Stimulate® in seed germination, seedling vigor and emergence of sunflower

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Stimulate® on germination, emergence and seedling vigor of sunflower. For the standard germination test, seeds of the variety Catissol 01 were pre-soaked at the following concentrations: 1,0, 2,5, 4,0, 5,5 and 7,0 mL of Stimulate® L-1 aqueous solution, taking control as pre-soaking seeds in water. Then, the seeds were subjected to three times of different presoaking: 4, 7 and 10 hours. After the treatments, the seeds were distributed in germination papers and kept in a germinator at a temperature of 25ºC with a photoperiod of 12 hours. The experimental design was completely randomized in a factorial of 3 x 6, with 4 replicates of 50 seeds in each paper roll germtest. A seedling vigor test was conducted simultaneously with the standard germination test. To study the rate of emergence and the percentage of emergence, seeds were genotyped: Catissol 01, Agrobel 962 and Agrobel 972. The seeds were subjected to two treatments: T1 = 4 mL solution containing Stimulate® L-1 solution in the pre-soaking for 4 hours and T2 = pre-soaking of sunflower seeds in water for 4 hours, being registered daily emergence seedling. The experimental design was completely randomized in a factorial of 3 x 2. The results indicated that pre-soaking of sunflower seeds with vegetable biostimulant Stimulate® (4 mL Stimulate® L-1 in pre-soaking for 4 hours) increased germination, promoting the formation of more vigorous seedlings and reducing the percentage of abnormal seedlings, besides Stimulate® na germinação... SANTOS, C. A. C. et al. Biosci. J., Uberlândia, v. 29, n. 2, p. 605-616, Mar./Abr. 2013 promoting a higher percentage of seedling emergence. However, prolonged periods of pre-soaking increased the percentage of abnormal seedlings.