The effect of harvesting time on germination characteristics and some antioxidant properties of different wheat varieties

In order to study the effect of harvesting time on germination characteristics and some antioxidant properties of different wheat varieties, this study was carried out in a factorial in a completely randomized design with three replications in Izeh city. The experiment factors consisted of harvesting time at two levels of harvesting in hard-paste and harvesting stage at maturity stage and bread and durum wheat cultivars in six levels of Natasha, Aflak, Chamran, Dehdasht, Behrang and Karkheh. The results showed that the highest antioxidant content of the seeds, such as polyphenol, flavonoids and antioxidant capacity, belonged to Chamran cultivar and harvest at maturity stage. The least of these cultivars was Aflak and Karkheh cultivars in the stage of hardening. Also, harvest time significantly affected germination percentage and seedling length of different wheat cultivars. The percentage of germination with accelerated grain harvest decreased significantly. In interaction, harvest time and cultivar had the highest percentage of seed germination (99%) to Chamran and Dehdasht cultivars and harvest at seedling stage. Reducing the percentage of germination and consequently reducing seedling length with accelerated seed harvesting in the dough step of hardening of the seeds resulted in reduced seed yield. In general, maximum germination and antioxidant content was obtained from harvesting stage at maturity stage. Chamran cultivar compared to other cultivars showed significant superiority in terms of traits.