Time course of germination of dehulled rice seeds. Seeds were directly sown on sterile filter paper in 5 cm Petri dishes and placed in a growth chamber in continuous darkness at 28 °C to facilitate germination. Seeds were weighed at various time points. Values are means ±SD (n=5). Means denoted by the same letter did not differ significantly at P < 0.05 according to Duncan’s multiple range test.