131 



The above explanation of the production of glassiness is substantiated 

 by the experimental results, which have been obtained by the Deutsche 

 Landwirtschafts-Gesellschaft\ The report states: — The glassiness of the 

 kernels depends more on the conditions of growth than on the variety. 

 Varieties with a shorter vegetative period are glassier — such as Lupitzer, 

 Strube's bearded and Galician club wheat in comparison to Schlanstedter 

 and Noe wheat. The productive power of the varieties in general stands 

 in inverse relaton to the glassiness of the grains. 



4. Continental and Marine Climates. 



The characteristic distinction of regions influenced by the ocean con- 

 sists in the lesser fluctuation between summer and winter temperatures, — 

 since the summers are longer and cooler, the winters warmer. We find that, 

 under the influence of the Atlantic Ocean, spring comes earlier, while au- 

 tumn is delayed longer than in regions with a continental climate. Yet the 

 effect on vegetation is not the one expected, in spite of the earlier spring, 

 for the blossoming time of wooded plants is at most only a few weeks 

 earlier, because of a cooler spring temperature and the ripening of the fruit 

 is scarcely earlier, indeed, it is often delayed and occasionally does not take 

 place at all. Consider, for example, grapes which do not ripen out of doors 

 in England. Throughout the year, the air is more moist and in the change 

 of season extensive heavy mists often prevail. 



Haberlandt's opinion has already been mentioned, according to which 

 early maturity of plants may appear with the same ease in northern latitudes 

 as in southern ones, and thus lead to the production of corresponding varie- 

 ties. Conditions of humidity also act determinatively in this and all become 

 evident in the great fluctuations in a continental climate in contrast to an 

 uniformly damp coast climate. Haberlandt's culture experiments" gave 

 results as follows. Seed brought from damp climates gives proportionately 

 more straw, but less grain, — the grain is also more easily subject to lodging. 

 On the other hand, in seed from dry regions, with a short spring and hot, 

 dry summer, there is a production of less straw and greater grain crops, 

 and plants from such seed better withstand drought. When exchanging 

 seed it is more advantageous to take it from countries with a continental 

 climate. The hard winters influence the grain product in such a way that 

 the plants produced are less apt to winter kill than those which have been 

 transplanted to the East from the moister west with its milder climate. 



The continental climate produces smaller but specifically heavier grain, 

 while a cool and damp summer or an artificial abundant supply of water 

 and food substances increases the size of the grain, to be sure, but at the 

 same time causes more porous contents, since, instead of the glassy con- 



1 Mitteilungen der Saatzuchtstelle iiber wichtige Sortenversuche. Saatliste 

 vom 6. Dez, 1914. Deutsche Landwirtsch.-Ges. 



- Haberlandt, Fr., Ueber die Akklimatisation und den Samenwechsel. Oesterr. 

 landw. Wochenbl., 1875. No. 1. 



