APPENDIX 1

SEED DOCUMENTATION

Without accurate and adequate records the value of a seed service and of the plantations which it helps to create is greatly diminished (Bowen 1980). All phases of seed operations, from field harvesting to nursery sowing, must be linked by a comprehensive system of records. The number of forms required will vary considerably from country to country, according to the quantities of seed, number of species, period of storage and methods of testing, but they normally fall into one or other of the following classes:

(1) “Vital statistics”. Information about each seed lot which every user should reasonably expect to receive with the seed. This includes the seed lot identity number, information on seed origin, year of ripening and an estimate of the quality of the seed (viable seeds per kg or germinative capacity).

(2) Central records. Information, maintained by the central unit, which is vital to its efficient functioning, contributes data to the “vital statistics”, but which does not normally need to be distributed to users in full. Includes seed stock cards, register of seed identity numbers, detailed methods and results of laboratory seed tests etc. Data in the central records, accumulated over the years, provide the basis for summaries of technical information on seed handling characteristics of the main afforestation species, in local conditions.

(3) Correspondence-type forms. Include the type of seed request or seed advice note which reads “Please collect....” or “I have today despatched to you ....”, which could be covered by a letter. As the volume of seed traffic increases, introduction of pre-printed forms is advisable, because it reduces the time spent in drafting and typing letters. A well-designed form also ensures that no important information is inadvertently omitted and the forms can be printed in as many copies as needed.

(4) Labels. For seed containers and packages.

Examples of various seed record forms from different countries are given in this appendix. Appendix 1A presents one example of forms recently introduced in Sabah, itself based on schedules used in seed testing laboratories and seed distribution services throughout the world (Bowen 1980). Table 2 which precedes the forms indicates the use and distribution of each form and the interrelationships between them.

Although many countries follow a system very close to that of Sabah, there is plenty of room for variation according to local conditions. In devising an appropriate local system, particular attention needs to be paid to the following points.

(1) Seed origin data. The gathering and distribution of adequate information on seed origin is one of the most essential purposes of a seed recording system. The importance of origin in forest tree seed is now so well known that there is no excuse for distributing a seed lot as, say, Gmelina arborea without giving any information on where it was collected. However, the amount of details required on a seed origin document varies greatly according to circumstances. If collections are made from registered seed stands or seed orchards for use within the same country, it may be sufficient to identify the origin as “Registered seed stand T14, Cmpt. 9, Loolmalassin forest”. In this case it is essential that seed users should already be in possession of information about the stands in question. For example Table 1 in Appendix 1A gives details of seed stands of three hardwood species in Sabah and provides the basis for an indenting officer to insert the preferred seed origin when he fills up SF 12, the Seed Demand/Issue Form.

At the other extreme are species and provenance research collections in relatively inaccessible stands within the natural range of a species. Such stands may not have been visited before by collection teams and little or nothing is recorded about the stands themselves or about their environment. Field records in these cases have two main functions (Kemp 1976):

1. To ensure that the site can be located exactly in later years by anyone wishing to obtain more material or data

2. To provide the information needed to interpret the results of studies and experiments based on the material collected. The information recorded on site conditions (climate, soil, elevation) and on the age, form, vigour, and composition of the stands needs to be in some detail, because of the absence of previous records and the difficulty or expense of revisiting the stands.

Bulk collections in accessible forests are usually accompanied by information which is intermediate in detail between the collection from registered seed stands and the provenance research collection. In addition to data on the precise location of the collection, information should be supplied on the quantity of fruits collected and the collector's name. In the case of collections from exotic plantations, it is desirable to supplement information on the location of the immediate parents with information on the original source of the natural forest ancestors (see discussion on pp. 22–23). If it is necessary to purchase seed from unsupervised and illiterate collectors, the forest ranger responsible should attempt to define at least the area and dates of collection by verbal interrogation.

Appendix 1B includes a number of examples of seed origin data sheets which illustrate the variety in detail and format in use by different organizations. It may be observed that some of the forms combine seed origin data with information on extraction and germination. The possibility of combining information from several successive operations on the same form, instead of recording it on separate forms, is discussed below.

Where a national or international scheme of seed certification is in force, the seed origin document is designated as a “Certificate of seed origin” (CSO) or “Certificate of Provenance” and the correctness of the information recorded must be certified by the signature of a responsible person. In the case of international schemes such as that of OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) there may be only one CSO. Such certification schemes affect the official authority accorded to the seed origin document but do not imply that the amount and type of information recorded is any different from that in a less official document.

Seed origin information is one of the most important items of “Vital statistics” which should reach not only the seed processing and storage depot but the seed user. Arrangements may be made to send a copy of the original seed origin document of every seed lot to all users. Large seed centres publish consolidated, and sometimes computerised, lists in which codified seed origin data for a number of seed lots appear together on the same page. An example of a printout of this type from British Columbia appears in Appendix 1B5, while IC14 provides an example from Australia of a consignment note and seed certificate which forms part of another computerised seed store record system. This system has been described recently (Wolf and Turnbull 1982). One way or another, it is essential that seed origin data are freely available to anyone intending to use the seed.

(2) Recording costs. If seeds are collected, processed and used by units which are all within the same organization, such as a national forest service, it may be unnecessary to record detailed collection costs. Even in these cases some indication of the ease or difficulty of collection should be given, e.g. SF 2 in Appendix 1A calls for a note on the number of man-days needed to collect each seedlot covered by a Fruit Collection Advice Note.

When seed is to be sold to the public, it is necessary to record more detailed and accurate costs, whether the seed has been purchased from outside or collected by teams within the organization. An example of a form for recording cone collection costs is shown in Appendix 1C1. A cost summary should also be entered on the Seed Stock and Disposals Register, as shown on SF 5 in Appendix 1A and on Appendix 1C8.

(3) Seed identity numbers. Most seed lots arriving at a seed centre will already have a number, either the serial advice number on the Fruit Collection Advice Note (SF 2 of Appendix 1A) or the Certificate of seed origin on certified seed moving internationally. These numbers, being attached to seed lots from both inside and outside the country, will belong to different systems and it is general experience that all seed lots used in a country should be numbered in a common system, which facilitates the identification and rapid tracing of any particular seed lot at all stages from receipt to planting in the field. Every seed lot should therefore be given a new identity number on receipt at the seed centre, whether or not it was previously numbered at the time of collection. In most countries the responsibility for allocating the identity number will belong to the seed section of the national forest service.

Once the identity number has been allocated, it should be entered on all seed forms subsequently used for that seed lot. It can be seen, for example, that all the seed forms from 5 to 15 in Appendix 1A have a space for the official identity number. In seed stores which handle a large number of seed lots, there is an advantage in maintaining a register of identity numbers which assists rapid cross-reference to seed origin data and to the seed stock and disposals register. An example of such a register, indexed by serial number and by species, as proposed by Cooling (1971), is shown in Appendix 1C2,3. The method of numbering can vary greatly. The simplest is a straightforward system of serial numbers based on the date of accession of each seed lot. More complicated systems may include coded expressions for (1) Species (2) Geographic origin (3) Genetic code (4) Serial number (5) Elevation (Dobbs et al. 1976) and (6) Year of collection. The simpler the system of identity numbering, the stronger the case for maintaining a register.

(4) Possibilities for reducing the number of forms. One way of reducing the number of forms is to combine the results of several successive operations on the same form. The relative advantages and disadvantages of a few long forms as compared with a bigger number of short forms need to be weighed carefully in relation to the need to get the maximum of useful and the minimum of useless information to each person in the chain of operations. Some of the possibilities are:

1. Internal transfer documents such as Appendix 1A SF 7 and SF 8 are necessary in a big seed centre where seed storage staff and seed testing (laboratory) staff are in separate units. In a small section in which the same staff carry out both the seed storage/issue work and the seed testing work, they may be dispensed with and details of the prescribed tests entered immediately on SF 9 (Appendix 1A). The same applies to SF 10 and SF 11.

2. Some economy could be effected by combining the summary of tests prescribed (SF9) with the summary of test results (SF 11). An example (Gordon 1981) is shown in Appendix 1C12.

3. Provision for recording all the “Vital statistics”, which the user needs to know as much as the staff of the seed centre, could be made in the design of the original seed origin data sheet. In Appendix 1A, SF 2 combines data on extraction with data on collection, as does Appendix 1B3, while Appendix 1B7, and B10 have provision for germination data also and thus provide the user with all he needs to know.

The Viscard loose-leaf card system is an ingenious method of combining the detailed central records which the seed centre must keep with the less detailed “Vital statistics” required by the seed user. In addition to the collection data card shown in Appendix 1B8, there are cards for extraction (Appendix 1C4), germination (1C5) and seed stock (1C6). The collection card is filed in front of the other cards, but the bottom lines of the extraction and germination cards, which contain the summaries of results on those cards, project below it. A photocopy of the cards, as shown in Appendix 1C7, will thus give all the necessary “Vital statistics” of a given seed lot and is enclosed with seed despatches to users (Bryndum 1975). The detailed information on the extraction, germination and stock cards remain in the central record system of the seed centre.

(5) Miscellaneous. Appendix 1C9 is an example of an ISTA international seed test certificate. This is appropriate for use by an authorized seed testing laboratory conducting tests of seed quality on a sample submitted by an external organization. It is concerned solely with the quality of the seed as determined by purity, germination and moisture content. Details of seed origin, other than species, though known to the customer, do not concern the laboratory and are not recorded.

Appendix 1C10 is an example of a germination test form used in Australia for eucalypt seed, for which replicates of equal weight are more appropriate than replicates of equal numbers of seeds (Boland et al. 1980). Results are expressed in terms of viable seeds per unit weight and there is no information on germination % or weight of 1000 pure seeds. This form could be suitable for other very small-seeded species.

The need to survey the heaviness of seed crops in advance of collection was stressed on pp. 28–33. When the results of local survey have to be reported to a central control office, it is convenient to use a form designed for this purpose. Appendix 1C11 is an example of a form for cone-crop survey and evaluation used in British Columbia (Dobbs et al. 1976).

APPENDIX 1A

AN EXAMPLE OF AN INTEGRATED SYSTEM OF SEED RECORDING FORMS AS USED IN SABAH

Source: Bowen 1980

Table 1. Seed Stands of Forest Research Centre

Table 2. Summary of Forms and Usage

Fruit Collection Demand Note

Please collect the fruits detailed below.

1. Species:
2. Date collection to commence:
3. Location:
4. Compartment No:
5. To be collected from . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . tree (s)
6. Quantity (no. of sacks, weight of fruit, etc.)
7. Remarks:

Disposal Instructions: The form is prepared for every collection in two copies:-

No. 1 to be retained by Seed Officer
No. 2 to be retained by Collection Team Leader

Fruit Collection Advice Note

The fruits detailed below were forwarded to you in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . sacks
on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1. Species:
2. Dates (s) of collection:
3. Location:
4. Compartment No.:
5. Collected from No. of trees:
6. Remarks (ease of collection, No. of man-days, weather delays, etc.):

For Use by Seed Extractory

7. Date received:
8. No. of sacks received:
9. Weight of fruit received:
10. Seed extracted       kg. . . . . . . . .gm. . . . . . . (yield per kg of fruit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .)
11. Method of extraction:
12. Date of transfer to Seed Store:

For Use by Seed Store

13. Date received:
14. Weight of seed received:
15. Official Identity Number allocated:
16. Date Seed Stock Register completed:

Disposal Instructions: This form is prepared for every collection in three copies:-

No.1.. to be retained by Collection Team Leader
No.2.. to be retained by Extractory
No.3.. to be completed by Extractory & Storeman and forwarded to the Seed Officer.

Seed Form 3 back

Seed Form 4

Forest Research Centre, Sepilok
Seed Section.

SEED EXTRACTION RECORD

FOR . . . . . . . . . (month)     . . . . . . . . .     19 . . . . .

Seed Form 5

Forest Research Centre, Sepilok
Seed Section.

REGISTER OF SEED STOCK AND DISPOSALS

LABORATORY TESTS

ALLOCATIONS

Seed Form 6

Seed Form 7

Forest Research Centre,
Sepilok.

Sample For Purity And Germination Testing: Transfer Envelope

Species: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Official Identity No. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sample No. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . of    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weighing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gm and

representing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   kg of seed in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . storage containers.

Date of sampling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sampled by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Envelope to be filed by Seed Officer after use.

Seed Form 8

Forest Research Centre, Sepilok
Seed Section.

Sample For Moisture Content Analysis, Transfer Form

Species: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Official Identity No: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sample No. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weighing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gm and representing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . kg

of seed in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . storage containers.

Date of sampling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sampled by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Note:   (1) Attach this form securely to the airtight container bearing the sample.

(2) Seed Officer to file on receipt for record keeping.

Seed Form 9

Forest Research Centre, Sepilok
Seed Section.

Sample Test Ledger Sheet