DIVISION OF BOTANY. " 97 



of germination thus ascertained, as compared with the standards of 

 germination i^rescribed in the contract for each kind of seed distrib- 

 uted, the Department accepts or rejects the seeds, reserving the privi- 

 lege of accepting a lot that goes slightly below standard, with a 

 provision for a drawback, precisely as in the case of purity. The 

 average of the lower limit in the germination standards for the past 

 year was 86.2 per cent. The average germination of all the seeds dis- 

 tributed was 91.4 per cent. The seeds distributed therefore averaged 

 in germination 5.2 per cent higher than a standard which has been 

 considered by manj^ seedsmen unnecessarily high. 



The third test — that for trueness to name, or genuineness — is con- 

 ducted in the field. Samj^les of the seeds, under the names under which 

 they are distributed, are planted on our trial grounds along with varie- 

 ties of authentic samples of the same seed secured by purchase from 

 reliable seedsmen. All the plants that come from the test sample are 

 grown to maturity, and those true to name as well as those not true to 

 name are counted and the percentage of trueness to name ascertained. 

 It is evident from the time consumed in making these field tests that 

 they can not be made until after the seeds have been distributed, and 

 it is chiefly in this direction that the seeds purchased by the Depart- 

 ment have in the past proved to be defective. No standard of genu- 

 ineness has heretofore been set bj^ the Department. It will therefore 

 be a matter of general interest to announce that the Secretary of Agri- 

 culture, since the end of the fiscal year, has established the following 

 standard : 



The standard of trueness to name of each variety shall be the average of the 

 percentage of trueness to name in not less than five commercial samples of the same 

 variety purchased under the direction of the Secretary of Agriculture in the open 

 market from five or more reliable seed houses, and the Secretary of Agriculture 

 shall be the sole judge of the results of the tests reported by the officer or officers 

 charged therewith by him. Not less than 100 plants from each lot of the seeds fur- 

 nished by the contractor shall constitute a test. 



SCIENTIFIC AIDS. 



The plan inaugurated by the authority of the Secretary of Agricul- 

 ture early in the fiscal year to offer positions as scientific aids at a small 

 salary to graduates of the agricultural colleges who had shown special 

 qualification for investigation work has been followed by this Division 

 to the extent of three appointments of this character. From the expe- 

 rience thus gained, it is clear that if the policy of selecting and appoint- 

 ing scientific aids is followed with discretion a valuable corps of j'oung 

 exjjerimenters will be trained up who will be suitable for positions in 

 agricultural colleges or other similar institutions, or for such positions 

 as may offer themselves in this Department. It is not, however, to 

 the interest of the Department to appoint as a scientific aid a man 

 whose work requires constant and detailed suijervision. A scientific 

 aid should be capable of conducting an investigation with only a mod- 

 erate amount of direction from the officer to whom he is responsible. 



FOREST RESERVE GRAZING. 



The Secretary of the Interior, in consideration of the agricultural 

 bearing of the controverted question of sheep grazing within the forest 

 reserves, requested the Secretary of Agriculture to make an investi- 

 gation of this problem, and the chief of the Division of Forestry, who 

 was intrusted with the investigation, invited the cooperation of the 

 Botanist in a personal examination of the Arizona reserves, in which 



AGR 1900 7 



