Effects of environmental conditions during grain filling on seed dormancy of quinoa, associations with pre-harvest sprouting susceptibility.

D CECCATO; H D BERTERO; D BATLLA

Mendoza

Simposio; 11 International Symposium on Pre-Harvest Sprouting in Cereals; 2007

International Society for Seed Science

The aim of this work was to study changes in dormancy level during seed development and post-maturation of two potential pre-harvest sprouting resistant cultivars of C. quinoa, 2-Want and Chadmo, and how seed dormancy patterns could be affected by environmental conditions experienced during grain development. Crops were established at three sowing dates (november to february). At regular intervals during development and post-maturation germination test on intact seeds, with perigoniums removed or with perforated pericarps were made at 5, 10 and 25°C. Seed dormancy was present at harvest in both cultivars and was differently expressed according to germination temperature. Late sowing dates, when seed filling occurs in autumn, bring in early dormancy release. Partial remotion of seed coats drastically reduced dormancy in both genotypes suggesting that dormancy present at harvest was to some extent coat-imposed