This document discusses seed health status of farmer saved seeds in India. It makes three key points: 1) Farmers in India rely heavily on saved seeds from previous harvests, with only 10-12% of crop area using certified seeds. Saved seeds often have poor quality in terms of germination, purity and health. 2) Research has shown that sorting and treating saved seeds can help reduce fungal infections and increase yields. Untreated saved seeds are more likely to be contaminated with pathogens, weeds and have lower germination rates. 3) The continuous use of poor quality saved seeds can negatively impact crop yields and quality over time. Promoting higher seed replacement rates through training, subsidized quality seeds

1. 1

2. 2
Seed Health Status of
Farmer Saved Seeds
Speaker: Ranganatha G.K
Sr. M.Sc (Agri)
I.D.No: PAK 8241

3. Introduction
Seed is considered as a basic vital input for
agriculture development due to the fact that it ensures
grain production and adds new genetic resource to the
crop gene pool.
The productivity of crop is directly linked to the
quality of seed used, though management practices and
supplementary inputs exert profound influences. (Shetty.,
2000).
Though minimum standards for seed health
certification have been prescribed in India, farmers are
not yet aware of these standards. Use of seeds with poor
health status results lower plant density and yield per unit
3

4. 4
Facts about
farmer saved seeds

5. Globally, around three quarters of the world
farmers save seeds for sowing from harvest to harvest
(Tunwar, 1988).
In India, out of 329 million hectare area, 120
million hectare area is under food crops , hardly 10-12
per cent area is grown with quality/certified seeds
(Meena Kumari et al., 2009),
Non availability of adequate quality seed forces
the farmers to use their own saved seed.
Farmers often use seed that have impurities and
contaminants which are infected with pathogens many
a times (Fujisaka et al., 1993).
5

6. Farmers rely on and use farm saved seeds to the extent
of 80 to 85%. Farm saved seeds is of poor quality interms of
germination, vigour, purity (physical & genetic), health etc.
Their continuous use affect the crop yield and quality.
Source: National Conference on Agriculture for Kharif Campaign , 2007-08.
In Andhra Pradesh, 85 per cent of the seed is being used
by the farmers of their own saved seeds or the seed that
bartered or exchanged with other farmers. (Meena Kumari et
al., 2009).
It has also been reported that farmers saved seed had the
maximum percentage of ‘off-type’ plants compared to that
produced by certified seed samples of rice, green gram and
wheat (Murali et al ., 2000).
For achieving higher productivity, use of quality seed
leading to highest germination is essential
6

7. 7
A Case study in karnataka (Ground nut)
In Karnataka, 73 per cent of farmers use their own saved seeds
24 per cent of farmers exchange the seeds or buy the
seeds from other farmers
03 per cent of farmers buy the seeds from either public
or private companies
Generations of seed used by farmers in Karnataka
Generation Percentage
1 26.56
2 13.64
3 10.90
4 6.36
5 7.28
6 6.36
7 1.82
8 10.00
9 3.64
10 13.45
(Narayanaswamy et al., 1995)

8. 8
State Own
harvest
Other
farmers
Private
trader
Govt.
Agency
Andhra
Pradesh
8 1 84 7
Bihar 15 2 77 6
Karnataka 5 1 73 20
Madhya
Pradesh
64 3 14 19
Rajasthan 69 6 13 12
Uttar
Pradesh
67 10 9 14
Mean 38 4 45 13
Source of maize seed used by the farmers of different states in India (per ce
(Text book on Principals of Seed Production and Quality Control, 2004)

9. 9
Sl.No. CROP 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11* 2011-12*
1 Paddy 29.0 30.0 31.0 33.0 35.0
2 Ragi 26.0 27.0 28.0 29.0 30.0
3 Jowar--Var. 23.0 23.5 24.0 25.0 25.0
4 Bajra-- Var 25.0 26.0 27.0 28.0 30.0
5 Wheat 18.0 18.5 19.0 19.5 20.0
6 Redgram 19.0 20.0 22.0 24.0 25.0
7 Greengram 19.0 20.0 22.0 24.0 25.0
8 Blackgram 19.0 20.0 22.0 24.0 25.0
9 Cowpea 19.0 20.0 22.0 24.0 25.0
10 Bengalgram 19.0 19.5 19.5 20.0 20.0
11 Groundnut 9.0 10.0 10.5 11.0 12.0
12 Sunflower--Var 23.0 24.0 24.5 25.0 25.0
13 Safflower 19.0 21.0 23.0 24.0 25.0
14 Soybean 28.0 29.0 31.0 33.0 35.0
15 Sesamum 8.5 9.0 9.5 10.0 10.0
16 Castor 8.5 9.0 9.5 10.0 10.0
17 Cotton--Var. 14.0 16.0 18.0 19.0 20.0
Seed Replacement Rates in
Karnataka
(www. seed net portal)
* Advance estimates

10. 10
Crop
ALL INDIA
actual
2000-01
Paddy 20 %
Wheat 15%
Maize 20%
Pulses 15%
Seed Replacement Rates in India for major
crops
(www. seed net portal)

11. 11
What makes farmers to use saved seeds
of previous crop harvest?
It’s the lack of awareness on the use of
“Quality Seeds” and source of
availability of the “Quality Seeds”.
(Meena Kumari et al.,2009)
Timely availability of quality seeds (???)

12. 12
How the farmers save seeds for next planting season?

13. 13
Storage structure used by farmers to save seeds
Wooden structure
On farm storage
Drum storage Bamboo bins

14. 14
Under ground storage structure

15. 15
Scientific storage structures

16. 16
Which seeds can be saved?
Seeds can be saved to sow new crops in the future, but not
all seeds are suitable for saving.
Varieties suitable for seed saving include local varieties that
have been grown in one region for a very long time.
Self-pollinating crops (e.g., beans and peas)
Open-pollinated varieties of some cross-pollinating crops
(e.g., pepper, cucumber and carrot).
(AVRDC, 2005)

17. 17
How to keep seeds pure?
Isolation in distance
Bagging
Caging

18. 18
What is the best way to store seeds?
Seeds stored in air-tight containers to prevent them from
absorbing moisture

19. 19
Impact of use of farm saved seeds
Increase in disease incidence
Pest (insect and microorganisms) attack during
storage which hinders the crop growth upon planting
Transmission of weed seeds which suppress the crop
growth
Lower yields/crop productivity
Decline of physical purity after harvest by admixtures
and in turn lowers the germination and vigour

20. 20
Indigenous technologies or
Traditional storage practices for
saving seeds adopted by farmers
(Karthikeyan et al., 2008)

21. 21
Red gram storage with common
salt
In this practice, about 200 gm of salt was
mixed for a kg of red gram grains manually.
These treated grains should be stored in
jute gunny bags after stitching.
As salt has abrasive action on insect skin
prevents its movement inside the storage
containers.
Farmers opinion: This practice stored red
gram grains for short-term duration of 6-8
months. Farmers perceived this practice to be
moderately effective and affordable in cost.

22. 22
Ash seed treatment in sorghum
Ash, mixed with the sorghum (Sorghum
bicolor) seeds at the ratio of 1:4.
After the ash treatment, sorghum seeds
should be tied airtight in the jute gunny bags.
During storage, grains losses were reduced
by various insects, e.g. rice weevil(Sitophilus
oryzae), rodents,(Tatera indica) and mite
(Oligonychus indicus).
Farmers strongly believed that ash application controlled
these losses considerably up to an extent of 80%. Farmers
using this technology stored the sorghum grains for 6
months without any storage pest problems.

23. 23
Ragi storage with neem leaves
The strong odour of neem
(Azadirachta indica) leaves keep the
storage pests like lesser grain
borers (Rhyzopertha dominica), saw
toothed beetle (Oryzaephilus
surinamemsis) and flat grain beetle
(Cryptolestes minutus) away by
repellent mechanism.
Being very cheap and simple most of
the farmer followed this technology to
get rid of storage pest than to relay on
costlier chemical treatments.

24. 24
Storage of grains using
camphor
Farmers indigenously practiced
this simple method in grain storage.
In this practice, about 1gm of
camphor piece per 5 kg of grains was
placed as such in the jute gunny
bags.
A short-term storage of grains up to 3
months was possible with this traditional
storage method and after that the grains
were to be sun-dried and then kept
with fresh camphor pieces for
subsequent storage.

25. 25
Storage of seeds with lime
Farmers traditionally followed a
practice of storing pulse grains along
with lime powder.
In this practice, dusting about 10
gm of lime per kg of grains. After
thorough mixing , storing in jute gunny
bags were followed.
The lime had a property of emitting
irritating odour that repells insects and
preventing the grains from damage. By
this way, grains could be stored for even
one year.

26. 26
Storage of vegetable seeds with cow dung
Vegetable seeds such as ash gourd
(Benincasa hispida), bitter gourd
(Momordica charantia), bottle gourd
(Lagenaria siceraria), etc. are embedded in
cow dung and then dried under sun for 2-3
days.
After drying, the seeds are got to be
sticked on to the Varati. These Varaties then
stored in open / inside wooden boxes.
Farmers opinion: Vegetable seeds can be
stored by this method even up to one year.
Farmers believed that cow dung has
pesticidal property and immunostimulant
properties which could increase germination
and viability .

27. 27
This practice was being followed from more than 35 yrs,
farmers store
the tamarind (Tamarindus indica) by mixing salt with it.
After harvest, tamarind was removed from its pods and then
stored in
earthen pots in layers and spreading of salt in between the
tamarind
layers.
For this practice, about 10 gm of salt was used for per kg of
tamarind
By this way of storage, storage pests like beetles and Indian
meal moth
(Plodia cautella) were prevented.
Storage of tamarind with common salt

28. 28
Storage of grains with sweet
flag
This method was being practiced for
more than 40 yrs. Farmers practiced an
indigenous way of storing grains with
sweet flag (Acorus calamus.)
For treating 1 kg of grains, about 10
gm of sweet flag powder was used.
The grains could be stored
effectively for 6 months without any pest
attack. The strong odour emitted from
sweet flag acted as a repellant against all
the storage pests.

29. 29
Seed village
A village, wherein trained group of farmers are involved in production 'of
seeds of various crops and cater to the needs of themselves, fellow farmers
of the village and farmers of neighboring villages in appropriate time and
at affordable cost is called "a seed village“.
Concept:
Organizing seed production in cluster (or) compact area
Replacing existing local varieties with new high yielding varieties.
Increasing the seed production
To meet the local demand, timely supply and at reasonable cost
Self sufficiency and self reliance of the village
Increasing the seed replacement rate

30. 30
Features of seed village
Seed is available at the door steps of farms at an
appropriate time
Seed availability at affordable cost even lesser than
market price
Increased confidence among the farmers about the
quality because of known source of production
Producer and consumer are mutually benefited
Facilitates fast spread of new cultivars of different kinds

31. 31
Advantages of Seed Village Concept
1. Solve the problem of isolation. Mainly in cross pollinated crops like
maize, sunflower where it required more Isolation distance the problem
will be solved by raising a single variety in a large area.
2. Mechanization is possible from sowing to harvesting
3. Post harvest handling of seed will be easy
.
4. Because of a single variety, the problem of varietal admixture during
processing, drying will be avoided
5. Seed certification official will cover large area per unit time
6. Totally , it reduces the cost of cultivation
7. Seeds produced will be with high genetic, physical purity

32. 32
Recommendations of National Conference on Agriculture for
Kharif Campaign 2007-08
Farm saved seeds is of poor quality and their continuous use
affects their quality and consequently their yield. Therefore, need for
promoting and encouraging higher seed replacement rate is very much
essential by following ways:
(a) Training of farmers in seed production technologies, particularly hybrid
seeds.
(b) Supply of inputs like better quality seeds and parental lines to farmers
at subsidized rates and on easy terms.
(c) Support for creating infrastructure including irrigation facilities for
seed production.
(d) Support for acquisition of storage and seed processing facilities.

33. 33
Research
Findings

34. 34
Table 1: Effect of seed sorting and seed treatment on fungal infection on jute in
Bangladesh.
(Islam et al., 2001)
Table 2: Effect of seed sorting and seed treatment on fungal infection on jute when grown on field

35. 35
Table 3: Effect of seed sorting and seed treatment on seed yield
of jute.
(Islam et al., 2001)

36. 36
Table 4: Impact of weed seed mixture in seed health of Aus rice
(Fazlul Islam et al., 2003)

37. 37
(Fazlul Islam et al., 2003)

38. Table 5: Seed infestation level of important rice pathogens in valley districts of Manipur.
Fungal
pathogens
Imphal East Imphal West Thuobal Bishnupur Average
across
districts
PF
(Max)
Infection
(%)
PF
(Max)
Infection(
%)
PF
(Max)
Infecti
on (%)
PF
(Max)
Infecti
on
(%)
Alternaria
padwickii
3 7.04 - 11 1 8.8 1 9.16 9.00
Curvularia
lunata
44 0.2 43 0.32 45 0.18 46 0.18 0.22
Fusarium
moniliforme
31 0.84 32 0.58 34 0.54 38 0.52 0.62
H. Oryzae 1 5.84 2 6.5 6 4.68 4 6.12 5.79
P. Oryzae 50 - 50 - 49 0.04 50 - 0.01
R. Solani 48 0.80 48 0.60 34 0.54 49 0.08 0.19
PF: Pathogen Free samples out of 50 samples (Thoithoi Singh and Mutum Singh, 2004)

39. Table 6 : Contamination level of paddy seeds with Sclerotia of Ustilaginoidea
virens
in valley districts of Manipur
Contamination
range (%)
No. of Seed samples
Imphal
East
Imphal West Thuobal Bishnupur Total(%)
0 44 47 47 47 92.5
1 4 3 2 3 6.0
2 - - 1 - 0.5
3 - - - - -
>4 2 - - - 1.0
Total 50 50 50 50 100
(Thoithoi Singh and Mutum Singh, 2004)

40. 40
Table 7: Germination (%), emergence percent and germination rate of
seeds
stored in panicle form in sorghum (Ethopia).
(Firew Mekbib , 2008)

41. 41
Table 8: Purity test of farmers’ seed lots of sorghum
(Ethopia).
(Firew Mekbib , 2008)

42. Table 9: Seed health status of farmers saved paddy seed with
respect to insect
infestation
Sl.No Name of
district
Villages
Surveyed
Seed
samples
collected
Per cent seed samples with
Pest
damage
<1.0%
Viability
>80.0%
Moisture
<13.0%
1. W. Godavari 9 93 35 62 98
2. Guntur 6 23 38 88 99
Pest damage : Rhizopertha dominica, Citotroga cereallela (Vardhani et al., 2009)

43. Table 10: Seed quality status of farmers vs certified samples of paddy in
Andhra Pradesh
Varieties Germination(%) Seedling length
(cm)
Seedling vigour
index
FS CS FS CS FS CS
IR 64 81 85 6.9 7.8 559 663
BPT 5204 84 90 8.6 10.1 722 900
Tellahamsa 80 82 6.09 6.2 495 508
MTU1001 88 96 8.1 8.7 713 835
MTU 1010 80 82 6.8 7.2 544 590
MTU 2067 88 90 7.1 8.9 625 801
PLA-1100 84 89 6.84 7.12 575 634
MTU-2077 88 92 7.1 8.2 625 653
Mean 84.12 88.25 7.19 8.0 607.2 698
(Meena Kumari et al., 2009)
FS: Farmer seeds
CS: Certified seeds

44. Table 11: The incidence of seed borne fungi (%) in farmer vs certified
samples of paddy
in Andhra Pradesh
Varieties Aspergillu
spp
Curvularia
spp
Fusarium
spp
Drechslera
spp
Cheatomium
spp
Alternaria
spp
Bacterium
spp
FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS
IR 64 2.0 0.5 1.2 1.0 0.2 0.1 0.5 0.2 - - 3 - 0.1 -
BPT 5204 3.9 0.9 2.1 1.5 4.2 1.5 1.5 0.5 0.5 0.1 2. 0.1 2.0 -
Tellahams 2.0 - 1.0 - 0.9 - 2.0 0.5 - - 0. - 1.0 0.1
MTU1001 1.5 0.2 3.0 0.5 1.5 0.2 3.5 1.5 - - 1. 0.2 - -
MTU 1010 1.7 0.2 2.5 2.0 1.7 0.2 3.0 1.2 - - 0. 0.1 0.1 -
MTU 2067 2.8 1.1 0.5 0.2 1.1 - 3.2 - 0.1 - 0. 0.3 0.2 0.1
PLA-1100 2.2 1.3 1.5 1.2 0.5 - 1.2 - 0.5 0.3 - - 0.1 -
MTU-2077 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.1 0.1 - 1.1 0.1 0.7 0.2 0. 0.2 - -
Mean 2.2 0.6 1.5
3
0.8 0.8 0.2 2.0 0.5 0.2 0.07 1. 0.1 0.45 0.02
(Meena Kumari et al., 2009)
FS: Farmer
seeds
CS: Certified
seeds

45. conditions
(Farmers vs Certified samples) during Kharif, 2002, 2003 &
2004.
Varieties Disease incidence in the field (0-9)
Brown
spot
Narrow brown
leaf spot
Sheath rot Bacterial leaf
blight
FS CS FS CS FS CS FS CS
IR 64 3 1 1 0 1 1 3 1
BPT 5204 5 3 1 1 1 0 5 3
Tellahamsa 5 1 3 1 1 1 5 1
MTU1001 3 3 1 0 3 0 5 1
MTU 1010 5 3 1 1 1 1 3 3
MTU 2067 5 3 3 1 3 1 3 3
PLA-1100 3 1 3 1 5 1 5 3
MTU-2077 5 3 5 3 3 1 3 1
(Meena Kumari et al., 2009)
FS: Farmer
seeds
CS: Certified
seeds

46. Table 13: Prevalence of paddy bunt in different agro climatic zones of Andhra
Pradesh during 1993-2008
46
Agro
climatic
zones
Farmer’s saved seed Processed seed samples
Analyzed Infected Infected
samples
(%)
Max.
infection
ASCS ASCS
out of
infected
Analyzed Infecte
d
Infected
samples
(%)
Max.
infection
ASC
S
ASCS
out of
infected
Krishna
Godavari
Zone
752 360 47.9 2.28 21 5.83 661 136 20.5 1.22 2 1.47
Northern
Telengana
491 151 30.8 2.2 10 6.62 261 35 13.4 0.2 - -
Southern
Telangana
Zone
335 92 27.4 0.44 - - 600 78 13.0 0.12 - -
North
Coastal
Zone
15 4 26.6 0.10 - - - - - - - -
Southern
Zone
54 14 25.9 0.05 - - - - - - - -
Scarce
Rain fall
Zone
151 32 21.2 0.07 - - - - - - - -
Total 1798 653 29.9 2.28 31 - 1522 249 12.62 1.22 - -
(Meena Kumari et al.,
2009)
ASCS: Above Seed Certification
Standards

47. 47
Farmer saved seeds Processed seeds
Varieties No of Samples Infected (%) No of Samples Infected (%)
Analysed Infected Analysed Infected
IR 64 324 194 59.87 205 50 24.40
MTU 2067 100 10 10.00 52 11 21.10
MTU 2077 58 10 17.24 129 12 9.30
MTU 1010 267 110 41.20 199 43 21.60
MTU 7029 105 18 10.75 98 15 17.90
JGL 1798 30 8 26.6 12 1 10.00
WGL 48684 8 1 12.50 4 1 25.00
MTU 5293 4 1 25.00 186 40 21.50
MTU 1001 127 28 22.04 186 40 21.50
BPT 5204 387 134 34.62 164 15 9.15
PLA 1100 26 3 11.53 43 15 34.90
Table 14: Prevalence of paddy bunt infection in different varieties of farmers saved
seeds and processed seed samples of paddy in Andhra pradesh (1993-
2000).
(Meena Kumari et al.,
2009)

48. 48
Table 15: Quality Prediction of Carry-Over Soybean Seed (Glycine max L.
Merr. Cv. PS-
1092), collected from different local farm storage of Uttarakhand
(India)
(Indrakumar Singh and Chauhan, 2010)

49. 49
Table 16: Health status of farmer saved paddy, sorghum,
sunflower, cowpea
seeds in Karnataka, India.
a) Per cent occurrence of mycoflora in different seeds samples of
paddy
(Hemanth Raj et al., 2007)
Gb - Gunny bag, K - Kanaja
Mb - Metal bin, Pb - Polythene
bag

50. 50
Alternaria padwickii
Bipolaris oryzae
Microdochium oryzae

51. 51
b) Per cent occurrence of mycoflora in different seeds samples of
sorghum
Hemanth Raj et al., 2007
Gb - Gunny bag, K - Kanaja
Mb - Metal bin, Pb - Polythene
bag

52. 52
Acremonium strictum
Colletotrichum graminicola
Macrophomina phaseolina

53. 53
c) Per cent occurrence of mycoflora in different seeds samples of
sunflower
(Hemanth Raj et al., 2007
Gb - Gunny bag, Mb - Metal bin, Pb -
Polythene bag

54. 54
Alternaria zinniae
Botrydiplodia theobromae
Fusarium equiseti

55. 55 Hemanth Raj et al., 2007
d) Per cent occurrence of mycoflora in different seeds samples
of cowpea
Cb - Cloth bag, Mb - Metal bin, Pb -
Polythene bag

56. 56
Fusarium oxysporium
Macrophomina phaseolina

57. 57
Summar
y
References Findings
Narayanaswamy
et al.(1995)
Reported that in Karnataka, farmers are using same seeds of groundnut,
generation after generation upto 10 years. Nearly 27 per cent of the farmers
are using first generation (purchased seeds) followed by 14 per cent second
generation and 13 per cent of the farmers are using even 10th generation
seeds.
Islam et al.(2001) Found that garlic extract and vitavax 200(0.4%) increased the yield of jute
by 47.38 per cent and 46.05 per cent respectively over the farmer saved
seeds (control) when grown in the net house and under field conditions seed
treatment with garlic extract and vitavax 200 (0.4%) increased the seed
yield of jute by 77.5 per cent and 82.50 per cent respectively over the farmer
saved seeds (control).
Indrakumar Singh
and Chauhan
(2003)
Evaluated the soybean seeds collected from different local farm storage of
Uttarakhand (India), results revealed that seed Sample D recorded the
highest purity (98.43%) per cent and imbibitions (7.29) with minimum
days taken for seedling emergence, seed Sample B recorded the maximum
germination (97%) per cent, PLS value (95.21%) .
Fazlul Islam et al.,
(2003)
Reported that contamination of five weed seeds viz., Echinochloa crusgalli,
E. colonum, Cyperus iria, Scirpus spp., C.difformis, in farmer saved paddy
seeds drastically reduces the yield.

58. 58
Thoithoi Singh and
Mutum Singh
(2004)
Investigated that rice samples collected from four districts of Manipur revealed 40
fungal species belonging to 20 fungal genera were present, among fungal species
Alternaria padwickii (9.0%), Curvularia lunata(0.22%), Fusarium
moniliforme(0.62%), Helminthosporium oryzae(5.6%) and Rhizoctonia solani
(0.19%)were consistently isolated from all four districts (Imphal east, Imphal west,
Thoubal, Bishnpur).
Hemanth Raj
et al.(2005)
Revealed that seed mycoflora varied with respect to variety, storage structure and
location, the fungi viz.,Alternaris padwickii, Bipolaris oryzae, Microdochium oryzae, in
the paddy ranged from 0-50, 2-30, and 0-10 per cent respectively, in sunflower fungi
viz.,Alternaria zenniae, Verticilium albo-atrum, Fusarium equiseti, Botrydiplodia
theobrome, Macrophomina phaseolina, ranged from 0-12, 0-40, 0-10
, 0-30 and 0-30 per cent respectively.
Karthikeyan
et al.(2008)
Found that Indigenous storage practices has advantages over outside knowledge,
it has little and no cost and is readily available and suggested that storage of grains
and seeds without pest infestation is essential.
Firew Mekbib
(2008)
Noticed that in sorghum average germination for the three varieties tested was
82.8% in ethopian farmer saved seeds. The conventional purity (varietal) level of
98% was not met due to the dominant practice of varietal mixture in the region.
The dominant storage methods for seed were panicles form hung in the house
(74.4%) or as threshed seed stored in sacks (83.7%). Smoking of panicles (33.8%)
and chemicals (22.6%) for threshed seed were commonly used seed protection
measures.

59. 59
Meena kumari
et al.(2009)
Reported that prevalence of kernel smut of rice was highest in
farmers seed lots collected from Krishna-Godavri zone
(47.99%) followed by northern Telangana zone (30.8%) as
compared to processed seed samples which recorded 20.5 per
cent and 13.4 per cent.
Meena kumari
et al.(2009)
Revealed that in paddy, seed borne fungi Drechslera spp (2.2%)
was maximum in farmer samples over certified samples (0.5%)
and also reported that germination percentage and seedling
vigour was lower in farmers samples (88-90%), (607) over
certified samples (80-92%), (698) respectively.
Vardhani
et al.(2009)
Observed that 35 per cent of paddy samples of farmer saved
seeds in west Godavari district and 38 per cent recorded
more than 1.0 per cent damage lesser grain borer
(Rhizopertha dominica) and angoumois grain moth (Citotroga
cerealella) failed to meet certification standards.

60. 60
Conclusion
Farmer saved seeds are of poor quality, therefore
farmers need to have knowledge on seed borne pathogens,
storage structure and their importance, and also farmer
should be aware of difference between seed and grain.
If farmers are educated to take proper measures to
keep the seeds in good conditions including the health
status, the yield of such seeds can certainly be enhanced
further undoubtedly.
Simultaneously farmers must be advised by
institutions to use the processed certified seed for getting
maximum yield benefits.

61. 61
Thank You