10

. Technology and Livelihood

Education
Agricultural Arts - 10
Quarter 3 - Module 4
Produce Vegetables: Growing Seedlings

Government Property

NOT FOR SALE

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Lesson
Grow Seedlings: Conduct
4 Seed Testing

In the previous lesson you learn on the characteristics of the good

quality seeds. After selecting your seeds for planting, you must also test the
viability of your seeds.

What I Need to Know

At the end of the lesson, the learner is expected to:

LO 2.2. Conduct seed testing

What I Know

Pretest
Choose the letter of the best answer. Write your answer on a separate sheet
of paper.
1. It is the resumption of the growth of the seed embryo after the period of
dormancy.
A. seed dormancy
B. seed germination
C. seed viability
D. seed maturity
2. What is seed testing?
A. Done to determine the physical purity and germination to assess the
quality of the seeds.
B. The operation involved in determining whether or not the seeds is
viable and free of injuries.
C. Both A & B
D. None of the above

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3. The following are the purpose of seed testing , EXCEPT
A. Remove impurities
B. Obtain uniform stand of crops
C. Economize expenses in replanting
D. None of the above
4. This will provide an estimation on the viability of the population of the seeds
tested.
A. Seed quality
B. Seed quantity
C. Percentage germination
D. Seed testing
5. Which of the following statement is correct?
A. Use personal protective equipment in handling chemicals.
B. Dispense the chemicals in a well ventilated area.
C. Do not follow the manufacturer’s recommendations
D. Both A and B
6. Mang Juan sow 130 tomato seeds in a tray. After several days only 100
seeds germinated. What is the percentage germination?
A. 86%
B. 96%
C. 76%
D. 100%
7. It is performed to determine the viability, cleanliness and percentage
germination.
A. seed treatment
B. seed testing
C. seed viability
D. seed maturity
8. It is considered as the quickest method of testing seeds.
A. ragdoll method
B. petri dish method
C. floating in water
D. seed box method
9. How to compute for the percentage germination?
A. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of
germinated seeds by 100 and divided by the number of seeds tested.
B. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of
germinated seeds by 50 and divided by the number of seeds
germinated
C. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of seeds
tested by 100 and divided by the number of seeds germinated.
D. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of
germinated seeds by the number of seeds tested and divided by 100
10. Which of the following statement is correct?
A. Clean up the spilled chemical after working.
B. Avoid labeling the chemicals.
C. You can smoke when handling chemicals
D. Always use mask, gloves and other protective gear when handling
chemicals.
11 In germinating seeds using seed box, you should water the soil thoroughly

2
 and make sure it is soaking wet prior to sowing seeds.
A. true
B. false
C. sometimes
D. most of the times
12. Which of the following statement is incorrect?
A. Always provide emergency eye wash when handling chemicals
B. Handle the chemicals even without protective gear.
C. Change your clothes after using chemicals
D. Always wash your hands after handling chemicals.

13. Why is seed testing important?

A. It helps you determine the quality of seeds.
B. It gives assurance that the seeds that you are going to plant will still
germinate.
C. To determine whether the seeds are still viable.
D. All of the above.
14. This methods works well for large seeds.
A. Rag doll method
B. Petri – dish method
C. Seed box method
D. Floating in water method
15. If you test 100 seeds and only 79 seeds germinated. What is the percentage
germination?
A. 79 %
B. 50%
C. 69%
D. 87%

3
 What’s In

We learned from the previous lesson on how to select a good quality

seeds based on the given characteristics. We also learned the advantage and
disadvantage of using your own produced seeds for planting
After learning the proper way of selecting and procuring good quality
seed we will now learn the seed germination test and its importance,
different methods of seed germination test, computing seed germination and
safety precautions in using chemicals.

What’s New

Seed testing is determining the physical purity and germination to assess the
quality of the seeds. Seed Testing is possible for those who buy and use seeds. This
will help you to estimate the viability of seed population.
What is seed testing? How and why are they tested? We will find out in this
lesson.

What is it

Seed Germination is the resumption of the growth of the seed embryo after
the period of dormancy.
Most of the local farmers who are in small scale vegetable gardening, save
their own seeds for the next planting season. To make sure that your seeds is still
viable you have to conduct seed testing.

One of the most important reasons is to determine quality of seeds – meaning

the level of degree of their suitability for a particular purpose–producing a crop.
(https://ir.library.msstate.edu)

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 The objective of seed testing is to assure that the seeds that you are going to
plant is still viable for planting.

Purposes of seed testing

1. Remove impurities
2. Find out the percentage of seed germination
3. Economize labor and expenses in re- planting
4. Obtain a uniform stand of crops
5. Discover whether or not the seeds is true to its name

The following are the various seed testing method which can be
performed by the home gardener/ planters:
1. Floating in Water.
Duration for this method is about 15-20 minutes. It is the
quickest method.
Steps:
a. Take your seeds and put them in an exceedingly jar or basin of
water. Allow them to set for 10-15 minutes. If the seeds sinks,
they’re still viable for planting, if they float, they presumable
won’t sprout. These method works well for large seeds like corn
and bean seeds but this may not work if the seeds are very tiny
like petchay and carrot seeds. (https://rockinwhomestead.com/reliable-
seed-germination-tests/)

2. Rag doll method

Duration for this method is about 3-14 days depending on the kind of
seeds you are going to test. This is the time- tested method for old seeds.
Materials needed: paper towel or any moisture holding materials,
seeds, water and plastic zip bag.
• Wet the paper towel and fold in fourths. It should be moistened,
not dripping.
• Put your seeds inside the paper towel and make sure the seeds
are not touching.
• Place the wet paper towel inside the plastic bag.
• Check the packaged every few days and note the germination.
3. Petri dish method. The seeds will b germinated petri dish
Materials needed : petri dish , filter paper , seeds

• Moisten a piece of filter paper in a petri dish

• Place the seeds in row
4. Seedbox or seedbox. Fill the seed box with soil. Water them
thoroughly and let the excess water drain out. When you plant the seeds
make sure that the soil should be moist but not soaking wet.

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Percentage Germination
Percentage germination provides a good estimation on the viability of the
population of the seeds tested. In obtaining the percentage germination you will be
able to determine whether the seeds you bought or stored are of good quality or not.
Computing percentage of seed germination
How to compute the percentage germination of the seeds? What formula will be
used to obtain percentage germination?
The percentage germination is computed using the given formula:
No. of seeds germinated
% germination =_______________________________ × 100
Total number of seeds sown/tested

Safety Precautions on Handling Chemicals

• Use PPE ( Personal Protective Equipment).
• Dispense chemicals in well ventilated area.
• Follow manufacturer’s recommendations.
• Label and restore the chemicals properly.
• Provide emergency eye wash.
• Clean up spills immediately.
• Change your clothes after using chemicals.
• Do not smoke when handling chemicals.

What’s More

Activity 3

Prepare 50 bean seeds and a seedbox.

Sow the seeds in the seedbox and water them
Visit the seed box after 2-3 days

Answer the following questions based on your observation.

1. What happened to the seeds in the seed box?

___________________________________________________________________
2. How many seeds have sprouted?
____________________________________________________________________
3. How many seeds did not sprout?
____________________________________________________________________

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 4. Using the formula given compute for the percentage germination of
the bean seeds

Activity 4

Angie performed the paper towel method in testing the viability of her eggplant
seeds. She tested 120 seeds of eggplant. After several days there were only 95
seeds germinated.
Using the formula given compute for the percentage germination of the
eggplant seeds.
Given: No. of seeds tested = 120
No. of seeds germinated = 95
No. of seeds germinated
% germination =_______________________________ × 100
Total number of seeds sown/tested

95
% germination = ___________ x 100
120

% germination = ___________________

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 What I Have Learned

True or False. Write True if the statement is correct and false if it is

incorrect.
_____ 1. Seed treatment is performed to determine the viability
and purity of the seeds
_____ 2. Seed testing is the operation involving the
identification as to whether or not the seeds are viable,
clean and free from diseases and mixture.
_____ 3. Always use protective equipment when handling
chemicals.
_____ 4. Label the chemicals
_____ 5. Floating in water method is applicable to all types of
seeds.

Activity 5

1. Analyze the situation below and compute for the percentage

germination of seeds used.

Mang Juan tested 150 tomato seeds. After several days only 130
seeds germinated. What is the percentage germination of tomato seeds
tested?

What I Can Do

Activity 6 Seed Germination

Collect 50 monggo seeds. Prepare a plate and a tissue paper. Moisten

the tissue on the plate and arrange the seeds on it and then cover it with
another moisten tissue. Observe what will happen to the seed next day.

Answer the following questions:

1. What happen to the seeds on the plate?

2. Compute for the percentage germination of the monggo seeds.

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Summary
Seed testing is an operation done to determine whether or not the seed is
viable. It will give you assurance that the seeds that you are going to plant is still
viable.
There are different methods of seed testing: floating in water which is
applicable only to large seeds, rag doll method which use paper towels or any
moisture holding materials to germinate the seeds, we also have petri dish method
and seed box method where you sow seed in a moist soil.

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Assessment
Choose the letter of the best answer. Write your answer on a separate sheet of
paper.
1. It is the resumption of the growth of the seed embryo after the period of
dormancy.
A. seed dormancy
B. seed germination
C. seed viability
D. seed maturity
2. What is seed testing?
A. Done to determine the physical purity and germination to assess the
quality of the seeds.
B. The operation involved in determining whether or not the seeds is
viable and free of injuries.
C. Both A & B
D. None of the above
3. The following are the purpose of seed testing , EXCEPT
A. Remove impurities
B. Obtain uniform stand of crops
C. Economize expenses in replanting
D. None of the above
4. This will provide an estimation on the viability of the population of the seeds
tested.
A. Seed quality
B. Seed quantity
C. Percentage germination
D. Seed testing
5. Which of the following statement is correct?
A. Use personal protective equipment in handling chemicals.
B. Dispense the chemicals in a well ventilated area.
C. Do not follow the manufacturer’s recommendations
D. Both A and B
6. Mang Juan sow 130 tomato seeds in a tray. After several days only 100
seeds germinated. What is the percentage germination?
A. 86%
B. 96%
C. 76%
D. 100%
7. It is performed to determine the viability , cleanliness and percentage
germination.
A. seed treatment
B. seed testing
C. seed viability
D. seed maturity

10
8. It is considered as the quickest method of testing seeds.
A. ragdoll method
B. petri dish method
C. floating in water
D. seed box method
9. How to compute for the percentage germination?
A. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of
germinated seeds by 100 and divided by the number of seeds tested.
B. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of
germinated seeds by 50 and divided by the number of seeds
germinated
C. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of seeds
tested by 100 and divided by the number of seeds germinated.
D. Percentage germination is obtain by multiplying the number of
germinated seeds by the number of seeds tested and divided by 100
10. Which of the following statement is correct?
A. Clean up the spilled chemical after working.
B. Avoid labeling the chemicals.
C. You can smoke when handling chemicals
D. Always use mask, gloves and other protective gear when handling
chemicals.
11 In germinating seeds using seed box, you should water the soil thoroughly
and make sure it is soaking wet prior to sowing seeds.
A. true
B. false
C. sometimes
D. most of the times
12. Which of the following statement is incorrect?
A. Always provide emergency eye wash when handling chemicals
B. Handle the chemicals even without protective gear.
C. Change your clothes after using chemicals
D. Always wash your hands after handling chemicals.

13. Why is seed testing important?

A. It helps you determine the quality of seeds.
B. It gives assurance that the seeds that you are going to plant will still
germinate.
C. To determine whether the seeds are still viable.
D. All of the above.
14. This methods works well for large seeds.
A. Rag doll method
B. Petri – dish method
C. Seed box method
D. Floating in water method
15. If you test 100 seeds and only 79 seeds germinated. What is the percentage
germination?
A. 79 %
B. 50%
C. 69%
D. 87%

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