Efficiency of priming methods in crop establishment of ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.)

The present research work was conducted to evaluate the effect of different priming methods on Zingiber officinale Rosc. variety Karthika. Hydropriming was done by immersing the ginger rhizomes in distilled water for varied time durations (6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 hour), and for halopriming different concentrations (50mM,100mM, 250mM and 500mM) of sodium chloride (NaCl) solution was used for different time durations (6, 12, 18 and 24 hour). The primed plants showed fast germination than unprimed ones. The germination percentage of haloprimed (50 mM NaCl for 24 hour) plants was 89.22% and in hydropriming it was 90.33% (24 hours). But in the case of unprimed (control) plants, the germination percentage was only 55.11%. The present study showed that the optimum time duration for priming in ginger was 24 hours. In halopriming, the growth was highest in 50 mM NaCl for 24 hours. The carbohydrate content and photosynthetic pigment content were highest in primed plants when compared to unprimed plants.When comparing both priming methods, the haloprimed plants showed highest chlorophyll content and carbohydrate content than the hydroprimed ones. But, regarding the yield, hydroprimed plants produced more tillers and thus more yield. Since, ginger is cultivated for mainly for the rhizomes, among the two priming methods investigated, hydropriming was found to be more promising than halopriming in terms of yield.