Seeds and Seed Germination

Seed structure

Cotyledon Plumule Seed coat or testa Radicle

Micropyle

Seed maturation
Takes place in the fruit on the parent plant Endospermous seeds: Retain the endosperm tissue, which eventually dies but it is surrounded by a layer of living cells, the aleurone layer. Non-endospermous seeds: The endosperm tissue is absorbed by the cotyledons. These then become the food reserve for the seed.

Dormancy
Metabolism falls Number of organelles per cell falls Dehydration water content falls Vacuoles in cells deflate Food reserves become dense crystalline bodies

Maintaining dormancy
Physical barriers The seed coat (testa) is waxy = waterproof and impermeable to oxygen Physical state dehydrated Chemical inhibitors present e.g. salts, mustard oils, organic acids, alkaloids Growth promoters absent

Seed viability
Viability: When a seed is capable of germinating after all the necessary environmental conditions are met. Average life span of a seed 10 to 15 years. Some are very short-lived e.g. willow (< 1 week) Some are very long-lived e.g. mimosa 221 years Conditions are very important for longevity Cold, dry, anaerobic conditions These are the conditions which are maintained in seed banks

Factors Affecting Seed Germination

Seed germination depends on both internal and external conditions. The most important external factors include temperature, water, oxygen and sometimes light or darkness. Various plants require different variables for successful seed germination. Often this depends on the individual seed variety and is closely linked to the ecological conditions of a plant's natural habitat. For some seeds, their future germination response is affected by environmental conditions during seed formation; most often these responses are types of seed dormancy.


Water - is required for germination. Mature seeds are often extremely dry and need to take in significant amounts of water, relative to the dry weight of the seed, before cellular metabolism and growth can resume. Most seeds need enough water to moisten the seeds but not enough to soak them. The uptake of water by seeds is called imbibition, which leads to the swelling and the breaking of the seed coat. When seeds are formed, most plants store a food reserve with the seed, such as starch, proteins, or oils. This food reserve provides nourishment to the growing embryo. When the seed imbibes water, hydrolytic enzymes are activated which break down these stored food resources into metabolically useful chemicals. After the seedling emerges from the seed coat and starts growing roots and leaves, the seedling's food reserves are typically exhausted; at this point photosynthesis provides the energy needed for continued growth and the seedling now requires a continuous supply of water, nutrients, and light.

Factors Affecting Seed Germination



Oxygen - is required by the germinating seed for metabolism. Oxygen is used in aerobic respiration, the main source of the seedling's energy until it grows leaves. Oxygen is an atmospheric gas that is found in soil pore spaces; if a seed is buried too deeply within the soil or the soil is waterlogged, the seed can be oxygen starved. Some seeds have impermeable seed coats that prevent oxygen from entering the seed, causing a type of physical dormancy which is broken when the seed coat is worn away enough to allow gas exchange and water uptake from the environment. Temperature - affects cellular metabolic and growth rates. Seeds from different species and even seeds from the same plant germinate over a wide range of temperatures. Seeds often have a temperature range within which they will germinate, and they will not do so above or below this range. Many seeds germinate at temperatures slightly above room-temperature 6075 F (16-24 C), while others germinate just above freezing and others germinate only in response to alternations in temperature between warm and cool. Some seeds germinate when the soil is cool 28-40 F (-2 - 4 C), and some when the soil is warm 76-90 F (24-32 C). Some seeds require exposure to cold temperatures (vernalization) to break dormancy. Seeds in a dormant state will not germinate even if conditions are favorable. Seeds that are dependent on temperature to end dormancy have a type of physiological dormancy. For example, seeds requiring the cold of winter are inhibited from germinating until they take in water in the fall and experience cooler temperatures. Four degrees Celsius is cool enough to end dormancy for most cool dormant seeds, but some groups, especially within the family Ranunculaceae and others, need conditions cooler than -5 C. Some seeds will only germinate after hot temperatures during a forest fire which cracks their seed coats; this is a type of physical dormancy.

Factors Affecting Seed Germination



Most common annual vegetables have optimal germination temperatures between 75-90 F (24-32 C), though many species (e.g. radishes or spinach) can germinate at significantly lower temperatures, as low as 40 F (4 C), thus allowing them to be grown from seed in cooler climates. Suboptimal temperatures lead to lower success rates and longer germination periods. Light or darkness - can be an environmental trigger for germination and is a type of physiological dormancy. Most seeds are not affected by light or darkness, but many seeds, including species found in forest settings, will not germinate until an opening in the canopy allows sufficient light for growth of the seedling. Scarification mimics natural processes that weaken the seed coat before germination. In nature, some seeds require particular conditions to germinate, such as the heat of a fire (e.g., many Australian native plants), or soaking in a body of water for a long period of time. Others need to be passed through an animal's digestive tract to weaken the seed coat enough to allow the seedling to emerge.

Germination: The breaking of dormancy

The growth of the embryo and its penetration of the seed coat Break down of barriers Abrasion of seed coat (soil particles) Decomposition of seed coat (soil microbes, gut enzymes) Cracking of seed coat (fire) Destruction and dilution of inhibitors Light, temperature, water Production of growth promoters

Change in physical state rehydration

Germination
STAGE
PREGERMINATION (a) (b) (c) (d)

EVENTS
Rehydration imbibition of water. RNA & protein synthesis stimulated. Increased metabolism increased respiration. Hydrolysis (digestion) of food reserves by enzymes. (e) Changes in cell ultrastructure. (f) Induction of cell division & cell growth. (a) Rupture of seed coat. (b) Emergence of seedling, usually radicle first.

GERMINATION

POST GERMINATION (a) Controlled growth of root and shoot axis. (b) Controlled transport of materials from food stores to growing axis. (c) Senescence (aging) of food storage tissues.

Stages leading to cell division

Mitchondria reconstituted
Respiration Initially anaerobic Later aerobic

Soluble sugars

ATP RNA activated Polysomes Protein synthesis (0.5h) Enzymes (proteins) DNA synthesis (45h) Mitosis (70h)

The control of food reserve hydrolysis

Control by growth promotors such as gibberellin and growth inhibitors such as abscisic acid These directly affect the genes for enzyme synthesis or the activity of the enzymes themselves The growth substances are affected by environmental factors (e.g. light, temperature, humidity)

The control of food reserve hydrolysis

Negative feedback control of enzymes
Negative feedback Starch + H20 E - amylase Maltose

The action of the enzyme also limited by substrate Once all the starch in an amyloplast is hydrolysed the enzyme stops work Therefore the release of the stored food is adjusted to suite the demand

The mobilisation of food reserves

Carbohydrates Starches (amylopectin & amylose) e.g. Zein Oils Amylases Proteases Lipases Maltose and glucose Amino acids Fatty acids & glycerol

Proteins Lipids

The food reserves are stored as large insoluble macromolecules They are hydrolysed using enzymes to smaller soluble molecules for transport

starch maltose cotyledon monocot sugar exocytosis E-amylase

Fruit+Seed Coat Endosperm Aleurone Layer Storage Protein

shoot apex

RNA

Embryo GA radicle apex water imbibition

DNA

Amino Acids

Barley Seed Germination

shoot apex

starch Seed Coat sugar

cotyledons E-amylase dicot

RNA

Embryo

DNA

Lettuce Seed Germination

phytochrome photoreversibility 660 nm Pfr Pr 730 nm dark red and white light stimulate germination

radicle apex

water imbibition

photoactivation

Capsella Seed: Embryo Seed Coat Endosperm Shoot Apex Cotyledons - dicot Hypocotyl Radicle Root Apex

Micropyle

Seed Germination: Emergence of Radicle through Seed Coat

Seeds lacking dormancy need: Water Warm Temperature Dry Cold So if you want to store seeds what are the conditions? Dormant seeds need more than moisture and warmth: Dormancy is caused by: Thick Seed Coat Thin Seed Coat Insufficient Development Inhibitor: Abscisic Acid Inhibitor: Phenolics Is overcome by: Scarification Light or
nick digest scrub fire freeze-thaw cycles

Example: Kentucky Coffee Tree Lettuce or Orchids Most CT feral plants Cacti Pea

Dark

Soil Fungus Association Stratification > Vernalization

6 weeks at 4 C 20 C

Leaching by Repeated Rain