Compendium of Seed Testing Volume 1

Modeled on Handbook No.30, definitive in the seed-testing field for almost 50 years, this two-volume work is destined to guide the seed-testing community and industry for decades to come. The combined knowledge and experience of senior author Doris Baxter with educational and writing background of Lawrence Copeland and Miller McDonald guarantees that this encyclopedic coverage will meet the needs of present and future generations of seed analysts. Volume I provides an instructive overview of the principles and practices of seed testing. For this basic primer they explain when seeds are tested and why and provide the botanical background needed for a comprehensive analysis, including drawing a representative sample and the fundamentals of purity testing, germination testing, and seedling evaluation. Coverage extends to special aspects of seed testing such as tetrazolium testing and vigor testing. It concludes with the statistical aspects of seed testing and seed laboratory management and quality assurance. Volume II is a taxonomical treatise outlining the application of purity testing techniques to plant families, genera, and species.
Aids to the user include alphabetical organization by family, a glossary in each volume, and more than 3000 images of seeds drawn from exhaustive seed imaging resources. Seeds of nearly all crop and weed species agronomic, vegetable, wheat, and flower encountered by analysts in seed testing laboratories are included in this one-of-a-kind resource that will guide generations of future seed analysts in the identification process. Destined to become a long-term standard in the field, both volumes of this valuable handbook for student and practicing analysts will find a place in the libraries and work stations of all seed laboratories private, commercial, federal, state, and international.
 
Modeled on Handbook No.30, definitive in the seed-testing field for almost 50 years, this two-volume work is destined to guide the seed-testing community and industry for decades to come. The combined knowledge and experience of senior author Doris Baxter with educational and writing background of Lawrence Copeland and Miller McDonald guarantees that this encyclopedic coverage will meet the needs of present and future generations of seed analysts. Volume I provides an instructive overview of the principles and practices of seed testing. For this basic primer they explain when seeds are tested and why and provide the botanical background needed for a comprehensive analysis, including drawing a representative sample and the fundamentals of purity testing, germination testing, and seedling evaluation. Coverage extends to special aspects of seed testing such as tetrazolium testing and vigor testing. It concludes with the statistical aspects of seed testing and seed laboratory management and quality assurance. Volume II is a taxonomical treatise outlining the application of purity testing techniques to plant families, genera, and species.
Aids to the user include alphabetical organization by family, a glossary in each volume, and more than 3000 images of seeds drawn from exhaustive seed imaging resources. Seeds of nearly all crop and weed species agronomic, vegetable, wheat, and flower encountered by analysts in seed testing laboratories are included in this one-of-a-kind resource that will guide generations of future seed analysts in the identification process. Destined to become a long-term standard in the field, both volumes of this valuable handbook for student and practicing analysts will find a place in the libraries and work stations of all seed laboratories private, commercial, federal, state, and international.