A study on the influence of high electric field intensity treatment on crop life

Treatment of seeds with high intensity electric fields can be an effective substitute for traditional chemical methods to improve the germination, growth and the yield. It can also be used as an alternate method for weed control as the cell rupture occurs on the weeds at the compatible electric field on the grains. In this work, the paddy seeds were treated in power frequency AC electric fields and pulsed electric fields. Then they were cultivated in actual agricultural field conditions to study the impact of electric fields on the crop life. The germination rate growth of the treated paddy seeds were observed and the results were compared with that of the untreated paddy seeds. The higher electric field intensity, higher exposure time and higher number of pulses improved the percentage of germination. The growth rate was higher in treated seeds at initial stages and it was not significant after certain period of germination.