132 EXPERIMENT STATION EECORD. 



affect tbe germinative faculty of the grain. When seed were immersed for 

 2 seconds in carbon bisulphid and afterwards placed in the air, the germination 

 of about 10 per cent was destroyed. Immersing seed for a minute and allow- 

 ing them to remain in a vapor of carbon bisulphid for 24 hours destroyed about 

 half of the seed. The action of the vapor was found to be greatly influenced by 

 temperature, 30° C. causing a depreciation of at least 50 per cent in germina- 

 tion, and at 40° all seed were destroyed. 



Treatment of seeds with hydrogen peroxid, E. MiI:ge {Gard. Chron., 3. 

 ser., 50 {1911), No. 1292, p. 24I; Internat. Inst. Agr. [Rome], Bui. Bur. Agr. 

 Intel, and Plant Diseases, 2 {1911), No. 11-12, p. 2600). — A brief account is 

 given of investigations which show that dilute solutions of hydrogen reroxid 

 facilitated germination and stimulated the active development of plants. 



The author concludes from his experiments that hydrogen peroxid is a useful 

 fungicide for treating seed affected by smut. Immersion of infected feed for 

 15 minutes in a 1 per cent solution is said to have not only destroyed the ad- 

 hering fungus spores but to have also protected seedlings against subsequent 

 attack. It is thought that this fungicide might be efiicient for the control of 

 hollyhock rust. 



Hydrocyanic acid formation in g'ermination of seeds, C. Ravenna and C. 

 Vecchi {Atii B. Accad. Lincei, Bend. CI. Sci. Fis., Mat. e Nat., 5. ser., 20 

 {1911), II, No. 9, pp. ^91-495). — This investigation follows up work previously 

 noted (E. S. R., 24, p. 229), experiments being carried on with seeds of flax 

 and sorghum. 



In flax seeds which normally contain a minute quantity of hydrocyanic acid 

 the proportion was considerably increased on germination, and this increase 

 was augmented upon the addition of 0.1 per cent of chlorid of ammonia to the 

 water with which the seeds were moistened. In experiments with sorghum 

 seeds, which in the quiescent state contain no prussic acid, this acid was 

 produced by germination, and as before, its amount was augmented by the 

 addition of sal ammoniac. In one experiment the addition of glucose (0.2 per 

 cent) gave a greater percentage of this acid than did sal ammoniac, while a 

 still greater proportion was obtained by employment of both together in the 

 percentages above mentioned. 



Investigations on the g'ennination of seeds of some weeds, O. Munebati 

 and T. Y. Zappaboli {Staz. Sper. Agr. Ital, J,', {1911), No. 1, pp. J,0-50).— The 

 effect of chemical and mechanical means of rendering seed coats of seed per- 

 meable was investigated. Different lots of seed of a number of common weeds 

 were either immersed in strong sulphuric acid (specific gravity 1.84) or punc- 

 tured with a needle opposite the embryo. 



Among the so-called refractory seeds, soaking for from 15 to 90 minutes in 

 sulphuric acid or puncturing the seed rendered the seed coats more permeable 

 to water and hastened germination, though in some cases the total germina- 

 tions of the untreated seed were the greatest. For the seed having thinner 

 seed coats considerable injury followed the treatments. In a number of in- 

 stances the germination of old seed was higher when treated with sulphuric 

 acid than in the case of untreated lots. 



Dependence of the respiration of plants on the lipoids, E. Stanevich 

 {Trudy Imp. S. Peterh. Ohshch. Estestvo. {Trav. Soc. Imp. Nat. St. Petersl).), 

 Ill {1910), pp. 11-33; ahs. in Zfmr. Opytn. Agron. {Russ. Jour. Expt. Landic), 

 12 {1911), No. 1, p. 110). — The author examined the respiration of wheat 

 germs after extraction with various solvents (E. S. R., 25, p. 124). The quan- 

 tities of carbon dioxid given off by 3 gm. of the embryos in 9 hours after the 

 extractions were as follows: Control 163 mg., extracted with toluene 81.8 

 mg., acetone 79.8 mg., chloroform 61.4 mg., ether 48.0 mg., and alcohol 6.3 mg.. 



