Latest Germination Stories

Having a neighborly chat improves seed germination, finds research in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Ecology. Even when other known means of communication, such as contact, chemical and light-mediated signals, are blocked chilli seeds grow better when grown with basil plants. This suggests that plants are talking via nanomechanical vibrations. Monica Gagliano and Michael Renton from the University of Western Australia attempted to grow chilli seeds (Capsicum annuum) in the...

University of California, Davis A team of researchers, led by a University of California, Davis, plant scientist, has identified a lettuce gene and related enzyme that put the brakes on germination during hot weather — a discovery that could lead to lettuces that can sprout year-round, even at high temperatures. The study also included researchers from Arcadia Biosciences and Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University, India. The finding is particularly important to the nearly $2...

Light is not only the source of a plant's energy, but also an environmental signal that instructs the growth behavior of plants. As a result, a plant's sensitivity to light is of great interest to scientists and their research on this issue could help improve crop yields down the road. Similarly understanding a plant's temperature sensitivity could also help improve agriculture and feed more people. Two new papers from Carnegie's Zhiyong Wang laboratory identify key aspects of the hormonal...

[ Watch the Video ] Brett Smith for redOrbit.com A plant in the Israeli desert has developed a ‘toxic mustard bomb’ which causes the spiny mouse that eats its berries to spit out the seeds like a child munching on watermelon. Researchers found that enzymes within the seeds of the sweet mignonette berries activate toxic substances in its pulp, which would otherwise go unnoticed, according to a new study published online in the journal Current Biology. When an unknowing mouse...

Synthetic photoreceptor stimulates germination and development irrespective of exposure to light; results of researchers from Japan and Karlsruhe are published in the Plant Cell journal Plants are dependent on the sun. Sunlight does not only supply them with energy, but also controls their development steps. So-called photoreceptors activate the processes of germination, leaf development, bud formation, and blossoming in the cells. The light-absorbing component of a photoreceptor may be...

Treated seedlings are healthier, more vigorous after transplanting The quality of agricultural seedlings is important to crop growth and yield after transplantation. Good quality seedlings exhibit characteristics such as thick stems, thick leaves, dark green leaves, and large white roots. Scientists have long known that plant development and physiology are strongly influenced by the light spectrum, which affects seedling structure. Raising seedlings irradiated with blue light has been...

Dormant seeds in the soil detect and respond to seasonal changes in soil temperature by changing their sensitivity to plant hormones, new research by the University of Warwick has found. This sensitivity alters the depth of dormancy, indicating to the seed when it is the right time of year to germinate and grow. The seeds of common weeds can survive in the soil in a dormant state for years, in some cases decades, spelling issues for food security when they emerge to compete with crops....

When seeds from the thale cress Arabidopsis thaliana mature, their cell nuclei reduce in size and the chromatin condenses Plant seeds represent a special biological system: They remain in a dormant state with a significantly reduced metabolism and are thus able to withstand harsh environmental conditions for extended periods. The water content of maturing seeds is lower than ten percent. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne have now discovered...

It is one of the rarest shrubs in the southeastern United States, and for scientists trying to save it, the critically endangered Michaux's sumac (Rhus michauxii) is not cooperating. So far botanists have exposed the hard-, thick-coated seeds of this native North American plant to boiling water, dry heat up to 284 degrees Fahrenheit and flames from a propane blowtorch to try to coax them into germination. Nothing has worked. "Complete understanding of the germination requirements of...

Not only is Mediterranean France known worldwide for its famous wine-growing regions, but evidence of beer making has been discovered as far back as the 5th century BC, according to analyses from the Roquepertuse excavation site in Provence.Laurent Bouby from the CNRS "“ Centre de Bio-Archeologie et d'Ecology in Montepellier, France and his colleagues found the presence of poorly preserved barley grains as well as equipment and other remains of deliberate malting in the home that suggest...