How to Measure the Moisture Content of Seeds
The cells of all living things contain water, and plants are no different. A plant's seed is an embryo, or baby plant, sealed in a protective shell. One of the shell's jobs is to prevent the seed from becoming completely dessicated, or dried out. The plant embryo will die if that happens. You can measure the moisture content of seeds by measuring their mass, then drying them out and measuring their mass again. The water lost during drying will account for the difference in the mass.
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Instructions
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Use your weight scale to measure the mass of your mortar and pestle. Suppose as an example that the mortar and pestle have a mass of 250 grams (g).
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Place the seeds inside the mortar and use your scale to measure the mass of the mortar, pestle and seeds together. Suppose that all items together have a mass of 300 g. That means the seeds added a mass of 50 g to the mortar and pestle.
The exact number of seeds you use does not matter. However, the more you use, the better your eventual moisture content calculation will apply to all seeds of the same type.
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Use the pestle to grind the seeds in the mortar. Breaking the seeds open will allow them to dry out much faster. Be careful not to lose any seed material as you do this.
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Place the mortar and pestle with the crushed seeds into an incubator or oven set at 100 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Extreme temperatures should not be used; the point it to expose the seeds to warm, dry air for a period of time. One hour should be more than enough to evaporate all of the moisture from the seeds. Mortars and pestles are usually made of stone or ceramic and will not be harmed by these temperatures.
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Remove the mortal, pestle and seeds from the incubator or oven and once again measure their mass on your scale. Suppose that the new mass is 280 g. That would mean the seeds lost 20 g of water.
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Calculate the moisture content of the seeds by calculating the percentage of their mass that was water, like so:
Moisture content of seeds = 20 g / 50 g x 100 percent = 40 percent
The seeds were 40 percent water.
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- Photo Credit seeds image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com
