Horticulturae (Feb 2023)

Effects of Seed Priming and Foliar Treatment with Ascorbate, Cysteine, and Triacontanol on Canola (<i>Brassica napus</i> L.) under Field Conditions

  • Katalin Molnár,
  • Béla Biró-Janka,
  • Erzsébet Domokos,
  • Imre-István Nyárádi,
  • László Fodorpataki,
  • Andrei Stoie,
  • Matei Marcel Duda

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae9020207
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 2
p. 207

Abstract

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Studies conducted in controlled environments showed that seed priming and foliar treatments with various bioactive substances can stimulate germination, uniform seedling emergence, photosynthesis, and nutrient uptake efficiency and can lead to increased productivity, crop stand, and quality. Only a few studies provide a comparative experimental outlook about the use of the bioactive substances in open-field cultivated canola. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of seed priming and foliar treatment with ascorbate (AsA), cysteine (Cys), and triacontanol (Tria) on the growth and yield parameters of two canola cultivars rapeseed cultivars (“Factor” and “Hybrirock”) under open-field conditions for three growing seasons under temperate conditions from Central Transylvania. Plant growth and yield parameters were recorded at different plant development stages: in autumn (early vegetative period), in spring, and at harvest. Not all substances that have undergone laboratory testing were successful in the field. Seed priming with 10 ppm Cys and AsA had beneficial effects on the development of seedlings, whereas their foliar application enhanced the number of silique, seed yield, and the oil content of the studied canola cultivars. The effects of Tria were visible on the biometrics parameters only in autumn and spring, and also on the root parameters, but in some cases, 10 ppm Tria had no effect on plants, or even a negative effect could be observed on important parameters for agriculture such as estimated seed yield, seed yield/plant, and oil content. Optimizing treatment and application by determination of the lowest effective concentration, together with the frequency of treatments and persistence effects are crucial for cost-effectiveness.

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