83 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS 



6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907 



intereating, though they have not attracted so much attention as the varieties already 

 referred to. 



When the work in cereals was organized into a separate division, the cross-breed- 

 ing was at once taken up in a much larger way, and the systematic selection of exist- 

 ing varieties By the newer method of choosing single plants was begun. The selection 

 of single plants of great excellence as the starting point of each new strain has been 

 found greatly superior to any of the older methods of selection whether of best heads 

 or of best seed from a number of similar plants. Several hundred cross-bred kernels 

 have been produced during the last three years, and these seeds have already given rise 

 to many thousand new varieties, most of which have, of course, been rejected, only 

 the best being retained for further test. 



Ill all the work of crossing and selection of cereals the chief points aimed at are 

 to increase the productiveness, earliness, quality of grain, strength of straw, ability 

 to resist rust, &c., and to produce varieties suitable for the various soils and climates 

 of the different sections of Canada'. 



Among the new sorts now on hand, in very small quantities, of course, there are 

 many which show great promise. Some of the extremely early wheats which ripen 

 two weeks before Red Fife and produce hard red kernels of excellent milling quality, 

 will no doubt prove very useful in the northern sections of our great wheat-growing 

 provinces, and will also be found valuable for rather cold and damp soils in districts 

 farther south. Nearly all of the very early wheats produced thus far have rather short 

 straw, a distinct advantage for some situations. Among the early sorts, ripening 

 between those just mentioned and Eed Fife, there are some vigorous varieties which 

 give promise of great productiveness, and which produce straw of good, length. Some 

 ci these may be of much value in rather poor soils, or in districts where the rainfall 

 is deficient. 



In barley and .oats many new sorts are being produced, special attention being 

 paid to the hulkss and beardless kinds and to those varieties of very early maturing 

 habit. 



Many new cross-bred sorts of peas are also under trial, including some very prom- 

 ising varieties of the crown type bearing coloured (instead of the usual white) 

 flowers. 



MILLING AND BAKING TESTS OF WHEAT. 



As has already been pointed out, it was not possible until a few years ago to have 

 a satisfactory test of the value of any wheat for flour-making and bread-making until 

 quite a large quantity of the grain was available. It was, therefore necessary to intro- 

 duce a variety before its quality could be ascertained. Now, however, since the small 

 experimental flour mills have been manufactured, it is possible to make satisfactory 

 milling and baking tests from a very small quantity of wheat. ^he purchase of a 

 small mill and of the necessary baking apparatus has added a most important new 

 feature to the work of the Cereal Division, and has greatly increased the possibilities of 

 doing good service for the country. All the new varieties produced at this farm are 

 now subjected to milling and baking tests before being distributed to farmers for trial. 

 This system has made it possible to eliminate some undesirable new serfs which, 

 though very promising in most respects, were found, to be deficient in flour strength 

 for bread-making. 



While chiefly designed for testing new varieties of wheat produced at this farm 

 or imported from abroad, the experimental flour mill has also been employed in the 

 study of some of the more common commercial varieties and grades of wheat. Bulletin 

 No. 50 of the Experimental Farm series gives the results of a study of the milling and 

 chemical value of the grades of wheat in the Manitoba Inspection Division (crop of 

 19©4:). This investigation was carried on by the Cereal and Chemical Divisions 

 together. 



