Cost of Germinating Seeds per Acre. 



153 



The quantity of Grass and Clbver Seeds (of the highest 

 standard of germination and purity) sufficient to sow an 

 acre of each species, the number of germinating seeds 

 per acre, the average price per lb. for the 10 years 1898 

 to 1907, and the average cost of the seeds per acre : — 



The quantity of any species of grass required to sow an acre depends 

 (1) on the size and weight of the seeds (these vary considerably in the 

 different species — e.g., Avena elatior has 138,000 seeds in a lb., while Poa 

 trivialis has over two millions) ; (2) the size of the plant, and its surface- 

 covering capacity : grasses of large growth, such as cocksfoot, or those of 

 spreading habit like Poa trivialis, require fewer plants to cover an acre 

 than those of small or upright habit of growth. It is important, therefore, 

 to take these matters, as well as the price of the seed, into consideration, 

 if economy in seeding is to be practised, as the seed that is the lowest in 

 price per lb. is not necessarily the cheapest per acre, nor is the seed that is 

 highest in price per lb. the dearest. 



