348 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



lizers are generally supposed to influence the swelling of the seed, 

 the nature and availability of the reserve material, the awakening and 

 growth of the embryo, and the voung sprout before it reaches the 

 surface of the soil. A large number of experiments were conducted 

 with wheat, lettuce, radish, and crimson clover seed grown in soil in 

 a greenhouse. The fertilizers used were nitrate of soda, nun-iate of 

 potash, boneblack, oyster-shell lime, and a mixed fertilizer consisting 

 of boneblack, luuriate of potash, and nitrate of soda. These diflerent 

 substances were drilled in the rows in which the seeds were planted 

 and also mixed with the soil. In the tal)ular results it is shown that 

 in many cases, if not in most, the application of the fertilizer directly 

 in the row had detrimental effects, and the injurious influence was 

 exerted upon the sprout after it had passed through the seed coats. 

 The author's summary of his results is as follows: 



" (1) That muriate of potash and sodium nitrate used as fertiUzers in strengths of 

 1 per cent or more are very detrimental to the germination of seeds, whether appUed 

 directly or mixed with the soil. 



" (2) That fertilizers composed of phosphoric acid or lime are much less injurious 

 to germination than sodium nitrate or muriate of potash, and if not used in excess 

 may be harmless. 



"(3) That commercial fertilizers should not be brought into direct contact with 

 germinating seeds. 



"(4) The effect of treating seeds with chemicals before ])lanting is no index to 

 the action of those chemicals when applied as manure to the soil. 



"(5) That the chief injury to germination from chemical fertilizers is inflicted 

 upon the young sprouts after they leave the seed coat and before they emerge from 

 the soil, Avhile the seeds themselves are injured only slightly or not at all. 



" (6) It is highly improbable that potash, phosphoric acid, nitrogen, or lime used 

 as fertilizers actually favor germination." 



Investigations on the r61e of oxygen in germination, P. Maze 

 (Ann. Inst. Pasteur, 14- {1900), Wo. 5, pp. 350-368). — The author has 

 investigated the effect of submersion on the germinative power of 

 seed and also the diastatic action produced by such treatment. Peas, 

 maize, lupines, peanuts, colza, cabbage, lucern, and clover were .studied. 



The failure to germinate on the part of submerged seed was found 

 to be due to a lack of aeration. The hydrolyzing enzyms, especially 

 Z3'mase, continued their activity, but the oxidizing diastases were una- 

 ble to produce the liquefied condition necessar}- for the elaboration of 

 the reserve material, and as a result the embryos remained dormant. 

 In the case of small seeds, such as the crucif ers, it was found that they 

 were able to develop slowly, the air content of the seeds being sufli- 

 cient to supply the oxygen necessary for respiration. Starchy seeds 

 wei'e found to lose their g(u-minativ(> ability sooner than oily ones 

 when submerged, but there is nothing to indicate that any kind of 

 seed can long endure such a state. 



The actual diminution of vitality of seeds which have l>een sub- 

 merged in water is said to ])e largely due to the production of poison- 



