30 EXPERDIENT STATION. [Jan. 



analyst called tliem simply " rod clover." Both, are right from 

 their individual viewpoint, but legally, which is the proper desig- 

 nation ? It is the same with the harleys ; horticulturally, they 

 are designated as two, four and six rowed, respectively, but 

 the analyst has classed them as barley, simply, which is incor- 

 rect from the seedsman's stand])oint, and also from the applica- 

 tion of the seed laws in some States. 



Aside from the error resulting from a cursory examination 

 of seed by an analyst for purity, etc., it would be very difficult 

 for one to identify the different varieties of plants from a 

 simple examination of the seed alone, — for instance, the dif- 

 ferent varieties of cabbage, rape, wheat, etc., — as the macro- 

 scoi^ic and microscopic characters of the different varieties are 

 so nearly alike in many cases. Very often the only way in 

 wdiich a seed can be proved to be true to name is by growing 

 the plant to maturity and getting the fruit or product which 

 is used for identification purposes. This, of course, is out of 

 the province of the seed inspector, and he cannot be held to 

 an absolutely true identification of the variety, especially in 

 the instances mentioned. Very often, also, it is necessary to 

 have the plant for identification, as the seed structure may be 

 quite misleading. 



In the matter of the proper identification of seeds it might 

 be stated, also, that in the case of mixtures of seeds like Canada 

 blue grass and Kentucky blue grass, unless the analyst is very 

 careful, the presence of one or the other may easily be over- 

 looked. In one instance that we know of a sample of Ken- 

 tucky blue grass, which contained a large amount of Canada 

 blue grass, was analyzed by 23 different stations in tliis and 

 other countries, and 12 out of the 27 stations did not report 

 the presence of Canada blue grass. Thus it can be seen that 

 great care should be exercised in the matter of purity tests, 

 and only thoroughly qualified analysts should be intrusted with 

 the work. 



