| Popis: |
The present study aims to determine the effect of harvest date on the germination of rice seeds. The experiment was carried out at Nkol bisson, a locality within the forest agro-ecological zone characterized by a bimodal rainfall pattern. Four varieties of NERICA: NERICA 3, NERICA 8, NERICA 9 and 13 NERICA widely grown in Cameroon were used and planted in a completely randomized block design. Rice seed was produced according to the standards of its production and were harvested at six different dates: 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45 days after heading. The harvested seeds were dried at 13% moisture content. The results showed that the harvest dates have a significant effect on the latency, the time corresponding to 50% sprouted grains (T50), the number of sprouted grains, number of dead seed and the number of non-sprouted grains. There was significant difference between rice varieties evaluated and the different harvesting date. The germination rates 98.88%, 99.44%, 99.75% and 97.00% were obtained respectively for the harvest dates of 30, 35, 40 and 45 days after 50% heading. The harvest dates 20 and 25 days after 50% heading presented low germination rates. With these early harvesting dates, the mean percentages of dead seeds ranged between 18.25% and 55.25%. Too early harvest had a negative impact on rice seeds germination. To obtain good germination rate, it is recommend harvesting rice between the ranges of 30 to 40 days after 50% of heading. |
