Effects of Storage Period, Storage Conditions and Packaging Type on Maize Inbred Line Seed Qualities

The aim of this research was to study the effects of storage period, storage condition and packaging type on maize inbred seed qualities over 12 months storage. The experimental design was split-split plot with four replications. The study manipulated storage period (0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months) as the main plot, uncontrolled storage condition (USC) and controlled storage condition (CSC) as the sub-plot, and packaging types including woven polypropylene (WPP), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polyamide (PA) with linear-low density polyethylene (LLDPE) and vacuum packing (PA + LLDPE + VACUUM, PLV) as the sub-sub plot. The results showed that the storage period did not affect seed germination; however, seed vigor decreased progressively with increased storage period. Seeds stored under USC exhibited lower moisture content, seed germination and vigor compared to those in CSC. Notably, seed vigor declined after the sixth month in USC storage. Among the packaging types, seeds in WPP had the lowest moisture content. Packaging type did not significantly influence seed germination throughout the storage period. However, different packaging types were able to maintain seed vigor for varying duration, especially for 6 months in PLV and 3 months in WPP packaging.