Dark‐Germination of Reciprocal Hybrid Seed from Light‐Requiring and ‐Indifferent Nicotiana tabacum

Seed resulting from self‐fertilization of Nicotiana tabacum plants was tested for germination in uninterrupted darkness at monthly intervals beginning at time of harvest. All seed lots were light‐requiring immediately after harvest. Some lots continued to be light‐requiring, but others gradually became light‐indifferent during storage under laboratory conditions. One light‐requiring and one light‐indifferent selection were self‐pollinated, and reciprocally crossed. The seed resulting from self‐fertilization was light‐requiring or light‐indifferent, respectively, according to the parentage. Seed resulting from the reciprocal crosses differed in dark‐germinability. Further, dark‐germination of seed from each of the reciprocal crosses differed from that of either parent. Both parents contributed toward light sensitivity of the seed; however, contribution of the maternal parent was greater than that of the pollen parent.