Physiological quality of sesame seeds BRS silk subjected to water stress

Abstract

Global climate change affects the yield of agriculturally important crops and has an adverse effect on ecological adaptability, resulting in considerable losses in the main crops, making it necessary to use cultivars that are more tolerant to these abiotic stresses. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the physiological quality of BRS-Seda sesame seeds subjected to water stress at different temperatures. The experimental design used was completely randomized, in a 2 x 5 factorial scheme, with two temperatures (25 and 30 °C) and five osmotic potentials (0; - 0.2; - 0.4; - 0.6, and - 0.8 MPa). The evaluations were: water content, germination test, first count, speed index and average germination time, percentage of hard and dead seeds, abnormal seedlings, length and dry mass of seedlings. Temperature and water stress significantly influence the physiological quality of sesame seeds. The highest percentage of dead and hard sesame seeds were obtained when the seeds were subjected to 30 °C. The reduction in osmotic potential negatively influences the vigor of sesame seeds at the temperatures evaluated. The temperature of 25 °C is the one that favors germination performance at less restrictive water potentials (- 0.2 MPa).