The effect of seed size and depth of seeding on the emergence of grassland plants

Authors

• K. Multamäki Agricultural Research Centre, Department of Plant Breeding, Jokioinen

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23986/afsci.71585

Abstract

The seeding of grasslands in Finland fails relatively often owing to the difficult growing conditions for the young seedlings. As a result, the stands are in many cases rather thin and must sometimes be ploughed up without giving any yield at all. One of the factors hampering the initial growth and development of grassland plants is unsuitable sowing. Thus, for instance, a considerable proportion of the seed may be sown at too great a depth, which prevents the seedlings from emerging. On the other hand, the seeds scattered upon the soil surface will also meet difficulties in their germination stage, especially in dry periods. Hence, a valuable characteristic for a grassland plant seedling would be the ability to surmount the various obstacles arising from deficient seeding measures. The object of the present investigation is to study the emergence capacity of some grassland plants, the majority of which are grown extensively in Finland. For this purpose, seeds of the plants to be studied were sown on soil surface as well as at different depths. The influence of seed size in this connexion was examined, too. All the studies concerned were carried out in the greenhouse. The soil used as substrata in these experiments was heavy clay, representing the valuable arable soil type occurring fairly commonly, especially in Southwest Finland.