pregerminationadj.n.
/ˌpriːdʒəːmᵻˈneɪʃn/, U.S. /ˌpriˌdʒərməˈneɪʃ(ə)n/ Biology and Agriculture.
A. adj.
Occurring before germination; (also) of or relating to the treatment of seed to induce germination.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > by growth or development > [adjective] > sprouting or germinating > of other types of germination
admotive1819
remotive1819
pregermination1898
1898 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) B. 190 636 It is quite possible for the pre-germination period to extend much longer.
1913 Amer. Naturalist 47 744 There is probably a post-germination as well as pre-germination mortality.
1938 Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 65 183 [They] worked out for me the pregermination cold treatment necessary for the germination of the seeds of these small gladiolus species.
1987 T. H. Clutton-Brock & M. E. Ball Rhum 57 The seed of berried shrubs..requires pre-germination treatment by up to three years' stratification in sand, or by freezing.
2005 Jrnl. Ecol. 93 60 Post-germination processes shape the spatial variation in recruitment more than pre-germination processes.
B. n.
The treatment of seed to induce germination before planting.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > sowing > [noun] > treatment of seed
emulsion1657
seed treatment1890
pregermination1942
biofortification1999
1942 H. I. Baldwin Forest Tree Seed 230 Pregermination:—Germinative processes set in motion, but completion impossible because of external factors. Seed coat may or may not be broken.
1959 Times 7 Dec. (Agric. Suppl.) p. viii/3 Pregermination of conifer seed is practised before sowing.
1986 C. Culpin Farm Machinery (ed. 11) vii. 115/2 Fluid drilling..facilitates pre-germination in controlled conditions.
1993 J. S. Kahn Constituting the Minangkabau ii. 41 Pregermination of seeds in nurseries.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.1898