Optimum Conditions for Tobacco Seed Priming by PEG 6000

Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L. ‘KF109’) seeds were primed in polyethylene glycol 6000 (PEG 6000) solutions to determine a) what osmotic potential of the solution would be optimal for priming, i.e., critical potential level for preventing germination, and b) what temperature and duration would be the most effective in priming. The germination was completely prevented below -0.8 MPa of PEG 6000, that indicates a optimum water potential for seed priming. Seeds were primed for 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 10 and 15 days at 15, 20 and $25^{\circ}C$, respectively, under the-0.8 MPa PEG 6000 solution to find out the most effective temperature and duration for priming. The effectiveness of priming, particularly in germination speed, was observed more distinctly when the primed seeds were germinated at 15$^{\circ}C$ than 2 5$^{\circ}C$. The greatest reduction of the time to 50% germination (T/sob 50/) was when the seeds were primed at $25^{\circ}C$. The reduction rate of the $T_{50}$ was rapid when primed from 1 day to 8 days and then slowed down in the seeds primed for longer than 8 days. The time from 10 to 90% germination ( $T_{10-90}$ increased in the primed seeds for longer than 8 days which showed the reversed effect of synchronous germination. However, $T_{50}$ was reduced continuously in the seeds even primed over 8 days. Thus, the optimum condition for tobacco seeds priming with PEG 6000 solution was -0.8 MPa in osmotic potential of the solution at $25^{\circ}C$ for 8 days.ays.