MONITORING OF WHEAT GERMINATION BY MEANS OF NIR METHOD

Abstract

Germination is a complex manifestation of different physiological, morphological, chemical and enzymatic changes in seeds. There are various technical, technological and economical interests to predict the'level of germination quickly and non destructively. Early stages of germination processes (0-72 hours) were investigated in wheat using NIR reflection and transmission methods in order to detect the changes of main constituents. The mechanism of water uptake as well as the hydration of proteins and carbohydrates were followed in whole seeds. The early stages of reserve mobilisation (proteolytic and amilolytic effects) were detected by means of NIR, rheological and electrophoretic methods. Most characteristic changes were observed in the forms and status of water during 24 hours of germination. The developed calibration methods allowed recognition of the germination processes very early (in four hours) and measurement of the degree of germination with acceptable accuracy.