Physiological potential and health of peanut seed treated with ozone

Peanut seed can be infected by pathogen diseases that adversely affect the oil crop’s value chain. Ozone gas (O3) can be an alternative for the control of fungal diseases due to its high oxidizing potential. In this study, we investigated the effects of O3 exposure time on physiological and health characteristics of seed from three peanut cultivars. Seed from peanut cultivars Granoleico, IAC OL3, and IAC 503 were analyzed for their health (blotter test) and physiological potential (germination, first count, and seedling length) after exposure to O3 for 0, 1, 8, and 16 h. Peanut seed physiological quality and health differed among cultivars. Exposure of seed from peanut cultivars IAC OL3, IAC 503, and Granoleico to O3 at a rate of 600 mg h-1 did not affect the development of normal seedlings as measured by the first count and germination, but seedling length increased, decreased, or was not affected in cultivars Granoleico, IAC 503, and IAC OL3, respectively. Also, O3 did not eradicate fungal infections in peanut seed treated with O3 at a rate of 600 mg h-1 for up to 16 h, but the incidence of the fungus Rhizopus sp. in seed from cultivars IAC OL3, Granoleico, and IAC 503 increased, decreased or was not affected, respectively, after 8 h.