SEED

SEED
DORMANCY
DORMANCY

Presented
Presented
by by
Payushni
Payushni
Bhuyan
Bhuyan
Roll No-
Roll S1700803
No- S1700803
WHAT IS SEED DORMANCY?
Seed dormancy can be defined as the state or a condition in which seeds are
prevented from germinating even under the favourable environmental conditions
for germination including, temperature, water, light, gas, seed coats, and other
mechanical restrictions.

The main reason behind these conditions is that they require a period of rest
before being capable of germination. This conditions may vary from days to
months and even years. These conditions are the combination of light, water, heat,
gases, seed coats and hormone structures.
IMPORTANCE OF SEED DORMANCY
1. Perennation:
Seed dormancy allows seeds to pass through drought, cold and other un-
favourable conditions.

2. Dispersal:
It is essential for dispersal of seeds.
3. Germination under Favourable Conditions:
Seeds germinate only when sufficient water is available to leach out
inhibitors and soften the seed coats.

4. Storage:
It is because of dormancy that human beings are able to store grains,
pulses and other edibles for making them available throughout the year
and transport to the areas of deficiency.
CAUSES OF SEED DORMANCY
The major causes of seed dormancy are following:

i. Hard seed coat:

The hard seed coat is impermeable to water and oxygen.

ii. Immature embryo:

In some Ranunculus species the embryos are incompletely developed when

seeds are shed. In such cases embryos mature during the dormant period.
iii. Presence of inhibitors:

Inhibiting chemicals in the fruit or seed coats delay germination.

iv. light:

Light sensitive seeds do not germinate in absence of light.

v. Temperature:

Generally the low temperatures promote and high temperatures inhibit the
germination. In the Indian desert many weed seeds must pass through very high
temperature (60°-70C) of sand in day and at the same time low temperatures (5°-
10°C) of night before they are stimulated for germination.
 CATEGORIES OF SEED DORMANCY
1. Exogenous Dormancy
This type of dormancy is imposed by factors outside the embryo.

In exogenous dormancy, the tissues enclosing the embryo can affect

germination by inhibiting water uptake, providing mechanical resistance to
embryo expansion and radicle emergence, modifying gaseous exchange
(limit oxygen to embryo), preventing leaching of inhibitor from the embryo
and supplying inhibitor to the embryo. It is of three types:
a) Physical dormancy (seed coat dormancy):

Seed coat or seed covering may become hard, fibrous or mucilaginous

(adhesives gum) during dehydration and ripening as a result they become
impermeable to water and gases, which prevents the physiological processes
initiating germination This type of dormancy is very common in drupe fruits i.e.
olive, peach, plum, apricot, cherry etc. (hardened endocarp), walnut and pecan
nut (surrounding shell). In various plant families, such as, Leguminosae, the outer
seed coat gets hardened and becomes suberized and impervious to water.
b) Mechanical dormancy:

In some fruits seed covering restricts radicle growth, resulting in dormancy of

seeds. Some seed covering structures, such as shells of walnut, pits of stone fruits
and stones of olive are too strong to allow the dormant embryo to expand during
germination. The water may be absorbed but the difficulty arises in the cementing
material as in walnut. Germination in such seeds does not occur until and unless
the seed coats are softened either by creating moist and warm conditions during
storage or by microbial activity.
c) Chemical dormancy:

In seeds of some fruits chemicals that accumulate in fruit and seed covering
tissues during development and remain with the seed after harvest. It is quite
common in fleshy fruits or fruits whose seeds remain in juice as in citrus,
cucurbits, stone fruits, pear, grapes and tomatoes. Some of the substances
associated with inhibition are various phenols, coumarin and abscisic acid. These
substances can strongly inhibit seed germination.
2. Endogenous Dormancy
This type of dormancy is imposed by rudimentary or undeveloped embryo at the
time of ripening or maturity. This can be of different types such as morphological,
physiological, double dormancy and secondary dormancy.

A. Morphological dormancy (Rudimentary and linear embryo):

Dormancy occurs in some seeds in which the embryo is not fully developed at the
time of seed dissemination. Such seeds do not germinate, if planted immediately
after harvesting. Plants with rudimentary embryos produce seeds with little more
than a pro-embryo embedded in a massive endosperm at the time of fruit
maturation. Enlargement of the embryo occurs after the seeds have imbibed water
but, before germination begins.
B. Physiological dormancy

a) Non-deep physiological dormancy:

After ripening time is required for seeds in dry storage to lose dormancy. This type
of dormancy is often transitory and disappears during dry storage. Temperate
fruits such as apple, pear, cherry, peach, plum and apricot, cultivated cereals,
vegetables and flower crops, have this type of physiological dormancy which may
last for one to six months and disappears with dry storage.
b) Photo dormancy:

Seeds that either require light or dark condition to germinate are termed as photo-
dormant seeds. It is due to photo-chemically reactive pigment called phytochrome
widely present in some plants. Phytochromes have two photo-interconvertible
forms: Pr and Pfr. Pr absorbs red light (~667 nm) and is immediately converted to
Pfr. Pfr absorbs far-red light (~730 nm) and is quickly converted back to Pr.
c) Thermo dormancy:

Some seeds have specific temperature requirement for their germination,

otherwise they remain dormant. Such seeds are called as thermo dormant .For
example seeds of lettuce, celery and pansy do not germinate if the temperature is
below 25oC.
Physiological dormancy is of 3 types:

I) Intermediate physiological dormancy:

The seeds of some species require a specific period of one-to-three months of

chilling. Many seeds of temperate plants need low temperature before they
germinate. Example- apple, peach ,rose etc. These seeds do not germinate until
they receive required chilling treatment.
II) Deep physiological dormancy:

Seeds, which usually require a relatively long (>8 weeks) period of moist chilling
stratification to relieve dormancy as in peach.

III) Epicotyl dormancy:

Seeds having separate dormancy conditions for the radicle hypocotyl and epicotyl,
is called as epicotyl dormancy e.g. Lilium, Hepatica antiloba and Trillium.
C. Double dormancy

In some species, seeds have dormancy due to hard seed coats and dormant
embryos.

For instance, some tree legumes seed coats are impervious and at the same time
their embryo are also dormant.

Combination of two or more types of dormancy is known as ‘double dormancy’. It

can be morpho-physiological i.e. combination of under developed embryo and
physiological dormancy or exo-endodormancy i.e. combination of exogenous and
endogenous dormancy conditions i.e. hard seed coat.
D. Secondary dormancy

Secondary dormancy is due to germination conditions. It is a further adaptation to

prevent germination of an imbibed seed if other environmental conditions are not
favorable. These conditions can include unfavorably high or low temperature,
prolonged darkness and water stress. It is of two types:

I) Thermo dormancy:

High temperature induced dormancy.

II) Conditional dormancy:

Change in ability to germinate related to time of the year.

METHODS OF BREAKING SEED DORMANCY
1. Methods of breaking dormancy of hard seed
coat.
The dormancy of hard seed coat can be broken by following methods:

(a) Seed coat can be removed from such dormant seed.Thus they can germinate
under favourable conditions. But removal of the entire seed coat is not possible. It
can injure the embryo. Therefore the seed coat is punctured or mechanically
ruptured by rubbing. This process is called scarification.

(b) The seed is treated with hot water or concentrated sulphuric acid for very short
duration. It makes the seed coat soft and dormancy of seed is broken.
1. (c) However. in nature seed remain buried in the soil. The action of soil micro-
organisms makes its hard wall soft. Therefore, the dormancy of seed is broken.

2. Methods of breaking dormancy of light

sensitive
seeds
The dormancy of light sensitive seeds can be broken by following methods:

(a) Exposure to white light: The exposure to light promotes this process.
Its other examples are seeds of tobacco. tomato, Betula and Digitalis. Such
seeds respond to a light only after imbibing 30-40% moisture. Light is ineffective
in the dry condition.
(b) Exposure to red and far red lights: The exposure to very low intensity of
light for short duration of 1-2 minutes is sufficient to overcome dormancy . The red
part of white light of wavelength of 660u is very effective for germination. If the
seeds is exposed to far red radiation (730u) germination is inhibited. If the seed is
first exposed to red light and immediately afterwards to far red, then again
germination is inhibited. It means that the effect of red light is cancelled by far-red.
The far-red is immediately followed by red light. now the seeds germinate. It means
the effect of far-red is reversed by red light. The seed can be exposed to red and far
red a number of times. The effect of red is cancelled by far red and vice versa. The
behaviour of the seed depends upon the last radiation given. If the last installment
given is red, then the seed germinates. If it is far red, then the seed fails to
germinate.
(c) Role of phytochromes: Borthwick and Handricks were working in the U.S.
Department of Agriculture.They discovered new pigment in plants. This pigment was
named phytochrome. Phytochrome is responsible for absorbing red and far-red
radiations. They control sereral morphogenetic phenomena like seed germination
and flowering.

(d) Use of– plant hormones: The application of the hormones. gibberellic acid
and kinetin can replace the red light requirement or germination of lettuce seeds.
Therefore. seeds can germinate in the presence of these hormones in the total
darkness.

.
3. Methods of breaking dormancy of chilling

requiring seeds.
There are two methods to break the dormancy of chilling requiring seeds:

(a) Stratification: The dormancy of chilling required seed is broken by

stratification. Low temperature requirement given to the seeds to break their
dormancy is called stratification. Dry seeds cannot be stratified. A minimum
amount of moisture is required. Therefore, such seeds are allowed to imbibe
water. Then they are exposed to low temperature.
(b) Use of hormone gibberellic acid: Such seeds contain an inhibitory
hormone namely abscisic acid. This hormone disappears during stratification. Now
gibberellic acid appears. It promotes growth in seed. Therefore, dormancy due to
chilling requirement is under the control of promoter and inhibitor hormones. Thus
the chilling requirement can be replaced by applying gibberellic acid. Therefore,
such seeds can germinate in the presence of this hormone. They do not require
chilling temperature.
4. Use of growth promoting substances for
breaking seed dormancy.
Certain chemicals promote the seed growth. Potassium nitrate, thiourea and
ethylene ehlorhydrin are the most commonly used germination promoters. Similarly,
the application of some of the plant hormones like gibberellic acid, cytokinin and
ethylene also promotes
SIGNIFICANCE OF DORMANCY
Dormancy in plants is both useful and harmful to man. Cereal grains have
temporary dormancy which is helpful for their harvesting, dry storage and as a
source of food. In the absence of dormancy these grains were likely to germinate
in the field and experience unfavourable conditions. Seeds of several weeds
remain dormant for many years and are a source of nuisence to the farmers.
In the survival of the species, dormancy has a great advantage especially in areas
having well marked seasonal changes and where winter and summer are of
drastic types. In several of the alpine and temperate species, bud and seed
dormancy is initiated with the beginning of winter and this process helps the plant
species to tide over adverse winter conditions without any damage.
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