Time of harvest and storability of Crotalaria juncea L. seeds

ABSTRACT Although used as green manure, one of the challenges the cultivation of Crotalaria juncea is the low availability of quality seeds in the market. The harvest at the right time contributes to the achievement of better quality seeds. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the storability and characterize the physical and physiological changes of the seeds harvested at different times. The statistical design was completely randomized with three replications. Treatments consisted of four harvest seasons and two storage periods (0 to 8 months). The samples were collected when the plants reached 40, 60, 80 and 100% of dried pods. The following characteristics were evaluated: time for drying, moisture content, dry matter accumulation, physical purity, yield, uniformity testing, seed coat coloring, germination, germination first count test, percentage of hard seeds, speed index and percentage of seedling emergence. Data from ripening stages were submitted to regression analysis. The effect of storage within each time it was analyzed by the joint analysis of variance of the results and the Tukey test (p≤0.05). The determination of the sampling point based on the percentage of dried beans is efficiently. The physiological maturity of the seeds is achieved when the plants have about 86.1% of dry beans, with the Crotalaria juncea seeds harvesting is performed at the point where the plants have between 80 and 100% of dried pods. The storage for eight months reduces dormancy up to 75.4%.

摘要：尽管菽麻（Crotalaria juncea）常被用作绿肥，但其种植面临的一大难题是市场上优质种子供应量不足。适时采收有助于获得更高品质的种子。本研究旨在评估不同时段采收的菽麻种子的耐贮性，并解析其物理与生理特性变化。本研究采用完全随机设计，设置3次重复，处理组包含4个采收时段与2个贮藏周期（0至8个月）。当植株干燥荚果占比分别达到40%、60%、80%与100%时进行样品采集。本研究测定的指标包括：干燥时间、含水量、干物质积累量、种子净度、种子产量、均匀度检验、种皮色泽、发芽率、发芽势、硬实率、发芽速率指数及出苗率。各生育阶段的原始数据均进行回归分析；不同采收时段下的贮藏效应则通过联合方差分析与Tukey多重比较检验进行分析，显著性水平设定为p≤0.05。基于干燥荚果占比确定采样点的方法具备高效性。当植株干燥荚果占比约为86.1%时，菽麻种子达到生理成熟；最佳采收时段为植株干燥荚果占比80%~100%的阶段。8个月的贮藏可使种子休眠率最高降低75.4%。