Accelerated aging and occurrence of fungi for evaluation of seed rice physiological potential

Abstract

The accelerated aging test is one of the most widespread for the vigor of the seeds of various cultivated species, being able to provide information with a high degree of consistency. However, the performance of the artificially aged seeds can be influenced negatively by the presence of fungi. Thus, the present work aimed to study the accelerated aging test at different salt concentrations to determine the physiological and health potential of rice cultivars. Were used seeds of rice cultivars Irga 409, Irga 424 and Epagri 144. The accelerated aging test was conducted in three stages: traditional test with water; test using saturated NaCl solution (SS) and supersaturated NaCl solution (SSS), during periods of 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours at 42 °C. After, we evaluated the degree of moisture, germination and seed health. The deleterious effects of accelerated aging test were attenuated with the increase of salt concentrations. The accelerated aging test in saturated solution (SS) for 48 h and super saturated solution (SSS) at 48, 72 and 96 hours allows classifying rice cultivars at different levels of force. Seeds contaminated by fungal agents had a positive response in germination when treated with saline solutions