The greatest dilemma that most farmers face is in selecting the right seed to plant. Farmers have had challenges where they buy seeds and fail to germinate or germinate poorly. Where germination occurs, the seedlings are of poor quality and most of them end up producing poor yields.
Before buying our seeds we look at the following;
Climate conditions of the farm
Different seeds perform differently depending on the prevailing soil condition and changing weather patterns. What kind of seed do you need? Is it a tuber? Does it require irrigation or can produced with rain? It is always good to carry out a soil test analysis to diagnose the health of the soil.
Recommendation from soil test analysis gives clear details of the seed to be planted.
Seeds Purity
Source; Basic agricultural study
According to the Food Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), a seed is considered pure if it appears normal in terms of size, shape and general outward appearance.
Seed is considered impure if it is too small, has been partly eaten by insects or exhibits fungal stains. It is expressed as a percentage of the weight of pure seeds in a sample to the total weight of seeds of a sample.
The higher the percentage the more pure seeds are in the package.
Seeds germination capacity
This is the percentage of seeds in the pack that can germinate in the right conditions of water, air and warmth. A higher percentage means more seeds will germinate. Germination capacity also shows to what extent the seeds are viable.
Seeds viability is the measure of the number of seeds that are still alive to produce plants.
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Packaging and expiry date
The older the seeds the less viable they are. Some seeds stay viable for many years while others might only last a short time. Onions for example only last a year while watermelon and cabbages last four years or more. Always buy seeds that are less than six months old to be on the safe side.
For those buying raised seedlings, there is a challenge where rogue seed raisers are selling the wrong seedlings only for the farmers to realize late. Since it’s hard to differentiate fourteen-day old seedlings; ensure you source your seedlings from a trusted raiser.
