358 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



November 9, 1912 



WEST INDIAN COTTON. 



Messrs. Wolstenholme and Holland, of Liverpool, 

 write as follows, under date October 21, with reference 

 to the sales of West Indian Sea Island cotton : — 



Sea Island cotton has continued neglected since our last 

 report and sales are confined to 15 bales of St. Vincent at 21|rf. 

 and a few bales from other islands from 17 ^d tolSrf. 



American !Sea Island cotton is still pressed for sale and 

 superior crop lots of last season are being sold at 1 ohd. to 16 id-, 

 with difficulty; meanwhile, the new crop has not arrived. 

 Spinners are quite indifferent and there is no doubt that the 

 cheapness of Sakellarides Egyptian is inducing them to go on 

 to lower counts of yarn in preference to spinning the finer 

 numbers, for which there is a limited demand, the lace trade 

 being so depressed. 



The report of Messrs. Henry W. Frost & Co., on 

 Sea Island cotton in the Southern States, for the week 

 ending October 12, is as follows: — 



The receipts this week of 225 bales were composed of 

 105 bales Planters' crops carried over on plantations from 

 last year and previously advised sold, and 120 bales of new 

 crop cotton. The 105 bales have not been cleared and there- 

 fore we cannot yet give their destination. 



The sales consisted of a Planter's crop. Hams 31 bales at 

 30c., brought over from last year. 



The receipts of the new crop have only been partially 

 sampled and Factors are postponing offering their cotton until 

 they have some accumulation of stock. They intimate, how- 

 ever, that they would be willing to open the market at: — 



Extra Fine 30c. = 17 d. c.i.f., & 5 per cent. 



Fully Fine 28c. = IQd. „ „ „ ,, 



BRANCHING OF EGYPTIAN COTTON 



PLANTS. 



The following conclusions are reached after an 

 investigation of the manner of branching of Egyptian 

 cotton, described in Bulletin No. 249 of the Bureau of 

 Plant Industry, United States Department of Agricul- 

 ture. Reference to the original publication is made, 

 for a description of the diagrams that are mentioned: — 



The Egyptian cotton plant bears two kinds of branches, 

 long vegetative branches on the lower part of the stem, 

 which bear no flower buds directly, and above these, to the 

 top of the plant, shorter fruiting branches which bear flower 

 buds. 



The differences between vegetative branches and fruiting 

 branches are very sharp: (1) vegetative branches usually 



approximate the length of the main stem, while fruiting 

 branches are about one- third as long; (2) vegetative branches 

 bear no flower buds except as they produce secondary fruiting 

 branches. Fruiting branches bear a flower bud at each node 

 opposite the leaf; (3) the vegetative branches, like the axis, 

 bear fruiting branches and may bear vegetative branches. 

 The fruiting branches rarely bear fruiting branches or vege- 

 tative branche.^. 



Vegetittive branches may be eiiher axillary or extra- 

 axillary. Normal fruiting branche.s are always extra- 

 axillary Single bolls or short fruiting branches are some- 

 times developed from buds in the axillary position, at nodes 

 bearing fruiting branches. Such branches may be regarded 

 as secondary fruiting branches borne bj' the axillary vegeta- 

 tive branch, which is itself suppressed. 



From six to eight large vegetative branches are usually 

 produced from the first ten no'les of the axis. At the next 

 two or three nodes the buds frequently remain dormant or are 

 abortive, and above these a fruiting branch is produced at 

 each node. 



Under conditions of great luxuriance extra-axillary limbs 

 occur at some of the lower nodes which would bear fruiting 

 branches if the development of limbs was restricted. 



The length and number of vegetative branches largely 

 determine whether the plants are bushy and spreading or up- 

 right. 



The control of the production of vegetative branches 

 that is of the stature of the plant, is necessary because of 

 the desirability of small plants in cultivation and harvesting. 



Egyptian cotton when planted late apparently develops 

 more numerous vegetative branches than when planted early. 

 Early planting is therefore advisable as a means of restricting 

 the development of vegetative branches. 



Abortion of early fruiting branches on both axis and 

 large limbs is common in a greater or less degree to all 

 stocks grown from imported seed. Even the Arizona 

 acclimatized plants frequently abort their lowest fruiting 

 branches. 



Some of the selected acclimatized types of Egyptian 

 cotton originated in the United States bear fruiting branches 

 at lower nodes on the stem than the stocks of imported 

 Egyptian cotton. Selection for low fruiting gives promise 

 of being a practical means of increasing earliness and yield. 



Of the six Egyptian varieties grown in Arizona in 1909 

 from imported seed, Nubaii most nearly resembled the 

 acclimatized stocks in putting out fruiting branches at 

 comparatively low nodes of the stem. 



A method of recording branching habits of cotton by 

 means of dingrams has been devised. The diagrams show 

 the location of branches, the development of fruiting branches, 

 and the stature of plants. Such diagrams promise to be of 

 value as records in the cultural and breeding study of cotton. 



