SCME STUDIES OK THE EFFECTS OF THE INCORPORATION
OF CERTAIN GROWTH STIMULANTS IN PELLETED SEED
ON GEMINATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE SEEDLINGS

Ry
Donald Wilson Newsom

A THESIS
Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies of Michigan
State College of Agriculture and Applied Science
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Horticulture

1952

SOME STUDIES ON THE EFFECTS OF THE INCORPORATION
OF CERTAIN GROWTH STIMULANTS IN PELLETED SEED
ON GERMINATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE SEEDLINGS

By
Donald Wilson Newsom

AN ABSTRACT
Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies of Michigan
State College of Agriculture and Applied Science
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Horticulture

1952

Approved by
jbr Professor

D a t a on the effects of pelleting and the incorporation of fungicides,
fertilizers and growth stimulants on germination and growth and develop­
ment of -fch.e seedlings were taken.
Seed, of sweet corn, cabbage, lettuce and tomato were pelleted.

Arasan,

cupric o x i d e , iron chlorophyll, bone char, superphosphate, calcium salt of
keto s u c c i n i c acid, sulfuric acid, potassium nitrate, and dried blood were
incorporated singly and i n various combinations in the pellets.
The

pelleting process consisted of building up the seed to the desired

size witli a coating material composed of 70 per cent minco clay and 30 per
cent ceZLILite.
an 8 p e r

The coating was made to adhere to the seed by spraying with

cent solution of methyl cellulose having a viscosity rating of 15

centipoises while the seeds were rotated at
rolled c o p p e r drum.
added t o

revolutions per minute in a

The fungicides, fertilisers, and growth stimulants were

the seed i n the process of pelleting.

Statistical analyses of the data indicated that pelleting did not af­
fect germination, seedling development, nitrate nitrogen, soluble phos­
phorus o r potassium oxide content in the plants, earliness or yield.
S i n c e pelleting had no adverse effect on germination, it will be of
considerable value to vegetable growers in that it vri.ll allow for pre­
cision planting of small seeded crops and eliminate excessive hand thin­
ning.

O n the basis of this work it would appear to be an economically

sound p r a ctice f r o m the standpoint of precision planting.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

................................................ii

INTBODUCTI O N .............................

1

REVIEW OF LITERATURE.................. . . . . ‘.................... 2
EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE............................................. .

9

Gemination Tests

14

Investigations to Determine the Effect of Pelleting and
the Incorporation of Various Materials in the Pellet
on Growth of the Seedlings •

14

Investigations to Determine the Effect of Pelleting and
the Incorporation of Various Materials in the Pellet
on Yield •

15

Sweet C o m .....................

15

Cabbage

16

. . . . . . . . . ............

Tomato . . . . . .

........ . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Lettuce..................

16
....16
16

.Statistical Methods.........
EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS................ ..... ............. .

17
... 17

Effect of Pelleting

on

Gemination

Effect of Pelleting

on

Seedling Development

.

Effect of Pelleting

on

the NutrientContent

of Plant Extracts . . . 21

Nitrate Nitrogen
Soluble Phosphorus
Potassium Oxide . . . . . . . . . . . .

.23

21
.... .. . . .

24

............... . . . 3 2

The Effect of Pelleting on the Yields of Cabbage, Lettuce
Tomato and Sweet C o r n .............................
DISCUSSION

.52
38

CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY

LIST OF TABLES

TAHLE

Page

I. List of Chemicals, Crops, Varieties, Sources of Seed and
Treatments used in Seed Pelleting Experiments.............. 11
II.

List and Description of Substances used in Seed
Pelleting Experiments . . . . . ...................... . . 1 3

III. The Effect of Variety, Scruroe of 3eed and Treatment on
Germination of Smeet Corn ...................... . . . . . 1 8
IV.

The Effect of Variety, Source of Seed and Treatment on
................................. 19
Gemination of Cabbage

V. Analysis of Variance Summary Table for Total Germination . .
VI.

The Effect of Variety, Fertilizer, and Treatment on Green
Weight of Above-Ground Par t s ................

20

22

VII. Analysis of Variance Summary Table for Green Weight of
Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet
Corn.................................................... 23
VIII. The Effect of Treatment and High and Low Fertility on the
Nitrate Nitrogen Content of Above-Ground Parts of Tomato,
Lettuce, Cabbage and Sweet Corn........................... 25
IX. The Effect of Variety, Source of Seed and High and Low
Fertility on the Nitrate Nitrogen Content of Above-Ground
Parts of Cabbage and Lettuce
............
X. Analysis of Variance Summary Table for FfM Total Nitrate
Nitrogen in Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato
and Sweet C o m ..................

26

27

XI. The Effect of Treatment and High and Low Fertility on
Soluble Phosphorus Content of Above-Ground Parts of
Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet C o m ................ . . 28
XII.

Analysis of Variance summary Table for PEM Soluble
Phosphorus in Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce,
Tomato and Sweet C o m

. . . 29

XIII. Analysis of Variance Summary Table for PEM Soluble
Phosphorus in Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce,
Tomato and Sweet C o m ..................................

31

XIV. The Effect of Treatment >and High and Low Fertility on
the Potassium Oxice Content of Above-Ground Parts of
Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Com. . . . . . . . . . .

33

Page

TABLE
XV.

XVI.
XVII.
XVIII.

Analysis of Variance Summary Table for PBS Potassium
Oxide in Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce,
Tomato and Sweet C o m .........

34

The Yields of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Corn
as Affected by Variety and Source of Seed.
....... . . . 35
Total Yields of Cabbage and Sweet Corn as Affected by
Treatment..............
Analysis of Variance Summary Table for Yields of
Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Corn

♦

..36

. . . 37

ACKNOILEDCMMTS
The author wishes to express his appreciation to Dr. B. L.
Carolus for his direction of the problem, and criticisms in the
preparation of the manuscript; to the Associated Seed Growers, Inc.,
Hew Haven, Conn., Ncrthrup-King and Company, Minneapolis, Minn.,
and F. H. Woodruff and Sons, Inc., Milford, Conn. for their
contribution of the seed used in this problem; and to Dr. P. Vogelsang,
of the Processed Seeds

Inc., Midland, Michigan, for demonstration

and Instruction on the mechanics of the pelleting process.

INTRODUCTION
Seed pelleting is a nevly developed process which involves the
coating of seed with certain inert minerals as cellite, flyash and
feldspar as well as montmorillonite and minco clays, which are made to
adhere to the seed by the use of water soluble methyl cellulose ap­
plied as a fine spray in a rotary pan.

As the size of the seed can

be increased up to twenty or more times, precision planting of the
smaller seeded vegetables is facilitated.

It has been reported (9)

that the incorporation of superphosphate, dried skim mild, and dried
blood in the pellet is beneficial in some cases.

If those materials

and other growth promoting substances are found to give consistent
benefits when Incorporated in the pellet, then seed pelleting may
prove to have considerable merit in the production of vegetable crops.
This study was designed to determine if certain chemicals produce
any stimulation to seedling development when incorporated in pelleted
seed.

This paper presents the effects of incorporating superphosphate,

dried blood, iron chlorophyll, the calcium salt of keto succinic acid,
cuprlc oxide, bone char and potassium nitrate singly and in various
combinations in pelleted seed.

Germination, green weight of tops,

nitrate nitrogen, soluble phosphorus, and potassium oxide content,
earliness and yield were used as criteria in determining the effects
of pelleting and the incorporation of the various Chemicals in the
pellet on sweet com, cabbage, tomato and lettuce.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Treating seeds with growth stimulants of various kinds has develop­
ed since 1935, following the successful use of hormones in the rooting
of cuttings.

The procedure has heen to apply hormones to dormant seeds;

the chemical is then immediately available to the young seedling for what
stimulative effect it may have.
Among the early experiments were those of Cholodny (11) in which
the growth of wheat and yield of oats appeared to be increased by treat­
ing the seeds with hormones*

Since then many kinds of seeds have been

similarly treated including those of cereals, sugar beets, and other
crop plants.
Graeanin (14) found that germination of the seeds of beet, rye,
sunflower, Festuca and others was accelerated by treatment with orthophosphoric acid.
Grace (15) dusted seeds of wheat and barley with a number of
materials and reported stimulation of both root and top growth.
Indoleacetic acid and indolebutyric acid at 2 ppm increased root
length 65 per cent and 55 per cent respectively, while a combination
of these at a concentration of 2 ppm each increased root length 102
per cent.
McRostie, et al (19) treated seed of winter wheat with indoleacdtic and naphthaleneacetic acids at 2 to 10 and 10 to 100 ppm re­
spectively and obtained significant differences in straw production,
yield and nitrogen content of grain.
Bonner (5) reported that soaking pea seeds in a concentrated
solution of Vitamin 0 caused subsequent seedlings to increase in dry

3
weight 35 per cent over the controls.
There have been other reports of growth increases with individual
plants.

Swartly and (Sjiadwick (26) found a significant increase in the

percentage of germination of 11 out of 41 kinds of seeds after treats
ment with naphthaleneacetamide plus thiourea.

In a few crops (sorghum,

peas and navy beans) lllard et al (1) report that concentrations of 0.01
to 0.1 ppm of 2-4 dichlorophenoxyacetic acid were somewhat stimulating to
early seedling growth.
Mitchell (20) used different concentrations of indoleacetic,
naphthaleneacetic and indolebutyric acids, indoleacetamide and
naphthaleneacetamide as seed treatments but his results failed to show
that these materials had any effect on total plant growth, time of
flowering, or yield.
Bartholomew (3) conducted experiments with seed dusting chemicals
under a wide variation of soil conditions to determine their ability to
increase yields of soybeans, rice , com, cotton and sorghum.

No signi­

ficant increases were obtained as a result of seed treatment in 13 of the
14 experiments and it was concluded that seed treatment with the plant
growth stimulants could not be recommended as a general practice.
Youden (30) describes a set of experiments in which he treated
wheat and soybean seeds with growth substances.

Wheat and soybean seeds

were treated in the dry state with indoleacetic acid, naphthaleneacetic
acid, and indolebutyric acid, talc and Rootone* and grown in sand and
soil in the greenhouse and in the field.

The concentration of the or­

ganic compounds in the talc preparations, as well as the proportion of
powder to seeds was adjusted to cover the range from 0.5 to 240 ppm of
active substance by weight of seeds.

In a series of 10 experiments,

^Commercial preparation
1 v

'<

<

4

observations were made on the germination, seedling height, fresh weight
of tops, yield of grain, and root systems, but in no instance did the
germination and growth of the treated lots exceed the controls.
Barton {4) soaked non-dormant seeds of twenty-nine different species
and varieties of farm, garden, and flowering plants and grasses in a wide
range of concentrations (1.2 to 320.0 mg per liter of water) of three
different growth substances (naphthaleneacetic, indoleacetic and
indolebutyric acids) and grew them to maturity in soil*

Except for

higher concentrations which in some cases inhibited growth or caused
malformations, the treatments had no effects, either on germination
or final yield.

She also treated seeds with several proprietary plant

hormone preparations, mainly talc-dust mixtures, with similar results.
Various mechanical and chemical treatments have been used in break­
ing dormancy in seeds.

Rose (23) found that the hard-coated seeds of

legumes, lettuce, mustard, okra, and snapdragon could bemade to germi­
nate more quickly by being blown against needle points.
It was found by Jones (17) that the seed coats of Nelumbo lutea
do not absorb water after soaking in water for 18 months at roan
temperatures, but that when the seed coats were broken without injury
to the embryo, the seeds quickly geminated.
Deuber (12) and Bramble (6) showed that the dormant seeds of
sugar maple, Norway maple and certain varieties of oats couldbe stimulated
into gemination by treatment with solutions of thiourea and ethylene
chorohydrin and the vapors of ethylene chlorohydrin.
Ifaldwin (2) improved the gemination of seeds of Pleea rubra by
immersion in absolute alcohol.

5
Harrington (16) reported that seeds of redtop, parsnips, celery,
orchard grass, bluegrass, Bermuda grass, and Johnson grass.germinated
much better with favorable alternations of temperature than at constant
temperatures.
The supply of oxygen is an important factor in germination, and:'.it
is generally considered that the increased germination from some treat­
ments may be caused by the favorable effect upon the diffusion of
oxygen through the membrane of the seed. Moringa (21,22) noted that
seeds of cattail, which germinated poorly or not at all in air, germinated
promptly when the oxygen supply was decreased by diluting the air with
48 to 80 per cent hydrogen or nitrogen.
According to Shuck (24,25), lettuce seed is in a physiologically
unstable condition that makes it particularly sensitive during germination
to the effects of light, moisture, and I:temperature.

In the laboratory,

germination is promoted by the exposure of the seeds to light, by the
use of a very moist substratum, and by starting the germination at a
low temperature.

The light requirement was satisfied by continuous

exposure to light under germinating conditions or by exposing the moist
seeds to light before placing them in a dark chamber.

He concluded that

light causes certain photochemical changes within the said.

Shuck (24.25)

believed that there is a growth-inhibiting substance in lettuce seed,
since after a sufficient number of seeds had been germinated in the
dark on a cotton medium for 10 days, the germination of similar seed
was completely inhibited on this medium; but when the medium was washed
in water and again used as a substratum, 98 per cent of a similar lot of
seeds germinated.
Thompson (28) found indications that immaturity at the time of

6
harvest is an important factor contributing to the dormancy and light
sensitivity in lettuce seed.
Flint (13) found that the red, orange, and yellow rays of light
were the most effective in promoting the germination of lettuce seed,
while the blue, green and violet rays inhibited germination.

He found

further that non-light-sensitive seeds could be made sensitive by sub­
jecting them for a period, while moist, to blue light and then drying.
Vogelsang (29) has suggested that the incorporation of substantial
quantities of the more insoluble fertilizer materials and small
quantities of minor elements in pelleted seed may

stimulate growth of

subsequent seedlings.
Carolus (9) states that experiments have shown that increasing
the phosphate concentration in the area near the germinating seed has
prohen to be a distinct advantage in many situations and that the use
of organic nitrogen carriers and powdered skimmed milk has proved
beneficial in some cases by stimulating bacterial activity in the
neighborhood of the germinating seed.

He further states that the

addition to the coating materials of plant growth regulating materials
and other stimulants to promote rooting and rapid emergence has shown
considerable promise.
KeQuffey (18) working with pelleted seed containing various
fungicides, fertilizers and plant growth stimulants found that the
germination of melon and cucumber seeds was benefited noticeably,
whil# the germination of pelleted wax and green beans was only slightly
better than that of the non-pelleted seed.

North Star, Golden Hybrid and

Golden Security sweet c o m seed pelleted with 1.5 per cent arasan and
3 per cent ehloranil showed increases in germination of 16 per cent

7

5 per cent and 31 per cent respectively, above that not pelleted but
treated with 1.5 per cent arasan and 3 per cent chloranil.
Burgesser (8) states that numerous tests in experimental plots
and in test plantings have failed to show significant benefits from
addition of various fertilizers up to amounts toxic to the seed.

He

further states that the various growth stimulating chemicals have not
consistently given significant benefits.

These results are not strictly

comparable to those of MeGuffey (18) since the methods of pelleting
used by these investigators differed greatly.
Carolus (9) reports that pelleting resulted in not only higher
germination in corn and more rapid seedling development, but also
earlier harvest.

In one observation, seed which was not pelleted

germinated slowly and the seedlings showed poor vigor and a purpling
of the leaves associated with phosphorus deficiency.

Pelleted seed

in which superphosphate had been included germinated better
and the seedlings showed more vigor and no symptom of phosphorus de­
ficiency.

Pelleted tomato seed produced plants that were more vigorus

and earlier maturing than plants produced from non-pelleted seed.
Pelleting induced pickling cucumbers to vine more vigorously and to pro­
duce earlier fruit.

Apparently the- incorporated materials gave the plants

a disease-free start and a stimulation from the phosphorus and plant stimu­
lants that resulted in better rooting.
MeGuffey (18) working with 15 kings of vegetable seed found that,
on an average, pelleting reduced germination 15 per cent.

Pelleting

significantly reduced the germination of all crops except carrot,
cauliflower and turnip.

The pelleting formula consisted of 35 per

cent flyash and 65 per cent feldspar, with methyl cellulose used as a

sticker to form the pellet.
stimulant was incorporated.

No fertilizer, fungicide or growth

E O P E R I M M m PROCEDURE

Seed were pelleted by a process in which, a layer of inert minerals,
fungicides, fertilizers and growth stimulants were made to adhere to the
seed by the use of methyl cellulose, a water soluble adhesive material.
In this process the seed were placed in a pan which was adjusted to
rotate at 45 revelutions per minute and an 8 per cent solution of
methyl cellulose with a viscosity rating of 15 centipolses was sprayed
onto the seed.

Enough of this material was then applied to thoroughly

moisten the seeds, then the various fertilizers, fungicides and growth
stimulants were added to the pellet.

The seed were then allowed to

rotate 15 minutes or for a period of time sufficient for the materials
to adhere to the seed before the next application of methyl cellulose
was made.

The process used in these tests was similar to that developed by

Vogelsang (29).
The remainder of the process consisted merely of the building up
of the pellet to the desired size by the alternating additions of methyl
cellulose and the coating materials.

The length of time required to

pellet seeds depends on the original size of the seed and the size of the
end product desired.

In comparative tests it required 30 minutes to

process one pound lots of sweet corn and two hours to process 10 ounce
lots of lettuce, tomato and cabbage seeds.
In these tests a rolled copper pan rotated by an electric motor
was found to be quite satisfactory.

The pan at the point of attachment

to the drive shaft was 8 inches in diameter, flared out to 16 inches
at mid-depth and tapered down to 8 inches at the open end.

This size

10

pan was found to be very convenient in processing snail, experimental,
lots of seed*
The pellets were dried by placing them in a wire mesh basket, and
forcing hot air from a small electric heater through them.

Because of

the probable induction of dormancy in lettuce seed by this prooedure a
small eledtric fan was used for drying the lettuce seed.
Because preliminary tests indicated it to be the most satisfactory,
a formula consisting of 70 per cent minco-day and 30 per cent cellite
was used as the coating on tomato, cabbage, and lettuce seeds whereas the
sweet c o m was coated with a mixture containing 65 per cent feldspar
and 35 per oent fly ash.
treatment and crops.

Table I shows the varieties, sources of seed,

The sources and descriptions of the materials are

given in Table II.
In preliminary tests with lettuce seed of the Black Seeded Simpson
variety pelleting resulted in poor germination.

To counteract this

effect, .4 per cent potassium nitrate (28) was incorporated in one lot
of seed and a concentration of sulfuric acid sufficient to reduce the
pH of the methyl cellulose sticker to 4.5 was incorporated in another
lot of seed.

Both of these materials have been used in breaking

dormancy of certain crop seeds. (7).
The calcium salt of keto succinic acid was used in combination
with the dried blood treatments in all case* on the basis of reports
from Vogelsang (29) that this combination had proved beneficial.
Iron chlorophyll was used on the basis of information obtained
from Vogelsang (29).

Presumably this material would speed up chlorophyll

production in the seedlings, since it is thought that iron is used by
the plant in the photo-oxidation of "protochlorophyllw to chlorophyll.

TABLE— List of Chamioals, Crops, Varieties, Sources of Seed, and Treatments Used in Seed Pelleting
Experiments

Crop

Sweet Corn

Cabbage

Tomato

Lettuce

TBariety 1/

Golden Cross Bantam
Caimelcross

Golden Acre
Danish Ball Head

John Baer
Stokesdale

Great Lakes
HLack Seeded Simpson

1'% CuO

1# CuO

1# CuO
Ifo CuO

>,

Treatment 2/

A. Unpelleted lg Arasan
B. Pelleted

l k Arasan

1$ CuO

1# CuO

G. Pelleted

50 ppm Ca salt of
keto succinic acid,
400 ppm dried blood

1# CuO
50 ppm Ca salt ot
keto succinic acid
400 ppm dried
blood

1% CuO, 50
1$ CuO, pH of methyl
ppm salt of
cellulose reduced to 4*5
keto succinic aoid »
400 dried blood

D. Pelleted

l|# Arasan, 50 ppm
1# CuO, 50 ppm Ca
Ca salt of keto
salt of keto sucoinic
succinic acid, 400 ppm acid, 400 ppm dried
dried blood
blood, 4$ super­
phosphate

1# CuO, 4$
Superphosphate

1# CuO, 50 ppm Ca
salt of keto succinic
acid, 400 ppm dried
blood

E« Pelleted

Arasan, 50 ppm
Ca salt of keto
succinic acid, 400
ppm dried blood, 4$
superphosphate

1# CuO
8jS super­
phosphate

1% CuO, 50 ppm Ca
salt of keto succinic
acid, 400 ppm dried
blood, 4$ superphosphate

1# CuO
8$ superphosphate

TABLE 1— -(Continued}

Crop

Sweet Co m

Cabbage

Tomato

Lettuce

Yariety 1/

Golden Cross Bantam
Carmeloross

Golden Acre
Danish Ball Head

John Baer
Stokesdale

Great Lakes
Black Seeded Simpson

Treatment 2/
F. Pelleted

1^fo Arasan, 50 ppm. Ca
1$ CuO, 20$ bone char 1$ CuO, 50ppn
salt of keto sueelnic
Ca salt of keto
acid, 400 ppm. dried
succinic acid,
blood, 4$ superphosphate,
400 ppm dried
400 ppm iron chlorophyll
blood, 4$ super­
phosphate
1$ CuO, 50 ppm Ca
salt of keto succi­
nic acid, 400 ppm
dried blood, 4$
superphosphate,
400 ppm iron
chlorophyll

G. Pelleted

No. of Lots

35

42

1$ CuO, 50 CuO, 50 ppm Ca
salt of keto succinic
acid, 400 ppm dried
blood, 4$ superphosphate,
400 ppm iron chlorophyll

1$ CuO, 50 ppm Ca 1 $ CuO, .4$ KN03
salt of keto
succinic acid,
400 ppm dried
blood, 4$
superphosphate,
400 ppm iron
chlorophyll

42

1/

Seed of each, variety of the four crops were supplied by each of the following sources:
Northrup-King & Co., Associated Seed Growers, Inc., and F. H. Woodruff & Sons, Inc.

2/

The amount of materials incorporated in the treatments are based on seed weight

42

13

TABLE II— List and Description of Substances Used in Seed Pelleting
Experiments

1.

Calcium salt of keto succinic acid

Supplied by Dr. W. X« Hale
Midland, Michigan

2. Dried blood

Hemoglobin from centrifuged,
citrated blood. Supplied by
Armour & Co., Chicago, 111.

3. Bone char

A carbon compound containing
65 percent moisture and 35
percent solids of which 30 to
70 percent are fatty acids.
Supplied by Michigan Sugar
Beat Growers, Association,
Saginaw, Michigan

4. Methyl cellulose

An adhesive material with a
viscosity rating of 15
centlpoises. Supplied by '
Dow Chemical Co., Midland,
Michigan

5.

A chlorophyll extract con­
taining small amounts of
iron. Obtained from Valley
Chemical Co., McAllen, Texas

Iron Chlorophyll

6. Flyash

A carbon free compound collect­
ed frcm smoke stacks of coal
burning furnaces.

7. Feldspar

One of the primary earth minerals

8.

Dlatomaceous earth

Cellite

14

Germination Tests: The seed were germinated in sandy loam soil in
flats 15* i 21* x 4*.

The soil in the flats was firmed with a

board, and 20 seed planted per row in rows spaced at two inch intervals.
The seed was then covered with a measured amount of soil and an equal
amount of water was then applied to all flats.

Equal amounts of water

were applied to the flats every second day until the tests were com­
pleted.

All of the germination tests were conducted at Michigan State

College in a greenhouse in which the temperature was maintained at
approximately 70 degrees P.
The tests were replicated ten times so that a total of 200 seed
from each treatment was tested for per cent germination during a 14day period.
Investigations to Determine the Effect of Pelleting and the Incorporation
Of Various Materials in the Pellet on Growth of the Seedlings: In order
to determine if the incorporation of fertilizers and growth stimulants
had any effect on seedling development, a series of experiments was set
up in the greenhouse in 8-inch glazed pots.
The first of these experiments was conducted at Michigan State
College.

Cabbage seed from each of the seed treatments from the three

sources and two varieties listed for cabbage in Table I were used.
The experiment was laid out in the greenhouse in two blocks of different
fertility levels.

The soil with which the pots were filled was purposely

a very infertile sandy type soil.

In one block, which will hereafter

be referred to as *high fertility*, each of the 42 pots received *5
grams nitrogen, .5 grams phosphoric acid, and .5 grams potassium oxide,
supplied from a combination of KN03, KH2P04 and NH4N03.

The second

block received no fertilizer and will hereafter be referred to as *low

15

fertility1*, (phe experiment was designed in t M s manner to determine
whether on a highly infertile soil the .stimulation anticipated from
the incorporation of fertilizers and growth stimulants in the pellet
would be accentuated.
On October 1, 1949 twenty seeds of cabbage from each of the seven
aeed treatments were planted in the individual pots in each of the two
fertility levels.

After germination and emergence of the seedlings was

completed, the plants were thinned to three plants per pot.
At the end of four weeks the plants were cut off at the surface of
the soil and the fresh weight of the tops determined.
On June 1, 1950 experiments were conducted to determine the effect
of the treatments on the fresh weight of tops and the nitrate-nitrogen,
soluble phosphorus and potassium oxide content.of sweet oorn, tomato and
lettuce.

These tests were similar to the one conducted with cabbagte

except that they were carried out under half-shade in the Bio Grande
Valley of Texas.
Tissue tests were made on fresh material collected from the pot
experiments on cabbage, lettuce, tomato and sweet com.

The above­

ground parts of three plants from each pot were macerated and the sap
extracted from one gram samples with a weak acetic acid solution.
Nitrate-nitrogen, soluble phosphorus, and potassium oxide determinations
were run on the plant extracts according to the procedure of Carolus (10).
Investigations to Determine the Effects of Pelleting and the Incorporation
of Various Materials in the Pellet on;Yield:
Sweet C o m : Seed of two varities each froa the three sources, and t*
frcsn the six treatments, outlined in Table I, were planted at 12-inch in­
tervals in rows 25 feet long and three feet apart in the field May 18, 1949
to determine the effects of pelleting on yield.

A split plot experiment was

16

designed so that sources of seed were replicated twice, varieties six and
treatments twelve times in two blocks.

The same experimental design was

used on all crops for the yield tests.
Harvest dates were July 30 and August 10, respectively, for Carmelcross
and Golden Cross Bantam.

The total weight of marketable ears was recorded.

Cabbage: Seed of two varieties each frcm three sources and frcm the
seven treatments, outlined in Table I, were planted at 12-inch intervals in
rows 25 feet long and three feet apart in the field July 16, 1949.
The Golden Acre Variety was harvested September 20 and Danish Ball
Head Variety in an immature state on October 15.
Tomato: Seed of two varieties each from these sources and from the Beven
treatments, outlined in Table I, were planted at 12-inch intervals in rows
25 feet long and three and one-half feet apart in the field April 5, 1950.
The first picking was. made July 10 and successive pickings were made
once each week for the three following weeks, giving a total of four
pickings.

Data on total weight of marketable fruit were collected.

Lettuce: Seed of two varieties each frcm the three sources and from the
seven treatments, outlined in Table I, were planted at 6-inch intervals
in rows 20 feet long and three feet apart.
Harvest dates were June 16 and July 30, respectively, for the Black
Seeded Simpson and Great Lakes Varieties.

Total weight of marketable

product was recorded for each variety.
Statistical Methods: All data were subjected to an analysis of variance.
The significance of the data was determined according to Snedecor*s
Statistical Methods (27).

E&EKQfiNEAL RESULTS

A.

Effect of Pelleting on Germination
The effects of the various factors and the first and second order

interactions are shown in Table V.
as the error term.

The third order interaction served

The error terms as shown in Table V are extremely

small, however, only in the cabbage and sweet c o m tests do we find any
significant differences in the main factors.
In the cabbage germination tests germination was significantly
greater at the 5 per cent level with seed from Northrup-King and Co.,
than with seed from either F. H. Woodruff and Sons or Associated Seed
Growers, Inc.

Replications were significantly different at the 1 per

cent level in the cabbage tests.
In the sweet corn tests there was a significant difference at the
5 per cent level between sources of seed as shown in Table V.

Germination

was greater with sweet corn seed from Northrup-King and Co*, than with
seed from. F. H. Woodruff and Sons, but there was no difference between
the gemination of seed frcm Associated Seed Growers, Inc. and seed
from Northrup-King and Co., or between seeds from Associated seed Growers,
Ine, and F. H. Woodruff and Sons.

The interactions R x T and S x R x T

are significant at the 1 per cent level in the sweet corn tests as shown
in Table V.

The effects of variety, source of seed and treatment on

germination of sweet corn and cabbage are shown in tables III and IV*
In these tests there were no significant effects from the pelleting
treatments indicating that the incorporation of the various materials had
no stimulating effect on germination.

It is Important to note, however,

that pelleting in these tests did not reduce germination as was reported
by MeGuffey (18)♦
17

18

TAHT/g n i — ^hie Effect of Variety, Source of Seed and Treatment on
'Germination of Sweet C o m Seed 1/

Variety

Treatment z /

Source

C

D

E

F

165

164

168

170

169

166

168.3

i/

1166

170

168

167

169

171

168.8

5/

169

171

171

172

166

170

169.8

Average

166*6

168*3

169*0

168.0

Carmelcross

167

170

175

165

169

167

169.5

i/

171

166

172

168

169

171

168.8

S/

169

172

170

171

169

168

169.8

Average

169.0

169.3

172.3

168.0

169.0

168.7

General Average

167.8

168.8

170.7

168*8

168.5

168.7

Golden Cross
Bantam

&

1/ Germination from 200 seed.
2/ See Table I for treatment materials
3/ Associated Seed Growers, Inc*
F. H. Woodruff and Sons, Inc.
»/ Northrup-King &. Co.

o

B

§

A

Average

168*7

19

Ta HT/si IT— The Effect of Variety, Source of Seed and Treatment on
Germination of Cabbage Seed 1/

Variety

Treatment 2/

Source

6
A

B

c

D

E

162

165

155

152

153

157

151

156.4

170

161

158

160

164

158

162

161.9

169

160

164

164

166

164

164

164.4

Average

167.0

162.0

159.0

158.8

161.0

159.7

154.0

Danish Ball
Head
3/

172

162

162

159

161

163

162

163.0

i/

165

161

158

152

157

158

158

158.4

5 /

175

170

168

168

164

165

162

167.4

Average

170.7,

164.3

162.7

159.7

160.7

16C.0

160*7

General Average

168.9

163.2

160.9

159.2

160.9

160.9

159.9

Golden
Acre

3/
a

5/

1/
2/

Germination from 2500 seed.
See Table I for treatment materials*
Associated Seed Growers, Inc*
F. H. Woodruff and Sons
Northrup-Eing Seed Company

f

F

G

Average

20

'pahiyr V— .Analysis of Variance Summary Table for Total Germination

Cabbage

Source of Variation
Df

Mean
. Square

Lettuce

Tomato

Mean
Square

Mean
Square

Sweet Corn
Df

Mean
Square

Source (S)

2

16.50*

Variety (V)

1

4.00

Replication (R)

9

14.11**

•84

1.95

•9

.15

Treatment (T)

6

6.33

•31

11400

5

.89

9.50

.06

.19

2

*60

S x V

.46

.41

2

2.14*

.08 .

.09

1

1.01

uk

5.28

.30

1.23

18

.31

S x T

12

.75

.45

1.07

10

.52

V x R

9

6.33

.39

00
00
.

9

.59

V x T

5

.50

.53

.67

5

.25

R x T

54

3.98

2.08

3.14

45

1.33**

S x V x R

18

5.50

•65

•39

18

.14

S x V x T

12

1.00

.49

.64

10

.37

S x K x T

108

3.41

1. 50

1.93

90

1.93**

V x R x T

54

2.65

1.44

1.49

45

.56

V x R x S x T

108

4.30

1.33

2.68

90

.63

Total

419

-

S x B

*
**

Significant at the 5 percent point
Significant at the 1 percent point

359

21
B*

Effect of Pelleting on Seedling Development
Neither pelleting nor the incorporation of the various chemicals in

the pellet had any effect on seedling development of the four crops*
However, in the cabbage tests the average weights of plants grown frcm
pelleted seed were considerably greater than those grown from non­
pelleted seed.

Though these differences are not statistically significant

they are consistent enough to lead one to suspect that practical differences
do exist*

Under the high fertilizer treatments (table VI) for the variety

Golden Acre the range in average weight of above-ground parts runs from
3*9 grams per plant frcm the non-pelleted treatment to 8*2 grams and 7*9
grams per plant from treatments E and F, respectively.

These treat­

ments consisted of pellets containing superphosphate•
These differences were not statistically significant probably because
there was a rather wide variation within treatments.
There were no differences between treatments in the lettuce, tomato
and sweet corn tests.
A sunsnary of the analysis of variance is given in Table VII*
C.

The Effect of Pelleting on the Nutrient Content in the Plant Extracts

Nitrate Nitrogen:

Ikjjille X gives the analysis of variance summary for

the nitrate nitrogen content of the plant extracts collected from plant
material grown from pelleted and non-pelleted seed.

It is apparent that

the incorporation of the various materials in the pellet had no effect on
the nitrate nitrogen content of the plant extracts from the four crops at
the time of sampling.

Samples were taken at the end of one month after

the seed were planted, and any effect that the incorporation of the

22

TABLE 71— The Effect of Variety, fertilizer and Treatment on Green
Weight of Above-Ground Part a 1/
Variety

Treatment z j

fertilizer
A

B

C

D

E

f

G

Average

Cabbage
Golden Acre

Danish Ball
Head

Low
High

1.8
3.9

1.5
4.7

2.0 1.7
.5.3 5.4

2.1
8.2

1.7
7.9

1.9
5.6

1.8
6.0

Low
High

1.4
3.1

1.5
3.5

1.5
4.6

1.6
3.6

1.5
3.6

1.8
3.7

1.9
4.1

1.6
3.8

3.4

3.7

4*5

4.1

5.1

5.0

4*5

Average

Lettuce
Great Lakes

Black Seeded
Simpson

Low
High

2.1
5.3

1.3
4.7

2.1
5.4

2.0
5.2

1.8
5.1

2.1
6.7

2.1
6.3

1.9
5.5

Low
High

1.6
3.2

1.5
3.5

1.6
4.3

1.6
3.5

1.4
3.3

1.5
3.1

1.8
4.1

1.6
3.6

3.1

2.8

3.4

3.1

2.9

3.4

3.6

Average

Tomato
Stokesdale

Low
High

1.4
4.0

1.8
3.6

1.7
3.7

1.5
3.7

1.5
3.7

1.2
3.7

1.4
3.8

1.9
3.7

John Baer

Low
High

1.6
4.0

1.6
3.6

1.4 1.5
3.7 3.3

1.5
3.3

1.9
3*4

1.9
3*6

1.6
3.6

2.8

2.7

2.6

**

2.6

2.6

2.7

Average

Sweet C o m
Golden Cross
Bantam
Caxmelcross
Average
General Average

Low
High

2.0
4.2

2.0
4.0

1.7 1*7
3.8 3.6

2.0
3.6

1.8
3.3

Low
High

3.3
5.4

2.8
5.1

3.1
5.2

2.8
5.3

2.8
5.3

2.3
5.4

3.7
3.0

3.5
2.9

3;5
3.2

3.4
3.0

3.4
3.2

3.2
3.2

1/ Average wt. in grams per plant
’
2/ See Table I for treatment materials

1.9
3.8

— — i

i — m

3.2

2.9
5.3

23

y&BT/E 711— Analysis of Variance Summary Table for Green Weight of AboveGround Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Corn

Source of Variation
DF

Cabbage
Mean
Square

Lettuce
Mean
square

Tomato
Mean
Square

DF

Sweet C o m
Mean
Square

1

199.03**

164.92**

94.51**

1

83.21s

Source (s)

2

3.45

5.53

.18

2

.19

Error a

2

.21

2.22

.06

2

•23

Variety (V)

1

28.70*

28.01

.01

1

28.62

Error b

5

4.09

4.90

.09

5

.49

Treatment (T)

6

2.69

.91

•09

5

.37

T x F

6

1.81

,33

.11

5

.03

T x S

12

1.64

•83

.14

10

.03

T x V

6

2.07

.70

.07

5

.08

Error c

42

1.94

<0
IS

.15

35

.37

Total

83

*

Fertilizer (F)

71

i

24

vafribus materials may have had on nitrogen content may have been lost after
this length of time.

There were no significant differences between treat­

ments with any of the crops included in these tests.
There was a significant difference at the 5 per cent level between
varieties of cabbage and at the 1 per cent level between varieties of sweet
corn.

As might be anticipated, plants grown in the pots where fertilizer

was added contained more nitrate nitrogen than those grown with the addition
of no fertilizer (Table X).

The differences were significant at the 1 per

cent point with all four crops.
In Table Till are listed the nitrate nitrogen contents of the various
crops; the effect of variety, source of seed, high and low fertility on
the nitrate nitrogen content of cabbage and lettuce is shown in Table XX.
The concentrations are markedly higher for all crops at the higher levels
of fertility.

This was to be expected since nitrogen is highly soluble

and is taken up rapidly by the plant when it is available.

The plants grown

in the low fertility series showed definite visual symptoms of nitrogen
deficiency, and these deficiencies were confirmed by the tissue tests.
As shown in Table XX there were slight variations in nitrate
nitrogen content between treatments, but these differences were not
statistically significant (Table X).
Soluble Phosphorus:

No statistically significant differences in soluble

phosphorous content were detected between pelleting treatments with any of
the four crops (Table XIII).

The only differences in content of

phosphorus were between rates of fertilizer in the cabbage, lettuce and
tomato tests and between varieties of cabbage and lettuce.
The soluble phosphorus content of the different crops for the
various treatments is shown in Tables XI and XII.

TAHT.K Till— The Effect of Treatment and High and Low Fertility on the Nitrate-Nitrogen Content of AboveGround Parts of Tomato, Lettuce, Cabbage and Sweet C o m

H M Nitrate Nitrogen

Tomato Lettuce

Cabbage

S.C o m

Average

Tomato Lettuce

Cabbage

S.C o m

Average

Gen. Average

A

84

382

96

128

173

135

591

155

174

264

218

B

83

387

96

126

173

136

595

156

172

264

238

C

85

383

96

128

173

136

598

166

175

268

221

D

80

280

96

127

171

135

593

161

174

265

218

E

83

382

92

128

171

134

589

166

172

265

218

F

85

388

95

129

174

137

593

158

173

265

220

G

84

389

?2

188

135

600

159

223

206

83

384

135

594

164

Average

1/

High Fertility

Low Fertility

Treatment

U

95

Average of six determinations.

M M M .

123

173

TAHiYK IX— Tie Effect of Variety, Source of Seed and High, and Low Fertility on the Nitrate-Nitrogen
Content of Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage and Lettuce
PEM Nitrate-Nitrogen
Source

Low Fertility High Fertility Average Low Fertility High Fertility Average

General Average

Cabbage
Golden Acre - Danish Ball Head
96

163

129

86

144

115

122

2/

120

187

153

81

154

117

135

3/

102

174

138

84

139

112

125

106

175

83

145

u

Average

—

—

-...

Lettuce
BLack Seeded Simpson
Great Lakes
1/

375

604

489

379

593

486

487

2/

391

595

493

381

592

486

490

3/

398

598

498

384

584

484

491

388

599

381

589

-------

— -

Average

1/ Associated Seed Growers, Inc.
2/ Northrup-King & Co.
3/ F. H. Woodruff & Sons, Inc.

_

—

27

ta .
f ve

X— Analysis of Variance Summary Table for EEM Total Nitrate
Nitrogen in Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato
and Sweet C o m

Source of Variation

Cabbage
DF

Fertilizer (F)

1

Source (S)

my

Error a

Lettuce
Mean

Mean

Square

Square

Square

89637**

922953**

56784**

Mean

Sweet C o m

Tomato
DF

Mean
Square

1

37492**

1406

87

2

2

288

2

312

817

9

2

194

Variety (V)

1

15937**

1368**

119

1

48

Error b

5

3677

165

20

5

45

Treatment (T)

6

307

124

15

5

7

T x F

6

528

36

5

5

7

T x S

12

1133

74

16

10

33

Tx V

6

602

704

22

5

68

Error c

42

3749

291

53

35

48

Total

83

71

Table XI

Soluble Phosphorous Content of Plant Extracts
Treatment

Low Fertility

High Fertility
PIM Soluble Phosphorous*

Cabbage Lettuce

Tomato

S.Corn Avg.

Cabbage Lettuce

Tomato

S.Com

Avg.

General
Average

A

145

31

180

103

115.4

187

46

285

109

157.3

136.3

B

142

35

185

102

116.4

189

49

285

108

158.1

137.3

C

140

33

183

105

115.8

186

48

284

108

156.7

136.3

D

143

33

184

105

116.6

183

47

283

107

155.5

136.0

E

144

34

184

104

117.0

185

48

287

108

157.6

137.3

F

140

35

185

105

116.7

182

47

287

107

156.2

136.4

G

142

35

183

120.3

183

47

285

172.0

146.1

Avg.

142.9

34.0

183.9

185.4

47.8

285.6 108.3

* Average of six determinations

104.5

TABLE XII— The Effect of Variety, Source of Seed and High and Low Fertility on the Soluble Phosphorus
Content of Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce and Sweet C o m

PPM Soluble Phosphorus
Source Low Fertility High Fertility Average Low Fertility High Fertility Average

General Average

Cabbage
Golden Acre - Danish Ball Head

1/

159

205

182

125

177

15

166

2/

172

195

183

129

162

145

164

£/

144

205

175

127

167

147

161

Average

158

202

127

168

Lettuce
Great Lakes - BLack seeded Simpson
40

56

48

52

40

36

42

2/

38

61

49

28

38

33

41

3/

35

54

44

28

36

32

38

Average

38

57

29

38

±!

TABLE XII (Continued)

PBI Soluble Phosphorus
Source Low Fertility High Fertility Average Low Fertility High Fertility Average

General Average

Sweet Corn
Golden Cross Bantam - Carmelcross

1/

98

105

101

107

99

103

102

2/

117

99

108

106

102

104

106

3/

102

111

106

94

130

112

109

Average

106

105

___

102

110

General
Average

101

121

86

106

1/

Associated Seed Growers, Inc*

2/ Northrup-King and Co.
3/ F. H. Woodruff & Sons, Inc.

TABLE XIII— Analysis of Variance Summary Table for PBI Soluble Phosphorus
in Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato, and Sweet
Corn

Source of Variation
DF

Cabbage
Mean
Square

Lettuce
Mean
Square

Tomato
Mean
Square

Sweet C o m
Mean
Square

1

253

Fertilizer (F)

1

38059**

Source (S)

3

334

116

10

3

298

Error a

3

1130

33

9

2

1744

Variety (v)

1

83019**

3837**

31

1

13

Error b

5

390

119

53

5

400

Treatment (T)

6

36

13

19

5

3

T x F

6

18

13

5

15

T x S

13

40

34

27

10

46

T x V

6

78

3

73

5

83

Error c

43

113

13

44

35

33

Total

83

4046**

5 ..

317**

DF

71

32
Potassium Oxide:

The analysis of variance summary (Table XV) for the ppm

of potassium oxide shows that it was not influenced by any of the pelleting
treatments in any of the crops studied.

The only factors showing statisti­

cally significant differences were rates of fertilizer in the cabbage and
sweet corn tests and cabbage varieties.
Table XIV gives the potassium oxide content in ppm of the four crops
for all treatments.

It is interesting to speculate as to why there was no

statistically significant variation between rates of fertilizers with a
crop like tcmato which has such a high potassium requirement.

Apparently

the tomato is either very thrifty and was able to obtain sufficient potassium
from the more infertile soil or the soil contained adequate amounts of
available potassium even though no fertilizer was added to it.

D.

Effect of Pelleting on the Yields of Cabbage* Lettuce. Tomato and
Sweet Cprn

As seen in the analysis of variance summary (Table XVIII) there were
statistically significant differences at the 5 per cent point between
treatments in the cabbage and sweet corn yield tests.
In the cabbage tests the yield from treatment C was significantly great­
er at the 5 per cent point than yields from treatments D, E, E and G
(Table XVII).
In the sweet c o m tests treatment C yielded significantly less than
any of the other treatments.
Table XVI shows the yields of cabbage, lettuce, tomato and sweet corn
as affected by variety and source of seed.

A

TABLE XXV— The Effect of Treatment and High and Low Fertility on the Potassium Oxide Content of AboveGround Parts of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Corn 1/
PBl Potassium Oxide
Treatment 2/

Low Fertility

Cabbage Lettuoe
.
...

■

Tomato

High Fertility

S.Corn Average

Cabbage Lettuce

Tomato

S. Corn Average Gen, Average

?■

A

1788

585

5121

3014

2627

2360

590

5153

3575

2919

2773

B

1729

579

5095

3030

2608

239?

594

5064

3575

2907

2758

C

1747

584

5128

3033

2623

2551

593

5130

3589

2916

2769

D

1733

584

5135

3024

2619

2375

592

5141

3583

2923

2771

E:-

1747

582

5139

3050

2629

2369

592

5123

3584

2917

2773

F

1730

586

5136

3055

2627

2322

592

5080

3572

2891

2759

G

1730

588

5181

— ,__ -•

2500

2363

590

5113

2688

2594

1744

584

5133

3034

2362

592

5115

Average

1/ Average of six determinations
IT/ See Table I for treatment materials

3579

34

TABLE XV— Analysis of Variance Summary Table for PIM Potassium Oxide in
Above-Ground Parts of Cabbage, lettuce, Tcmato and Sweet C o m

Source of Variation
DF

Cabbage
Mean’
Square

Lettuce
Mean
Square

Tomato
Mean
Square

DF

Sweet Corn
Mean
Square

Fertilizer (F)

1

8,035,343**

1304

236

1

Source (s)

2

5931

597

16051

2

9,016

Error a

2

14,645

356

35016

2

14,445

Variety (V)

1

2,574,600**

15

332

1

35,867

Error b

5

173,333

87

21020

5

35,401

Treatment {T)

6

2,736

11

13,308

5

467

T x F

6

3,154

56

9,346

5

736

T x S

13

5,993

168

20,441

10

1,059

T x V

6

7,652

130

30,213

5

11,263*

Error c

43

14,202

225

31,007

35

4,018

Total

83

71

5,293,715**

35
t a RT-h: XVI—

The Yields of Cabbage, Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Corn
as Affected by Variety and Source of Seed 1/

Yield

Source

Yield

Average

Cabbage
Danish Ball Head

Golden Acre
2/

39

21

30

3/

40

22

31

1/

35

20

28

SB

21

Average

'

—

Lettuce
BLack Seeded Simpson

Great Lakes
2/

19

18

18

3/

14

15

15

4/

13

13

13

15

15

Average

—

Tomato
Stokesdale

John Baer

2/

16

13

15

3/

15

13

14

4/

18

15

16

Average

16

13

Sweet C o m
Golden Cross Bantam -

—

Carmelcross

2/

16

14

15

3/

15

15

15

4/

12

11

11

21

13
16

—

Average
General Average

cabbage and from two row plots 20 feet long for lettuce and tomato*
2/ Associated Seed (lowers, Inc.
15/ F. H. Woodruff and SonB, Inc.
7/ Northrup-King and Co.

36

taht/ei XVII—

'Total Yields of Cabbage and Sweet Corn as Affected by
treatment

Treatment

Yield In Pounds
Cabbage

Sweet Corn

A

367.3

176.9

B

361.2

177.0

C

405.4

136.3

D

345.4

180,8

£

337.3

171.3

F

353.7

174.6

G

347.4

LSD at .05

52.32

31.56

TABLE XVIII— -Analysis of Variance Summary Table for Yields of Cabbage,
Lettuce, Tomato and Sweet Corn
Source of Variation
DF

Cabbage
Mean
Square

Lettuce
Mean
Square

Tomato
Mean
Square

DF

Sweet Corn
Mean
square

Replication(R)

1

23

451

38

1

2

Source (S)

2

81

198

48

2

103

Error a

2

308

159

25

2

42

Variety (V)

1

6315**

3

163

1

SO

Error b

5

89

17

3

5

15

Treatment (T)

6

49*

20

■14

5

23*

TxE

6

46

19

4

5

8

Tx S

12

20

26

3

10

11

T x V

6

39

19

1

5

10

Error c

42

21

12

4

35

8

Total

83

71

DISCUSSION
Pelleting and the incorporation of slightly soluble fertilizers
and other growth stimulants in the pellet had no effect on germination.
This is not in agreement with the results reported by McGuffey (18} who
found that pelleting reduced germination by 15 per cent.

However, the

seed with which he worked was coated with a material composed of 65 per cent
feldspar and 35 per cent fly ash which forms a very hard coat that doss not
deteriorate rapidly when immersed in water.

In the tests reported herein

the seeds were coated with a material consisting of 70 per cent minoo clay
and 30 per cent cellite.

This coating material formed a very hard coat

but one that deteriorated almost instantaneously when immersed in water.
The difference in coating materials probably accounts for the differences
in results.

Probably with a fly ash-feldspar coating, germination was re­

duced because the pellet did not receive enough moisture to cause it to
deteriorate and allow the germinating seedling to emerge.
Evidently the incorporation of growth stimulants and fertilizers had
no effect on germination since non-pelleted seed germinated as well as
the pelleted seed.
Germination of the cabbage seed was reduced frcm 84.5 per cent for
the non-pelleted seed to from 81.5 per cent to 79.0 per cent for the pellet­
ed seeds.

Though the non-pelleted seeds germinated consistently better

than the pelleted seeds the differences were of no practical or statistial
significance.
The fact that pelleting in these tests had no detrimental effect oti
germination is of considerable significance.
38

The benefit to be derived-

39
from pelleting, if germination is not impaired, lies in the possibility of
precision planting of small seeded vegetable crops and has already been
pointed out (9, 18).

The results of this test indicate that cabbage, let­

tuce, tomato, and sweet corn seeds can be coated with a 70 per cent minco
clay and 30 per cent cellite mixture without a subsequent reduction in
germination.
The failure to obtain stimulation of germination by addition of
fertilizers and growth stimulants probably lies in the fact that most
seeds have an abundant supply of all the substances that are necessary
for germination.

It is conceivable that with seeds produced under condi­

tions of inadequate nutrient supply scsne stimulation could be obtained
by methods such as were used in these tests.
These data are not in agreement with those

of McGuffey (18) in

which germination of cucumber, melon, sweet corn, and tomato seeds
was greatly benefitted by incorporation of various materials in the
pelleted seed.

The apparent conflict in these data may be due to the

fact that different materials were incorporated in the seed.

He makes

no statement as to what materials were used other, than ’♦various fungicides,
fertilizers, and plant stimulants were used.” The concentrations of the
materials may have been varied in such a manner
ferences.

as to account for the dif­

It is also logical to assume that seed from different sources

may react differently to pelleting and also to the different materials
incorporated in the pellet.

If this is found to be the case then con­

siderable work will have to be done in order to determine what effect the
different materials will have on different seeds and seeds from different
sources.

The fact that seedling development as measured by fresh weight of
tops of plants grown both from pelleted and non-pelleted seed showed
no significant differences indicates that the various materials in­
corporated in the pellet had no effeot on seedling development.

The

absence of stimulation in seedling development probably resulted from
the fact that there was either already present in the soil an adequate
supply of nutrients for normal development or the amount incorporated in
the pellets was insufficient to increase the rate of seedling development.
This possibility should be examined further sinoe in these tests the
quantity of materials used was not sufficient to be toxic.

Possibly a

much higher concentration of these materials could be used without having
a detrimental effect on germination and result in a stimulating effeot
on growth.
It may also be suggested that possibly under other more adverse
conditions same of the pelleting treatments used in these tests might have
been of value in seed germination and subsequent seedling development.
Tissue tests run on the four erops to determine the nutrient
content of the tqps showed that the incorporation of the various materials
in the pellet brought about no increase in the concentration of nitrate
nitrogen, soluble phosphorus, or potassium,

a

possible explanation for

this is that the time elapse between seeding and date of sampling was
so great that the effect on nutrient content was lOBt.

In order to de­

tect any differences in nutrient content resulting frcm the incorporation
of the various materials in the pellet it might be necessary to make
the tissue tests within a few days after the seedlings have emerged.

41

Although, the yields frcan the pelleted seed mere in some cases
better than those from non-pelleted seed none of the differences
mere of any statistical significance.

Treatment C in the cabbage yield

tests was greater at the 5 per cent level than treatments D, E, F and
G.

This indicates that the addition of the Ca salt of keto succinic

acid, dried blood, CuO combination was beneficial in increasing the
yield of cabbage over some of the other treatments with pelleted seed.
When superphosphate and iron chlorophyll were incorporated with keto
succinic acid, dried blood and CuO then the yield was significantly
reduced below that of treatment C.

This leads to the assumption that

these materials were antagonistic to the beneficial effects of the
materials included in treatment C.

This antagonisn was probably due to

the effect that posphorus has on the absorption of nitrogen.
The low yield obtained from treatment C in the sweet corn tests
could have been due to the absence of any fungicide in the pellet.
In some cases the pelleted seeds outyielded the non-pelleted
seeds, but the differences in yield never reached a significant level.
In order to increase yield by pelleting the materials incorporated
would have to be of sufficient quantity to stimulate development of the
seedling and give it a good start.

Apparently the necessary concentra­

tions were not achieved under the conditions of these experiments, or
the chemicals were not suitable.
The results of these tests are in agreement with those of Burgesser
(8) in which no stimulation of seedling development was obtained by the
incorporation of fertilizers and various growth stimulants in pelleted
seed.

42

It is highly significant, however, that no injury frcm pelleting
or the incorporation of various chemicals was detected in these tests.
This is in contrast to results obtained by other workers (9, 18), and
may be in part explained by the very small batches of seed used, dif­
ferences in the inert coating materials used, and generally careful
handling.

It should be pointed out that germination tests were run

under controlled greenhouse conditions which were generally ideal for
seed germination.

Under more adverse conditions a larger variation

in germination might be expected, and also, stimulation of seedling de­
velopment as a result of the incorporation of certain of the growth
stimulants in the pellet might be obtained.

Data supporting these

hypotheses have been reported though they are somewhat inconclusive*
The fact that no injury to germination or seedling development was
observed as a result of the incorporating of various fertilizers and growth
stimulants indicates the need for conducting further experiments with the
incorporation of higher concentration of the materials in the pellet.

CONCLUSIONS
The pelleting of seeds of two varieties each of sweet corn cabbage,
lettuce and tcraato did not affect gemination in most cases.

Germination

of pelleted cabbage seed was reduced below that of non-pelleted seed, but
the difference was not statistically significant.

The incorporation of

the various fertilizers and growth stimulants was not effective in stimu­
lating germination and seedling development or increasing nitrate nitrogen,
soluble phosphorus and potassium oxide in the plants under the conditions
of these experiments.
The fact that pelleting had no effect on germination is of significance.
Pelleting should be of considerable value to vegetable growers in that it
will allow for precision planting of small seeded crops thereby reducing
the amount of seed used and it will eliminate expensive hadd thinning.
On the basis of this work it would appear to be an economically sound
practice from the standpoint of precision planting.
On the basis of these experiments the following conclusions can be
made regarding the effeots of pelleting and the incorporation of various
chemicals in pelleted seed on plant growth:
1.

Pelleting had no detrimental effect on germination, but germi­

nation was not stimulated by the incorporation of the various chemicaLs
in the pelleted seed.
2.

Incorporation of chemicals had neither a beneficial nor an

adverse effect on seedling development indicating that higher concentra­
tions of the materials might possibly be used to advantage.
3.

Incorporation of chemicals did not increase the content of nitrate

nitrogen, soluble phosphorus, or potassium oxide.

44

4*

Neither pelleting nor the incorporation of the chemicals had any

effect on earliness.
5.

Yield was not affected by pelleting or the incorporation of the

various materials at the rates employed in these tests.

Same of the

treatments with pelleted seed were better than others, but none were
better than the non-pelleted treatments*

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1.

Allard, R. W., H. R. DeRose, and C. P. Swanson, Some Effects of
Plant Growth-Stimulants on Seed Germination and Seedling
Development, Bot, Gaz. 107: 575-583. 1946.

2.

Baldwin, H.I. Alcohol Separation of Enpty Seed, and Its Effect
on the Germination of Red Spruce, Am, J. Bot. 19: 1-12*
. 1932.

3.

Bartholomew, R. P. Seed Treatment with Plant Hormones in Crop
Production. Ark. Expt. Sta, Bull. 44. 1944*

4.

Barton, L. V. Some Effects of Treatment of Non-Dormant Seeds
with Certain Growth Substances. Contrib. Boyce Thompson
Institute. 11:181-205. 1940.

5.

Bonner, J. The Role of Vitamins in Plant Development.
Rev. 3: 616-640. 1937.

6.

Bramble, W. C. Breaking the Dormancy of Tree Seedlings by
Chemical Treatments. Sci. 75: 195-194. 1932.

7.

Brown, A. H. Effects of Sulfuric Acid Delinting on Cotton Seeds,
Bot. Gaz. 94: 755-770. 1933.

8.

Burgesser, F. W. Mimeographed Form from Filtrol Corporation,
Los Angeles, Calif.

9.

Carolus, R. L. Possibilities with the Use of Pelleted Seed.
Proc* Ohio Vegetable and Potato Growers Assoc. 34: 56-62.

10.

Bot.

. The use of Rapid Chemical Plant Nutrient Tests in
Fertilizer Deficiency Diagnosis and Vegetable Crop Research.
Va. Truck Expt. Sta. Bull. 98.1938.

11.

Cholodny, N. C. Hormonization of Grains.
acad. sci. 3(xll): 439-442. 1936.

Conrpt. rend.

(Doklady)

12.

Deuber, C. G. Chemical Treatment to Shorten the Rest Period of
Tree Seeds. Sci. 73: 320-321. 1931.

13.

Flint, L. H. Light in Relation to Dormancy and Germination in
Lettuce Seed. Sci. 80 : 38-40. 1934.

14.

Gracanin, M. Orthophosphosaure Als Stimulator der Keimungsenergie
und Aktivator der Keim Lahigkait der Samen. Bio. Cham. z.
195: 457-468. 1928.

15.

Grace, N. H. Effects of Phytohormones on Seeds Damaged by
Formaldehyde and Other Disinfectants. Can. Jour. Res. C,
16: 313-329.
45

m

46

16.

Harrington, G. T. Use of Alternating Temperature in the
Germination of Seeds. Jour. Agr. Hes. 23: 295-333.

1923.

17.

Jones, J. A. Overcoming Delayed Germination of Nelumbo lutea.
Bot. Gaz. 85: 341-344. 1928.

18.

MoGuffey, W. C. The Effect of Pelleting on the Germination
of Vegetable Seeds. Thesis for the Degree of M. S.
Michigan State College. 1949.

19. McBostie, G. P°, et al. Effect of Phytohormone Dust on Growth
and Yield of winter Ifiheat Varieties. Can. Jour. Res. 0,
16: 510-515. 1938.
20. Mitchell, J. W.

Plant Hormones.

Am. Chem. Soc. News Ed.

1940.

21. Moringa T. Effect of Alternating Temperatures Upon the Germination
of Seeds. Am. Jour. Bot. 13:. 141-159. 1926.
22.

Moringa T. TheFavorable Effect of Reduced Oxygen Supply Upon
the Germination of Certain Seeds. Am.Jour. Bot. 13: 159-166.
1926.

23.

Rose, D. H. A Study of Delayed Germination in Economic Seeds.
Bot. Gaz., 59: 425-444. 1915.

24.

Shuck, A. L. Some Factors Influencing the Germination cf Lettuce
Seed in Laboratory Practice, N. Y. Sta. (Geneva) Tech. Bull.
222. 1934.

25•

' . Light as a Factor Influencing the Dormancy of Lettuce
Seeds. Plant Physiol. 10: 193-196. 1935.

26.

Swartley, J. C. and L. C. Chadwick. Effects of synthetic Growth
Substances on Cuttings, Seeds, and Transplants. Ohio Agrl.
Emt. Sta. Bimonth.. Bull. 27(217): 125-144. 1942.

27.

Snidecor, G. W.

28.

Thompson, S. 0. Some Factors Associated with Dormancy of Lettuce
Seed, Proc. Am. Soc. Hort. Sci. 33: 610-161. 1935.

29.

Vogelsang, P. Processed Seeds, Inc., Midland, Mich.
Communications. 1950.

30.

Youden, W. J. Seed Treatments with Talc and Root-Inducing
Substances. Contrib. Boyce Thompson Institute, II: 207-218.
1940.

Statistical Methods.

4th Ed.

1946.

Private