THE EUROPEAN, WEST-ASIATIC 

 AND NORTH-AFRICAN CONIFERS 



ABIES 



EUROPEAN SILVER FIR ABIES PECTINATA. During my 

 business career the tree-seed trading houses of Central Europe 

 have gone in for seed testing more and more. That America and 

 Japan do not as yet do so, is easily understood; their new Seed- 

 testing Institutions are government establishments which are only 

 available for State officials. At the present time seed testing estab- 

 lishments are being founded in England, Scotland and Ireland. 



But, as stated above, in Germany and Austria they are begin- 

 ning; though I have not yet succeeded in receiving a single offer 

 of Silver Fir seed with information as to its germinating capacity. 

 On the other hand, in recent years in the wholesale trade the 

 seeds of Larch, Common Pine, and Norway Spruce, and several 

 other species of Spruce and Pine are offered with information as 

 to their germinating capacity. The offers of Silver Fir seed are always 

 accompanied only by a sample with particulars of the results of 

 the examination of cut seed. This, however, offers only a small 

 guarantee, for I have not yet gone so far that I can tell with ab- 

 solute certainty by a cut test if I am dealing with old or new 

 seed. As regards the seed of the common Silver Fir, our "Dansk 

 Frdkontrol" can cause it to germinate if it is new and good; year 

 old seed either does not germinate at all, or only to the extent of 

 some very few per cent. 



I quote here a few of the most reliable experiments of the last 

 10 years: 



