6 The Bulletin. 



acre, sowing at the rate of 15 pounds, would be $7.35, using this 

 quality of seed; while the cost of seeding an acre, using the better 

 grade seed, would be $2.40. This high price is a minor considera- 

 tion when one realizes that more than 300,000,000 weed seeds would 

 be sown per acre by planting the low-grade seed. This is a common 

 means by which weeds are introduced on the farm, and often renders 

 the land worthless for growing certain crops. 



Fig. 1. Good-grade Red Clover Seed. 



The undesirable conditions in the seed trade rest quite as much 

 with the mass of farmers who demand low-priced seed as with the 

 dealers who meet this demand. When the farmers realize that some 

 other consideration, aside from merely the price, must be the guide 

 in purchasing, and that low-priced seed is not the cheapest and not 

 necessarily the highest-priced seed is the best, but that the best 

 quality that can be bought is the cheapest seed ; when they will have 

 nothing but a good grade, the dealers will be compelled to meet this 

 demand. A large part of the dealer's profit is derived from the sale 

 of screenings and low-grade seed. For instance, when good seed is 

 selling for 15 cents per pound and a farmer demands a cheaper grade, 

 the dealer will mix screenings and low-grade seed worth 3 or 5 cents 

 per pound with the better grade seed to make the various cheaper 



