The loss in vegetation cover and abundance is most severe in disturbed and degraded ecosystems. Reseeding of vegetation forms an integral part of rehabilitation in environmental management activities. Seeds are often coated to improve the germination and establishment rates of certain plant species. This study aims to determine the effect of certain coatings on the germination of three perennial grass seed types in different soil growth mediums. The grass types include Cynodon dactylon, Panicum

more »

... maximum and Anthephora pubescens and the growth mediums, an acidic medium (gold mine's tailings), an alkaline medium (platinum mine's tailings), a sandy and clayey soil type. The coated seed types were compared to uncoated (normal) seed of the same species and batch types. The germination of A. pubescens (coated) performed best in more acidic growth mediums, whereas P. maximum (coated) germinated best in alkaline soil types. The germination rate of C. dactylon (coated) was the highest in clayey soils, while the uncoated seed of the same species had the highest germination rate in the sandy soils. The effect of the seed coating on the germination metabolism of these seeds was also investigated by measuring the activities of two different germination enzymes after 96 h of activation of germination, i.e. lipoxygenase (LOX) and peroxidase (POD). The latter experiment was carried out to determine the inhibitory effect of the coatings on the seed germination. After 96 h LOX and POD activities reached a peak in all of the coated seed. From these preliminary results it is evident that the coating of seeds does not have any inhibiting effect on LOX and POD activities during germination. Instead, a stimulating effect was observed-confirming that coating of seeds can assist to achieve better germination.