New York Agricultural Experiment Station. 165 



creases. When the foreign seeds are of all sizes, both larger and 

 smaller than the crop seeds, or when they are approximately the 

 same size and weight as the crop seeds, the two methods agree 

 closely. 



A comparison was made of the time required to secure a com- 

 plete report upon a sample when both methods were employed; 

 and the conclusion was reached that, even if standards could be 

 derived, which seems hardly possible in some cases, the deter- 

 mination of purity by count would be more time-consuming than 

 by weight. If the number of seeds per unit weight for each sample 

 was determined as a basis upon which to derive the purity per- 

 centage of that sample the time required to analyze seed by the 

 count method would be almost prohibitive to that method. 



The following table gives the average number of seeds per unit 

 weight for the common crop seeds designated in the law as agricul- 

 tural seeds. These results are the averages obtained by counts 

 made upon samples of seed obtained upon the open market by the 

 seed inspectors. 



Table II. — Average Number of Seeds per Unit Weight for 



Seeds." 



Agricultural 



Kind of Crop 

 Seed. 



Number of Seed per Pound. 



Maxi- 

 mum. 



Minimum 



Average. 



Alfalfa 



Alsike clover 



Canada blue grass. . . 



Crimson clover 



Kentucky blue grass 



Orchard grass 



Rape, Dwarf Essex . 



Red clover 



Red top 



Timothy 



1 Vetch, spring 



2 Vetch, winter. . . . 

 White clover 



244,944 

 732,564 



3,197,880 

 180,625 



2,687,580 

 943,488 

 113,400 

 347,004 



6,599,880 



1,474,200 



12,067 



15,921 



789,264 



223,192 

 657,720 



2,476,656 

 127,482 



2,086,560 

 564,732 

 105,688 

 273,067 



3,755,808 



1,095,444 



7,166 



14,787 



662,256 



227,254 

 723,492 



2,794,197 

 146,059 



2,227,176 

 597,845 

 109,771 

 305,272 



4,545,072 



1,258,740 



9,526 



15,422 



713,059 



1 Spring, or common, vetch, Vicia sativa. 



2 Winter, hairy, or sand, vetch, Vicia villosa. 



