How to take care of your seed until planting?

The seed is one of the pillars of the production process and its quality is directly linked to productivity. The success of a crop depends on several factors, but without a doubt, the use of high quality seeds stands out, which allow the producer access to genetic advances for greater productive potential.

However, how should the seeds be treated? What basic precautions should producers take during processes such as harvesting and processing? Here we highlight some tasks and precautions that will help preserve your seed until the moment of sowing to reduce losses in germination and/or vigor.

Firstly, the harvest can be anticipated and the producer must monitor the moisture of the seeds (up to 18% as long as care is taken against mechanical damage) in addition to drying within a maximum of 24 hours after the operation. It is recommended to take at least three samples a day to check for possible mechanical damage using the hypochlorite test, and to determine the number of broken seeds using the measuring cup method.

It is worth remembering that batches with more than 3% of bands (when they are broken), 10% of cracked seeds and 9% of green seeds are unsuitable for use.

In processing, the first step is to check the moisture content of the seeds upon reception and when above 12%, drying must be carried out and then a new hypochlorite and measuring cup test must be carried out.

Inside the reception hopper, check the drop height and, if possible, use shock absorbers to avoid damage. It is essential to control the speed of the pre-cleaning machine, to remove impurities, and of the elevators/conveyors, in addition to avoiding the use of endless screws as conveyors – the main source of mechanical damage and contamination.

When drying, do not exceed 40ºC in the seed mass and must be carried out until the seeds reach the point of hygroscopic equilibrium with the air. Attention is needed as drying too quickly can cause irregularities in humidity and when insufficient, it can harm the next steps, reducing storage time.

To continue processing operations, the seeds need to be cooled. During cleaning, the oscillation and inclination speed of the sieves, as well as the classifiers, must be regulated. An important tip is to pass the seeds on the densimetric table, after classifying them using sieves to increase the efficiency of this operation.

Seed treatment, when used, must be carried out with appropriate equipment to avoid mechanical damage and excessive increase in humidity. After treatment, if the seeds are stored, the need for additional drying must be checked.  

Because soybeans have a high oil content, they are more prone to deterioration. Finally, storage must be carried out, preferably, under milder temperature conditions, either by refrigerating the environment or using silos with thermal insulation.