?o 



BEGINNEFS' BOTANY 



goiiifj oxpprimonts may bo tried at lionio. The pupil can thus make 

 the drawings for tlie notebook at iumie. A daily reeord of ineasure- 

 meiita of the elKiii<ie in size of the various parts of the set'dliiif^ 

 should also be made. 24- Seed-testing. — It is important that one 

 know before jilanting whether seeds are pood, or able to grov. A 

 simple seed-tester may be made of two i)lates, one inverted over the 

 other (Fig. 31). The lower jilate is nearly filled with clean saud. 



which is covered with cheese cloth or blot- 

 ting paper on which the seeds are placed. 

 Canton flannel is sometimes used in place 

 of sand and blotting paper. The seeds are 

 then covered witli another blotter or piece 

 of cloth, and water is applied until the 

 •sand and papers are saturated. Cover with 

 the second plate. Set the plates where they 

 will have about the temperature that the 

 given seeds would require out of doors, or 

 perhaps a slightly higher temperature. 

 Place 100 or more grains of clover, corn, 

 wheat, oats, rye, rice, buckwheat, or other seeds in the tester, and 

 keep record of the number that sprout. The result will give a per- 

 centage measure of the ability of the seeds to grow. Note whether 

 all the seeds sprout with equal vigour and rapidity. Most seeds 

 will sprout in a week or less. Usually such a tester must have fresh 

 sand and paper after each test, for mould fungi are likely to breed 

 in it. If canton flannel is used, it may be boiled. If possible, the 

 seeds should not touch one another. 



Fig. 31. — A Home-made 

 Seed-testek. 



Note to Teacher. — With the study of germination, the pupil 

 will need to begin dissecting. 



For dissecting, one needs a lens for the examination of the 

 smaller parts of plants and animals. It is best to have the lens, 

 mounted on a frame, so that the pupil has both hands free for 

 pulling the part in pieces. An ordinary pocket lens may be mount- 

 ed on a viure in a block as in Fig. A. A cork is slipped on the 

 top of the wire to avoid injury to the face. The pupil should be 

 provided with two dissecting needles (Fig. B), made by securing 

 an ordinary needle in a pencil-like stick. Another convenient ar- 

 rangement is shown in Fig. C. A small tin (""ish is used for the 

 base. Into this a stiff wire standard is soldered. The dish" is filled 

 with solder to make it heavy and firm. Into a cork slipped on the 

 standard, a cross wire is inserted, holding on the end a jeweller's 



