EXPERIMENTAL FARM FOR THE NORTH-WEST TERRITORIES. 



REPORT OF A. MACKAY, SUPERTNTEiNDENT. 



Indian Head, N. W. T., 31tit December, 1890. 

 Wu. Saunders, Esq., 



Director Dominion Experimental Farms, 

 Ottawa. 



Dear Sir, — In submitting this, my third annual reportof work done and returns 

 from crops on the North-West Experimental Farm, allow me, before entering into 

 farm work propei', to refer to a few points of great importance to the settlers in this 

 countiy. 



Never in the history of our country has such an abundant crop of grain and 

 straw been granted, but in quality much of the wheat has been very inferior. Ear- 

 ley, oats, peas and vegetables are a good, I may say a great crop, but these, so far, 

 do not count for much in summing np our prosperity. 



To a man accustomed to farming in the North-West nothing is so agreeable as 

 raising wheat, yet nothing is doing so much harm to the countr}'. 



Although our soil is unsurpassed, our climate healthy and agreeable, because 

 a frost of a few degrees visited us in August the whole countrj^ has been greatlv 

 injured and all because we try to grow only No. 1 Hard wheat which requires to be 

 entirely free from frost to bring a reasonable price. To a man depending entirel}'- 

 on wheat, a frost in August is almost ruinous; and the sooner a change is made the 

 sooner will the North-West Territories attain their proper place in our great Domi- 

 nion. 



Many argue that because frost visited Ontario in early times, and gradually 

 ceased as the country became opened up, that the same effect will bep:oduced here, 

 when cultivation is carried on over large areas and the surface exposed to the in- 

 fluence of the sun. I fear there is no similarity in the two provinces in this respect. 

 From the very nature of things we are subject to frost at any time and our wisest 

 course is to be prepared for it. 



Many foretold no frost last season until September. Still it came shortly after 

 the middle of August, and had it come a little earlier or a few degrees harder, I a;sk 

 how would it have left those depending entirely on wheat? 



I submit the returns of the various crops grown on this Farm as "evidence that 

 we need not and should not depend entirely on one ci'op. 



Another point of great importance is early seeding. Every settler realizes this 

 fact, but very few act up to it. As long as seed and land hold out seeding continues, 

 whether it be in April, Mi\y or June. The result is that most of the late sown grain 

 is frozen and the country, sometimes on this account, pronounced a failm-e. 



Let a series of years be taken by any settler and if he examines the difference 

 between the first and last half of his crop it will astonish him to find how little of 

 the former has ever been frozen and how small a percentage of the latter has paid 

 harvesting expenses. 



On the Experimental Farm, nine days changed an acre of Red Fife, promising 

 40 bushels, to an actual yield of 23 bushels per acie. Fifteen days made the differ- 

 ence between a crop of 35 bushels per acre of No. 2 Hard and one of 19^ bushels of 

 chicken feed. 



