SEED TESTING in 



germinate. He can determine this very easily by making 

 some tests in-doors. In the making of these tests two 

 methods are commonly employed. In one, the seeds are 

 simply given favorable conditions for sprouting, and as soon 

 as they have sprouted they are counted and then thrown 

 away. In the other, the seeds are planted in soil and al- 

 lowed to develop into seedlings long enough to show the 

 percentage of plants that would be likely to grow in the 

 garden. In general, the latter method will give more ac- 

 curate results than the former, for many seeds have sufficient 

 vitality to germinate, but not to develop into growing plants. 



The determination of the percentage of seeds which will 

 sprout under favorable conditions is a very simple matter. 

 If you stop to think a moment of the conditions under which 

 seeds sprout in the garden out-doors you will see that in the 

 place just below the soil surface where they rest while they 

 are sprouting they have these three essentials — air, warmth, 

 and moisture. Consequently, if you supply these require- 

 ments to any seed, they should be able to start their growth 

 and thus show you what percentage has sufficient vitality to 

 germinate. 



One of the simplest ways of conducting a germinating 

 test is to place the seeds between layers of cotton batting, 

 keeping the cotton moist and in a warm room. The cotton 

 batting may be simply rolled up and placed inside a paper 

 flower-pot which should be covered with a piece of card- 

 board, or it may be laid upon a saucer or plate and another 

 saucer or plate inverted over it. Instead of cotton batting 

 one may use blotting-paper or even flannel cloth. 



It is desirable to select for germinating tests either fifty or 

 one hundred seeds in order that the percentage may be 



