Seed Enhancement Strategies for Resilient and Sustainable Crop Production
A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Physiology and Crop Production".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 1669
Special Issue Editors
Interests: plant physiology; seed priming and ageing; seed technology; germplasm conservation; cryopreservation; abiotic stress responses; gas exchange; photochemistry; bio-nanotechnology, food security; phytochemistry; ethnobotany; phytoremediation
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Seed enhancement technologies have emerged as crucial tools for improving crop resilience and productivity in the face of a changing climate and associated challenges, including heat and water stress, pest and disease pressures, soil degradation, and reduced yields and nutritional quality, with significant implications for global food security and the sustainability of livelihoods. Despite the wide potential of many of these seed enhancement treatments, such as priming, film coating/pelleting, and biological treatments, their effectiveness is limited by several challenges. One major bottleneck is that different species, and even specific genotypes, may respond uniquely, limiting the general applicability of standardised protocols. What is beneficial for one species may be neutral or even detrimental for another. Therefore, bespoke protocols and thorough physiological evaluations are warranted to overcome these challenges.
This Special Issue aims to showcase the latest research and developments in seed enhancement technologies, including priming and biological treatments, highlighting their potential to enhance crop production and resilience efficiently. With this Special Issue of Plants, we invite colleagues to submit evidence-based scientific research and review manuscripts with a focus on any of the following sub-themes:
- Seed enhancement innovations and applications, e.g., priming with plasma, nanoparticles, electrolysed water, irradiation, electric fields, magnetic fields, hydropriming, osmotic solution, plant hormones or growth regulators, biostimulants, beneficial microorganisms, etc., for climate-smart agriculture.
- Physiological, biochemical, and molecular responses to seed enhancement treatments.
- Impact of seed treatments on crop yield and quality.
- Seed treatments for stress tolerance: mechanisms and applications.
- Seed treatments for seed decontamination, disease resistance, and plant health.
- Economic and environmental benefits of seed enhancement technologies.
- Commercial applications and future directions for seed enhancement technologies.
Dr. Ademola Emmanuel Adetunji
Dr. Sofia Kourmpetli
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- priming
- revitalisation
- invigoration
- plasma
- nanoparticles
- irradiation
- magnetic field
- electropriming
- hydropriming
- osmopriming
- hormonal priming
- biopriming
- coatings
- biological treatments
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