Q.Discuss the importance of neem in seed storage?

A seed ball is a clay-compost-encased seed pellet used for scattering seeds onto degraded or inaccessible land for easy, protected germination.

A seed ball (also called a seed bomb) is prepared by mixing viable seeds with a small amount of compost or organic manure (to provide initial nutrition) and then coating this mixture with a layer of clay. The clay is shaped by hand or machine into small, rounded balls, which are then dried before use.

Seed balls are used mainly in guerrilla gardening and afforestation or wasteland-greening programmes, popularised by the natural-farming method of the Japanese farmer Masanobu Fukuoka. Because the seeds are already embedded and protected inside the ball, seed balls can simply be scattered or broadcast over barren, degraded, or otherwise difficult-to-access land -- steep slopes, roadsides, or areas that cannot be conventionally tilled and sown -- without the need for ploughing or careful individual planting.

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Seed treatment protects seeds from disease and pests and improves germination, seedling vigour and final yield.

Seed treatment is the application of a fungicide, insecticide, or bio-agent (or a combination) to seeds before storage or sowing. Its benefits include:

1. Disease protection: it protects the seed and the resulting seedling from seed-borne and soil-borne pathogens (fungi, bacteria), controlling diseases such as smut and bunt that would otherwise infect the crop from the very start.
2. Pest protection: it protects stored/sown seed from insect pests and soil-dwelling pests that could damage the seed or attack young seedlings.
3. Better germination: treated seeds generally show improved and more uniform germination percentage, since the seed is protected from rot and early infection.
4. Improved seedling vigour: seedlings emerging from treated seed tend to be healthier and more vigorous, giving the crop a stronger start. …