Effect of sowing date and harvest timing on seed vigour in garden pea ( <i>Pisum sativum</i> L.)

Abstract

Abstract Quality parameters were measured in two seasons for seeds produced from early (sown November, harvested January) and late (sown December, harvested February) crops of garden pea (Pisum sativum L.) ‘Pania’. Harvest was by hand at 15% seed moisture content (SMC). Time of sowing had no effect on the germination of the seeds produced, but did affect seed vigour as both conductivity and hollow heart were greater in seeds from the November sown crop, and as a consequence, expected field emergence (EFE) was significantly lower. At a 40% SMC harvest in the second year of study, germination and conductivity did not differ between the two sowing dates and so the EFE also did not differ significantly. However as harvest was delayed until 25 and 15% SMC, there was a higher hollow heart incidence and higher conductivity in seeds from the early crop compared with the late crop. Seeds from the November sowing encountered greater climatic extremes (temperature, rainfall, and relative humidity) during their maturation in January than seeds from the December sowing which matured in February. Although the data are only from one cultivar at one site over two seasons, the results suggest that pea seed vigour and hence potential field and storage performance could be improved by sowing to avoid detrimental climate effects during seed development and ripening.