Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), a significant cereal crop from the Gramineae family, serves as a vital source of protein, essential minerals, B-group vitamins, and dietary fiber. However, its productivity is often hindered by issues such as poor seed germination, which can adversely affect yield and crop quality. This study investigated the effects of different silicon concentrations and priming durations on wheat germination and seedling growth. Analysis of variance revealed that silicon treatment significantly influenced key parameters of germination and growth, including germination percentage (GP), germination index (GI), vigor index (VI), radicle length (RL), plumule length (PL), and seedling dry weight (SDW). Priming with silicon at a concentration of 1 mM resulted in notable improvements, increasing GP, GI, VI, RL, and PL by 10.6%, 65.5%, 29.4%, 18.6%, and 28.6%, respectively, after 6 hours of priming. Certain germination traits demonstrated strong positive correlations, particularly GP and GI (r = 0.96) and VI and RL (r = 0.94), after 4 hours of priming. These improvements in seed germination and seedling development may result from enhanced water uptake, stimulated cell division, and increased hydrolytic enzyme activity, which facilitate the mobilization of seed reserves and accelerate the growth of embryonic tissues.

ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
MATERIALS AND METHODS
    Planting materials, treatments, and experimental design
    Priming of wheat seeds
    Germination testing of wheat seeds
    Study parameters
    Statistical Analysis
RESULTS
    Analysis of variance of germination and seedling growth
    Effect of Si on the GP of wheat
    Effects of Si on the GI and VI of Wheat
    Effects of Si on the RL and PL of wheat
    Effects of Si on the SFW and SDW of Wheat
    Correlation analysis of wheat seed germination andseedling growth
DISCUSSION
적 요
REFERENCES

• Frank Mwilenga Steven(Department of Food Security and Agricultural Development, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea) | 스티븐 프랭크 윌랭가 (경북대학교 식량안보 및 농업개발학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국)
• Mohammad Shafiqul Islam(Department of Applied Biosciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea, Department of Integrative Biology, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea) | 이슬람 모하마드 샤피쿨 (경북대학교 응용생명과학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국, 경북대학교 농생명융합공학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국)
• Liny Lay(Department of Applied Biosciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea, Department of Integrative Biology, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea) | 라이 리니 (경북대학교 응용생명과학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국, 경북대학교 농생명융합공학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국)
• Amit Ghimire(Department of Food Security and Agricultural Development, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea, Department of Applied Biosciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Kore) | 기미레 아미트 (경북대학교 식량안보 및 농업개발학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국, 경북대학교 응용생명과학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국)
• Yoonha Kim(Department of Applied Biosciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea, Department of Integrative Biology, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, South Korea) | 김윤하 (경북대학교 응용생명과학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국, 경북대학교 농생명융합공학과, 대구 41566, 대한민국) Corresponding author