Department of Molecular and Life Sciences (Ecology Section), Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia.
Plant Biol (Stuttg). 2022 Apr;24(3):399-403. doi: 10.1111/plb.13407. Epub 2022 Mar 2.
Seed viability is routinely measured on seeds that fail to germinate at the end of an experiment. Together with the number of germinants, this is used to estimate viability of the seeds at start of the experiment (i.e., initial viability) and provides the comparative basis on which germination success is determined. The literature and recent data on the germination requirements of Leucadendron species were examined to determine if there was any evidence for a treatment effect on viability of ungerminated seeds at the end of the experiment. The survey showed that sometimes (perhaps often, as the problem has yet to be recognized or reported) prolonged duration in the treatment, especially the control where little germination occurs, lead to loss of viability during the experiment. This resulted in underestimation of initial viability if that treatment was used. I caution against the routine use of end-of-trial germination and viability of ungerminated seeds as an estimate of initial viability in determining germination success of various treatments. I explore ways to deal with the problem but the preference is for estimates of initial viability to be undertaken on a separate sample of seeds concurrently with the experiment as this avoids the risk of seed death during the trial.
种子活力通常在实验结束时未能发芽的种子上进行测量。结合发芽数，这可用于估计实验开始时种子的活力（即初始活力），并为确定发芽成功提供比较基础。检查了有关 Leucadendron 物种发芽要求的文献和最新数据，以确定在实验结束时，未发芽种子的活力是否存在任何处理效应的证据。调查显示，有时（也许经常，因为这个问题尚未被认识或报告）在处理中延长时间，特别是在控制条件下，很少有发芽发生，会导致实验过程中活力丧失。如果使用该处理，则会低估初始活力。我警告不要将试验结束时的发芽和未发芽种子的活力常规用作确定各种处理发芽成功的初始活力的估计值。我探讨了解决该问题的方法，但首选的方法是在与实验同时进行的单独种子样本上进行初始活力的估计，因为这可以避免在试验过程中种子死亡的风险。
