Effect of NaCl priming duration and concentration on germination behavior of fenugreek

Priming is one of the seed enhancement methods that might be resulted in increasing seed germination under stress conditions such as salinity, temperature and drought stress. The objective of this study was to develop an optimal priming protocol for fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum L.) and determinate the effect of NaCl seed priming on seed germination. Fenugreek seeds were primed with four concentrations of NaCl as priming media (0, 4, 6 and 8 g L-1) for 12, 24 and 36 hours. Results indicated that different priming concentrations and duration have significant effects on total germination percentage, mean germination time, germination index and coefficient of velocity of fenugreek seeds and the best result was obtained with (4 g L-1, 36h). The result of this experiment showed that under undesirable conditions such as salinity stress, priming with NaCl (4g L-1, 36 h) can prepare a suitable metabolic reaction in seeds and can improve seed germination.