1909.] 



Sale of Seeds in Germany. 



system lies in the idea that the testing or examination of 

 samples of seed is not sufficient in itself, and that it should 

 be supplemented by a knowledge of the conditions under 

 which the seed is produced. For this purpose an inspection 

 is made on behalf of the Society of the fields where the seed 

 is grown, and of the arrangements for harvesting, and the 

 "recognition " of the seed implies that the Society is satisfied 

 that the seed sold will be true to name, of satisfactory quality, 

 and in good condition. It thus affords protection to the buyer 

 on the one hand, and to the seller of good seed on the other. 

 The crop has to be inspected annually, the "recognition" 

 only covering that particular crop. Recognised seed is 

 generally sold through the Seed Bureau, and as regards corn 

 and roots, only recognised seed is put in the Monthly Seed 

 List. In all cases seed from inspected fields is listed 

 separately from other seed. 



The favour with which this system has been received will 

 be gathered from the following table : 



1908. 1907. 1904. 



Number of growers ... ... 124 108 55 



varieties entered ... 722 492 24? 



" recognised " varieties 597 383 199 



In 1904 the sale of this class of seed amounted to about 

 13,000 cwt., while in 1908 it had increased to 52,000 cwt. 



The pedigree seed which is entered in the Register has 

 also to be " recognised " before it is advertised for sale by 

 the Seed Bureau, so that buyers thus get, as it were, a double 

 protection. At the same time, growers (not being the actual 

 breeders) who cultivate original sorts for seed, and breeders 

 whose varieties are not admitted to the breeding register, can 

 take advantage of the "Recognition" system, so that buyers 

 can obtain pure-bred sorts under what is practically a 

 guarantee of genuineness, without necessarily paying the 

 higher prices usually asked by the original breeders. 



The idea of a field inspection for seed has been very widely 

 adopted throughout Germany by many central bodies, such 

 as Chambers of Agriculture, and a number of these work in 

 conjunction with the German Agricultural Society. 



Experiments for Testing the Value of Varieties. — Trials of 

 varieties of seeds have been carried on for a number of years, 

 at first by the Society alone, and subsequently in conjunction 



