Aqueous Extracts of Plants on the Physiological and Sanitary Quality of Chenopodium Quinoa Seeds as an Alternative to Conventional Seed Treatment

Abstract

This work evaluated the effect of aqueous plant extracts from chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev), cinnamon (Melia azedarach L.) and clove (Syzygium aromaticum L.) in the physiological and sanitary quality of germinating Chenopodium quinoa Willd (quinoa) seeds, as an alternative to seed treatment. The experiment was carried out under laboratory conditions in the year 2018. The experimental design was completely randomized in a 2×10 factorial scheme (two lots of quinoa seeds × ten doses of concentrated plant extracts), with four replicates each. The quinoa seeds were exposed to the plant extracts separately for ten minutes by submersion at the concentrations of 0, 1, 5 and 10%. The variables evaluated were germination, first germination count, field emergence, germination and emergence speed index, seedling length and sanity. The aqueous plant extracts of Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev, Melia azadarach L. and Syzygium aromaticum L. used in the quinoa seed treatment raised the emergence speed and the fungi control of these seeds within the variations and situations of each batch. The D. grandiflora extract, in all concentrations used, improved seed germination index, obtaining the highest rate of 70% in seeds treated with 5% concentration compared to the control treatment, which obtained 59%. M. azedarach (10% concentration) is the best treatment for emergence speed improvement, while S. aromaticum (10% concentration) provides the highest control of pathogens: 28% in relation to the control treatment that obtained 75%. These results highlighted the viability of the use of these species with low toxicity to man and the environment as treatment of quinoa seeds.