title: Effects of ultrasonication on increased germination and improved seedling growth of aged grass seeds of tall fescue and Russian wildrye.
abstract: The effects of ultrasonic treatments on the germination and seedling growth of aged tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) and Russian wild rye (Psathyrostaehys juncea Nevski) seeds were determined using orthogonal matrix experimental design with four ultrasonic factors. The multivariate analysis of variance detected significant differences and coupling effects of the pair-wise factors. The activities of Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) and Peroxidase (POD) and the Malondialdehyde (MDA) content were affected. The ultrasonic treatments had positive effects on the germination percentage (GP) of the aged seeds and the growth of the seedlings (GS) and therefore we provided a basic evidence for the application of ultrasonic treatment to pretreat aged grass seeds. For the four ultrasonic factors, the optimal conditions were a sonication time of 36.7 min, a sonication temperature of 35 °C, an output power of 367 W and a seed soaking time 4.1 h after binary quadratic regressions analyses. The ultrasonic treatment has the potential to improve seedling growth. Moreover, the longevity of the tall fescue and the Russian wild rye seeds was approximately 9.5 and 11.5 years, respectively, under natural conditions of storage. The physiological mechanisms that might contribute to the improved GP and GS were discussed.
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Sci. and Techn., Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Sci. and Techn., Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Quanzhen
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops, Forage Crops Department, Maksima Gorkog 30, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia.
authors.forename: Đura
authors.initials: Đ
authors.lastname: Karagić
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Sci. and Techn., Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Xv
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Sci. and Techn., Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gui
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Sci. and Techn., Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Muyu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Sci. and Techn., Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi Province, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Gao
mesh_terms: D031751:Festuca / Q000254:growth & development*; D018525:Germination / Q000502:physiology*; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D009195:Peroxidase / Q000378:metabolism; D012434:Secale / Q000254:growth & development*; D036226:Seedlings / Q000254:growth & development*; D012639:Seeds / Q000254:growth & development*; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase / Q000378:metabolism; D000069453:Ultrasonic Waves
chemical_list: D008315:Malondialdehyde; D009195:Peroxidase; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase