Abstract
•There are large variations in the aspects of test procedures and seed species of seed germination test.•The analysis method of seed germination test can be improved by applying probabilistic theory.•Chinese cabbage could be used asa model seed to investigate the phytotoxicity of compost.
Compost is commonly used for the growth of plants and the remediation of environmental pollution. It is important to evaluate the quality of compost and seed germination test is a powerful tool to examine the toxicity of compost, which is the most important aspect of the quality. Now the test is widely adopted, but the main problem is that the test results vary with different methods and seed species, which limits the development and application of it. The standardization of methods and the modelization of seeds can contribute to solving the problem. Additionally, according to the probabilistic theory of seed germination, the error caused by the analysis and judgment methods of the test results can be reduced. Here, we reviewed the roles, problems and prospects of the seed germination test in the studies of compost.