100 
VEGETABLE GARDENING 
care or intelligence, this advice is in order. On the othei 
hand, if the fundamental principles of breeding are ob- 
served, why should it be necessary to discontinue a 
strain of merit for one of unknown value? A change of 
variety is a different proposition and this can often be 
done to advantage. 
148. Novelties. — All good varieties now in cultivation 
were once novelties. Advancement has been possible 
because novelties arouse universal interest, although 
comparatively few of them ever become of great value. 
The grower, however, never knows when a novelty may 
become more valuable than an old variety he has been 
growing perhaps for many years. The testing of novel- 
ties, then, is of economic value. The producer who is 
specializing in only a few important vegetables can well 
afford to test the novelties. One of superior merit might 
materially increase profits if substituted for a long cul- 
tivated variety. A sample packet of seeds is sufficient to 
test a novelty and therefore the expense is slight, while 
the reward may be great. 
149. Old versus new seed. — Fresh seed usually germi- 
nates more promptly than old seed, although there may 
be advantages in sowing old seeds. Many gardeners 
claim that fresh seed of the cucurbits (melons, cucum- 
bers, squashes, etc.) tends to produce more vine and 
leaf and less fruit than seed several years old. But fresh 
seed is generally preferred and is particularly important 
when the vitality of the seed is low, as with onion and parsnip. 
150. Seed testing. — Seeds may be tested to determine 
their purity, trueness to name or type and their viability 
or power to grow. As most garden seeds do not contain 
impurities, testing for this purpose is of little importance, 
while testing for trueness to name or type is of great 
importance, and can be done to a considerable extent by 
special growers who are cultivating only a few crops. 
Most of the testing at the experiment stations has been 
