Seeds and Seed-Sowing 49 



finding it out. The seed also may be tested in a hotbed 

 or coldframe, using the same precautions as when a pan is 

 used. 



Several states have seed-control laboratories under the 

 direction of their agricultural experiment stations. These 

 institutions test the vitality of the seeds offered for sale 

 and examine them as to purity, thus protecting the buyers 

 from frauds and encouraging improvements in these 

 directions. It is to be hoped that much more will be 

 accomplished along this line. 



SEED-STORING 



The length of time seeds may be stored without losing 

 their vitality depends largely upon the variety and the 

 condition in which they are kept. To keep well, seeds 

 should be well-matured and preserved in a dry apartment. 

 Much has been said as to the germinating power of seeds 

 that have been kept for hundreds of years, but these re- 

 ports lack confirmation by scientists. Some seeds that 

 have been kept dry for thirty and forty years have ger- 

 minated ; and recently, there is an accurate account of a 

 few seeds out of many retaining their germinating power for 

 more than eighty years ; but in all of these cases this power 

 had been greatly impaired. A few seeds, like those of the 

 cucumber, retain their vitality under proper conditions for 

 ten years ; some other seeds lose their vitality during the 

 first year, under the most favorable conditions. In the 

 wet season, especially of subtropical and tropical countries, 

 most seeds lose their vitality much faster than they do in 

 temperate climates. Heat and damp together ruin nearly 



