4-5 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1905 



EXPERIMENTAL FARM FOR MANITOBA 



EEPOET OF S. A. BEDFORD, SUPERmXENDENT. 



Brandon, Man., November 30, 1904. 



To Dr. Wm. Saunders, 



Director Dominion Experimental Farms, 

 Ottawa, Ont. 



SiRy — I have the honour to submit, herewith, my sixteenth annual report, with 

 details of experiments undertaken and work accomplished on the Brandon Experi- 

 mental Farm, during the year. 



The past winter was a very cold and stormy one, the last half of January and all 

 of February being particularly so, heavy drifts formed during March and April, fill- 

 ing bluffs of timber and ravines to their full capacity, in some instances native poplar 

 trees were completely stripped of their branches by the weight of snow. 



When the immense drifts of snow commenced to thaw, all the rivers rose to un- 

 usual heights and overflowed their banks. The flood prevented the sowing of grain 

 on a portion of this farm, so the land was summer-fallowed and is now ready for 

 next year's seeding. 



Spring opened late, the first sowing was done here on April 28, fully three weeks 

 later than the average. 



The month of May was seasonable. June set in wet, and vegetation grew very 

 rank and soft during the first two weeks of that month. 



During the latter part of July and the beginning of August rains were very 

 abundant throughout the province, and growth rapid. 



The autumn was unusually favourable for harvesting and crops of all kinds were 

 saved without injury from rain or snow. 



A large amount of fall ploughing has also been done, which will allow of rapid 

 seeding next spring. 



Although there has been some loss from rust and frost, the injury has been quite 

 local in its character, prices for produce have been higher than usual and the year 

 was a profitable one for the farmer. 



On the experimental farm the yield of wheat, owing to the ravages of rust, was 

 only an average crop, but nearly all other products gave the largest returns in the 

 history of the farm. 



I beg to call your attention to the following experimental work undertaken here 

 this year for the first time :— 



The effect of early harvesting in lessening the injury to wheat by rust 

 The results of sowing flax on newly broken virgin soil. 

 The suitability of flax stubble for different grain crops. 



Growing clover in large fields with green fodder as a nurse-crop. 



The improvement of pasture fields. 



The fattening of swine on pease growing in the field. Barley compared with 

 mixed grain for fattening swine. A comparison of one-year-old, with two-year-old 

 steers for fattening purposes. 



The use of incubators in raising poultry. 



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