Seed testing has an awkward property: the most informative tests have traditionally destroyed the sample. Cut a seed open and you learn a great deal about that seed, and lose it. For a breeding line where every seed is a candidate, that is an expensive trade.
X-ray imaging removes the trade entirely. The seed is imaged, assessed, and remains viable.
What shows up
Seeds are ideal X-ray subjects: the interesting defects are density differences inside an intact object.
- Empty and partially filled seed — the single biggest driver of germination rate
- Internal cracks from mechanical handling or drying, invisible from outside
- Voids and malformed embryos
- Insect damage and infestation, including larvae developing inside
- Fill quality, compared across lots, treatments or breeding lines
Why it changes the workflow
Germination testing answers the question definitively but takes days to weeks, and by then the decision may already have been made. X-ray screening is immediate, so it fits where the decision actually happens: incoming lots, batch release, sorting a breeding population before planting.
It does not replace germination testing. It tells you which seed is worth germination-testing, and which lots have a physical problem that no germination test will fix.
Matching the system to the work
The XSEED line covers three sizes, and the choice is mostly about imaging area and throughput:
| Model | Imaging area | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| XSEED mini | 7 × 12 cm, 50 µm | Smaller studies, limited bench space |
| XSEED | 12 × 15 cm | Routine screening, four magnification levels |
| XSEED Plus | 24 × 31 cm | Largest batches, finest detail — minute cracks and infestation |
All three run DIGISEED analysis software, so testing is configured per species and repeated identically rather than depending on who is operating the system that day. That consistency matters more than it sounds when results feed a breeding decision or a certificate.
Where X-ray is not the answer
Viability itself. X-ray shows structure, not whether an embryo is alive. A physically perfect seed can still fail to germinate; a germination test remains the arbiter.
Chemical and genetic questions. Composition, seed treatment chemistry and genetics are separate analyses entirely.
Who this is for
Seed producers screening incoming and outgoing lots, breeding programmes comparing lines, and agricultural research groups studying seed development. If that is your work, we can arrange a demonstration on your own seed in Israel — talk to us.