ON THE FORMATION OF AKGININ IN CONIFEROUS PLANTS. 43 



Plate IV. shows the change ^of various nitrogenous com- 

 pounds during the development of the shoots of Pinus Thun- 

 bergii, under the full day-light. 



3. The shoots were at first kept in the dark and afterwards 

 exposed to full day-light, and the change in nitrogen com- 

 pounds observed. 



a) Etiolated shoots dried on the 9th March 



14 days after germination. 



b) Etiolated shoots dried on the 23rd March 



28 days after germination. 



c) Etiolated shoots were exposed to full day-light from 

 9th to 23rd March, that is, kept in dark the first 2 weeks and 

 for the next 2 weeks exposed to day-light and treated with half 

 saturated gypsum solution. 



d) Treated in the same way as c) and with a solution con- 

 taining o.\% K 3 HP0 4 ai^KHjPO, 0.1% MgS0 4 , half saturated 

 with gypsum. 



Analysis gave the following results : — 





a) 



b) 



c) 



d) 



Number of shoots. 



1220 



1224 



1500 



1342 



Length. 



8-10 



15-17 



10-12 



10-12 



Total dry weight. 



7-437 



7-730 



11.668 



10.284 



Dry weight of 100 shoots. 



0.610 



O.631 



0.778 



0.766 



des Gesamtstickstoffs betragt." The chief organic bases in Vicia sativa are cholin, 

 belain and guanidin etc. We may also suppose that the organic bases, except arginin, 

 play no important role in coniferous plants, and the principal cause of the increase or 

 decrease of nitrogen in phospho-tungstic precipitate is chiefly due to the change of 

 arginin. 



Prianischnikow also found that during the first stage of germination (first 10 days) 

 the greater part of proteids decomposes, and amido-compounds, especially asparagine, 

 accumulate in large quantities, but that afterwards, both the decomposition of proteids 

 and the accumulation of asparagine etc. are only very gradual. The change in nitrogen 

 compounds proceeds in the first period almost equally both in the dark and in day-light. 

 If we compare my result with that of Prianischnikow, we shall find out a closer resem- 

 blance between asparagine and arginin in the mode of formation and transformation into 

 proteids and in its behavior toward light. 



