VITALITY AND GERMINATION OF SEEDS. 



187 





1 week. 



2 weeks. 



6 weeks. 



10 weeks. 



14 weeks. 



Barley 



88 p.c. 



53 p.c. 



36 p.c. 



26 p.c. 



18 p.c. 



Hemp - - 



99 p.c. 



93 p.c. 



48 p.c. 



11 p.c. 



9 p.c. 



Of the Haricots planted after two weeks immersal none 

 germinate but in a few seeds the cotyledons are living 

 and may remain living for a week or two. It appears 

 that a comparatively short immersion in water is fatal to 

 seeds containing much proteid food material, whilst 

 starchy and oily seeds, such as Barley and Hemp, may 

 show marked resistant powers. The apparently lower 

 resistant power of the Hemp, as compared with the 

 Barley, is really due to the fact that a large number of 

 the seeds undergo incipient germination. Thus, of the 

 Hemp seeds taken after ten weeks immersal in sterilized 

 water, in 60 p.c. the seed coat is split and the tip of the 

 radicle just protruding. Of these 8 p.c. germinate. In 

 40 p.c. the seed coats are quite entire and 7 p.c. germinate. 

 In a normal sample of these Hemp seeds only 75 p.c, 

 however, germinate and all the seeds which were dead 

 to commence with are included amongst those which 

 show no signs of germination. Hence, of the living 

 seeds with entire integuments, the power of germination 

 is retained by 20 p.c. after ten weeks immersal but of 

 those which undergo incipient germination only by 8 p.c. 



It follows from the above experiments that in certain 

 cases seeds can, in the absence of oxygen, though soaked 

 with water, remain in a dormant condition and retain their 

 vitality for long periods of time. If germination has 

 begun the seeds are very much less resistant, young 

 seedlings being readily asphyxiated by the absence of 

 oxygen. 



Further experiments were also performed upon the 

 resistance of seeds to dessication. Table C. gives the 



