194 
THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
cost to produce that would give a going concern a credit 
upon which lie could borrow to run his business without 
putting up other security. 
QUESTION AND ANSWER COLUMN 
Will you please tell me why we get such a small 
amount of plants from Delphinium seeds that we sow. I 
have tried all ways with small results. 
Can you suggest any remedy? We have sown the 
seed on top of ground, covered with sand, and in frames 
under glass, in frames covered with boards, or burlap. 
Please advise me in your paper. C. A. S. 
Delphinium seed very soon loses its vitality. Possibly 
this largely accounts for your failures. Good fresh seed 
germinates very readily if given the proper conditions. If 
you wish to sow the seed at this time of course it is bet¬ 
ter to sow it in frames so that it may be protected from 
heavy rains. Prepare the bed as you would for any other 
fine seed. If the soil is inclined to be heavy and bake on 
the surface when it dries, mix it with sand, leafsoil, or 
very well rotted manure rubbed through a seive. Sow 
the seed thinly and do not cover more than its own depth. 
Of course it should be watered with the fine rose then 
cover with sash, cheese cloth tacked over to keep off 
direct rays of the sun. See that there is a free circula¬ 
tion of air at all times. 
The writer’s experience has always been that the most 
critical time is after the seed has germinated and just be¬ 
fore the seedlings make their character leaf. At this 
time they are very liable to damp off and will do it very 
quickly if there is too much moisture and the air is 
stagnant so that every care should be used in watering 
at this period. This trouble however is more often ex¬ 
perienced when sown in flats in the green house in early 
spring. Sown at this time of year you are not so likely 
to meet with this trouble. 
We note in your recent issue that you invite the asking 
of questions on nursery problems. We wish to submit the 
following,— 
\\ hat are the best methods for testing quickly the fol¬ 
lowing seeds,— 
Peach, 
Myrobolan Plum, 
Apple Seed, 
Pear Seed, 
Cherry Seed? 
What is the minimum length of time required for strat¬ 
ification of Peach seed, to germinate them, also of 
cherry seed, and Myrobolan Plum Seed? 
Hope to see answers to above questions at an early 
date in the “Nurseryman.” C. 0. & N. Co. 
1 he only way to accurately test fruit seeds, as far as 
we know, is to soak them in water and then bury them 
in sand lor a while in a greenhouse or where they can 
get some bottom heat. That will start the germ in a 
certain period and then by cracking them open you can 
see if the germ has started. After a certain time the 
germ will either start or the seed will rot or at least 
show sufficient discoloration to show that they are going 
to rot. 
There are seed testing machines made. That is, they 
are simply like a small gas oven heated with a lamp 
which generates moisture. The seed is spread on trays, 
the bottom of the trays being heavy felt which is mois¬ 
tened and in this manner germination is started quickly, 
but these machines are more or less expensive, our recol¬ 
lections being that even the very smallest size costs some¬ 
thing like forty to fifty dollars. 
To one accustomed to handling or growing seeds, it is 
very easy to determine the quality of seeds by cracking 
them open, in the case of the hard shelled seeds, or by 
cutting open with a knife in the case of soft shelled 
seeds. If the meat is pure white and the two halves of the 
kernel do not slide apart easily, then the seed is good. 
When the seed is injured or bad, the two halves of the 
kernel will separate easily as though they were quite 
slippery and when that happens, the seed is not good. 
It is difficult just to describe the difference in this re¬ 
spect. You have to have some experience in it in hand¬ 
ling and testing the seed, but to one who is familiar with 
it, it is not difficult at all. There is just a certain some¬ 
thing about it which shows whether it is good or bad. 
If the seed is quite dry, then before testing it in this 
manner, you have to soak the seed for an hour or two 
in the case of soft shelled seeds, or in the case of hard 
shelled seeds, that is, like peach and plum, it is better to 
crack the shell, take out the kernel and soak the kernel 
for an hour or two. 
Peach seed, we believe, is generally banked in sand 
out of doors immediately the new crop comes in, it natur¬ 
ally cracks open in the early Spring and the seed is then 
sown. Some nurserymen get seed in the Fall, carry it 
dry in a storage house all the summer and then plant 
very early the following Fall and usually get best re¬ 
sults. Cherry and Myrobolan Plum seed are usually 
banked in sand as early in the Fall as they can be pro¬ 
cured, then planted in the early Spring. T. B. M. 
THE BABY RAMBLERS 
The annual meeting of the Baby Ramblers was held at 
the Congress Hotel June 21st with the following members 
present: 
Paul Fortmiller 
Ed. Greening 
Clarence Perkins 
Wm. Flemer, Jr. 
Hort Bowden 
B. Kelley 
Wm. Mastin 
B. Meehan 
B. J. Manahan. 
The following constiution and By Laws were adopted: 
CONSTITUTION & BY LAWS 
Section 1. 
This organization shall be called “Baby Ramblers.” 
The object of this organization shall be to promote a 
spirit of friendship amongst the younger members of the 
Nurserymen’s Association. 
