50 THE VITALITY AND GERMINATION OF SEEDS. 



Wagoner, Ind. T. The seeds were sent to Wagoner on February 

 17, 1900. The first series was received in return on June 23, after 126 

 days; the second set was returned after 238 days, on October 13, 1900. 

 The sets for 4 ' trade conditions " were kept in a drug store, on a counter 

 near an open door. The "dry room" was a sleeping room on the first 

 floor of the same building, while "basement" conditions were supplied 

 by keeping the seeds in a large depository vault in a bank. 



Dwrham, N. II. The two sets of seeds were sent to Durham on 

 February 17, 1900, and were returned on July 14 and October 20, after 

 117 and 231 days, respectively. The seeds under "trade conditions" 

 were kept over a door at the entrance of one of the college buildings. 

 The door opened into a hall, which led into office rooms, the chemical 

 laboratory, and the basement. An office room on the first floor of the 

 same building supplied "dry room" conditions. The seeds were 

 located well toward the top of the room, which was heated with steam 

 and remained quite dry at all times. The "basement" conditions 

 were found in a storage room in one corner of the basement of the 

 same building. 



Ann Arbor, Mich. The set of samples placed under "trade condi- 

 tions" was kept in the botanical laboratory, being moved about from 

 time to time in order to supply the necessary variations to an herbarium 

 room, to an open window, and to an attic. From February 18, 1900, 

 until May 12, 1900, the set of seeds under " dry room" conditions was 

 stored in a furnace room. The seeds were only a few feet from the 

 furnace and were always quite dry and warm: The maximum tem- 

 perature recorded was 43 C., with a mean of 38 during cold weather, 

 and of 30 C. during milder weather. On May 12 this set of seeds 

 was transferred to the herbarium room on the fourth floor of the 

 botanical laboratory, where they remained until vitality tests were 

 made. " Basement " conditions were found in a fruit cellar, having 

 two outside walls and a temperature fluctuating between 10 and 13 C. 



These packages and bottles were all securely packed in new cedar 

 boxes from which they were not removed until after their return to the 

 laboratory. 



RESULTS OF THE GERMINATION TESTS. 



After receipt of the seeds, germination tests were made as rapidly 

 as possible, the results of which are given in the tabulations which 

 follow. Likewise, in each case is shown the vitality of the control 

 sample. Furthermore, a summaiy of each table is given, showing the 

 average percentages of germination of the seed from the various 

 places for the first and second tests, respectively. From these results 

 the average percentage of loss in vitality has been calculated, reckoning 

 the germination of the control sample as a standard. It is thus a veiy 

 simple matter to compare the relative merits of the different methods 

 of storing and the role they play in promoting the longevity of seeds. 



