Starting Plants: Seeds

1
Starting Plants Seeds

• Introduction
• Definition A seed is a __________________,
  undeveloped plant
• A seed contains all the _____________ material
  necessary for the development of a mature plant
• Basic parts
• Seed coat
• ________________
• Food supply in either endosperm or cotyledons

2
Factors Determining Seed Quality

• Three factors important in determining seed
  quality
• The seed is free of ________________
• The seed is viable able to germinate
• The seeds are __________

3
Factors Determining Seed Quality

• Disease-free seed
• You do not want to use contaminated seed because
  it may be very difficult to _____________ the
  disease from your garden
• Generally seedborne diseases are a problem when
  gardeners collect their own seed
• Ways diseases can be carried
• On the seed coat
• Seed treatments can eliminate
• Within the seed
• ________ water treatments
• can eliminate

4
Factors Determining Seed Quality

• Disease-free seed
• Some commercial seed companies treat their seeds
  with ______________________
• Fungicide treated seed is not acceptable in
  ________________ gardening
• Seed packet should contain warning if seed is
  treated
• If seed is _____________ or has powdery substance
  on it than it was treated with a fungicide
• Wear gloves when handling

5
Factors Determining Seed Quality

• Viability
• Definition viability is the percentage of
  vegetable seed which will _____________________
• Viability refers to is the seed living or
  respiring
• Vegetable seed viability is tested by seed
  companies and on seed packets the germination
  percentage and test date are listed
• Factors affecting viability
• Vegetables naturally differ in their viability
• ________________ of the seed will affect
  viability

6
The Viability and Longevity of Vegetable Seed
7
Factors Determining Seed Quality

• Seed Purity
• Definition seed purity means that the seed is
  true-to-type and does not contain undesirable
  _______________
• The seed are what the package says it is
• Contaminants that may occur in seed packets
• Seed of the wrong ______________
• Seed of the wrong vegetable species
• ____________ seed
• ____________ particles or plant parts

8
Factors Determining Seed Quality

• Seed purity and noxious weeds
• Definition noxious weeds are plants that
  federal, state, or local governments want to
  prevent from ____________ to and establishing in
  a particular area
• These seed are prohibited from being
  _______________________ in seed that are
  commercially sold
• Examples
• Field bindweed
• Canada ____________

9
Starting Plants Seeds

• Seed purity and collecting your own seeds
• It is important to maintain the cultivar
  __________________ pure when collecting your own
  seed
• Maintaining genetically pure seeds only works for
  self-pollinated cultivars that are open
  pollinated
• You can not maintain pure seed when
• The parents are __________________
• Wind pollinated vegetables
• They can be pollinated by related plants from a
  distance away
• ___________________ pollinated vegetables
• They readily cross pollinated