14 



SORGHUM. 



Several varieties of sorghum were tested iu the garden, ibe non- 

 saccharine as well as the sweeter varieties. All the saccharine varie- 

 ties did well. The Dhonra corns, Milo maize, Jerusalem corn, "(lyp" 

 corn, Kafir corn, and other varieties of the nou saccharine sorghums all 

 did as well as any reasonable farmer could desire. Satisfactory crops 

 were secured from each of the following varieties: Big Amber, Ked 

 Amber, Early Black Amber, and Orange cane; Milo maize, ''Gyp" 

 corn, Jerusalem corn, Eed Kafir corn, White Kafir corn, White Brandl- 

 ing Dhoura corn, and Brown Branching Dhoura corn, all planted 

 April 25. All of the varieties of sorghum tested in central Texas 

 have proved fairly well adapted to the conditions of climate ordinarily 

 prevailing here. They do better during dry years than anything else 

 in the line of grains or forage crops that are cultivated. They, as a 

 rule, yield large crops, and there is no difficulty iu curing and pre- 

 serving them. The idea of baling the hay, noted elsewhere, was to 

 determine if they could be handled successfully in that way. If babng 

 can be practiced they can be grown here to great advantage, and ought 

 to possess considerable commercial value. ISTo richer stock food can be 

 grown in central Texas, and if the hay can be shipped to advantage it 

 will command good prices farther west. 



TEOSINTE. 



Teosinte was successfully cultivated in the station garden this sea 

 son. A long season of hot weather and a rich, rather moist, soil are 

 necessary for its full development. One plot of it was in soil that was 

 neither very moist nor very rich, and it made a vigorous growth in 

 spite of the dry weather. It somewhat resembles sorghum in appear- 

 ance, but has a more branching habit, usually making from 20 to 00 

 shoots from a single seed and growing from 5 to 10 feet tall. It will 

 prove a valuable forage plant in all parts of this State, to be fed green, 

 as silage or as fodder. 



One planting was made April 10, in hills 4 feet apart each way. By 

 July 1 it had met in the rows ; but by July 15 the drought had set in, and 

 by August 1 the teosinte had begun to suffer seriously. After that date 

 no seed heads were formed, and those that had previously formed did 

 not develop further. By August 15 the fodder had become yellow and 

 dry, though the roots were still alive. Had a good rain fallen on them 

 even as late as September 1, I am confident they would have revived 

 and put forth a further growth of foliage. However, by October 20, 

 when the drought was broken, even the roots were dead. Early in 

 July some of the stalks were cut, cured, stacked, and later baled. 

 The bales have kept sweet, and those still on hand are all that could 

 reasonably be desired for forage purposes. The stalks are small, the 

 leaves abundant, and the hay is soft. Cattle and horses relish it very 

 much. A yield of 10 to 15 tons per acre can probably be secured 

 here under normal conditions. As the hay is softer and more easily 



