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Abstract
Flooding of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) for 96 hr at anthesis adversely affected plant growth. Average leaf size of the flooded plants was significantly less than that of nonflooded controls. Ratios of leaf dry weight to root dry weight indicated that flooding reduced root development more than leaf development. Mean photosynthetic rate over the 96-hr flooding period and the 72-hr post-flooding period was decreased by 62%. Viability, germination percentage, and average weight of seeds from flooded plants were significantly less than those of control plants. Pepper photosynthetic rate was correlated with seed weight, seed viability, and germination percentage. Reductions in seed viability as a result of soil flooding may, therefore, be attributable to reductions in the supply of photosynthates to the seed.