LINT AND SEED CHARACTERS OF HINDI COTTON. 13 



to make the Hindi seeds longer and more angular. Fully developed 

 Egyptian seeds are usually plump, with all the sides distinctlj^ con- 

 vex and with a larger diameter than the Hindi seeds. 



The smooth surface and narrower shape of Hindi seeds make it 

 possible to separate most of them by sifting, as the Egyptian ginning 

 establishments are said to do. Nevertheless, it is not to be expected 

 that any complete elimination of the Hindi cotton can be accom- 

 plished in this way, for Hindi plants are occasionally found with 

 fuzzy seeds much like the seeds of American Upland cotton. The 

 seeds of Hindi hybrids are also somewhat fuzzy, often in the same 

 way as the Egyptian seeds. 



Hand selection of seed intended for planting is said to be done in 

 Egypt, though it does not seem to be a regidar practice. Experi- 

 ments carried on by Mr. Argyle McLachlan in Arizona indicate that 

 Hindi variations and other aberrant tendencies can usually be de- 

 tected if the seeds are studied with sufficient care and discrimination. 



The sorting out of the Hindi cotton is also assisted by the fact that 

 the Hindi lint is very lightly attached, allowing the black surfaces 

 of the seeds to be very readily seen. Even before the cotton is picked 

 from the plants this difference is often very apparent. 



In addition to being short and coarse, the fibers of the Hindi cot- 

 ton are relatively straijjht and have verv little tendencv to clina: 

 together, like the longer and more abundant fibers of Egyptian and 

 Upland varieties. After the Hindi bolls are open the seeds soon 

 begin to separate and fall out, especially if they have a little assistance 

 from wind or rain. In other words, the Hindi cotton is conspicu- 

 ously lacking in storm-proof qualities. 



The naked. surfaces of the Hindi seeds may be responsible for the 

 fact that young plants of the Hindi cotton often appear to make more 

 rapid growth than adjacent Egyptian plants. Experiments have 

 shown that the germination of fuzzy-seeded varieties may be seriously 

 delayed in dry weather, Avhile seeds without fuzz ma}^ germinate 

 promptly in the same soil. Obviously, too, a Hindi seedling that 

 had genninated promptly and had sent out roots to absorb water 

 would retard the germination of other seeds in the same hill. The 

 cotton is planted in Egypt in relatively dry soil, the young plants 

 being easily destroyed by any excess of water. lender sucli condi- 

 tions there is usually a very unequal development of the young plants. 

 Two or three phmts in each hill, or perhaps only a single one, may 

 develop several leaves and attain a height of 8 or 10 inches, while the 

 other seedlings of the same hill remain with only the cotyledons 

 expanded. 



210 



