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BOYAL 110KTICULTUBAL SOCIETY. 



the exception of two, who were accidentally omitted) the Com- 

 mittee purchased samples of five of our commonest garden-vege- 

 tables (cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, and white and yellow turnips) 

 — care being taken to prevent the purpose for which they were 

 wanted being known. The samples were numbered, and the 

 names of the dealers from whom they were got were kept secret ; 

 100 seeds of each package were tested by the Society's officers at 

 Chiswick, and a like sample separately by one of the Members of the 

 Committee, and the number of seeds which came up were counted. 

 In addition to this test, in a number of instances, especially where, 

 before sowing, the appearance of the seeds was not good, they 

 were mechanically tested by crushing and microscopical examina- 

 tion ; and that test was found to correspond with the result of the 

 trial by sowing. The test by floating was also tried, but found 

 of no value with the kinds of seeds specified. 



10. The results of sowing, as shown by the average of both 

 trials (which, it is right to say, in general corresponded very 

 closely) were as follows : — 



Out of the eighteen packages of 100 cauliflower-seeds, the fol- 

 lowing numbers respectively came up, viz. 86, 70, 66, 60, 56, 54, 

 54, 52, 51, 51, 50, 44, 44, 44, 43, 39, 36, 24. 



Out of the eighteen packages of 100 broccoli-seeds, the follow- 

 ing numbers respectively came up, viz. 86, 83, 70, 68, 65, 62, 60, 

 59, 56, 55, 50, 46, 42, 42, 39, 35. 



Out of the eighteen packages of 100 carrot-seeds, the following 

 were the numbers which came up, viz. 61, 56, 54, 48, 47, 45, 44, 

 43, 41, 38, 38, 37, 37, 35, 33, 30, 19, 14. 



Out of the eighteen packages of 100 white-turnip-seeds, the 

 following numbers respectively came up, viz. 98,95, 93, 87,87, 83, 

 82, 71, 70, 68, 68, 66, 65, 64, 62, 60, 58, 57. 



Out of the eighteen packages of 100 yellow-turnip-seeds, the 

 following numbers respectively came up, viz. 95, 84, 79, 79, 78, 77, 

 72, 72, 67, 66, 65, 64, 62, 58, 55, 55, 44, 28. 



11. It should be added that the quality of different kinds of 

 seeds obtained from the same tradesman was not always uniform, 

 all good or all bad; the cauliflower . would sometimes be infe- 

 rior and the turnip superior, and so on ; but, on the whole, a good 

 position in one kind was generally accompanied by a good posi- 

 tion in all. It is also to be observed that the general percentage is 

 less on some seeds than others — a difference probably due to the 

 greater care required in harvesting them, and, in the case of 

 carrots, to the difficulty in separating the good seed from the bad. 



