72 
Hyoscyamus  Niger. 
/Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
<•   February,  1919- 
TABLE  III. 
Showing  the  Effect  of  Various  Treatments  of  Hyoscyamus  Seed  on  the 
Percentage  of  Germination. 
Treatment  Percentage  of  Germination 
Untreated  seeds    2.4 
Frozen  seeds   4.0 
Acid  treated  seeds    1.5 
The  results  above  show  that  freezing  the  seeds  was  effective  in 
increasing  the  germination,  while  treating  them  with  sulphuric  acid 
produced  no  beneficial  effects. 
Effect  of  Inorganic  Fertilizers  upon  the  Growth  and 
Development  of  Hyoscyamus  niger. 
With  such  an  expensive  crop  as  hyoscyamus,  it  is  quite  essential 
that  the  correct  fertilizing  treatments  are  made.  The  extent  to 
which  fertilizers  are  effective  in  increasing  the  yield  of  hyoscyamus 
was  determined. 
The  methods  and  fertilizer  applications  which  were  employed  in 
the  experiment  follow.  The  soil  used  was  that  of  a  clay  loam, 
which  was  the  result  of  the  disintegration  of  mica  schist  rock  forma- 
tion. This  soil  was  taken  from  the  upper  five  inches,  namely,  the 
surface  soil,  from  the  premises  of  the  Mulford  Biological  Labora- 
tories, at  Glenolden.  Four  hundred  and  fifty  grams  of  this  soil  was 
weighed  and  placed  in  each  of  eighteen  4-inch  pots.  The  amounts 
of  fertilizers  applied  were  as  follows:  calcium  carbonate  1,000  lbs.; 
calcium  acid  phosphate  800  lbs. ;  potassium  sulphate  400  lbs. ; 
sodium  nitrate  600  lbs.;  and  magnesium  sulphate  100  lbs.,  per  acre 
of  2,000,000  lbs.  Each  determination  was  made  in  triplicate.  The 
moisture  conditions  were  maintained  at  the  physical  optimum  of  the 
soil,  each  pot  being  carefully  weighed  every  morning  and  the  loss 
of  moisture  restored  with  distilled  water.  Each  pot  was  planted 
May  15,  1918,  with  a  small  plant,  approximately  3^2  to  4  inches  high. 
Plants  of  as  nearly  the  same  size  as  possible  were  planted  in  the 
various  pots,  thus  preventing  every  possible  source  of  error.  The 
plants,  most  of  which  were  blooming,  were  harvested  on  August 
12,  191 8.  The  stems  of  the  plants  were  cut  off  near  the  surface  of 
the  ground.  The  leaves  and  stems  of  each  plant  were  placed  in 
manila  bags  and  dried  at  90  degrees  C.  The  results  of  the  effects 
of  the  fertilizers  upon  the  growth  of  hyoscyamus  are  shown  below : 
