ELECTRICITY. 191 



tained to ripeness and presented a rich coloring, while the fruit on those 

 plants that had been exposed to sunlight only had by this time scarcely 

 begun to show even a sign of redness." 



At the close of his experiments Siemens was veiy sanguine that the 

 electric light could be profitably employed in horticulture, and he used the 

 term "electro-horticulture" to designate this new application of electric 

 energy. He anticipated that in the future "the horticulturist will have 

 the means of making himself practically independent of solar light for 

 producing a high quality of fruit at all seasons of the year." He thought 

 that the addition of electric light enabled plants to bear at a higher tem- 

 perature in greenhouses than they otherwise could. Nature made the 

 following comments upon Dr. Siemens' experiments: "But the scientific 

 interest of its present application must rest mainly on the fact that the 

 cycle of transformation of energy engaged in plant life is now complete, 

 and that, starting from the energy stored up in vegetable fuel, we can run 

 through the changes from heat to electricity, and thence to light, which 

 we now know we "can store up in vegetable fuel again." 



EXPERIMENTS AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY. 



The most complete and practical experiments made with the electric 

 light are those now being carried on at Cornell University by Prof, L. H. 

 Bailey, and on which there have been two bulletins issued. In his last 

 bulletin he summarizes his observations as follows: 



1. The influence of the electric arc light upon greenhouse plants is 

 greatly modified by the use of a clear glass globe or the interposition of a 

 glass roof. Plants which are much injured by a naked light may be bene- 

 fitted by a protected light. 



2. As a rule plants are earlier under the electric light than when grown 

 in ordinary conditions. 



3. The light can be suspended above the house with good effect. 



4. Lettuce is greatly benefited by the electric light. An average of 

 five hours of light per night at a distance of ten and twelve feet hastened 

 maturity from a week to ten days. Even at forty feet in only diffused 

 light the effect was marked. The light appeared to injure young, newly 

 transplanted plants. 



5 Radishes were also benefited by the light, but not to a great ex- 

 tent. When thelight was hung in the house, however, whether naked or 

 protected by a globe, radishes were injured. 



6. Beets and spinach appeared to be slightly benefited by the light. 



7. Cauliflowers under the light tended to grow taller than in ordinary 

 conditions, and to make fewer and smaller heads. 



8. Violets and daisies bloomed earlier in the light house. This cor- 

 roborates results obtained with other flow'ers in previous experiments. 



9. The electric light does not appear to determine or modify the hours 

 of growth of lettuce and some other plants which have been studied in 

 this particular. Plants which are benefited simply grow more rapidly 

 during the customary periods. 



10. I am convinced that the electric light can be used to advantage in 

 the forcing of some plants. 



The experiments carried on by W. W. Rawson at Arlington, Mass. , have at- 

 tracted wide attention from the magnitude of the undertaking and from 



