REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS OF PLANTS. 33? 



Percent of seeds that germinated in 1861 from the years: 



1850 1851 1854 1855 1857 1858 1859 1860 



Wheat 008473608496 



Rye 000 48 100 



Barley 024 4833 92 89 



Oats 60 56 48 72 32 80 96 



Maize nottried 76 56 not tried 77 100 97 



Results of the Use of Long-kept Seeds. The 



fact that old seeds yield weak plants is taken advantage 

 of by the florist in producing new varieties. It is said 

 that while the one-year-old seeds of Ten-weeks Stocks 

 yield single flowers, those which have been kept four 

 years give mostly double flowers. 



In case of melons, the experience of gardeners goes 

 to show that seeds which have been kept several, even 

 seven years, though less certain to come up, yield plants 

 that give the greatest returns of fruit ; while plantings 

 of new seeds run excessively to vines. 



Unripe Seeds Experiments by Lucanus prove that 

 seeds gathered while still unripe, when the kernel is 

 soft and milky, or, in case of cereals, even before starch 

 has formed, and when the juice of the kernel is like 

 water in appearance, are nevertheless capable of germi- 

 nation, especially if they be allowed to dry in connection 

 with the stem (after-ripening). Such immature seeds, 

 however, have less vigorous germinative power than 

 those which are allowed to mature perfectly ; when sown, 

 many of them fail to come up, and those which do, yield 

 comparatively weak plants at first and in poor soil give a 

 poorer harvest than well-ripened seed. In rich soil, 

 however, the plants which do appear from unripe seed, 

 may, in time, become as vigorous as any. (Lucanus, Vs. 

 St., IV, p. 253.) 



According to Siegert, the sowing of unripe peas tends 

 to produce earlier varieties. Liebig says: "The gar- 

 dener is aware that the flat and shining seeds in the pod 

 of the Stock Gillyflower will give tall plants with single 

 flowers, while the shriveled seeds will furnish low plants 

 with double flowers throughout. 22 



