This paper is a résumé of research on imbibitional chilling injury of seeds. The following summarizes the experimental results obtained and some views and concepts derived from the studies conducted at Beijing Botanical Garden during the last decade. A lot of evidence has supported and confirmed the hypothesis for imbibitional chilling injury in seeds, i.e. the primary target of harmful effects during the chilling rehydration in seeds is the membrane systems, and the subsequent degree of lasting damage depends highly on the repair of the membrane systems themselves. The two processes of repair, physical and physiological–biochemical processes, can complement each other to a certain extent.
