Effect of different seed priming techniques on endogenous nutrient accumulation and grain vitamin contents in soft and hard wheat species

The Experiments were conducted to modulate the effect of different priming agents on endogenous nutrient accumulation and grain vitamin contents in two wheat species viz, Triticum aestivum (Soft) and Triticum durum (Hard). There were six priming treatments viz., water, Salicylic acid, Gibberellic acid, Ascorbic acid, Calcium chloride, Potassium nitrate along with unprimed control treatment. The experiments were conducted in completely randomized design (CRD) with three factor factorial arrangements. LSD test were applied for the comparison on means of different parameters. The findings of present study suggested that different priming agents behaved differently in both wheat species. Some priming agents brought enhancement in mineral nutrients such as nitrate-N, phosphate-P, K, Ca, Mg and sulphate-S. contents while some priming agents caused decrease. However, vitamins such as ascorbic acid, riboflavin and niacin have been found to be increased following all priming treatments. All these changes might be due to the modified biochemical activities taking place within endosperm cells of hard and soft grains which differ greatly in structure and chemical composition.