Herbage seed lots: are germination data sufficient?

Abstract

Herbage seed lots of the same chronological age, certification class and germination values often differ in performance in the field, in storage, or both. These performance differences are ascribed to another seed quality factor, seed vigour. Vigour differences have been shown to occur in New Zealand seed lots of Trifolium repens, T. pratense, Medicago sativa, Bromus willdenowii, Cynosurus cristatus and Festuca spp., and are highly likely to occur in all other herbage species. This review of vigour in herbage seed lots discusses the concept, its possible causes, the implications for sowing, storage and export of seed, and how seed lot vigour information might be used by the farmer, seed store manager and seed marketer. Keywords seed vigour, field emergence, storage, export, herbage seed, germination