By Chase Mowry, Seed Laboratory Manager
The Seed Laboratory has recently received two new Hoffman SG30SS germinators. Last spring, one of two Norlake germinators that MCIA purchased in 1988 went down. Replacement parts are no longer available for the unit. At that time, a Hoffman SG50SS double-door unit was purchased as a replacement; it is currently being used as a pre-chill chamber for small grains.
The two new single-door units recently received were proactively purchased as replacements for the remaining Norlake unit. The new units are programmable with day/night temperature control and light settings—both functions are an upgrade from the predecessor units.
As outlined in the AOSA Rules for Testing Seeds, temperatures for germination tests must be maintained within 1 °C of prescribed testing parameters. In addition, as part of accreditation, germinator temperatures are monitored with the use of data loggers, providing the ability to retrieve temperature information for any given time period, if needed.
The purchase of the two single-door units, as opposed to one larger, double-door unit, provides an additional advantage: greater flexibility regarding testing options.
Regarding germination testing, we are continuing to pre-chill wheat due to Fusarium infection still being present in some samples. Although pre-chilling adds additional time to testing, it should help yield better results.