Influence of Seed Bio-priming with Microbial Inoculants on Germination, Seedling Growth, Vigour and Enzyme Activity in Chickpea

Background Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), a staple pulse crop with significant nutritional, economic and agricultural importance, is known for its diverse uses and contributions to both human diet and livestock feed. To enhance its productivity and resilience, particularly in the face of abiotic and biotic stresses, innovative seed enhancement techniques such as bio-priming with plant endophytes have emerged as a promising approach to improve seed quality and overall crop performance. Methods: In this laboratory investigation during 2022, chickpea seeds were surface sterilized with sodium hypochlorite (1%) for five minutes and then washed thrice with sterile water. Later the seeds were bio-primed with different bioagents with the seed to solution ratio of 1:3 for different duration hours. Blotter method was used to observe seed germination. Primed seeds were dried back to original moisture content (24 hrs) and then used to assess the seed quality parameters. Result: The results showed that, priming chickpea seeds with Paenibacillus polymyxa for 6 hours resulted in significantly enhanced seedling growth and quality compared to all other treatments and control indicating its effectiveness in improving seed quality and growth.