The time for germination and seedling emergence of asparagus is relatively long, taking four to six weeks, justifying the use of techniques that increase the germination rate as seed priming. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of asparagus seed priming on germination and seedling growth. Four seed lots of asparagus 'Mary Washington' were primed in polyethylene glycol (PEG 6000) solutions at -1,0 and -1,2 MPa during seven and 14 days, in seawater at -3,3 MPa during seven and 14 days, and distilled water for three days at 25ºC. Unprimed seeds were used as control. The effect of the treatments in the seed physiological quality was evaluated by germination (first count and final count), emergence rate, and radicle, epicotyl and seedling length. The experiment was arranged in a completely randomized design, with four replications and eight treatments. The osmotic conditioning in PEG was the most suitable treatment to improve the performance of asparagus seeds. Priming increased germination in seeds with low physiological quality only. The major effect of priming was on seedling emergence rate and growth, independently of seed physiological quality.
Asparagus officinalis; osmotic conditioning; physiological quality
