No effect of manganese coating or seed content : a study on germination and seedling establishment in Swedish winter wheat
Abstract: Manganese (Mn) is a micronutrient where a great range and low concentrations have been recorded in winter wheat seeds in a Swedish survey called the Swedish environmental monitoring program on arable soils. A deficiency of Mn is common in cereals and may occur early in the season if the plant availability of Mn is low in the soil. Deficiency of Mn can lead to a reduced growth and several studies have shown that a low content of Mn in the seed can lead to early deficiency of the growing seedling. Seed coating products with Mn is marketed in Sweden and is recommended to use if cereals are sown on soils low in available Mn. The aim of this thesis was to examine if Mn seed coating has an effect on germi-nation and seedling establishment in Swedish winter wheat and if the effect is influenced by the seed Mn content. Winter wheat seeds of the cultivar Julius were selected depending on the content of Mn in the seed and were divided into three levels, representing low (0.42-0.70 μg Mn/seed), medium (1.04-1.08 μg Mn/seed) and high (1.22-1.83 μg Mn/seed) content of Mn. The seeds were coated with the product Norotec Mn (MnSO4) or with deionised water as control and were used in two experiments. The seeds were sown on wet filter paper and in a soil where all essential mineral nutrients except for Mn had been applied. The experiments lasted for 10 days and four weeks respectively. The development of the seedlings was determined each day and at the end of the experiments, the seedlings were dried and weighed. The results showed no differences in plant development or seedling dry weight between coated and uncoated. Nor could any difference be detected in development or seedling dry weight depending on the level of seed Mn content. Because of a lack of positive effect on seedling growth by Mn seed coating in the experiments using this method, to supply Mn, is not an obvious choice to avoid deficiency and a reduced growth. The low level of seed Mn content used in the experiments were not low enough to limit early seedling growth.
AT THIS PAGE YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THE WHOLE ESSAY. (follow the link to the next page)