<b>EVALUATING THE IMPACTS OF POTASSIUM CHLORIDE SEED PRIMING AND HYDRO PRIMING ON GERMINATION OF MUNGBEAN (<i>VIGNA RADIATA L.</i>) UNDER SALT STRESS</b>

Abstract

Abstract

Seed germination is seriously affected by saline conditions, especially in areas that are arid or semi-arid. The purpose of the present research was to check how seed priming contributes to the enhancement of germination performance even in saline conditions. The present study is a tri-replicated CRD lab experiment in which three priming treatments were used, i.e., unprimed (UP), hydro-priming (HP), and KCl priming (KP; 250 ppm), with three levels of salinity as 0, 25, and 50 mM NaCl. Noted parameters are Germination percentage (GP), Mean germination time (MGT), Coefficient of velocity of germination (CVG), Germination energy (GE), and Germination Rate index. The results demonstrate that as the salinity level rises from 0Mm NaCl to 50 mM, mean germination time increases, while the other parameters like GP, GRI, CVG, and GE decrease in the control due to the high salt concentration. These negative impacts are effectively alleviated by the priming treatments. Among all of the treatments, the KCL priming mitigated saline stress most effectively, even at the highest level of salinity, such as 50mM NaCl. Although it was less successful than KCl priming, hydro-priming also increased germination as compared to unprimed seeds. Priming enhances stress resistance, as evidenced by the substantial interplay between salinity and priming. All things considered, KCl priming was a successful and useful method for enhancing mungbean germination in saline environments, indicating its possible use for improved crop establishment in salt-affected soils