Soybean seed physiological quality after hydro-conditioning.

Soybean seed physiological quality after hydro-conditioning. Controlled hydration of seeds has been used as a physiological conditioning method, both for deteriorated seeds as well as seeds that are highly sensitive to soaking, or an interaction among both, aiming to improving their performance after sowing in the field. The hydration must be followed by drying, in case the seeds have not reached yet phase III of germination, thus facilitating subsequent handling, storage and sowing operations. This work aimed to evaluate the hydro-conditioning effect (0, 20 and 24 hours, followed by seed drying) on the physiological quality of soybean seeds, stored in dry chamber under controlled conditions (relative humidity and temperature) during 0, 90, 180 and 270 days. Hydro-conditioning has revealed positive effects on the physiological quality of those seeds and its advantage became more evident according to natural aging of the seeds during the storage.