306 The Plant World. 



The Annual Report of the Bureau of Plant Industry brings, 

 as usual, a record of progress in various lines of investigation with 

 which botanists should be acquainted. Without attempting 

 a review of the report as a whole, the work on grains and seeds 

 may be selected for brief notice. 



Much attention has been given to tests of varieties. For 

 example, experiments on corn at Yuma, Arizona, and at a num- 

 ber of other places, for a period of years, prove that choice of 

 variety alone often decides between success and failure. New 

 varieties have been found to have special characters that adapt 

 them to particular conditions. An interesting example is a 

 variety from Shanghai, China, in which the silks of the young ear 

 are protected by the base of the leaf, thus permitting fertiliza- 

 tion without exposure to hot, drying winds which, in the case of 

 other varieties, often prevent pollination, and are among the 

 most serious obstacles to the cultivation of com in arid regions. 

 Investigations with regard to barley culture have shown that va- 

 rieties must be bred for the soils on which they are to grow, and 

 that the best results are not to be expected from growing a 

 single variety over a great range of territory. It has been found 

 that under conditions where spring barley fails, winter barley 

 may often be grown with success. The breeding of disease-re- 

 sistant varieties of wheat and other grains has been continued 

 with hopeful results. 



Experiments have been conducted on the influence of en- 

 vironment on the composition of grain. These are of sach a 

 character as to permit of the consideration of the soil factor in 

 connection with that of climate in such a way that the influence 

 of each may be determined. The seed laboratory has continued 

 to make tests of seeds sold by local dealers throughout the 

 country. It is found that the differences in the quality of seeds 

 sold by different firms are surprisingly great, the average germi- 

 nation of seeds for three years from one firm being 37%, and 

 from another firm being 8i% ; the standardization of commercial 

 grains has also made excellent progress. It is plain that applied 

 science under the direction of the Bureau of Plant Industry is 

 abundantly and- increasingly justified both in the advancement 

 of knowledge and in its application to the agricultural and horti- 

 cultural industries of the countrv. 



