The effect of nutrient seed priming with iron sulfate and zinc sulfate on the germination and seedling growth of lentil seeds

In a laboratory study, the effect of seed nutritional pretreatment on germination and seedling growth traits of lentil (Lens culinaris Med.) in the form of two separate experiments in the form of a completely randomized design with three replications for two pretreatment materials [prime with iron sulfate (FeSO4) and zinc sulfate (ZnSO4) ] were investigated. In each experiment and for each prime material, five levels of prime material concentration (30, 60, 90, 120 and 150 mM) were considered. The measured traits were germination percentage and speed, length of root and shoot, wet and dry weight of seedling, and longitudinal root index of seedling. The results of the data showed that in terms of the type of pretreatment, iron sulfate was superior to zinc sulfate and caused the major improvement of the germination indicators, except for the germination speed. Also, by increasing the concentration from 30 to 60 mM, the highest indicators of germination and seedling growth were obtained. However, with a further increase in the concentration of the pre-treatment material, a decreasing trend was observed in all the measured traits, which could possibly be due to the toxicity in the seeds under high concentrations of metals. In general, according to the obtained results, it seems that the use of these two substances, especially iron sulfate, with a maximum concentration of 60 mM, is beneficial for improving the germination and nutritional characteristics of seeds.