Effects of maternal plant nutrition on the absorption of some nutritional elements and germination characteristicsof Cumin (Cuminum cyminum L.)

Proper nutrition of mother plant plays an important role in the production of seeds with high vigor. Therefore, a factorial experiment was done in a completely randomized design with 12 treatments and 3 replications to study the germination characteristics of cumin seeds which harvested from mother plants treated with different amounts of vermicompost and mycorrhiza fertilizers, in the Faculty of Agriculture, Yasouj University, Iran, in 2013. Vermicompost treatments consisted of three levels (0, 5 and 10 tons per hectare), and mycorrhiza fungi consisted of 4 levels (control, inoculation with Glomusmossae, inoculation with Glomusintraradices and inoculation with both species). For most of the germination traits, as well as seed nitrogen and phosphorus content, the effects of vermicompost and mycorrhiza were significant.  Results showed that the highest radicle length (2.57 cm), plumule length (1.61 cm) and vigor index (3.069) of the seeds was achieved by application of 10 ton vermicompost with G. mosseae, the highest seed nitrogen and phosphorus content observedin the application of 10 tons of vermicompost plus inoculation with two fungi, the largest seedling length was observed in application of 10 ton/ha vermicompost without mycorrhiza, the highest germination rate in the treatment of application 5 ton vermicompost without mycorrhiza and the highest germination percentage were obtainedin treatment of 5 tons vermicompost and G. mosseaeOverall, the results of this experiment showed that application of vermicompost and mycorrhiza especially combined treatment of 10  ton/ha verrmicompost plus G. mosseae and G.intraradices could increase uptake of nutritional elements such as nitrogen and phosphorous to seeds and  therefore enhance germination performance in cumin seeds.