Seed Treatments

Seed Treatments

treated corn seeds

Treatment of seeds either for commercial agriculture or gardening can take many forms. Treatments can include:

• Soaking the seeds (often in warm water)
• Pre-plant seed selection (determining the seeds which will germinate)
• Cold treating seeds to imitate a change of seasons
• Chemically treating the seeds either by soaking in a liquid or coating in a powder that is intended to load the seed with nutrients and increase percentage of seeds that successfully germinate and the emergence timeline, and 
• Treating the seeds with radio or other electromagnetic waves.  There have even been some futuristic attempts to treat seeds with radio waves to increase the permeability of the seeds outer shell and increase germination and emergence, although I have not seen this employed in a commercial scale yet.

Why Treat Seeds?

cracked seeds germinating from seeddynamics.com

Growers have found that some of the most efficient fertilization and anti-microbial or fungicidal application take place in the form of seed treatment.

By placing the chemicals close to the seed farmers are able to maximize the utility of the their fertility or disease suppression program while minimizing the amount of money they would ordinarily have to spend by placing fertilizer throughout the entire field.

The proximity to the seed, and in turn the young plants' roots means that there is maximum potential for the chemicals or biologicals to be used by the seed during germination and the young plant thereafter. In other words, seed treatments, are often showing a favorable return on investment (ROI) in the field and therefore, we anticipate seed treatments to continue to gain popularity in the future..

Seed Treatment Methods

fungicide seed treatment applied by hand

Seed treatment methods vary.  The method employed usually is dependent on the number of seeds to be treated or the amount of acreage being covered with the treated seeds.  As mentioned above, some of the techniques most commonly employed involve, soaking - either in water or chemicals, coating -- usually with micronized chemical or biological treatments, creating temperature variations to enhance germination, and weakening the outer coat of the seed for increased absorption of water and other chemical nutrients.

Seed Treatment Equipment

treatment equipment from ucoatsystems.com

Seed treatment equipment that can be used includes commercial seed treaters seen in the image to the right which will often times micronize the fluid into microscopic droplets for even and consistent coverage of the seeds.  In addition, more DIY style seed treatments can be done in cement mixers or 55 gallon drum setups that have been rigged to be rotated by hand in order to get even coverage.  For smaller jobs, you can simply using a 'shake and bake' style bag to get even dispersed coverage over the surface of the seeds you are trying to treat.

Soybeans

treated soybeans

We've witnessed yield responses in soybeans when the seeds are treated with a biological inoculant. Along with tricoderma and some bacterial inoculants, we've seen consistent results by placing mycorrhizal fungi on the seed and again in the seed trench at time of planting. We will detail the results we've seen in the field from the use of mycorrhizae on the pages that follow regarding the use of fungi to extend the root mass and uptake of nutrients and water in crops.

Wheat 

treated winter wheat

Wheat seeds have a higher surface area to volume than either a soybean or corn seed, and so, when treating seeds with either liquid or dry chemical or biological treatments we will need to factor that into our calculations of cost per acre.  The increased surface area means we will need more of the seed treatment for a given volume of seed.

Corn

treated corn seed -- notice the red color

Seed treatments for corn are getting more popular.  Not just are commercial seed treators continuing to treat seeds to ward off fungal disease and other common pathogens, but growers are starting to realize that treating corn seed is one of the most consistently high R.O.I.s they can accomplish with their corn crop.

Seed Treatment Guide

Eventually on this site I will create a general guide available for download which will detail results for different seed treatment regimens as observed in the field and in various studies.  I would also like to categorize any yield or return on investment (ROI) results that I can ascertain from side by side and replicated studies done both in the field and in a university setting.

The guide will cover different treatments and techniques for different crops, in different soil types and in different climates.