A physiological perspective of late maturation processes and establishment of seed quality in Medicago truncatula seeds
Résumé
Physiological seed quality comprises several seed characteristics related to seed and seedling performances such as high germination rate, rapid germination, homogenous germination, and long storability of mature seeds. All these seed quality traits are tightly related to the capacity of seeds to properly develop and reach maturity and, therefore, are acquired throughout the seed maturation stage. In this chapter, we summarize the physiological observations regarding Medicago truncatula seed maturation and propose a state-of-art description of late maturation processes leading to the acquisition of desiccation tolerance, seed longevity, and dormancy, which ultimately determine seed quality.