SEED INSPECTION 17 



FIELD TESTS OF VEGETABLE SEEDS 



Type and Variety Studies 



Conducted by the Seed Laboratory 

 Waldo C. Lincoln, Jr., Laboratory Assistant 



This year is the eighteenth year that the Experiment Station has conducted 

 tests to determine the trueness-to-type of various kinds of vegetable seed offered 

 for sale in this State. Tests were conducted in the same manner as in former 

 years except that a larger number of samples of each of fewer kinds were selected 

 for testing. Kinds of seed selected consist of Sweet Corn, Radish and Summer 

 Squash, for which the State Seed Inspector sampled a comprehensive collection 

 of varieties and strains, consisting of 98 samples of Sweet Corn, 69 samples of 

 Radish, and 30 samples of Summer Squash. These 197 samples of seed were 

 taken at 30 retail establishments and represent the offerings of 28 seedsmen who 

 wholesale seed in this State. 



The Corn was hand-planted June 2, in ten-foot rows, and each sample was 

 replicated at random in the field. Although growing conditions were extremely 

 dry in this area, the seed plots did not suffer because of the heavy soil and the 

 ability of the soil to retain moisture. This year, for the first time, the laboratory 

 worked in conjunction with the United States Department of Agriculture at 

 Beltsville, Maryland, and some 45 samples of hybrid Sweet Corn, representing 

 only the inter-state sales, were also tested at the Plant Industry Center in 

 Beltsville. Because of extreme drought the tests at Beltsville were a failure. 



Only one sample of Corn was found incorrectly labeled. The remainder of 

 the Sweet Corn conformed to type, which does not mean that all lots were of 

 equal desirability. Seed Stocks found in the tests conformed to type but were 

 not equally desirable, particularly in the early varieties of Spancross and 

 Marcross. 



Thirty samples of Summer Squash were planted on June 3. The planting 

 procedure consisted of two hills of four plants each duplicated at random. Here 

 again some seed stocks were more desirable than others, but only one sample was 

 found to be mislabeled. 



The 69 samples of radishes were planted in ten-foot rows in duplicate on 

 June 3. 



Conformity to type was the measure of comparison in the tests, and individual 

 plants were called off-type when they could not be classified in a group of 

 plants ranging fairly close to the type generally accepted as typical for the 

 particular variety under consideration. 



The results of all tests are listed in the following table. 



Table 4 

 Field Tests of Vegetable Seeds 



Wholesale Distributor, Variety of Seed True 

 Lab. Kind of and Lot Number, Dealer When Other to 



No. Seed Than Wholesale Distributor, and Place Type Remarks 



Collected % 



Abbott & Cobb Co., Frankford, Pa. 



De Vincent Bros., Waltham 

 618 Radish Scarlet Globe Short Top, No. 193 9S 5% Long tapered root 



Joseph Brack & Sons, Inc., Boston, Mass. 



177 Radish Cherry Belle 94 5% pink— 1% French Break- 



fast Type 



W. Atlee Burpee Co., Philadelphia, Pa. 



Checkerboard Feed Store, East Long- 

 meadow 

 995 Radish Burpee's Early Scarlet Button, No. 877 97 3% purple 

 993 Squash Summer Straightneck 75 25% Des Moines Type 



