using IBM SPSS. Significant differences were observed in rice varieties. High concentration of ferrous chloride (4.5 mM), no germination was recorded in any varieties. However, 3.0 mM was found optimized level to screen the rice varieties. Mahsuri and Panderas were tolerant while Firat and Yasmin were sensitive to ferrous toxicity. It was found that Final Germination Percentage (FGP) positively correlated with Germination Index (GI), Germination Rate Index (GRI), Peak Period of Germination (PG) and Coefficient Velocity of Germination (CVG). Results reflected that significant variation exists for tolerance to ferrous chloride therefore improving the tolerance to ferrous toxicity is possible through plant breeding programs.