Germination Troubles 



107 



soil. Phosphoric acid or lime, when not used in 

 excess, seems to have no injurious action on seed 

 germination. However, on no account should com- 

 mercial fertilizers be brought into direct contact with 

 the seed. This is well brought out in Table 16 by 

 Hicks.* 



Table 16 



Effect of Chemical Fertilizers on the Germination 

 of Breakfast Radish Seed 



Fertiliser Used 



How Applied 



First Sprouts 



Per Cent, 

 of Germi- 

 nation 



Potash 



Phosphoric Acid 



Nitrogen 



Lime 



Mixed Fertilizer 



Check, no fertilizer. 



In the rows 



Mixed with soil. 

 In the rows. . . . 

 Mixed with soil. 



In the rows 



Mixed with soil. 

 In the rows. ... 

 Mixed with soil. 



In the rows 



Mixed with soil. 



No sprouts 

 No sprouts 

 May 26 

 May 24 

 May 25 

 May 26 

 May 24 

 May 24 

 May 25 

 May 24 

 May 24 



1.5 

 1-5 



lO.O 



950 



2.0 



6.5 



37-5 



930 



34-5 

 92.0 



96- 5 



Seed Treatment. Since seed is often a carrier of 

 disease it is essential that it be treated before plant- 

 ing. Treating the seed for about ten minutes with 

 sulphuric acid will hasten germination and destroy 

 adhering spores of disease-producing organisms. 

 However, more information is needed before this 

 method can be universally adopted by the green- 

 house grower. In practice, the safest method would 

 be to soak all seed, before planting, in a solution 



•Hicks, G. H., U. S. Dept. of Agr., Div. of Botany, Bui. 24: 5-15. 

 1900. 



