Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 12th Apr. 1898
Complete Specification Left, 3rd Jan., 1899 -Accepted, 25th Mar., 1899
A communication from LORENZ HILTNER, of Tharandt, near Dresden, in the
Empire of Germany, Doctor of Philosophy.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT, of 111, Hatton Garden, in the County of Middlesex,
Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
It has become customary of late to prepare seeds (more particularly those of
leguminous plants, particularly clover-seeds,) containing seeds with hard husks in
a greater or lesser degree, by means of special machines for opening the seeds.
The advantage of this treatment is so obvious, that the agriculturists are begin-
ning rightly to reject packets of hard hulled seeds that have not been treated. It
is therefore all the more surprising that up to the present both scientific and
practical people have paid hardly any attention to the fact that the seeds of
beet-root often possess hard hulls. This is caused by the casings enclosing the
seeds, not coming off in spite of all the conditions of germination being fulfilled,
whereby the germination of the seeds which in themselves are quite normal, is
prevented. Among the crops of very hot years samples containing 30-50 % of
such seeds have often been met with, which did not germinate in spite of being
quite sound, and which therefore had a very small percentage of germinating
power.
. It would be superfluous to prove that a process capable of doing away with
These disadvantages of beet-root seeds would have a great practical value. After
experimenting for many years the following method has been devised of treating
the seeds, without injuring them.
The beet-root seeds are placed for about an hour into concentrated solution of
sulphuric acid and constantly stirred. Even half an hour of such treatment
proves successful, while if the seeds be left in the acid for 2 to 3 hours, it does
not injure in the least their germinating power. But, of course, after the treat-
ment, the sulphuric acid must be thoroughly removed or neutralised. For this
purpose the seeds are placed, after the greater part of the acid has been washed
off by means of a powerful water jet on sieves or the like, for about 15 minutes
into milk of lime which must contain a considerable excess of unslacked lime.
After this milk of lime has been removed by means of water, the seeds are soaked
in water to which some "indicator" preferably tincture of litmus has been added
and which is maintained slightly alkaline to neutral by means of diluted lime
water for at least 12 hours. The seeds may then be dried and sown either at
once or at any subsequent time.
While beetroot seeds that have not been treated, even if they do not suffer
from hard hulls, germinate much better as proved by experiments, at a constant
temperature of 30° C., or at a temperature varying between 200 and 30°, than
at 20° so that they germinate, as a rule, much less satisfactorily in a field than
when artificially heated, seeds treated with sulphuric acid germinate to the same
extent and nearly as quickly at a low temperature as at a higher one, so that

page_text: this process is advantageous even where there is no special necessity for softening
hard hulls.
The sulphuric acid destroys moreover, all the organic impurities adhering to
the seeds and producing the so much feared blight of the roots.
This treatment
is therefore very suitable for replacing all the methods of washing the seeds with
corrosive sublimate, copper sulphate etc. used for the purpose of avoiding or
destroying this disease.
This treatment is of course not limited to beetroot seeds, but can be usefully
employed for other seeds.
It is advisable to treat according to this process all the seeds of leguminous
plants having thick or hard hulls, such as for instance Acacia Zophanta, in
which it is extremely difficult to open the seeds successfully, and still more
advisable for all seeds where the ripping up or opening is successful owing to
the hull forming the main obstacle to successful germination.
In all such cases-only the coniferous seeds with thick hulls are here men-
tioned, the seeds of the vine, of roses etc.--many attempts have been made to
accelerate the germination by softening the hull by all kinds of substances, chiefly
diluted acids and alkalis. All the attempts were, however, unsuccessful, for even
in case where the hull was really softened, the substance used for this softening
penetrated at the same time into the interior of the seed and considerably injured
the germinating power of the seed.
It has been found that concentrated sulphuric acid penetrates into the seed hulls
from the outside only as far as it chars them. The inner portion of the hull
through which the sulphuric acid has not yet penetrated at the time of the stop-
page of the treatment, remains perfectly intact and is therefore capable of pro-
tecting the seed against outside influences as soon as the adhering particles of
carbonised material have been removed, say by rubbing it with sand. In this
process the aim is therefore not to soften the whole of the hull of the seed or
fruit but to render it thinner by charring or removing its outer part.
My correspondent has succeeded-to mention only one example-in causing the
seeds of pinus cembra, which normally remain 1 to 2 years before germinating, to
germinate fully within three weeks. after soaking them for 12 hours in concen-
trated sulphuric acid and correspondingly treating them afterwards with milk of
lime, as hereinbefore described.
When seeds have not very close joints in spite of having thick hulls, as is for
instance the case with vine seeds and many fruit seeds, a correspondingly shorter
treatment will be found sufficient. It had to be determined by experiments the
most suitable time for treatment for each kind of seeds, which time cannot of
course be determined once for all, as not only the kind of seed but also the
individual quality of the lot to be treated has to be considered, depending on
the place of origin, climate, weather, time of ripening and other influences. The
following are average values: :-
Beetroot
Pinus Strobus
رو
دو
Peuce
Cembra
Vicia
Acacia lophanta -
Gleditschia triacanthos
Lathyrus sylvestris
Rose seeds.
Apple and pear seeds-
Vine seeds-
Cherry stones
Seeds of Cycadacea palins -
Victoria regia or similar water plants
-
1 hour.
to 1 hour.
2 hours.
12 hours.
10 to 60 minutes.
20 hours.
2 hours.
25 minutes.
5 to 7 hours.
25 minutes.
10 to 15 hours.
20 to 30 minutes.
5 to 48 hours.
1 to 5 minutes.

page_text: Seeds of water plants as for instance of Victoria regia must be dried for a few
minutes over sulphuric acid, before the treatment.
Different seeds such as those of roses, maple, celtis, juniperus, taxus, crataegus,
prunus, tilia. or the like do not germinate-when they have been artificially
stored during winter-even when their hulls have been partially destroyed by
sulphuric acid. In such cases it is not only the hull, but the nature of the
seed itself that is an obstacle to germination. To remove this obstacle such
seeds are exposed after the treatment with sulphuric acid and preferably two to
three days before the sowing time to a temperature of 0° C. If natural cold is
not available my correspondent uses the well known cooling mixture such as for
instance used for manufacturing artificial ice, or when the process is carried out
on a large scale a refrigerating room may be used. Even if the temperature falls
to -5° C. as when using cooling mixtures, the germinating power of the seeds
is not affected.
Improved Process for the Treatment of Beet-root and other Seeds.
A communication from LORENZ HILTNER, of Tharandt, near Dresden, in the
Empire of Germany, Doctor of Philosophy.
I, ALFRED JULIUS BOULT, of 111, Hatton Garden, in the County of Middlesex,
Chartered Patent Agent, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascer-
tained in and by the following statement:-
It has become customary of late to prepare seeds (more particularly those of
leguminous plants, (chiefly seeds of clover) containing seeds with hard husks in
a greater or lesser degree, by means of special machines for opening the seeds.
The advantage of this treatment is so obvious, that the agriculturists are begin-
ning rightly to reject packets of hard-hulled seeds that have not been treated. It
is therefore all the more surprising that up to the present both scientific and
practical people have paid hardly any attention to the fact that the seeds of
beet-root often possess hard hulls. This is caused by the casings enclosing the
seeds, not coming off in spite of all the conditions of germination being fulfilled,
whereby the germination of the seeds which in themselves are quite normal, is
prevented. Among the crops of very hot years samples have often been met with
containing 30-50% of such seeds which did not germinate in spite of being
quite sound, and which therefore had a very small per centage of germinating
power.
It would be superfluous to prove that a process capable of doing away with
these disadvantages of beet-root seeds would have a great practical value. After
experimenting for many years, the following method has been devised of treating
the seeds, without injuring them.
are
an
hour into
The beet-root-seeds
placed for about
concentrated
Even half an hour of such treatment
sulphuric acid and constantly stirred.
proves successful, while if the seeds be left in the acid for 2 to 3 hours, it does

page_text: not injure in the least their germinating power. But, of course, after the treat-
ment, the sulphuric acid must be thoroughly removed or neutralised. For this
purpose the seeds are placed, after the greater part of the acid has been washed
off by means of a powerful water-jet on sieves or the like, for about 15 minutes
into a saturated solution of lime in water, i.e.: milk of lime containing a con-
siderable excess of unslacked lime. After this milk of lime has been removed
By means of water, the seeds are soaked in water to which some.
"indicator"
preferably tincture of litmus has been added and which is maintained 'slightly
alkaline to neutral by means of diluted lime-water, for at least 12 hours. The
seeds may then be dried and sown either at once or at any subsequent time.
Beet-root seeds that have not been treated, even if they do not suffer from
hard hulls, germinate much better, as proved by experiments, at a constant tem-
perature of 30° C., or at a temperature varying between 200 and 30°, C., than
at 20° C. Therefore they germinate much less satisfactorily, as a rule, in a field
than when artificially heated. Seeds treated with sulphuric acid however, ger-
minate to the same extent and nearly as quickly at a low temperature as at a
higher one, so that this process is advantageous even where there is no special
necessity for softening hard hulls.
The sulphuric acid destroys, moreover, all the organic impurities adhering to
the seeds and producing the so much feared blight of the roots. This treatment
is therefore very suitable for replacing all the methods of washing the seeds with
corrosive sublimate, copper sulphate etc., used for the purpose of avoiding or
destroying this disease.
This treatment is, of course, not limited to beet-root seeds, but can be usefully
employed for other seeds.
It is advisable to treat according to this process all the seeds of leguminous
plants having thick or hard hulls, such as for instance acacia lophanta, in
which it is extremely difficult to open the seeds successfully, and still more
advisable for all seeds where the ripping up.or opening is unsuccessful owing to
the hull forming the main obstacle to successful germination.
In all such cases-only the coniferous seeds with thick hulls are here men-
tioned; the seeds of the vine, of roses etc., many attempts have been made to
accelerate the germination by softening the hull by all kinds of substances, chiefly
diluted acids and alkalis. All the attempts were, however, unsuccessful, for even
in cases where the hull was really softened, the substance used for this softening
penetrated at the same time into the interior of the seed and considerably injured
the germinating power of the seed.
It has been found that concentrated sulphuric acid penetrates into the seed hulls
from the outside only as far as it chars them. The inner portion of the hull
through which the sulphuric acid has not yet penetrated at the time of the stop-
page of the treatment, remains perfectly intact and is therefore capable of pro-
tecting the seed against outside influences as soon as the adhering particles of
carbonised material have been removed, say by rubbing it with sand. In this
process the aim is therefore not to soften the whole of the hull of the seed or
fruit but to render it thinner by charring or removing its outer part.
My correspondent has succeeded to mention only one example-in causing the
seeds of pinus cembra, which normally remain 1-2 years before germinating, to
germinate fully within three weeks after soaking them for 12 hours in concen-
trated sulphuric acid and correspondingly treating them afterwards with milk of
lime, as hereinbefore described.
When seeds have not very close joints in spite of having thick hulls, as is for
instance the case with vine-seeds and many fruit-seeds, a correspondingly shorter
treatment will be found sufficient. It has to be determined by experiments the
most suitable time for treatment for each kind of seeds, which time cannot of
course be determined once for all, as not only the kind of seed but also the
individual quality of the lot to be treated has to be considered, depending on

page_text: Cembra
the place of origin, climate, weather, time of ripening and other influences. The
following are average values:-
Beetroot
Pinus Strobus
Peuce
"
-
1 hour.
to 1 hour.
2 hours.
12 hours.
10 to 60 minutes.
20 hours.
2 hours.
25 minutes.
5 to 7 hours.
25 minutes.
10 to 15 hours.
Vicia
Acacia Lophanta
Gleditschia triacanthos
Lathyrus sylvestris
Rose-seeds-
Apple and pear seeds -
Cherry stones
Vine-seeds
Seeds of Cycadaceæ palms.
Victoria regia or similar water plants -
20 to 30 minutes.
-
5 to 48 hours.
1 to 5 minutes.
Seeds of water plants as for instance of Victoria regia must be dried for a few
minutes, over sulphuric acid, before the treatment.
Different seeds such as those of roses, maple, celtis, juniperus, taxus, crataegus,
prunus, tilia or the like do not germinate when they have been artificially
stored during winter-even when their hulls have been partially destroyed
by sulphuric acid. In such cases it is not only the hull, but the nature of the
seed itself that is an obstacle to germination. To remove this obstacle such
seeds are exposed after the treatment with sulphuric acid and preferably two to
three days before the sowing time, to a temperature of 0° C. If natural cold is
not available, the well known cooling mixtures are used such as for instance
used for manufacturing artificial ice, or, when the process is carried out on a large
scale, a refrigerating room may be used. Even if the temperature falls to -5° C.,
as when using cooling mixtures, the germinating power of the seeds is not affected.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this said
invention, as communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is:-
1. The method of increasing the germinating power of beet-root-seeds and
seeds having hard or thick hulls and generally of seeds that germinate slowly
and with great difficulty, characterised by the cover of the beet-root-seed or the
outer portions of the hard hull of other seeds being destroyed by treatment with
concentrated sulphuric acid, substantially as described.
2. In the process set forth in Cl. 1, the treatment of seeds, after the treat
ment with sulphuric acid, with milk of lime for the purpose of neutralising the
acid adhering to the seeds.
3. In the process set forth in Cl. 1 subjecting the seeds after the treatment
by sulphuric acid to a cold temperature of about 0° C., substantially as described.
Dated this 3rd day of January 1899.
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.