SDSU Seed Testing Lab
The Seed Testing Laboratory is maintained by SDSU's department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science to test seed samples for farmers, seed breeders, agronomists and seed companies throughout the USA. The Lab is also the South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State Lab and conducts testing for the , SDSU Foundation Seed Stocks and the . Our lab is equipped with the modern testing equipment necessary to perform tests on the seeds of agricultural crops, grasses, flowers, trees and vegetables.
Effective July 1, 2025
Due to the increasing costs of supplies and maintenance, an adjustment to our fees is essential to ensure we continue to provide the high-quality testing you expect from us. We appreciate your business, and please know that we are adjusting pricing as minimally as possible.
Our new fee brochure will be updated on this site, and printed copies will be available upon request. We have added a link for credit card payments (see below) for quick and secure payment. Payment by check is still accepted, and monthly statements will continue as before. For any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact us at 605-688-4589 or email the Seed Testing Lab.
More about us
The crucial components of the Seed Testing Laboratory are teaching, training and research. For well over 50 years, we have hired students as part-time analysts and taught them to test seeds properly. The training and experience these students gain are unsurpassed, and we routinely employ students during the fall and spring semesters. Over the years we have hired and trained well over 800 student seed analysts, and many of them have gone on to become seed analysts or to work in the seed trade.
The Seed Testing Laboratory also conducts seed-related research and provides training, supplies and direct assistance for faculty, graduate and undergraduate research. At any given time, we may be working with other faculty and one to four graduate students on seed-related research projects. Every year, the Seed Testing Laboratory participates in several national/regional refereed studies to evaluate potential changes in testing methods.
We also give tours to several groups each year. Tours for individuals or groups are available by request. In addition, we routinely provide seed samples of multiple species to university classes and for K-12 teaching/laboratory purposes. Lab personnel also help put on workshops and provide individual training upon request by clients or from the industry.
Additional Information
SDSU Seed Testing Lab Price List - July 1, 2025
Please refer to the above Service and Fee brochure for current prices.
Prices effective July 1, 2025
(subject to change)
Accelerated Aging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Bulk Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25.00
Canadian Testing (unofficial) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . inquire
Chlorox Soak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.00
CoAXium (herbicide bioassay) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35.00
Cold Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28.00
Dodder check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55.00
Fluorescence - oats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.00
Fluorescence - ryegrass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.00
Germination . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(varies per crop) see brochure
Hilum Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.00
Moisture Test . . . . . . . . Air-oven . . . 22.00 Meter . . . 8.00
Noxious:
South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã/Individual State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17.00
South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã/Individual State and other crop . . . . . . 20.00
USA Noxious (Continental U.S. – excludes AK, HI) . . . 27.00
USA Noxious and other crop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.00
USA Noxious and UGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.00
USA Noxious and UGS and other crop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35.00
UGS Check (Undesirable Grass Seed) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Western States Noxious
(AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA, WY) . . . . . 25.00
Phenol test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50.00
Potassium Hydroxide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50.00
Protein Test (wheat, oat, pea, soybean) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.00
Purity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (varies per crop) see brochure
Rough Purity (on chaffy grass, unofficial) . . . . . . . . . . . 32.00
Roundup Ready (bioassay method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.00
Roundup Ready AP 800 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40.00
Roundup Ready AP lateral flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30.00
Sand Germination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.00
Seed Count per lb. (free with other test) . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.00
Seed Identification (free to active clients) . . . . . . . . . . . 6.00
Soil germination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36.00
Smut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100.00
Test Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.00
Tetrazolium (TZ) Testing:
Cereals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39.00
Grasses/Natives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46.00
Others . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45.00
Treated Germination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27.00
Variety ID (HPLC) . . . . check our website for price/brochure
Laboratory Fees
Cancellation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.00
Hourly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52.00/hour
Pigweed DNA* (postage only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.00
Reprint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.00
Return Seed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . adjusted for postage
Rush . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50.00
Express Rush . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100.00
* Testing for Palmer amaranth is performed at another facility that will bill you directly. We will mail the seeds for you.
Shipping Information
U.S. Postal Service:
SDSU Seed Testing Laboratory
Box 2100A
Raven Precision Agriculture Center 140
Brookings, SD 57007
UPS/FedEx/Spee-Dee:
SDSU Seed Testing Laboratory
SDSU Innovation Campus
2380 Research Parkway
Brookings, SD 57006
Minimum Sample Sizes and Days of Germination
Samples of seed that will be offered for sale must have the purity, germination and noxious exams performed. If only a purity and germination are marked, the noxious exam will be added.
Call 605-688-4589 for crops not listed. Email questions to Seed Lab.
All weights are in grams; 453.6 grams = 1 pound (28.35 grams = 1 ounce)
| Crop | Purity | Noxious weed | Germination days* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alfalfa | 5 | 50 | 7 |
| Barley | 100 | 500 | 7 |
| Beet, field | 50 | 500 | 10-14 |
| Bluegrass, Kentucky | 1 | 10 | 21 |
| Bluestem, big | 7 | 70 | 14 |
| Bluestem, little | 5 | 50 | 14 |
| Brome, smooth | 7 | 70 | 14 |
| Buckwheat | 50 | 500 | 6 |
| Chickpea | 500 | 500 | 7 |
| Clover, crimson | 10 | 100 | 7 |
| Clover, red | 5 | 50 | 7 |
| Corn, field/popcorn | 500 | 500 | 7 |
| Cowpea | 300 | 500 | 8 |
| Fescue, red and creeping red | 3 | 30 | 21 |
| Fescue, tall | 5 | 50 | 14 |
| Flax | 15 | 150 | 7 |
| Indiangrass | 7 | 70 | 14 |
| Lentil | 120 | 500 | 10 |
| Milkweed (showy) | 16 | 160 | 21 |
| Millet, foxtail | 5 | 50 | 10 |
| Millet, proso | 15 | 150 | 7 |
| Oats | 75 | 500 | 7 |
| Orchardgrass | 3 | 30 | 21 |
| Pea, field/forage | 500 | 500 | 8 |
| Radish | 30 | 300 | 6 |
| Rye | 75 | 500 | 7 |
| Ryegrass | 5 | 50 | 14 |
| Sideoats | 6 | 60 | 14 |
| Sorghum | 50 | 500 | 7 |
| Soybean | 500 | 500 | 7 |
| Sunflower | 100 | 500 | 7 |
| Switchgrass | 4 | 40 | 14 |
| Triticale | 100 | 500 | 7 |
| Vetch, common | 150 | 500 | 10 |
| Wheat | 100 | 500 | 7 |
| Wheatgrass tall/intermediate/pubescent | 15 | 150 | 21-28 |
* Prechill may be required on newly harvested crops or native species, which will extend test time.
National Agencies/Associations
South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã Agencies/Associations
- South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã Agricultural Experiment Station at SDSU
- SDSU Foundation Seed Stocks Division
- SDSU Department of Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science
- SDSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic
-
(pesticide, herbicide, mineral feed, drug, proximate analysis)
Meet Our Staff
Our staff consists of experienced, technically trained, and accredited analysts (certified seed analyst and registered seed technologist) as well as part-time analysts who work under supervision. All analyses are performed following the "AOSA Rules for Testing Seeds" (when applicable) published by the . Upon completion of testing, an official report of analysis is issued for each sample submitted.
Published by: SDSU Seed Testing Laboratory, South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State University, Brookings, South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã
All Rights Reserved, 2003, SDSU Seed Testing Laboratory
In the following pages you will find color photographs of all seeds that are used in the South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State FFA and 4H crops contests. In each picture, a scale in millimeters (mm) has been used so you can determine actual seed size. A brief seed description accompanies each seed, sometimes with arrow(s) pointing out key features.
2003 by E. Brent Turnipseed, Ph.D.
SDSU Innovation Campus
2380 Research Parkway
Brookings, SD 57006
Hours: 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Monday-Friday
Phone: 605-688-4589
