Due to the growing environmental and health concerns with chemical plant stimulants, there is a growing need to find alternative sources of plant stimulants that could help the seeds germinate and sustain their growth in the global climate change scenario. The article compares various seed stimulants such as chemical compounds (benzothiadiazole, salicylic acid, glycine betaine), alcoholic extracts from commercial plant products (English oak bark, ginger spices, turmeric spices, caraway fruits) and from wild plant leaves (Japanese pagoda tree, Himalayan balsam, stinging nettle and Bohemian knotweed) and their effects on wheat seed germination and seedling characteristics. It was found that BTH had significantly lower effect on seedling characteristics such as SG3 (%), SG5 (%), R/S III, SVI I (mm) and SVI III (mg) followed by ZO on SG3 (%), SG5 (%) and GI (unit). Significantly highest R/S III was found in SJ treatment, while SVI I (mm) and SVI III (mg) characteristics were significantly enhanced by treatment with CC and RB. It seems that such plant materials could be useful in alternative agriculture for different purposes.

Crop Research Institute Drnovská 507 73 161 06 Prague Czech Republic

Department of Environmental Ecology and Landscape Management Faculty of Natural Sciences Comenius University Bratislava Ilkovičova 6 84215 Bratislava Slovakia

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