62 



Station, but it is hoped that it will be possible to start these next season. Special exa- 

 minations of seed with a view to its being diseased are not made, but In the case of 

 Cereals where Burnt, Smut and Ergot are visible to the naked eye, this fact would be 

 noted on the report. 



Our methods of making Germination tests are largely based on the established 

 practice of the older Sttftions, but the three Stations in the United Kingdom do not 

 necessarily adopt identical methods. For Grass both Scotland and England rely mainly 

 on the Jacobsen Tanks, but Ireland prefers the Rodewald Incubator. In England a cabinet 

 type of Germinator is used for Cocksfoot mainly owing to the difiiculty of fluctuating the 

 temperature of a Jacobsen Tank with any accuracy. As a matter of fact our Tanks are 

 at present situated in a conservatory and they are subject to uncontrolled fluctuations of 

 temperature which we look upon as being not undesirable. Clovers are usually germinated 

 on filter paper in petri dishes placed in cabinet Incubators. The petri dish is covered 

 with a flat glass plate containing a hole for ventilation. An alternative ijiethod which 

 I have not seen in use anywhere else gives better results for some Clovers. The seed is 

 placed upon filter paper lying on the surface of about 1 inch of moist sand contained in 

 metal trays about 18 inches by 12 inches. The trays are placed in racks in a room main- , 

 tained at 20 degrees centigrade. This method is usually preferable for all Clover samples 

 which are likely to show a large percentage of burst and abnormal growths. Cereals and 

 the larger seeds, such as Peas and Beans, ar€ grown in sand, and saud is also used for 

 Mangel and Beet germinations. In the latter case we use aluminium dishes 6 inches in 

 diameter, each of which would contain a hundred clusters pressed into about half an inch ^ 

 of moist sand. We get much better results for Mangel and Beet by this method than we 

 do by growing the seed between folded blotting paper, and in fact this latter method is 

 not used in England for any kind of seed. At present the percentage of Mangel and Beet 

 is expressed in terms of the number of sprouts per hundred clusters, but after the 1st August 

 next it will be expressed in terms of germinating clusters instead. 



In view of the fact that Purity and Germination questions are being dealt with in 

 other papers, I would not be justified in taking up more of your time. As the represen- 

 tative of the youngest of the Seed Testing Stations, I think I can justly claim the indul- 

 gence granted to children, and I hope you will not be unduly critical of this paper. At 

 the same time it is with a certain amount of pride that I can state that though not yet 

 four years old the English Station is handling more samples than is any other Official 

 Station with one exception. This venerable institution whose jubilee we are now cele- 

 brating is at present leading the field, but we are pressing closely behind it. As to the 

 future, I will not venture to prophesy, but would prefer to be considered, in the words 

 of Sir "Walter Scott, one of our British authors, as one of "The better informed Philomats 



who, instead of loading their almanacs with vain predictions of political events •- 



pretended to know what seeds would grow and what would not".- 



Professor Johannsen thanked Mr. Saunders and stated that as there 

 unfortunately was no delegate present from the United States of America, 

 Mrs. Kelpin Kavn would read a paper on "Seed Testing in the United 

 States of America" by Dr. Brown, Botanist in charge, Washington D. C. 



"Seed Testing in the United States of America." 



"Mr. President, Your Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen ! 



In the United States of America the importance of seed testing as an aid to 

 agriculture was first brought to attention in 1876, when the State Agricultural Ex- 

 periment Station of Connecticut included in its annual report an outline of seed testing 

 as then carried on in Europe, based on the observations of two young American chemists. 



