All the biopriming treatments were found to be beneficial by recording higher seed quality parameters over control in the seeds of green gram. The data on present investigation indicated significant differences among the biopriming seed treatments for seed quality parameters (Table 1 and Fig 1). Among the bioprimings, the seed bioprimed with
Rhizobium leguminosarum @ 20 per cent recorded higher seed quality parameters
viz., seed germination percentage (90.50 %), shoot length (19.27 cm), root length (12.38 cm), seedling length (31.65 cm), seedling dry weight (373.0 mg), seedling vigour index I (2864), seedling vigour index II (33.75), dehydrogenase enzyme activity (1.010 OD value) and lower electrical conductivity (0.107 dS m
-1) followed by
Pseudomonas fluorescens @ 20 per cent,
Fluorescent pseudomonad sp.
@ 20 per cent. The increased per cent germination noticed with
Rhizobium leguminosarum @ 20 per cent followed by
Pseudomonas fluorescens @ 20 per cent,
Fluorescent pseudomonad sp.
@ 20 per cent was to the tune of 16.77, 14.19 and 12.90 per cent respectively. While control recorded lower seed germination percentage (77.50 %), shoot length (10.74 cm), root length (8.45 cm), seedling length (19.19 cm), seedling dry weight (214.8 mg), seedling vigour index I (1492), seedling vigour index II (16.65), dehydrogenase enzyme activity (0.576 OD value) and higher electrical conductivity (0.365 dS m
-1). The higher seed quality parameters in seeds treated with
Rhizobium leguminosarum @ 20 per cent was mainly attributed to increased synthesis of hormones like gibberellins, which would have triggered the activity of specific enzymes that promoted early germination such as amylase, which have brought an increase in availability of starch assimilations. Higher germination may be due to completion of pre germination metabolic activities during seed priming, making the seed ready for germination soon after planting and the highest germination percentage
(Fazulla et al., 2017 in green gram). The variation in seed germination percentage and seedling length may be attributed to plant growth promotional effect of seed primers especially bioagents that may produce growth regulatory substances (hormones) upon seed imbibitions
(Sathiya et al., 2017 in back gram). The results are in agreement with
Vishwas et al., 2017 in chickpea by mentioning the variation in seed germination percentage and seedling length may be attributed to plant growth promotional effect of seed primers especially bioagents that may produce growth regulatory substances (hormones) upon seed imbibitions. Similar results of enhanced speed of germination, germination percentage, root length, shoot length, dry matter production and vigour index were also reported the treated seeds by
Srimathi et al., (2007) and
Kamaraj and Padmavathi (2012) in green gram.