THE EFFECT OF MOLYBDENUM ON SEED DORMANCY IN WHEAT

Molybdenum deficiency was induced in wheat growing in sand culture under controlled environmental conditions. Half the plants were treated with foliar applications of molybdenum at the six and flag leaf stages. Molybdenum-treated plants produced seed which was significantly more dormant that that harvested from the molybdenum-deficient plants. Molybdenum treatment also resulted in a higher nitrate and protein content of the seed. These findings, seen in the light of the proven success of molybdenum in preventing pre-harvest sprouting in maize, would seem to indicate that molybdenum has the potential to restrict pre-harvest sprouting losses in wheat growing in soils deficient in molybdenum.