ABSTRACT

Modern planting equipment requires cottonseed to flow in a single seed manner to function properly. Linters and small amounts of long fibers that are not removed by the ginning process resist this single seed flowing action by causing the seed to clump together. Therefore, cottonseed is delinted by using an acid delinting procedure prior to planting. This acid delinting process is very effective and inexpensive, yet concerns associated with the process include potential seed damage, worker safety, waste disposal, and deterioration of equipment exposed to acid. The use of an alternative method of preparing cottonseed for planting could address some of these concerns associated with acid delinting. The objective of this study was to evaluate several mechanical delinting times and polymer starch coatings with subsequent density separation fractions on several measures of seed quality (Cool Germination Test - CGT, Warm Germination Test - WGT, and Cool Warm Vigor Index - CWVI). The data from the seed quality tests suggested that a 10 minute delinting time was generally equal to or superior to 20 and 60 minute delinting times. Therefore, based upon the data collected, the 10 minute delinting time was selected to evaluate the effects of starch levels and density fractions on the seed quality parameters. Test results collected from the different starch levels indicated that the starch treated seed exhibited significantly increased germination and vigor percentages in the CGT, WGT, and CWVI tests. Data also showed that starch-coated seed can be separated into fractions of different seed qualities - presumably of differing densities. Generally the light fraction performed significantly lower than the medium and heavy fractions for the three seed quality tests.