Synergistic effect of the simultaneous exposure to ultraviolet radiation and nano-silicon preparation to increase the rate of seed germination

Abstract

Abstract The article presents studies on the impact of ultraviolet light-emitting diodes and silicon-containing preparation “Nanosilicon” on the germination of seeds of meadow clover ‘Ranny 2’, alfalfa (Medicago varia) ‘Victoria’ and fodder galega ‘Yaltinsky’. The purpose of the studies was to investigate the synergism of the simultaneous exposure to ultraviolet radiation and nanosilicon to increase the rate of seed germination. The study was investigating ultraviolet radiation zone “A” (UV-A) for a period of 5 minutes. The average irradiance was 3.137 W/m2. A decrease to 2-3% of the amount of hard seeds of meadow clover was noted in the variants: first treatment was with ultraviolet light, and then with “Nanosilicon” (UV irradiation + “Nanosilicon”) and vice versa: first, treatment was with “Nanosilicon”, and then with ultraviolet (“Nanosilicon” + UV irradiation). In addition, a decrease to 7.9-9.5% of the seeds contamination was detected for fodder galega in almost all studied variants. The use of the preparation “Nanosilicon” and UV radiation on the seeds of alfalfa contributed to an increase in the length of the sprout up to 2.4 cm, the root up to 1.5 cm, the degree of development of seedlings up to 3.0 points, the growth rate up to 29.8%.