Tools for seed identification - International Seed Testing Association

ISTA Purity Seminar
15. June 2009 Zürich
Tools for seed identification
Prof. Dr. Norbert Leist
Brahmsstr.25
76669 Bad Schönborn
Germany
norbert.leist@bio.uni-karlsruhe.de
by
Norbert Leist and Andrea Jonitz
Dr. Andrea Jonitz
LTZ Augustenberg
Neßlerstr.23
76227 Karlsruhe
Germany
andrea.jonitz@ltz.bwl.de

Where are the specialists for seed identification?
• Seed testing analysts
• Botanists, taxonomists, morphologists
– university
– museum
• Paläobotanists
• Feeding stuff testing specialists
• All there is knowledge, literature, seed collection
Juglans cinerea

Precondition for reliable seed identification
is expert knowledge in
– Botany in general
– Plant and seed development
– Morphology
– Construction of seed tissue
– Diagnostic characteristics of the tissues
– Plant propagation: allogam, autogam, hybrid
• Anatomy
• Physiology
• Genetics
Literature:
Seed dAnatomy, Wb Weber, E., 1997, Gb Gebr. Borntraeger, Berlin‐Stuttgart,
tt t
Germany

Seed testers basic equipment in the bookshelf

Further readings
• Bibliography on Seed Morphology, Jensen, 1998, A.A.
Balkema, Rotterdam, Brookfield
• Flora Europaea, 5 vols, ed. Tutin, 1964 ff, Cambridge
University Press
• List of Stabilized Plant Names, 2007, 5th edition, i ISTA,
Bassersdorf
•Handbook of Pure Seed Definitions, with illustrations,
Felfoldi, ldi 1983, ISTA Zürich, Switzerland

• Floras
Where to find seed descriptions?
– national, eg. Spain, Japan, Switzerland
– regional, eg. Europe, North America, Australia
• Monographs eg. about
– Families Primulaceae
– Genera Androsace
– Species
Androsace septentrionalis
• Handbooks about special tasks
• Websites
• Internet /quality has to be ensured

Weed seeds
• Bayer Crop Science, Verzeichnis der wichtigsten Schadpflanzen
• Ciba Geigy, Weeds Documenta
• A global compendium of weeds, R.P. Randall
• World weeds, natural histories and distribution, LeRoy Holm et al.

ISTA Literature
Determination of Provenance of a seed lot, a big challange until 1975
Information and pictures in:
Die Herkunftsbestimmung der Klee‐und Grassamen, A. Grisch,
Proceedings of the International Seed Testing Association
1941/43, Vol. 13, 147 – 416

Determination of
provenance ISTA 1941

Literature 1
• Ackerunkräuter Europas mit ihren Keimlingen und Samen,
Hanf, 1982, BASF Aktiengesellschaft Limburger Hof,
Germany
• Acker- und Gartenunkräuter, Partzsch et al., 2006,
Agrimedia, Bergen
• An illustrated taxonomy manual of weed seeds, R. Delorit, 1970,
Agronomy Publications River Falls, Wisconsin, col fot
• Atlas für die Mikroskopie von Nahrungsgrundstoffen, Meszaros
and Bihler, 1988, VDLUFA Verlag Darmstadt, Germany
• Atlas of seeds (several volumes), A.L. Anderberg, 1994, ISBN 91‐
86510‐26‐6, bw fot

Literature 2
• Das Bestimmen der Samen von Gräsern und
Schmetterlingsblütlern, K. Dörter, 1968, VEB Deutscher
Landwirtschaftsverlag, paint
• Dicot Weeds 1 and 2, Häfliger and Wolf, 1988, Documenta CIBA‐
GEIGY, Basle, Switzerland
• Docks and Knotweeds of the British Isles, Lousley, Kent, 1981,
Handbook, No. 3, Botanical Society of the British Isles, London
• Flora Iberica vol.1‐21, l121 Castroviejo et al., 1986 ff, Real lMdid Madrid
Botanico, ISBN 8400062213, per internet available, draw
• Flora of North America vol.1‐27, M. Barkworth et al., 2003, ISBN
0‐19516‐748‐1 Fruits and Seeds of Genera in the subfamily
Mimosoideae (Fabaceae) vol. 1‐4, R. Gunn, 1984, United States
Dept. Of Agriculture, Agri. Res. Serv. Techn. Bull. No. 1681
• Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest, Wendy Cooper, 2004,
p y p
ISBN 0‐95817‐421‐0

Example from the Flora Iberica
Rumex

Literature 3
• Gärtnerische Samenkunde, Ruge, 1966, Parey Verlag Berlin‐
Hamburg
• Grass weeds 1 and 2, Häfliger and Scholz, 1980, Documenta CIBA‐
GEIGY, Basle, Switzerland
• Handbuch der Samenkunde, Brouwer, Stählin, 1975, ISBN
3769002725, keys and draw
• Handbücher der praktischen Vorgeschichtsforschung, Bd.1
Früchte und Samen, Bertsch, 1941, Enke Verlag Stuttgart
• Historical papers: Development of ISTA Purity Analysis and Det. of
Other seeds 1924‐2006, Jensen, 2008, ISTA Secretariat
Bassersdorf, Switzerland
• Identification of Crop and Weed Seeds, Musil, 1963, Handbook
No. 219, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington 25 D.C.
• Identifikation von Rumex Keimlingen, Grob, 1977, Seed Science
and Technology, 6, 563‐578

Literature 4
• Illustrierte Flora von Mitteleuropa 18 vols., Conert et al., 1984
ff, Parey Verlag Berlin‐Hamburg
• International Dictionary of Botanical Gardens
• Key to and description of the fruits of some Rumex species,
Jensen, 1979, Seed Science and Technology, 7, 525‐528
• Landwirtschaftliche Samenkunde, Brouwer, 1927, Verlag
Neumann‐Neudamm , bw fotos
• Magismeret II, Sil Szilard, d1967, Akademiai i Kiado, Budapest,
Hungary, draw
• Mansfeld`s s Encyclopedia of Agricultural and Horticultural
Crops, 6 vols., Hanelt, 2001, Springer Verlag, ISBN
3540410171
• Monocot Weeds 3, Häfliger et al., 1982, Documenta CIBA‐
GEIGY, Basle, Switzerland

Example
Flora from Midle Europe
Seeds of nine
Moehringia species
out of
Gustav Hegi:
Illustrierte Flora von
Mitteleuropa
Verlag Paul Parey,
Berlin - Hamburg

Literature 5
• Plantas infestantes e nocivas 3 vols, Kissmann, Groth, 2000,
BASF S.A., Estr. Samuel Aizemberg, 1.707, 09851‐550 Sao
Bernardo do Campo, Brasilien
• Reconocimiento de Semillas en Malezas, Petetin et al., 19..,
Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Agropecuaria
• Samenatlas Teil 1: Caryophyllaceae Bd.15/1, Knapp, 2006,
ISBN 3700137532, bw elescans
• 0893274674
• Seeds of wild plants in Japan, Shiday Nakayama, 1996, Tohoku
Univ. Press Sendau, ISBN 4925085298
• Seed identification Handbook, 2004, 2 nd edition, NIAB,
Cambridge, ISBN No. 0‐948851‐14‐7
14 • Samenatlas Teil 2: Ranunculaceae, Knapp, 2006, Österreich.
Akademie der Wissenschaften, http//verlag.oeaw.ac.at
ac at

Literature 6
• Oats: Wild and cultivated, Baum, 1977, Supply and Services
Canada, Ottawa
• Queensland weed seeds, Friend, 1983, Dept. Of Primary
Industries, GPO Box 46, Brisbane 4001 Australia
• Seed‐book, GEVES France, 2004, seeds, images, descriptions
• Seeds and fruits of plants of eastern Canada and Northeastern
United States, Montgomery, 1977, ISBN 0802053416
• Seed Identification Manual, Martin and Barkley, 1961, Univ. of
California Press No. 61‐ 7528
• Seeds of Central America and Southern Mexico, Lentz and
Dickan, 2005, New York Bot. Garden Vol. 91, ISBN
0893274674, sw fotos

Literature 7
• Seeds of woody plants in North America, Young, 1992,
Dioscorides Press Portland Oregon
• Seeds of woody plants in the United dStates, Sh Schopmeyer,
1974, US Department of Agriculture, Handbook No. 450
• The woody plants seed manual, Bonner and Karrfalt, 2008,
United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service,
Agriculture Handbook 727
• Unkräuter in der Saatguterzeugung, Lampeter, 1962,
Akademie Verlag, Berlin, Germany
• Weeds of Central America and Southern Mexico, Lentz and
Dickan, 2005, New York Bot. Garden Vol. 91, ISBN
0893274674, sw fotos
• World guide to tropical drift seeds and fruits, Gunn and
Dennis, 1976, ISBN 0812906160
• Zadenatlas , Beijerin, 1976, Backhuys u. Meesters, Amsterdam

Websites
• www.dista.unibo.it/Collezione%20Laras/index.php;
it/Collezione%20Laras/index Prof. Dr. Enrico Noli, Laboratorio di Ricerca e Analisi Sementi, LARAS
• www.seedimages.com; colour images, descriptions, keys;
Prof. Dr. Arnold Larsen, Colorado State University
• www.oardc.ohio‐state.edu/seedid; images; Prof. Dr. Miller
McDonald, Ohio State University
• www.ars‐grin.gov/cgi‐bin/npgs/html/taxassoc.pl g /g / / / p GRIN Taxonomy and
images (family guide for fruits and seeds) Dr. John Wiersema, United
States Dept. Of Agriculture/ Agricultural Research Service
• Internet seed images, but check reliability
• Virtual herbarium
– Isstech
www.isstech.org
– McDonald
mcdonald.2@osu.edu (subscription)

Digital collection: LaRAS Bologna, Italy

LTZ Augustenberg digital seed collection
Anchusa officinalis
Bunias erucago
Anethum graveolens
Atropa belladonna

ISTA`s task
• Digital seed collection
– Starting with the Universal List of Species,
working group Andrea Jonitz, LTZ Augustenberg,
Germany
– There will be other individual projects which could
be combined for the benefit of all ISTA members

Search for information
Example, you are asked to identify Blossfeldia
Blossfeldia
ldi
• Mabberley: The plant – book: it is a Cactaceae
• Hans Arne Jensen: Bibliography on Seed dMorphology
entry 0736: Leuenberger B. (1974): Testa surface of Cactaceae
Preliminary results of a scanning electron microscope study.
Cactus and Succulent Journal (U.S.), XLVI:175‐180
order of the copy from a library

Example ‐ how to get information
Cuscuta
• Overview in Mabberly, The plant book
• 145 species, cosmopolits, (europe 17). Dodder. Parasites with
short‐lived root –system and often brightly coloured
chlorophyll‐less thread‐like twining stems linked by haustoria
to host. Formerly reduced yield of many crops, now largely
controlled though some not restricted to 1 host species.
• Details in Bibliography on Seed Morphology, H.A. Jensen
• 1221 Brehmann, O. 1914: Contributions to the anatomy of
seedcoat of some Cuscuta species. Mitteilungen des Kaiser –
Wilhelm‐Instituts für Landwirtschaft in Bromberg, 6:96‐114
• 1223 Gaertner, E.E. 1950: Studies of seed germination, seed
identification and host relationships in dodders, Cuscuta spp.
(Memoir 294), pp.56; Cornell llUniversity it Agricultural
l
Experiment Station Ithaca, New York. ………………….13 entries !

• Orobanche
Example ‐ how to get information
• Mabberley: 150 species, Europe 45, root ‐ parasitism some
restricted to particular families as hosts, rarely restricted to
one host species; seeds wind dispersal, 0.0001 mg (O.
arenaria)
• Jensen: 10 entries
• 2999 Joel, D.M., 1987, Detection and identification of
Orobanche seeds using fluorescence microscopy. Seed
Science and Technology, 15: 119‐124
• 3001 Musselman, LJ L.J. and Mann, WFJr W.F.Jr., 1976, A survey of
surface characteristics of Scrophulariacea and Orobanchaceae
using scanning electron microscopy. Phytomorphology, 26 (4):
370‐378

Where to find seeds for a seed collection
• Botanical gardens
• Seed companies
• Collecting seeds in the field
• Grow up your own seeds
– Than you may have a herbarium on
• Seeds
• Plants
Detailed information how to set up a seed collection is given
by Hans Arne Jensen in:
Proceedings of the ISTA Purity Workshop, Budapest,
Hungary; April 1997

Worldwide collection of Bredemann and Nieser, Hamburg, 1936

Worldwide collection at LUFA Augustenberg,1986

Local collection south germany, Baden, 1930

SEED COLLECTION
LTZ Augustenberg, Karlsruhe
System:
864 seed samples
• Seeds verified by specialist
• in clear plastic boxes
• sorted by families
• assembled in a containersystem
t
• including a table of content

How to find addresses of competent botanical gardens
for seed delivery
In the edition 1990 the
addresses of over
1.400 botanical
gardens and arboreta
all over the world are
given, from Albania to
Zimbabwe.
Besides there are
short informations eg.
about
date of foundation,
climatic conditions,
conservation
collections, special
taxa in cultivation,
research.

Validation of seed collection
• Search specialist
• Ask colleagues
• Collection for comparison
• Search for special collections eg. Avena
• Compare seeds with literature
• Compare your seeds with validated collection

How to promote seed exchange
• Proposal lfor the ISTA Purity Committee
– Each member multiplies every year seeds
– 15 members, each 5 species
= 75 new species every year

Thank you very much for your
attention !
Silene pusilla