VITALITY OF SEEDS 25 



retained for a much longer period than usual. Another 

 investigator, Giglioli, writing at a much later period, 1 

 says: " There is no reason for denying the possibility 

 of the retention of vitality in seeds preserved during 

 many centuries, such as the mummy wheat and seeds 

 from Pompeii and Herculaneum, provided that these 

 seeds have been preserved from the beginning in condi- 

 tions unfavourable to chemical change. . . . The original 

 dryness of the seeds and their preservation from 

 moisture or moist air must be the very first conditions 

 for a latent secular vitality." All attempts to germinate 

 seeds from Egyptian mummy cases, however, appear 

 to have failed. Contrary statements have been made, 

 but these have probably been based on error or on 

 imperfectly authenticated experiment. 



It has been concluded 2 that "The average life of 

 seeds, as of plants, varies greatly with different families, 

 genera, or species, but there is no relation between the 

 longevity of plants and the viable period of the seeds 

 they bear. The seeds of some plants lose their vitality 

 in a few weeks or months, while others remain viable 

 for a number of years." 



A large number of experiments show that the 

 longevity of seeds chiefly depends on moisture and 

 temperature, well-dried seeds maintained in a dry 

 atmosphere at a temperature not higher than 37 C. 

 ( = 98.6 F.) in general retaining their vitality for con- 

 siderable periods. Specially dried vegetable seeds put 

 up in sealed receptacles were taken by Captain Scott in 

 the steamship Discovery in 1901, and on the return of 

 the exploring party were found in 1904, after passing 

 twice through the tropics and being exposed to the low 



1 Nature, 1895, pp. 544-5. 



2 The Vitality and Germination of Seeds, Bull. No. 58, Bur. Plant Indust., 

 U.S. Dept. Agric., 1904. 



