192 



" It appears to me, " says Mr. Harrison, that the main cause of 

 the failure of the shipments were the too close packing and hermeti- 

 cally soldering of the packag^es. In the Singapore supplies the seed^ 

 were able to obtain a sufficiency of oxygen to retain their vitality, 

 altliough, as was desired, their germination was retarded ; in the 

 spoiled seed the small quantity of oxygen was quickly absorbed by 

 the seeds during their incipient germination and the changes then 

 continued in the absence of free oxygen, the oxygen necessary for the 

 production of the formic and acetic acids being obtained from the 

 decomposition possibly of some of the carbohydrates of the seeds. 

 The presence of formaldelnde. hydrocyanic acid and formic acid 

 show fairly conclusively that the changes which resulted in the 

 destruction of the seed originated largely if not mainly in the gluco- 

 sides of those commencing to germinate. " 



Hermetically soldered tins containing seeds, in the case of oily 

 seeds like those of Para rubber, seems always to produce decomposi- 

 tion, but fine thin seeds on the contrary are benefitted by it. Many 

 years ago it was found that the only way of shipping Gambler seed 

 to any distance was in hermetically sealed tins. Here the loss of 

 water by dryins in these very fine dust like seeds seems to have been 

 prevented and the seeds being fine and loose retained about them 

 enough oxygen probably to prevent any action of decomposition. 

 Packing too close in the case of rubber seed is certainly a mistake. 

 We have received barrels of rubber seed from Malacca, a two days' 

 journey from the estate, in which, tliough the barrels were by no 

 means hermetically sealed, the temperature on opening the barrels 

 was as great that the hand could hardly be held in the seeds. The 

 seeds in large quantities in th^ barrels were loose and had no packing 

 at all. 



There seem to be two causes of the death of seeds when exported 

 in packets or boxes, (l) drying up of the embryo, especially in fine 

 seeds or seeds in which the embryo is insufficiently protected by the 

 testa or albumen, as in palm seed, and (2) decompositimi of the testa 

 or albumen due to tlie absence of sufficient oxygen. . 



To avoid both of these accidents is the real art of exporting seed 



The following paper from th^^ Agricultural News has als * an 

 important bearing on the subject. Ed. 



THE GERMINATION OF HEVEA SEEDS. 



It has been found that the seed of Hevea brasilicnsis, which has 

 been imported from time to time for use in Grenada, has shown very 

 unsatisfactory germinating powef. and in view of tlie cost of the seed 

 it was considered expedient by M;-. G. (t Auchinleck. B. Sc., Su{")erjn- 

 tendent of Agricultu e, to mak.' ohservations on seeds grown locally, 

 foi- the purp >se of decidi'Vi: as to wliat th? low pjrceiitagc orgcnnina- 



