THE PHYSIOLOGY OF SOWING SEEDS. 599 
A healthy and vigorous germination of seed, 
is as indispensable in farming, as a healthy and 
vigorous offspring in breeding and rearing cattle. 
No favourable condition ought to be overlooked. 
The seed ought to be lightly covered, so that it 
may be under the full influence of external con- 
ditions. The soil should be fully pulverised by 
a thorough harrowing, as well as a deep compact 
ploughing. And the seeds ought all to germinate 
simultaneously, and come up full and vigorously. 
The full importance of an active germination 
of seeds, will become more apparent by examin- 
ing a little farther into its physiological nature. 
Seeds have been stated to be analogous to eggs, 
or the ova of animals, and germination to the 
hatching of such ova. As the hatching of ova, 
or eggs introduces independent individuals of 
their kind into existence, so does germination 
introduce individual plants into existence. And 
as the greatest portion of the substance of the 
egg is mere nutritive matter, expended in the 
formation of the living structure to be reared ; 
so is the greatest portion of the seedling plant 
developed by germination, mere nutritive matter 
to be expended in the formation of the living 
structure of the plant. With the exception of 
