Plant growth and vigor of bean seeds in response to the exogenous application of gibberellic acid

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the growth and vigor expression of bean seeds from plants submitted to the application of gibberellic acid. The treatments consisted of the application of gibberellic acid in concentrations of zero; 50; 100 and 200 mg.L^-1 in the V2 stage. The samples for growth analysis were performed at regular intervals of seven days after sowing, until the plants reached the R9 stage. At each collection, the plants were separated into organs for determination of growth and dry matter partition. In addition, the harvest index, mass of one thousand seeds, number of seeds per plant, insertion of the first pod, length and total dry matter of seedlings were determined. Total dry matter, dry matter production rates and solar energy conversion efficiency are higher in plants submitted to the exogenous application of gibberellic acid. The harvest index as well as the number of seeds per plant present a tendency of reduction with the increase of the gibberellic acid concentration. However, the mass of one thousand seeds tends to be higher in the dose of 50 mg.L^-1. The vigor of bean seeds, evaluated by the test of seedling length, is altered with application of gibberellic acid.