Invigoration of expired chilli plant (Capsicum frutescens L.) seeds with various concentrations and soaking duration of bean sprout extract

Abstract

Expired seed has a very low vigour and viability which can inhibit the sprout growth due to difficulty in imbibition. Bean sprout extract contains more auxin, cytokinin and gibberellic acid that are important to increase growth potential of expired seed. Therefore, it is a must to pay attention to the concentration and soaking duration of bean sprout extract when soaking the seeds. The research was conducted in March to April 2020 at Sei Rengas I Subdistrict, Medan Kota, North Sumatera, using randomized complete block design with two treatment factors. The result showed that the concentration of bean sprout extract significantly affected the parameters of the membrane leakage rate which the best treatment is soaking in aquadest. The soaking duration significantly affected the parameters of the membrane leakage rate and growth speed which the best soaking duration is 12 hours. The interaction of two treatments significantly affected the parameters of the membrane leakage rate which the best combination is soaking in aquadest for 12 hours.