90 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 347 



Time of Emergence of Chicks from the Shell as a Factor in Poultry Breeding. 



(F. A. Hays.) Records were obtained this \ ear on the time of emergence of 1982 

 chicks from the shell. Observations were made at eight-hour intervals beginning 

 with the end of the twentieth day. Only one chick emerged at the end of the 

 twentieth day and a relatively small percentage during the first third of the twenty- 

 first day. The greatest proportion of the chicks emerged during the last third of 

 the twenty-first day and the first third of the twenty-second day. A few chicks 

 did not emerge until the last third of the twenty-second day. 



These preliminary data show no significant relation between time of emergence 

 and sex, mortality rate, or body weight of pullets at 170 days of age. 



Relation of Plumage Color to Sex in Rhode Island Red Chicks. (F.A. Hays.) 

 A total of 3200 pedigreed Rhode Island Red chicks has been described for 

 brown and black pigment spots or stripes on head, neck and back. The value of 

 such pigment areas as an indicator of sex at hatching has not been determined. 

 The relation of this earl\' pigmentation to adult plumage color is being studied. 



SEED CONTROL SERVICE 

 Philip H. Smith in Charge 



Seed Inspection. (F. A. AicLaughlin and Jessie L. Anderson.) From October 

 1, 1936 to December 1, 1937* the Seed Laboratory received and worked 2220 

 samples of seed, of which 874 were collected by the State Commissioner of Agri- 

 culture, 1173 were sent in by seedsmen and farmers, and 173 by the American 

 Can Co. for cooperative research. 



Classification of these samples with the total number of tests invoked is shown 

 in the following summary. It will be noted that the total number of tests required 

 for the 2220 samples was 3080; 769 for purity and 2311 for germination: 



Samples Purity Germination 



421 Field Crops for Purity and Germination 421 421 



89 Field Crops for Germination 89 



94 Lawn mixtures for Purity only 94 



151 Lawn mixtures for Purity, Germinations involving 439 



ingredients 151 439 



1228 Vegetable seeds for Germination 1228 



103 Flower seeds for Purity 103 



90 Flower seeds for Germination 90 



20 Tree seeds for Germination 20 



24 Tobacco seeds for Germination 24 



2220 769 2311 



Field tests to determine trueness to type were conducted in cooperation with 

 the Departments of Vegetable Gardening and Floriculture, the former testing 

 168 samples of Vegetable seeds and the latter 103 samples of Flower seeds. All 

 samples for these tests were collected and submitted by the State Commissioner 

 of Agriculture. 



♦Laboratory year formerly from October 1 to October 1 — changed to correspond with fiscal 

 year beginning December 1. 



