Effect of seed treatments on seed germination and seedling parameters in the F2 generation of mundu chilli (Capsicum annum L.)

Germination in chilli seeds is poor and the duration taken for the germination is long. In order to overcome their problems in germination, the seeds were to be subjected to seed treatments, So that the germination would be effective. The experiment was conducted at the Department of Vegetable Science HC & RI, Tami Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), Periyakulam to study the effect of seed treatment views on the seedling character of mundu chilli. The experiment was laid in FCRD design with three replications. In this study, four F2 crosses viz., PKM CA 20 X PKM CA 08 (C1), PKM CA 32 X PKM CA 33 (C2), PKM CA 32 X PKM CA 20 (C3), PKM CA 38 X PKM CA 33 (C4) and seven treatments namely, Control (T0), Seed treatment with KNO3 0.5% (T1), Seed treatment GA3 50 ppm (T2), Seed treatment with NAA 100 ppm (T3), Hot water seed treatment at 60° C for 15 minutes (T4), Seed treatment with cow urine (T5), Seed treatment with Trichoderma viride (T6). Among all F2 crosses, PKM CA 38 X PKM CA 33 (C4) was most responsive to seed treatments in terms of the percent of seed germination and vigor index, followed by progeny PKM CA 32 X PKM CA 33 (C2) for root length and PKM CA 32 X PKM CA 20 (C3) for shoot length. The statistical analysis of the data showed the superiority of all the seed treatments over the control. The GA₃ treatment resulted in the maximum percentage of seed germination, root length, shoot length and vigor index followed by KNO3. GA3 breaks the dormancy in the seeds and induces seed germination rapidly. Thus GA3 finds its way as the seed treatment agent in chilli.