Influence of treatment of grain seeds with natural adsorbents on the phytosanitary condition of seed material

Abstract

In the conditions of Western Siberia, there is a problem of annual damage to grain crops by a complex of phytopathogens, which affects several qualities of seed material, such as germination, germination energy, etc. The conditions of grain formation and harvesting also influence these indicators. The accumulation of waste products of phytopathogens in grain leads to a deterioration in its organoleptic properties, a decrease in germination, and mycotoxins pose a danger to human health. Thus, processing seed material to protect it from diseases and pests is one of the most economical plant protection measures. At the same time, due to the many harmful properties of chemicals - such as environmental hazards and high processing costs - it becomes advisable to search for safer methods. In this work, natural adsorbents based on clays of various origins were used to study their effect on the phytosanitary state of grain seeds during post-harvest processing. The study examined such indicators of the phytosanitary state of seed material as the initial contamination of seeds before storage and the prevalence and indices of disease development in the tillering phase after treating seeds with various clays. The results showed that, in general, treatment with adsorbents has a beneficial effect on the phytosanitary condition of grain seeds. Treatment of spring wheat seeds with white clay led to significantly lower rates of prevalence and development of root rot. A similar result was obtained in an experiment with winter wheat when seeds were treated with red clay. On rye, a decrease in the development of root rot was observed when treated with white and yellow clays, and on barley – with white and red; in the experiment with yellow clay, no positive effect was observed on barley.