Germinability and electrical conductivity of seeds of groundnut varieties

Seed quality affects crop establishment and productivity. In addition, the use of good-quality seed is an essential prerequisite for sustainable crop production including groundnuts. Assessing germinability and electrical conductivity provides early evidence of the production potential of a given crop variety or genotype. Therefore, this study assessed the germinability and electrical conductivity of seeds of three groundnut varieties. A laboratory experiment arranged in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD), replicated three times, was conducted at the Faculty of Agriculture, Kyambogo University, in 2020. Seeds of groundnut varieties Igola, Serenut 1, and Serenut 2 were tested, and data were collected on germination percentage and electrical conductivity. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed using Genstat and means were separated using the least significance test at a 5% probability level. Germination percentage and electrical conductivity significantly (p<0.05) differed among the groundnut varies, with Igola recording the highest germination percentage, followed by Serenut 1, and the lowest was in Serenut 2. The highest electrical conductivity was recorded in Serenut 1 and the lowest in Igola. Since Igola had one of the lowest electrical conductivities and the highest germination percentage, it was concluded that Igola was the most promising variety from the studied ones. This study recommends Igola to be evaluated further for growth and yield performance.