Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 9.3. Planting and care of growth chamber grown seedlings of various crops (from AOSA
Cultivar Purity Testing Handbook, 2010).
Crop
Media
Spacing
--cm--
Depth
--cm--
Planting
Watering
Photo-period
1
(hrs)
Temp
°C
Alfalfa
sand
2
or soil
2.5x2.5
3
0.6
No. 1
4
24
25
Garden bean,
Kidney bean
sand or soil
2.5x5.0
2.5
No. 1
20
25
Bentgrass
sand
1.2xl.9
surface
No. 1
20
22
Berseem clover
sand or soil
2.5x2.5
3
0.6
No. 1
12
10
Red clover
sand or soil
2.5x2.5
3
0.6
No. 1
20
25
Lettuce
sand
1.0x4.0
1.0
No. 1
24
25
Oat
sand
2.0x4.0
1.0
-p
5
24
25
Ryegrass
sand or soil
5.0x5.0
0.6
No.1
24
25
Sorghum, Corn
sand
1.0x4.5
1.0
water
24
25
Soybean
6
sand
2.5x5.0
2.5
No. 1
24
25
Sweetclover
sand
2.5x2.5
0.6
No. 1
20-25
25
Wheat
sand
2.0x4.0
1.0
-p
5
24
25
1
High intensity light - 33,000 lux (3,100 f.c.) or 600 umol m
-2
S
-1
from cool white luorescent tubes and 3,000 lux (300 f.c.) or 50
umol m
-2
S
-1
from incandescent bulbs.
2
Inert quartz sand.
3
Plant several seeds per hole and thin to one seedling.
4
Hoagland's No. 1 solution.
5
Hoagland's No. 1 solution lacking phosphorus.
6
Exceptions for metribuzin sensitivity and lowering procedure noted in the text.
Garden bean and kidney bean plants can be evaluated for lower color (purple or white) and the
number of days from planting until lowering occurs. This procedure can be used to differentiate cultivars
and detect off-type plants. The time required to complete this test is four to six weeks.
Bentgrass can be evaluated for number of stems per plant, stem length, percent decumbent plants, per-
cent of plants with red leaf sheaths, leaf blade length and width and stem diameter. This test requires four
weeks or more and can be used to differentiate species and varieties as well as off-type plants.
When testing berseem clover, plant height and percentage of plants with elongated internodes vs. the
percentage of plants in the rosette stage should be recorded. These observations require six to eight weeks
and can be used to differentiate varieties but not to identify off-type plants.
Red clover plants can be evaluated for pubescence on the upper lealet surface four weeks after plant-
ing. Pubescence is recorded as dense (about 115/1.0 cm
2
) or absent. Varieties are classiied as having dense
(most plants dense), intermediate (most plants sparse--some dense or absent) or sparse (most plants sparse
or absent--few dense) pubescence. The number of plants with lower buds is recorded six weeks after
planting. Varieties are classiied as late (few plants lowering) or early (most plants lowering). This testing
procedure is well adapted for differentiating varieties but not for detecting off-types.
Lettuce seedlings can be evaluated for hypocotyl color (pink or green), color of the irst leaf (mottled
pink or red, light green or dark green, Fig. 9.19), leaf margin (deeply incised, mostly entire or lobed,
Fig. 9.20), leaf curl (tube shaped or not tube shaped, Fig. 9.21) and cotyledon shape (broad or narrow).
Observations should begin upon emergence and continue until the three to four leaf stage. Evaluations of
these characteristics are useful for differentiating types and varieties as well as off-types.
