176 YEARBOOK OF THE U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



The old adage that a dollar saved is a dollar earned will apply to 

 the purchase of seeds. It is an easy matter to waste a dollar on seeds, 

 and when profits depend upon cutting down useless expenditure, the 

 use of inferior seed can not be too strongly condemned. 



Germination tests of seeds. 



Kind of seed. 



Bean, Burpee's bush lima 72 



Bean, Dwarf , pink -eyed wax 77 



Cabbage, Drumhead 67 



Cabbage, Luxembourg 67.5 



Carrot, Mastodon 58 



Clover, scarlet I 



Japan 5 



Corn, Egyptian weet . 76 



Corn salad ;}< 



Cucumber, White wonder 72 



Eggplant, New York improved thornless 62 



Grass, Kentucky blue 10 



Orchard 31.3 



Texas blue 1 



Lettuce, Golden ball 64.5 



Muskmelon, Shumway 's giant 69 



Muskmelon, Surprise , 64 



Onion, Early round white Dutch 58.5 



Oats, Scotch white. 79.3 



Parsley, Beauty of the Parterre 53 



Pea, Dr. McLean 88 



Pepper, Cranberry 42 



Pumpkin, Winter luxury ^ 65 



Radish, Chartier 63 



Rape, Dwarf Essex 79.5 



Salsify, Sandwich Islands 49. 5 



Spinach, Mett's crumpled leaf 43.5 



Tobacco, White burley .: 0.25 



Tomato, Lorillard.. 72.5 



Watermelon, Cole's early 88 



Per cent of 

 germina- 

 tion was 



Per cent 

 of germi- 

 nation 

 should 

 be- 



95 

 95 

 96 



95 



85 



90 



76 



92.5 



80 



92 



85 



50 



80 



50 



90 







92 



85 



95 



75 



98 



85 



93 



95 



95 



The standard of germination in oats is 95. This places the normal 

 loss from nonviable seeds at one-twentieth part. In the sample of 

 oats reported in the table the loss was slightly more than one-fifth. 

 There was four times as much waste in this sample as there should 

 have been. The White Dutch onion seed germinated 58.5 per cent. 

 The loss in this case was 1 pound in every 2, while the normal waste 

 should have been less than 1 pound in 7. The loss on Egyptian sweet 

 corn reached 1 pecks in 5. The normal loss should not exceed 1 peck 

 in 13. 



A farmer sowing a meadow to Kentucky blue grass and buying such 

 seed as that reported in the table would pay for 9 bushels of dead 

 seed out of every 10 bushels purchased. There is always a great deal 



