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Water Uptake by Seeds as Affected by Water Stress, Capillary Conductivity, and Seed‐Soil Water Contact. I. Experimental Study 1
Author(s) -
Hadas A.,
Russo D.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
agronomy journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1435-0645
pISSN - 0002-1962
DOI - 10.2134/agronj1974.00021962006600050012x
Subject(s) - imbibition , germination , hydraulic conductivity , conductivity , water retention , water potential , soil water , water stress , agronomy , osmotic pressure , capillary action , chemistry , environmental science , soil science , materials science , biology , composite material , biochemistry
Imbibition and seed germination as affected by water potentials, hydraulic conductivity, and seed‐water contact area were studied. Water potential effects Were studied under perfect seed contact and unlimited hydraulic conductivity. Effects on imbibition and germination of hydraulic conductivity and seed‐water contact were studied in an experimental setup in which separation between these factors was made possible while a very high water potential was maintained. The results show that low values of external water potential affect the rate of water uptake but not percent of germination. The rate of germination, however, is affected as long as water potential is higher than a critical value that is speciesspecific. For a given seed‐water contact area, any decrease in the hydraulic conductivity (or for a given conductivity, any reduction in contact area) reduced rates of water uptake and germination; total germination was not affected as long as the critical water potential was not reached.