The germination test is performed in the laboratory under controlled environment aiming for complete and fast germination of the seed lot. During the germination test the substrate used must be kept moist to allow seed germination. Thus, the paper roll used needs to be kept in plastic bags to preserve the moisture required for germination. Excess of moisture may also affect seed germination, cause delay or paralyzation of seedling development. These modifications may give results that are not reliable, which do not represent the real quality of the seed lot. Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify the conditions of packaging the paper rolls in plastic sacks to optimize the results of the germination test carried out in a vertical B.O.D. type chamber. Two thickness of transparent plastic bags (0,033 mm and 0,050 mm) were evaluated and the presence or absence of perforation (128 holes of 5 mm diameter mm per size of 60 cm x 40 cm). The following species were used: sweet corn (cv. 'Doce Cristal' and cv. 'Super Doce'), bean (cv. 'Pérola' and cv. 'IAC-Carioca Tybatã') and soybean (cv. 'Embrapa-48' two lots). For sweet corn and bean seeds, the treatments perforated thick plastic, whole fine plastic and perforated fine plastic promoted the best results in the germination test. These results led to the conclusion that the thickness of the plastic and the presence of perforations were factors that interfered in the results of the germination test carried out in vertical B.O.D. type chamber.
seeds; substrate; moisture
