The viability, vigour and health of farm-saved soybean seed

This research was conducted in collaboration with smallholder soybean farmers around Gauteng Province of South Africa. The research aimed to investigate the impact of storage practices used by smallholder farmers on soybean seed quality, including seed viability and vigour, seed health, and mycotoxins thereof. This study was a qualitatitive research whereby 22 smallholder farmers were asked questions regarding the storage facilities they use, the type of seed; i.e farm-saved or certified seed they have and they storage periods. Thereafter, seeds samples were collected from the various farmers and taken to the Seed lab of the University of Pretoria where seed quality tests including germination, moisture and vigour tests were conducted. Furthermore, the seed health and mycotoxins associated with the farm-saved seeds were analysed. The data was analysed using SAS and graphpad prism.