Assessment of the Seed Health Status of Selected Leafy and Fruit Vegetables in Bangladesh

The seed health status of leafy vegetable crops, such as spinach and Indian spinach, and fruit vegetable crops, including bottle gourd, sweet gourd, and sponge gourd, was studied in the Seed Health Laboratory (SHL) at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, during 2015. Loose seeds for each crop were collected from various sources at the wholesale seed market in Dhaka. Two seed health testing methods, namely the inspection of dry seeds and the blotter method, were conducted following ISTA guidelines. The prevalence of seed-borne fungi in different vegetable seeds varied significantly depending on seed categories and sources. Seven types of seed-borne fungi were identified across the seeds of the five vegetable crops: Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Chaetomium sp., Rhizopus spp., Nigrospora sp., Bipolaris sp., and Fusarium sp. Among these, seven fungi were detected in leafy vegetable seeds, while six were recorded in fruit vegetable seeds. Using the blotter method, seeds collected from Alo Bij Vander exhibited the highest prevalence of seed-borne fungal infections in spinach and Indian spinach, whereas seeds from Bismillah Seed Store showed the lowest prevalence of infections. The prevalence of seed-borne fungi was highest in sweet gourds and lowest in Indian spinach. Overall, the findings indicate that the seed health status of loose vegetable seeds was unsatisfactory. However, further studies with more representative seed samples collected from Siddik Bazaar, Dhaka, are needed to provide a clearer understanding of the seed health status across different seed sources.