[Learning Path #1] Ensuring seed quality when propagating and storing seed

Seed germination and seedling establishment are the main factors for a successful start of a crop, determining crop health, weed suppression and overall crop performance. They are critical, but sensitive phases in crop production. Beyond mere germination rates, providing organic seeds that are vigorous is an important contribution to organic cropping systems. Providing your network or clients with seed of high physiological quality will contribute to their success in growing crops. Seed production practices, seed harvest and seed storage are important factors behind seed quality and vigour.

Seeds are also associated with microbial communities called the seed microbiota. Scientific research has shown that microbial species in the seed microbiota can play beneficial or detrimental roles in seed germination and seedling health for example. Many have neutral or yet unknown effects. Although yet unharnessed, this opens promising perspectives for organic seed production and cultivation. An optional module offers an introduction into this fascinating topic, as an outlook into another aspect of seed quality.

• Seed producers, seed networks and community seed banks, who want to train their staff or members to ensure the physiological quality of the seed they produce and distribute and to optimise the conservation of their seeds through seed drying and storage conditions.
• Beginning small-scale organic seed enterprises, willing to market high quality, reliable organic seed right from the start
• Advisors of organic seed producing farms willing to support their clients in ensuring optimal quality of the seed produced.

This course consists solely of e-learning modules. It will therefore not enable you to become proficient in the subject on its own. 

However, it can serve as a reference for making decisions on your seed work and can be consulted and reviewed as necessary to plan and evaluate your activities. It can be supplemented by reading additional resources (see the resources page for further information), by talking to experts (e.g. practitioners around you with a lot of experience, consultants, researchers…) or by participating in projects (see list of projects). 

It can also be used as a basis for peer-to-peer exchanges to learn together and benefit from each other's experiences. 

The modules must be taken in the order in which they are presented below. 

Each module consists of at least one video, a self-assessment questionnaire (the trainer has included comments that appear depending on your answers, allowing you to continue learning), and additional resources for further study. Some also include more practical exercices. 

• Start with module 11, which gives a general introduction to seed quality, its different components and underlying factors. 
• Then, module 12 will consider seed vigour and seed maturation to understand what is at play when seed is harvested. 
• Module 13 covers seed drying and seed storage, which are key steps to ensure seed doesn’t age too quickly. 

If you are curious to know more about seed microbiota, how they are assembled in the seed propagation process and how they are studied, take module 14 as a supplement. This module also forms part of the training course “Ensuring organic seed health : tools to understand and manage”. If you are planning to follow that training course, there is no need to take module 14 now.