ULTRASONIC TREATMENT OF SEEDS

Seeds are subject to ultrasonic treatment to enhance and reduce the time for the germination process. In particular to this invention, the seeds are treated ultrasonically while the seeds are in a dry state. A dry sonification process for a dry seed and apparatus produces a sonically-treated dry seed having an enhanced germination characteristic and providing an enhanced growth characteristic to a plant resulting therefrom. The sonification process includes subjecting the dry seed to be sonically treated to sound energy at a frequency and energy density and applying for a sufficient time such that the sonically-treated dry seed has an enhanced germination characteristic and a plant resulting from the sonically-treated dry seed has an enhanced growth characteristic. The ultrasonic treatment can include applying the ultrasonic sound energy in different alternating waveforms, or in a batch or continuous process, with continuous flow through a helical flow path.