| Shepherd's purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris) is a problematic weed in citrus orchards and crop fields in northern Iran. In a series of laboratory and greenhouse experiments, we evaluated the effects that treatment with gibberellic acid (GA3) and potassium nitrate (KNO3), as well as environmental factors, including temperature, the duration of pre-chilling (wet and dry), drought stress, salt stress, pH, and sowing depth, have on seed dormancy breaking and germination in C. bursa-pastoris. Treatment with GA3 strongly stimulated germination of C. bursa-pastoris in conditions of light/dark and continuous darkness. The germination rate was highest (40.08%) for seeds treated with 400 ppm of GA3 in the light/dark condition. Treatment with KNO3 did not significantly... |
