Mimeograph Series No. 24 aanuary 1946 AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION of The Alabama Polytechnic Institute, Auburn, Ala. . .* * * * . M. J. Funchess, Director . . * SEED TREATENTS FOR iEANU TS _/ COYT WILSON, Assistant Plant Pathologis H. R. ALBRECHT, Associate Agronomist 2 I. F. REED, Senior ai-gricultural Engineer 2 Good stands of peanuts usually can be obtained from machine-shelled seed if they are treated with the proper seed disinfectant. Furthermore, seed shelled, treated, and stored as much as 6 weeks ahead of planting time produce just as good stands as those shelled immediately before planting. A small, simple, and inexpensive peanut shellerA/developed by the U.S.D.A. Farm Tillage Laboratory, tuburn, Alabama, was used in shelling the peanuts for most of the tests reported here. Seed treatments were applied immediately after shelling. Records on stands (germination and emergenee) were taken about 6 weeks after planting. Summary 1. TTeatment of machine-shelled peanut seed of both runner and S'panish type resulted in good stands. 2. Seed can be shelled and treated as much as 6 weeks before . planting. .3. Any of a number of materials may be used. rasan, Spergon, . * and Yellow Cuprocide are safe and reliable. Ceresan (2%) . 0 is reliable when used with caution. However, use of more . * than 4 ounces 2% Cereson per 100 pounds of shelled seed . * usually injures the seed. . S 4. Complete coverage of the seed with the disinfectant is nec- . . essary if best results are to be obtained. / Three-year progress report, 1943-45. 2 Indiana Agricultural Experiment Station; formerly A'ssociate Plant Breeder, Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station. 3/ U.S.D.. Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering, Farm Tillage Laboratory, Auburn, Alabama. _/ Write the Farm Tillage Laboratory, Auburn, Alabama, for information on construction and operation of sheller. Some machines appear to injure the seed more than others. The machine used in these tests has been very satisfactory. With other operators or with other machines, different results might be obtained. Treatment of Shelled and Unshelled Seed The effects of 2% Ceresan on the emergence of unshelled, hand-shelled, and machine-shelled Spanish peanut seed are given in Table 1. The greatest increases in stands (germination and emergence) were obtained from treating machine-shelled seed. Usually, hand-shelled seed germinate well even with- out treatment. As shown by these results, very little is to be gained from treating unshelled seed. The increases in germination and in emergence from treatment depended upon a number of conditions. These include quality of the seed, conditions under which they were shelled, and climatic conditions that prevailed at planting time. The greatest increases from seed treatment resulted when machine-shelled seed were used. Under some conditions the emergence was doubled. Runner and Spanish peanuts appear to respond about alike to seed treatments. Table 1. - Effect of Method of Shelling and Seed Treatment on Emergence of Spanish Peanuts, Main Station, 1943-44 Method of shelling : Disinfectant : Emergence 1943-44 average Per cent None 57.88 Not shelled 2% Ceresan 60.37 None 72.29 Hand shelled 2% Ceresan 83.71 None 50.37 Machine shelled 2% Ceresan 78.66 Materials Tested A number of different materials have been tested on both Spanish and runner peanuts. (See Tables 2 and 3.) All of the materials resulted in increased staids, some gave better results than others. In most instances 2% Ceresan was the best. However, it is necessary to use caution in apply- ing this material. More than 4 ounces of 2% Ceresan per 100 pounds of shelled seed is likely to result in poor stands. New Improved Ceresan should NEVER be used. This material contains 5 per cent of the mercury compound. Seed injury nearly always results when New Improved Ceresan is used. Most seed treatments are poisonous. They should be handled with cau- tion. Treated seed should be plainly labeled and used only for planting. Treated seed should not be used for food, livestock feed, or sold to oil mills. Arasan and Spergen are not injurious to the seed, even when used in excess of the recommended dosage. For this reason, they may be preferred to 2% Ceresan. C, if -3-- Spergon also has given good more expensive than Arason. results, but at present it is slightly Table 2. - Effect of Various Seed Disinfectants upon Emergence of Machine-Shelled Spanish Peanuts, Main Station, 1943-44 Disinfectant Emergence, 1943-44 average Per cent None 50.37 Yellow Cuprocide 67.92 Merc-O-Dust 69.29 Spergon 69.54 rasan 71.58 peresan,2% 78.66 In 1945 a number of seed disinfectants were tested on Alabama runner peanuts at the Main Station, Auburn, and at the Wiregrass Substation, Head- land. The results are given in Table 3. Dow-9, Dow 9, U. S. 604, and Fermate are still in the experimental stage as peanut seed disinfectants. They are not likely to be found in local markets. Treatments with 2% Ceresan, Arasan, Spergon, and Yellow Cuprocide, all of which are available, resulted in good increases in stands. Table 3. - Effect of Various Seed Disinfectants upon Emergence of Machine-Shelled Runner Peanuts, Wiregrass Substation and Main Station, 1945 SRate of application per : Treatment 100 pounds of :mrn shelled seed ; Headland : iuburn averago Ounces Per cent Per cent Per cent None - 46.50 63,50 55,00 Merc-0-Dust 3 47.50 67.17 57.33 Dow-9B 2 60.50 68.83 64.66 Fermate 3 59.16 74900 66.58 Dow-9 2 65.16 77.83 71.49 Yellow Cuprocide 4 72.16 72.17 72.16 Spergon 4 64.33 81.17 72.75 Arasan 3 69.66 78.67 74.16 U. S. 604 2 - 80.00 - Ceresan 2% 4 81.16 79.33 80.24 Shelling in Advanco of Planting Some farmers believe that seed must be shelled just before planting. Otherwise poor stands result. Experiments in 1944 and 1945 by this Station show that this is not the case. Peanuts were shelled and treated 6 weeks, 3 weeks, and 1 day before planting. All seeds were planted the same day. There was no great difference in the stands due to the time of shelling. This was true for both runner and Spanish peanuts. ,-I-pis peanuts. ---