Effect of Relative Humidity on Afterripening and Viability in Seeds of the Winter Annual Draba verna

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Abstract
Freshly harvested, dormant seeds of the weedy winter annual D. verna L. were stored at 10% intervals from 0-100% relative humidity (RH) at 25.degree. C from April to Oct., 1972. At 0-20% RH, seeds remained viable but did not afterripen; at 30-40% RH, a low percentage of the seeds afterripened; at 50-60% RH, a high percentage of the seeds afterripened; and at 70-100% RH, seeds rotted during storage. As in nondormant seeds of crop species, dry seeds of D. verna quickly lose viability at high temperatures and high RH. Imbibed seeds remain viable at high temperatures for long periods of time. Some ecological and physiological aspects of seed survival in moist soil are discussed.