2018 Volume 28 Issue S Pages 101-104
The progressing irrigation water shortage and land degradation has been challenging conventional agriculture in western Uzbekistan. With the aim to restore the degraded farm lands and to prevent further salinization and desertification, the Uzbekistan government has been promoting in recent years an alternative water-saving and value-added agriculture, such as domestication and farm production of native medicinal plants. We thus studied seed germination characteristics of Ephedra equisetina Bunge. to provide a basis for its cultivation. Based on the results we assessed different light emitting diode (LED) light factors that may promote E. equisetina seed germination. Experiments were made at the Advanced Plant Factory of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology for comparing pulp-coated and uncoated Ephedra seeds in their germination and establishment under different light colors. The seeds germinated in 24-hour LED illumination, with red light (660 nm) and blue light (460 nm) and dark (as a control), under 28/18°C day/night temperature and 40% relative humidity conditions. We used four replicates of 40 seeds in each treatment. Germination of pulp-coated E. equisetina seeds increased significantly under red light compared to control and decreased slightly under blue light. Meanwhile, germination of the uncoated seeds increased significantly under blue light compared to control and decreased relatively under red light. Red light had positive effect on seminal root growth of both pulp-coated and uncoated seeds, while shoot growth of pulp-coated seeds were higher in control. In germination of uncoated seeds, shoot length and seminal root growth significantly increased with red- and blue-light treatments compared to control.
