NURSERY PRACTICE ON THE NATIONAL FORESTS. 
35 
cally complete germination is indicated in the following table for 
several of the Forest Service nurseries : 
Nursery and species. 
Germi- 
nation 
complete. 
Nursery and species. 
Germi- 
nation 
complete. 
Savenac: 
Days. 
25 
40 
24 
30 to 35 
30 to 35 
30 to 35 
40 to 50 
10 to 18 
10 to 15 
10 to 15 
10 
9 to 20 
9 to 20 
14 to 25 
12 to 20 
20 
Fort Bayard: 
Pinus ponderosa (summer sowing) . . 
Pinus j efireyi 
Days. 
15 
15 
Trapper Creek: Pinus ponderosa 
Boulder: . 
Cottonwood: 
30 to 35 
Pinus contorta 
30 to 35 
Pseudotsuga taxifolia 
30 to 35 
Picea engelmanni 
20 
Pocatello: 
Monument: 
20 to 30 
Pseudotsuga taxifolia 
45 to 60 
Pilgrim Creek: 
Pinus ponderosa 
34 
Pinus jeffreyi 
80 
Bessey: 
66 
Libocedrus decurrens 
64 
58 
Pinus resinosa 
Wind River: Pseudotsuga taxifolia 
35 to 50 
Pinus sylvestris 
Minnesota: Pinus resinosa 
METHODS USED TO HASTEN GERMINATION. 
The seeds of a number of conifers germinate so slowly in the aggre- 
gate that some method is occasionally used to hasten this function. 
Western white pine seed is particularly slow, but as yet no successful 
method of hastening germination has been devised. The seed will 
not finish germinating in the seed beds for 2 or 3 years, which 
complicates the nursery operations considerably. A common method 
tried for various species is to soak the seed in water for a number of 
days until they swell and begin to sprout. Other methods are to 
mix the seed with well-rotted compost and soil until sprouting 
begins, to stratify them in slightly moist sand in a cool place over 
winter, or to scald bony coated seed in nearly boiling water and allow 
them to stand in the water for a couple of days. 
The efficiency of the first two methods is doubtful. As soon as 
the seed begins to sprout it is necessary to sow the whole lot, and 
there is no certainty that the seed have sprouted because of the treat- 
ment or that the unsprouted ones have benefited. Even with slow- 
germinating seed like the western white pine, a small proportion of 
any lot when simply sown in the beds without previous treatment 
will germinate in a short time, and it is almost unquestionably these 
same seed which are the first to sprout under special treatment. 
Stratifying in sand over winter in a cool place will undoubtedly 
hasten the germination of nearly all coniferous seed. The period is 
long enough so that that the seed have ample time to absorb the 
moisture necessary for their germination, and the temperature is low 
enough to prevent germination until the following spring. This 
method has been followed successfully even with Juniperus pachy- 
