Rice seedling emergence as affected by seed treatment and flooding regimes

Abstract

The effects of three fluctuating flood levels (permanently flooded up to 12 cm; flooding for two days and left drained for three days; and flooding for three days and left drained for two days) and three seed treatments (seeds coated with calcium peroxide; pre-germinated seeds; and uncoated dry seeds) on rice cultivar IR36 emergence, height and dry weight were studied. Although plant height and total dry weight were not affected, seedling emergence improved significantly when seeds were coated and sown under permanent flood. Flooding two days out of five was insufficient to restrict emergence of the pre-germinated and the dry seeded treatment. Where flooding was for more than three days as in permanent flood, coated seeds showed significantly better seedling emergence.