INSTITUTE AND COLLEGE, PUSA, FOR 1909-10. Z 



need reference at this moment, but attention may be invited 

 to Dr. Leather's work on the Water Requirements of Crops. 

 In India where water is the prime factor underlying the 

 successful growth of crops, its conservation and its eco- 

 nomic use are of first rate importance. These remarks 

 apply equally whether the water is derived from the 

 monsoon rainfall or the irrigation canal. How much water 

 is transpired by various crops, and during what period of 

 growth does the crop require the principal portion of this 

 water, are questions of as great importance to the agricul- 

 turist as to the irrigation engineer. In Chapter XI of the 

 Report of the Indian Irrigation Commission, 1901-1903, the 

 Commissioners remarked, " In the course of our investiga- 

 tions, we have been struck with the small amount of atten- 

 tion which appears to have been given by the Departments 

 of Agriculture and Public Works to matters connected 

 with the application of water to cultivated crops. At 

 present, most of the information which can be had on these 

 points has to be taken from papers published by the Agri- 

 cultural Bureau in America 



. . . . . . We consider it extremely desirable that 



expert enquiry should be directed to these important 

 matters, which are so intimately connected with the 

 development of irrigation." 



This enquiry Dr. Leather has undertaken and in 

 Mem.oir No. 8, Chemical Series, he has published the results 

 of his work on the first section of the investigation, namely, 

 that which deals with the total amount of water transpired 

 by the crop and the period of growth during which the 

 greater part is assimilated. The ratio between the amount 

 of water transpired and the ultimate weight of dry crop is 

 worked out for most of the principal Indian crops. 



Entom,ology. — One of the principal features of the work 

 of this section is the attention which is being paid to 

 industries that depend upon the products of insects. Thus 

 Eri, Mulberry and Tussar silk and the cultivation of Lac 

 are taking up much of the time of Mr. Maxwell-Lefroy, the 

 Imperial Entomologist, and his staff. The Eri silk industry 



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