Seed coat

The protective outer covering of a seed, usually derived from the ovule’s integuments. It shields the embryo and stored reserves and can regulate water entry, gas exchange, and germination.

Seed dormancy: A temporary failure of a viable seed to germinate under otherwise favorable conditions. A hard or impermeable coat can help keep the embryo dormant until conditions change.
Ovule: The plant structure that contains the female gametophyte and develops into a seed after fertilization. The seed coat develops from the ovule’s outer integuments.
Seed treatment: The application of physical, chemical, or biological methods to seeds before sowing. Treatments may target the coat to improve germination or protect seedlings.
Pericarp: The mature ovary wall that forms the fruit wall around seeds. It surrounds seeds in fruits but is not itself the seed’s coat.
Scarification: The weakening or breaking of a seed coat to improve water uptake and germination. Natural weathering, digestion, or deliberate treatment can overcome coat-imposed barriers.
Integument: A protective tissue layer surrounding a plant ovule and later contributing to the seed coat. Integuments are the maternal tissues that form the coat.
Seed priming: A controlled hydration treatment that prepares seeds for faster or more uniform germination without allowing radicle emergence. Coat permeability affects how reliably priming water enters a seed.
Aril: A fleshy outgrowth associated with a seed, often arising near the funiculus or seed coat. It may cover or attract attention to a seed without being the seed coat proper.
Water permeability: The capacity of a material to allow water to pass through it. Coat permeability determines whether imbibition can begin.
Testa: The outer layer of a seed coat, especially in botanical descriptions of mature seeds. The name often denotes the seed coat itself, though some descriptions distinguish its outer layer.

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