Effect of different seed treatments on germination and seedling growth of Solanum surattense

Solanum surattense Burm. F. is a prickly herb widely distributed in arid and semiarid regions of the world and forms an integral part of folklore medicine in India. It is a seed propagated crop with a germination period of 15 days. The present study was taken up with the objective to study the effect of different seed treatments on germination and seedling growth of S. surattense in the year 2020. The seed treatments were (1) water soaking with different time period (4, 8 &12 h), (2) hot water treatment (1, 2 & 3 mins. at 90–100 ^°C) and (3) treatment with GA₃ (500 & 1000 ppm for 12 & 24 h soaking). The seeds treated with GA₃ (500 ppm -24 h soaking) showed the highest germination percentage (83.33). While seeds treated with hot water for 2 min yielded vigorous seedling of transplantable stage. The results showed that early germination and vigorous seedlings can be achieved in S. surattense with low-cost methods which in turn could be utilized by the grower to increase the profit.