Ideniifimt  'ion  of  Plants. 
25'.) 
test  no  germination  whatever.  A farmer  sought  advice  as  to 
the  vitality  of  turnip  seed  which  failed  in  his  field.  The  test 
and  dissection  of  the  seeds  showed  that  they  were  all  dead. 
Two  samples  of  wheat  were  sent  for  examination.  The  sender 
doubted  whether  the  first  one  would  grow  at  all.  The  other, 
from  a different  source,  was  bought  for  “ new  ” seed.  The 
former  grew  98  per  cent.,  the  latter  21  per  cent.  These  are 
striking  examples  of  the  necessity  of  seed  testing. 
Eight  samples  of  grasses  contained  ergot,  and  were  declared 
unfit  for  use.  Much  too  little  attention  is  given  to  the  danger 
of  having  ergot  present  in  grass  seed.  The  fungus  developing 
the  black  sclerotia  is  capable  of  attacking  any  kind  of  grass  and 
cereal.^  Hay  contaminated  with  this  fungus  has  proved 
injurious  to  stock  fed  on  it.  One  seedsman  who  supplied  a 
member  with  timothy  containing  a considerable  quantity  of 
ergot  was  much  surprised  at  my  condemning  his  sample  ; the 
black  “specks”  in  it,  being  the  small  sclerotia  of  the  fungus, 
having  been  taken  by  him  for  excrements  of  insects ; and  he 
further  suggested  that  ergot  was  hardly  ever  found  in  seeds  of 
timothy. 
Of  the  five  seed  mixtures  sent  for  examination,  one 
contained  dodder,  and  two  were  of  poor  quality,  showing  in 
one  case  47  per  cent.,  and  in  the  other  46  per  cent,  of 
impurities.  The  warning  against  the  purchase  of  such  mixtures 
needs  still  to  be  insisted  upon.  Old  and  impure  seetl  is  often 
included  in  “ ready  mixed  ” seeds. 
Identification  of  Plants. 
During  the  year,  31  inquiries  were  made  by  members  as  to 
the  names  of  plants,  and  the  methods  of  eradicating  different 
weeds.  Reference  may  be  made  to  one  or  two  of  these.  Two 
plants  of  the  same  natural  Order,  Caucalis  nodosa  Scop, 
(henfoot)  and  Petroselinuni  segetum  Hoffm.  (corn  parsley), 
were  sent  from  Gloucestershire  under  the  impression  that 
they  might  have  caused  the  death  of  lambs.  Of  these  plants 
no  poisonous  property  is  recorded,  but  iambs  frequently  injure 
themselves  by  greedily  consuming  and  overloading  their 
stomachs  with  plants  that  possess  no  poisonous  properties. 
An  interesting  inquiry  was  received  from  a member 
regarding  the  seeds  of  charlock.  He  wondered  why  in  this 
country  no  use  was  made  of  these  seeds.  “ It  would  pay,”  he 
suggests,  “ in  a year  of  abundance  like  the  present  one  to  have  it 
threshed,  which  would  be  preferable  to  suffering  from  it  and 
then  having  to  burn  it.  In  the  Argentine  I sold  it  for  making 
‘ finest  olive  oil  ’ for  household  purposes ; it  being  much  used 
by  Italians  for  cooking.  It  fetched  the  same  price  as  linseed. 
* See  article  “On  Ergot”  in  Jonrnal  R.A.S.E.,  Vol.  3.5,  1874,  pp.  443-1.58. 
