Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer
Water deficit is one of the major limiting factors of seed crop germination and productivity. Consequently, superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) are among several technologies that enhance water use efficiency, leading to worthy seed germination. The objective of this study was to investigate the potentia...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-09-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/13/9/2324 |
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| author | Rehab R. S. Ali Ibrahim N. Nassar Ahmed Ghallab Esmat F. Ali Ahmad I. Alqubaie Mostafa M. Rady Ahmed A. M. Awad |
| author_facet | Rehab R. S. Ali Ibrahim N. Nassar Ahmed Ghallab Esmat F. Ali Ahmad I. Alqubaie Mostafa M. Rady Ahmed A. M. Awad |
| author_sort | Rehab R. S. Ali |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Water deficit is one of the major limiting factors of seed crop germination and productivity. Consequently, superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) are among several technologies that enhance water use efficiency, leading to worthy seed germination. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential effect of three rates of SAPs (0.0%, 0.5%, and 1.0% <i>w</i>/<i>w</i>) on the seedling emergence of barley and fenugreek sown in a sandy soil using three replicates in a randomized complete block design. Outdoor pot experiments were conducted in Aswan Province, Egypt. The differences in the final germination percentages (FGPs) were not significant for both seeds, while the application of SAPs enhanced the seedling germination index (GI) with significant differences for both crop seeds. The application of SAP at 0.5% gave the highest GI for barley (2.47 day<sup>−1</sup>) and fenugreek (2.66 day<sup>−1</sup>) seeds. The sigmoidal function effectively described the cumulative germination percentage rates for both seeds as a function of time under the SAP levels with R2 greater than 0.992. The maximum rates were 69.4 and 64.6 day<sup>−1</sup> for barley and fenugreek seeds at SAP 0.5%, respectively. The corresponding rates for 0.0% SAP were 11 and 12 day<sup>−1</sup>. The water germination efficiencies (WGE) were 27.76 and 30.04 cm<sup>−1</sup> for 0.0% and 0.5% SAP for barley, while they were 23.07 and 29.9 cm<sup>−1</sup> for fenugreek. Accordingly, SAPs could represent a promising solution for increasing moisture conservation for seed germination in a sand soil. For strategic management, barley is recommended for growth over fenugreek in a semidried soil. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:08:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ded0c031676345838214fff54c69e6a4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T23:08:56Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-ded0c031676345838214fff54c69e6a42023-11-19T09:10:40ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952023-09-01139232410.3390/agronomy13092324Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent PolymerRehab R. S. Ali0Ibrahim N. Nassar1Ahmed Ghallab2Esmat F. Ali3Ahmad I. Alqubaie4Mostafa M. Rady5Ahmed A. M. Awad6Agricultural Natural Resources Department, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Aswan University, Aswan 81528, EgyptNatural Resources and Agricultural Engineering Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Damanhour University, Damanhour 22511, EgyptAgricultural Natural Resources Department, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Aswan University, Aswan 81528, EgyptDepartment of Biology, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Agriculture, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80200, Jeddah 21589, Saudi ArabiaBotany Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Fayoum University, Fayoum 63514, EgyptAgricultural Natural Resources Department, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Aswan University, Aswan 81528, EgyptWater deficit is one of the major limiting factors of seed crop germination and productivity. Consequently, superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) are among several technologies that enhance water use efficiency, leading to worthy seed germination. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential effect of three rates of SAPs (0.0%, 0.5%, and 1.0% <i>w</i>/<i>w</i>) on the seedling emergence of barley and fenugreek sown in a sandy soil using three replicates in a randomized complete block design. Outdoor pot experiments were conducted in Aswan Province, Egypt. The differences in the final germination percentages (FGPs) were not significant for both seeds, while the application of SAPs enhanced the seedling germination index (GI) with significant differences for both crop seeds. The application of SAP at 0.5% gave the highest GI for barley (2.47 day<sup>−1</sup>) and fenugreek (2.66 day<sup>−1</sup>) seeds. The sigmoidal function effectively described the cumulative germination percentage rates for both seeds as a function of time under the SAP levels with R2 greater than 0.992. The maximum rates were 69.4 and 64.6 day<sup>−1</sup> for barley and fenugreek seeds at SAP 0.5%, respectively. The corresponding rates for 0.0% SAP were 11 and 12 day<sup>−1</sup>. The water germination efficiencies (WGE) were 27.76 and 30.04 cm<sup>−1</sup> for 0.0% and 0.5% SAP for barley, while they were 23.07 and 29.9 cm<sup>−1</sup> for fenugreek. Accordingly, SAPs could represent a promising solution for increasing moisture conservation for seed germination in a sand soil. For strategic management, barley is recommended for growth over fenugreek in a semidried soil.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/13/9/2324barley and fenugreekgermination indexcumulative germinationsigmoidal functionsand soilsuperabsorbent polymer |
| spellingShingle | Rehab R. S. Ali Ibrahim N. Nassar Ahmed Ghallab Esmat F. Ali Ahmad I. Alqubaie Mostafa M. Rady Ahmed A. M. Awad Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer Agronomy barley and fenugreek germination index cumulative germination sigmoidal function sand soil superabsorbent polymer |
| title | Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer |
| title_full | Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer |
| title_fullStr | Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer |
| title_full_unstemmed | Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer |
| title_short | Alleviation of Water-Deficit Stress on Seed Germination of Barley and Fenugreek in a Sandy Soil Using Superabsorbent Polymer |
| title_sort | alleviation of water deficit stress on seed germination of barley and fenugreek in a sandy soil using superabsorbent polymer |
| topic | barley and fenugreek germination index cumulative germination sigmoidal function sand soil superabsorbent polymer |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/13/9/2324 |
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