92 ANDREWS & BEALS: GROWTH OF ZEA MAys 
TABLE III TABLE IV 
Hours rowth Hours Growth 
soaked in mm. 
TO adele oes uwets 26.6 SG ieee nw oecik. 0.6 
fe ee eas 20.4 ie Le han eee 2.4 
ETS ie eerie 15.4 5.5) veer ncw eres 4.6 
pa See pre se Frey 72 
BIG es ye eek ek 10.2 
The results of the above series show that the amount of time 
for soaking the grains of Zea Mays for good growth ranges from 
about 8-14 hours with the optimum length of time near I2 
hours. The series shown in TABLE I, however, indicates 17-21 
hours as the best, but this discrepancy was due to a variation in 
temperature. 
b. Growth in sawdust and soil compared 
It is interesting to note the effect of the use of damp sawdust 
to germinate Zea Mays, as compared with damp soil. TABLE V 
gives the results with using grains soaked 11 hours in tap water 
and remaining in the soil (or sawdust) for 37 hours longer. 
TABLE V 
Unsoaked Seed Soaked Seed 
Soil. ...8 mm. (av.* of 24 grains) 9.4 mm. (av. of 22 grains) 
Sawdust 3.1 mm. (av. of 26 grains) 9.3 mm. (av. of 25 grains) 
The soaked grains showed a difference of 0.1 mm. in favor of 
the soil; while the unsoaked grains in the soil showed a gain of 
258 per cent in favor of the soil. That was due probably to the 
sawdust having a greater tendency to dry out than the soil. 
The grains probably absorbed the moisture more readily from the 
soil as its particles were smaller, thus tending to establish a better 
condition for absorption. 
c. Effect of puncturing the coats of the grains 
The large end of the grain was punctured, after which it was 
soaked for 10.25 hours and left in sawdust long enough to make 48 
hours. The average growth of 25 punctured grains was only 
11.7 mm., due to air which was engulfed or held for a long time 
in the small opening made by the puncture; 11 had a growth of 
10 mm. or more; 7 with a growth of less than 10 mm., and 7 without 

* ‘* Ay.,’’ wherever used in this paper, stands for ‘‘average.”” 
