Efficacy of seed priming techniques on performance of maize hybrids in Multan

The present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of seed priming technologies on the performance of hybrid maize cultivated under different sowing times at University College of Agriculture, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan during 2011. The crop was cultivated on 1 st March resulted maximum cob length, number of grains per cob, 1000-grain weight while differing maize hybrids showed non-significant effect on number of rows per cob. However maize hybrid i.e. Syngenta-NK-8441 enhanced entire yield components compared to Pioneer-32B33.Different yield components were non-significantly affected by different seed enhancement techniques except grain yield which was higher in control seeds compared with hydro and osmopriming. 1 st March sown crop enjoyed the favorable environmental conditions and resulted longer primary root along with higher number of lateral roots and root growth rate. Maize hybrid Pioneer-32B33 results in well developed root system due to its genetic makeup. The effect of seed priming techniques was non-significant on root system.