•^^ 0^* 0^* 0^* •%* PLEASE HANDLE WITH CARE University of Connecticut Libraries a^p a^* a^p ^^ ^* 1153 D1SEM7SS GAYLORD RG Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from LYRASIS members and Sloan Foundation http://www.archive.org/details/qualityofvegetabOOstod toNN S Bulletin 283 January. 1927 J Olmtttprttrut Agrtrultural lExprnntpnt Station 53'rm 3Haupn. (Eonntttunt The Quality of Vegetable Seed Sold in Packets in Connecticut In cooperation with The Commisaioner of Agriculture The Bulletins of this Station are mailed free to citizens of Connecticut who apply for them, and to others as far as the editions permit. CONNECTICUT AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION OFFICERS AND STAFF BOARD OF CONTROL His Excellency, Governor John H. Trumbull, cx^officio, President. Charles R. Treat, Vice President Orange George A. Hopson, Secretary Mount Carmel Wm. L. Slate, Jr., Treasurer New Haven Joseph W. Alsop Avon Elijah Rogers Southington Edward C. Schneider Middletown Francis F. Lincoln Cheshire Administration. Chemistry: Analytical Laboratory. Biochemical Laboratory. Botany. Entomology. STAFF. E. H. Jenkins, Ph.D., Director Emeritus. Forestry. Plant Breeding Soil Research. Tobacco Sub-station at Windsor. Wm. L. Slate, Jr., B.Sc, Director atid Treasurer. Miss L. M. Brautlecht, Bookkeeper and Librarian. J. V. Berger, Stenographer and Bookkeeper. Mary E. Bradley, Secretary. Graham, 7n charge of Buildings and Grcunds. Miss Miss G. E Assistant Chemists. E. M. Bailey, Ph.D., Chemist in Charge. C. E. Shepard Owen L. Nolan Harry J. Fisher, A.B. W. T. Mathis Frank C. Sheldon, Laboratory Assistant. V. L. Churchill, Sampling Agent. Miss Mabel Bacon, Stenographer. T. B. Osborne, Ph.D., Chemist in Charge, H. B. VicKERY, Ph.D., Biochemist. Miss Helen C. Cannon, B.S., Dietitian. G. P. Clinton, Sc.D., Botanist in Charge. E. M. Stoddard, B.S^ Pomologist. Miss Florence A. McCormick, Ph.D., Pathologist. Willis R. Hunt, Ph.D., Assistant in Botany. A. D. McDonnell, General Assistant. Mrs. W. W. Kelsey, Secretary. W. E. Britton, Ph.D., Entomologist in Charge- also State Entomologist. B. H. Walden, B.Agr. ] M. p. Zappe, B.S. > Assistant Entomologists. Philip Garman, Ph.D. J Roger B. Friend, B.Sc, Graduate Assistant. John T. Ashworth, Deputy in Charge of Gipsy Moth Work. R. C. Botsford, Deputy in Charge of Mosquito Eliminatioii. Miss Grace A. Foote, B.A,, Secretary. Walter O. Filley, Forester in Charge. H. W. HicocK, M.F., Assistant Forester. E. Riley, Jr.. M.F., In Charge of Blister Rust Control. iss Pauline A. Merchant, Stenographer. Donald F. Jones, S.D., Geneticist in Charge. H. R. Murray, B.S., Graduate Assistant. li F. Morgan, M.S., Investigator. G, M. Jacobson, M.S., Assistant. Paul J. Anderson, Ph.D., Pathologist in Charge. N. T. Nelson, Ph.D., Plant Physiologist. THE TUTTLE, MOREHOUSE & TAYLOR COMPANY The Quality of Vegetable Seed Sold in Packets in Connecticut By E. M. Stoddard and A. D. McDonnell. Connecticut has no "pure seed law," but for many years the Experiment Station has made a practice of examining seed for germination and purity. The Report for 1877 contains a table giving the results on 33 samples of vegetable, grass and clover seed and from time to time the Reports of the Station have included the data on tests of seeds for a given year or a series of years. In fact, the Station was a pioneer in this field, having made in the early years a special study of methods and has always made seed tests for farmers and growers as a part of its educational and service work. Citizens of the state may send samples for testing with the understanding that the results will be published but the number and distribution of such samples is not sufficient to furnish real information as to the quality of seed offered for sale on the open market. The quality of field and vegetable seeds has steadily risen as farmers have learned to demand better seeds, but there is occasionally a suggestion that some seed, especially that sold in small packets, is not as good as it should be. With the purpose of examining such seed and determining its quality this study was made. The seed was purchased in sealed packets at retail prices rang- ing from 5 cents to 20 cents each. The tests made were for germination only, there being no consideration given to the purity of the sample ; to the size of the packets ; to the weight of the seed ; to its freedom from disease ; or to any other point. The standard methods of procedure were followed in making the tests. In brief, 200 seeds were selected from each sample to be germinated. These seeds were put in a standard germinating chamber in duplicate lots of 100 seeds each, the smaller seeds being placed on a substratum of blotting paper, and the larger seed such as corn, peas, and beans, on flannel cloth. The substratum was kept moist by daily applications of unsterilized water. Each sample of seed was kept in the germinating chamber for the standard number of days required to germinate such seed. In no case was any sample allowed any special consideration. SEASON OF 1925. In 1925, the Station agent purchased in the course of his sampling trips 57 samples representing the stock of 14 growers or distributors. These were tested for germination and the results are given in Table I. CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 283 Table I. Seed Germination Tests of 1925. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed Sold by F. T. Bliss Hardware Co., South Manchester. Carrot, Danvers Half Long Lettuce, Hartford Bronze Head Spinach, Long Standing W. A. Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, Penn. Carrot, Long Orange Lettuce, Big Boston Onion, Yellow Globe Clapp & Treat, Hartford, Conn. Cucumber, White Spine Lettuce, Big Boston Onion, Danvers Yellow Flat D. M. Ferry, Detroit, Mich. Carrot, Imp. Long Orange Corn, Early Sweet Lettuce, Simpson's Early Curled . . . Onion, Imp. Yellow Globe Peas, Nott's Excelsior Spinach, Thick Leaf Round Seeded Chas. C. Hart Seed Co., Wethersfield, Conn. Carrot, Danvers Half Long Stump Root. . Corn, Hart's Early Dawn Peas, Nott's Excelsior Early Dwarf Lettuce, Big Boston Onion, Red Wethersfield Lake Shore Seed Co., Buffalo, N. Y. Corn, Ea. Minnesota Lettuce, Salamander Onion, Southport Yellow Globe Spinach, Round Leaf D. Landreth Seed Co., Bristol, Penn. Carrot, Danvers Half Long Lettuce, Salamander Onion, Sport Red Globe Lyman Seed Co., Springfield, Mass. Cucumber, White Spine Spinach, Thick Leaf F. T. Bliss Hardware Co., South Manchester. Harrison & Gould, Milford. u n S. p. Strople, New Britain. F. B. Newton, Plainville. G. W. Thorpe, West Cheshire. tt a ti Uc t( It ti it Bacon Bros., Middletown. tt tt tt Collins & Freeman, Branford. Stillman Hardware Co., New Canaan. Bacon Bros., ^liddletown. PACKET VEGETABLE SEED Table I. Seed Germination Tests of ig2^— Concluded. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed New Britain Seed Store, New Britain, Conn. Carrot, Danvers Half Long Lettuce, Big Boston Onion, Red Wethersfield Northrup-King Co,, Minneapolis, Minn. Beet, Early Blood Turnip Carrot, Imp. Danvers Half Long Lettuce, Grand Rapids Lettuce, Round Thick Leaf Onion, Large Wethersfield Peas, American Wonder Olds & Whipple, Hartford, Conn. Cucumber, Boston Pickling Lettuce, Early Curled Silesia Onion, Southport Red Globe Spinach, Long Standing Page Seed Co., Greene, N. Y. Carrot, Chantenay Corn, Stowell's Evergreen Lettuce, Grand Rapids Onion, Wethersfield Spinach, Thick Leaved J. B. Rice Seed Co., Cambridge, N. Y. Carrot, Danvers Half Long Corn, Country Gentleman Lettuce, Big Boston Onion, Wethersfield Large Red Peas, Premium Gem Dwarf Spinach, Bloomsdale Savoy Ross Bros. Co., Worcester, Mass. Beet, Crosby's Eg^'ptian Carrot, Danvers Half Long Lettuce, Big Boston Onion, Yellow Globe Danvers c •*H O ■s " Sold by . i;.S "6 finO S. R Strople, New Britain. 74-5 84.0 57-5 F. W. Woolworth Co., 78.0 Winsted. 84.0 « « (( 51-5 " 80.S " « « 87.0 « 95.S S. P. Strople, New Britain. 93.S " ** 740 " 945 73-5 R. W Hine, Cheshire. 76.5 86.0 " " " 91.0 " 83.0 61.0 Bristol Grain Co., Bristol. 73-5 '■ '* 72.5 81.0 « « ( <( 83.0 89..S 78.S W. R. Bosworth, Woodstock. 80.S '■ « " 775 81.0 « " " 90.0 CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 283 SEASON OF 1926. The inspection of 1925 showed some differences in quahty but in our opinion did not include a sufficient number of samples to warrant publication. In order to secure this more complete sampling the cooperation of the Commissioner of Agriculture, Honorable Philo T. Piatt, was solicited and readily granted. Through the efforts of the staff of the Market Reporting Service of the State Department of Agriculture it was possible to obtain 238 samples, representing 10 growers or distributors. These were all "packet seeds" purchased in the open market by the market reporters and paid for by the Station. The results of the eermination tests are eiven in Table II. — c PACKET VEGETABLE SEED Table II. Seed Germination Tests of 1926. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed The American Seed Co., Detroit, Mich. Beans, Dwarf Golden Wax " Kentucky Wonder Beet, Early Egyptian Blood Turnip " " Blood Turnip Carrot, Oxheart " Danvers Half Long Corn, Country Gentleman Cucumber, Early White Spine " Boston Pickling Lettuce, E^rly Prize Head " Butter " Grand Rapids Peas, Extra Early Radish, Early Long Scarlet " Short Top Early Scarlet Turnip.. " Early Scarlet Globe Squash, Early Summer Crookneck Sold by S. S. Kresge Co., Danbury. Spinach, Improved Thick Leaved W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, Penn. ' Beans, Bountiful Jackson-Marvin Hdw. Co. Burgess Stringless Green Pod White Wax Bush " Brittlewax Beet. Black Red Ball " Columbia " Detroit Dark Red " Burpee's Improved Blood Turnip . Carrot, Chantenay " Danvers Half Long Orange '■ Oxheart " Burpee's Improved Long Orange. Cucumber, Fordhook " Burpee's Fordhook Famous . " Fordhook Pickling " Green Prolific Lettuce, Big Boston '■ May King " Iceberg " Wonderful Radish, New White Icicle " Burpee's Earliest Rapid Red " Scarlet Globe Spinach, Henderson's Long Green " Burpee's Victoria Westville. 0-- s ^ I04 CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 283 Table II. Seed Germination Tests of 1926 — Continued. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed Sold by W. Atlee Burpee & Co., Philadelphia, Penn. — Cont. Spinach, Norfolk Savoy-leaved " Burpee's Princess Juliana Clapp & Treat, Inc., Hartford, Conn. Beans, Golden Wax " Six Weeks Beet, Eclipse " Early Blood Turnip " Crosby's Egyptian " Bassano Carrot, Improved Long Orange " Danvers Half Long Cucumber, Improved White Spine " Green Cluster " Early Frame " Improved Long Green Lettuce, Hartford Bronze Head " Cos Trianon " Simpson's Early Curled " May King Radish, Early Scarlet Turnip " French Breakfast " Icicle " Round Black Spanish Spinach, New Zealand " Thick Leaved " Long Standing Round D. M. Ferry & Co., Detroit, Mich. Beans, Golden Wax Bush , " Dwarf Unrivalled Wax Bush Beet, Early Blood Turnip , " Detroit Dark Red " Crosby's Egyptian Cabbage, Mammoth Rock Red Carrot, Early Scarlet Horn , " Chantenay " Half Long Scarlet " Danvers Cucumber, Boston Pickling " Improved Long Green Early.White Spine " Short Green Lettuce, Mammoth Black Seeded Butter. " Ferry's Early Prize Head " California Cream Butter May King Jackson-Marvin Hdw. Co., Westville. Clapp & Treat, Inc., Hartford. A. H. Watt, Redding Ridge. PACKET VEGETABLE SEED 105 Table II. Seed Germination Tests of ig26— Continued. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed Sold b% D. M. Ferry & Co., Detroit, Mich.— Com^ Lettuce, Big Boston Black Seeded Simpson Radish, Icicle Early Scarlet Turnip White Tip. . " French Breakfast " Improved Chartier Spinach, Long Standing Prickly Seeded. " New Zealand " Thick Leaved Round Squash, Summer Crookneck A. H. Watt, Redding Ridge. The Chas. C. Hart Seed Co., Wethersfield, Conn. Beet, Early Dewing's Blood Turnip . Detroit Dark Red Carrot, Danvers Half Long Cucumber, Improved White Spine . . " Boston Pickling " Davis Perfect Lettuce, Early Prize Head " Simpson's Early Curled . . . " Big Boston Head Parsnip, Long Smooth Sugar Radish, Early Round Scarlet Sage Squash, Giant Summer Crookneck . . Spinach, Early Giant Thick Leaf . . . H. E. Meekers. Danburv. Lake Shore Seed Co.. Dunkirk, N. Y. Beans, Henderson's Bush Lima W. E. Daley. Bethel. " Red Valentine '" '" " Beet, Dewing's Improved Blood " " " Detroit Dark Red I Carrot, Oxheart ; " " " " Danvers | " " " Corn, Stowell's Evergreen " " " " Golden Bantam ' " Cucumber, Peerless White Spine " Improved Long Green " Boston Pickling , Lettuce, Prize Head , " Cos " Wilson's Early Cabbage Radish, Early Red Turnip , " Assorted , Squash, Golden Summer Crookneck Spinach, Round Leaf , 70.S 76.0 97-5 770 930 48.0 83.5 84.0 85.5 76.0 lo6 CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 283 Table II. Seed Germination Tests of 1926 — Continued. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed Northrup-King Co., Minneapolis, Minn Beans, Kentucky Wonder Pole ■ ■' Early Dwarf Black Wax Beet, Edmund's Improved Blood Turnip. Carrot, Qiantenay " Oxheart Cucumber, Improved White Spine Long Green ■' Chicago Pickling Lettuce, Grand Rapids Black Seeded Simpson " Improved Hanson Head Radish, Early Scarlet Turnip " ■ French Breakfast " Sterling White Tip Spinach, Round Thick Leaved Squash, Golden Summer Crookneck Sweet Corn. Peep o' Day " " Golden Bantam Olds & Whipple, Inc., Hartford, Conn, Beans, Burpee's Stringless " Golden Wax Beet, Dewing's Blood " Crosby's Egyptian " Detroit Dark Red " Swiss Chard Carrot, Early Half Long Scarlet " Danvers Half Long " Early Half Long Scarlet Cucumber, London Long Green " Davis Perfect " White Spine " Boston Pickling Lettuce, New York " Crisp-as-ice '' Early Curled Silesia " Hanson Head " Tom Hannock Radish, Early Scarlet Turnip " French Breakfast Early Scarlet White Tip " " Long Scarlet Spinach, New Zealand " Large Viroflay " Round Thick Leaf Sold by F. W. Woolworth Co., Hartford. Olds & Whipple, Inc., Hartford. PACKET VEGETABLE SEED I 07 Table II. Seed Germination Tests of 1926 — Concluded. Grower or Distributor; and Variety of Seed Sold by The Page Seed Co., Greene, N. Y Beans, Page's Golden " Davis White Beet, Crosby's Egyptian Detroit Dark Red " Early Blood Turnip Carrot, Oxheart " Improved Long Orange " Danvers Half Long Corn, Golden Bantam " Stowell's Evergreen " Elarly White Cory Cucumber, Long Green " Early White Spine " Paris Evergreen Lettuce, Grand Rapids " Early Prize Head Radish, French Breakfast Early Scarlet White Tip Squash, Summer Crookneck Spinach, Bloomsdale " Thick Leaved The Rice Seed Co., Cambridge, N. Y. Beans, Dwarf Rust-proof Golden Wax . Black Butter Beet, New Dark Red Eclipse ■ " Dewing's Early Blood Turnip " Long Smooth Dark Blood Carrot, True Danvers Half Long " Early French Short Horn " Rice's Improved Long Orange . - Corn, Golden Bantam " Crosby's Early Cucumber, Improved Long Green " " Early White Spine. " Extra Early Green Prolific . . Lettuce, Early Curled Silesia " Black Seeded Simpson Radish, True French Breakfast " Extra Early Scarlet Turnip . . . . " Early Scarlet Turnip White Tip. Squash, Giant Early Summer Crookneck. H. E. Meekers, Danbury. It (( « H. E. Meekers, Danbury. 86.0 66.5 750 83.0 52.5 54-5 41.0 72.0 91.0 82.5 95-0 90..S 74.0 950 83..=; 960 70.0 56.5 87.0 930 76.S 58.0 62.0 52.0 450 * * 63.0 * 91.0 50.5 78.S 91-5 70.S 67.5 82.0 79.0 *XoTE : This sample showed a variance of 10% or more between the duplicate tests. An insufficient quantity of seed on hand prevented retesting of the sample. Io8 CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION' BULLETIN 283 GERMINATION STANDARDS FOR VEGETABLES. In the absence of official standards of germination for vegetable seed we present in Table III a standard of comparison for this particular study. These standards were obtained by plotting a frequency curve of tests made in our laboratory for a period of ten years of the several seeds, and taking the classes between which the largest number of units occurred as the standard. This method may be somewhat inaccurate, especially where only a few samples are taken, but it at least gives a good indication of what good seed should germinate under favorable conditions. The following chart of onion seed illustrates the method described above. PACKET VEGETABLE SEED 109 CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 283 Table III. Table of Germination Standards Adopted for Comparative Purposes. Number of Tests Kind of Seed Germination Standard Used to Obtain Data Beans 90 to 100% Beet 85 Cabbage 85 Carrot 70 Sweet Corn 90 Cucumber 85 Lettuce 80 Onion 85 Parsnip 40 Peas 90 Radish 85 Squash 85 Spinach 70 Note: The germination of beet seed was determined by counts of the number of seed balls germinating and not by number of sprouts. No standards were set for New Zealand Spinach, because it is frequently very difficult to make the seed germinate in a germinator while the same seed may grow very well when planted under outdoor conditions. It may be noted from the germination tables that there is a wide variation in the results on this seed. 10070 145 • 100% 99 ' 100% 32 • 80% 59 ' 100% 75 • 100% 69 ' 95% 94 ' 99% 779 ' 50% II ' 100% . 167 ' 100% 160 ' 95% 29 ' 85% 135 Judging" the germination of the seed shown in Tables I and II by these standards, we find the following conditions : Seed Per cent of Samples above Standard 192s Beans Beet o Carrot 100 Corn 60 Cucumber Lettuce 71.4 Onion 66.6 Radish Spinach 71.4 Squash 1926 55 12 16 14.2 53-1 63.6 29.0 28.5 28.5 University of Connecticut Libraries 39153028852921