PREDICTING THE GERMINATIVE ENERGY OF DORMANT MALTING BARLEY DURING STORAGE

Abstract

The management of dormant barley stocks for malting requires a method of predicting germinative energy under given conditions during storage. A method of quantifying the relationship between storage temperature and the dormancy period is developed based on probit analysis. The experimental data were obtained using Triumph barley. The conditions covered in the experimental work were 8°C to 38°C storage temperature at 12% moisture content, wet basis. Combined use of the dormancy model with an existing viability model allows the prediction of germinative energy as a function of storage temperature and moisture content given the initial germinative energy and capacity values. The effects of storage temperature on the variation in germination over time of dormant bariey samples with various initial germinative capacities, and storage moisture contents are investigated using the model. The results indicate that storage at moisture contents below 12% give significant increases in the germination level that can be achieved. 1994 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling