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Seed germination is the first developmental phase in a plant's life cycle that is followed by emergence from the soil, successful seedling and establishment, and fruitful yield. Seed germination is influenced by multiple environmental factors such as temperature, moisture, and aeration. An in vitro experiment was conducted to quantify the effects of temperatures ranging from 10[degrees]C to 42.5[degrees]C on germination properties of corn, cotton, and soybean seeds. Cumulative seed germination was recorded over time, was fitted with a three-parameter sigmoidal function to calculate maximum seed germination and seed germination rate. Maximum seed germination was significantly influenced by the interaction of temperature and species. The seed germination rate was further analyzed as a function of temperature by fitting bilinear and quadratic functions to the data. Cardinal temperatures (minimum, optimum, and maximum) were estimated from that regression analysis. Corn displayed the highest optimal temperature of 34.6[degrees]C. Cotton showed higher minimum and maximum cardinal temperatures than both corn and soybean. The cardinal temperatures and functional relationships between seed germination rate and temperature determined in this experiment will be useful to update crop simulation models and assess the best planting dates for rapid, successful germination based on environmental conditions. Keywords: Cardinal temperatures, corn, cotton, soybean, maximum seed germination, optimum temperature, seed germination models, seed germination rate Abbreviations: MSG, maximum seed germination; SGR, seed germination rate, INTRODUCTION In Mississippi, soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.), and corn (Zea mays L.) are three of the most widely grown agronomically important crop species. In 2018, [...]