First, that a 

 seed on the 

 eve of ger- 

 mination . 

 returns ap- 

 proximately 

 to its original 

 weight. 



30 STUDIES IN SEEDS AND FRUITS 



are much the same in the seed that has been dried 



after swelling for germination as they are in the 



resting seed ; 

 (3) In the fitness of the embryo in many pre-resting seeds 



to pass on at once to germination without the 



intervention of the resting stage. 

 The results of a number of experiments on leguminous 

 seeds indicate that when a seed on the eve of germination is 

 dried under ordinary air conditions it returns approximately to 

 its original weight. In illustration there are given below five 

 examples selected from the table in Note 2a of the Appendix, 

 where numerous other results, all pointing to the same 

 conclusion, will be found, together with a discussion of the 

 general nature of such experiments. All the results refer to 

 seeds that subsequently germinated. 



Examples of the Effect of Drying under Ordinary Air Condi- 

 tions ON Leguminous Seeds that are ready to Germinate 

 (taken from Note 2 of the Appendix). 



JVo/e. — A plant with both permeable and impermeable seeds is characterised as 

 "variable." 



Although these samples support the view of the mechanical 

 nature of the swelling process, they present curious divergencies 

 in their behaviour when dried ; and the same may be said 

 of the other results incorporated in the table in Note 2a. It 

 appears, therefore, that as compared with their weight in the 



