REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR 43 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



THE CEREAL DIVISION. 



The season of 1912 was distinctly unfavourable for cereals over almost the whole 

 of Canada. During the early part of the summer drought and intense heat were 

 prevalent; and these conditions were followed by months of wet, cool weather, about 

 as unfavourable for the ripening and harvesting of grain as could well be imagined. 

 Under such conditions, normal crops could not be expected, and the injury done to 

 grain intended for seed purposes was very great. In some districts the heat and 

 drought of early summer caused the young plants of cereals to produce a small 

 number of heads rather prematurely. Later on, when wet weather came, stooling of 

 the plants occurred and a considerable crop of late heads was produced. There was 

 not ttme, as a rule, for these to ripen; but they grew to a good height and often quite 

 overshadowed the earlier heads; so that when the first heads were ready for harvesting 

 they were almost hidden beneath a mass of green stalks. Under conditions such as 

 these, it was quite impossible to make as accurate observations as usual on the dates 

 of ripening of the various cereals. The yields obtained were also rather misleading, 

 espcially owing to the fact that the early-maturing varieties suffered most, because 

 they were farther advanced when the wet weather set in and were, therefore, less 

 capable of recuperating. 



The first severe frosts came rather later in autumn than usual. The results ol 

 the season were therefore less disastrous tban might have been expected. The 

 quality of the grain was, however, considerably lowered in most districts, while in 

 some localities sprouting of the seed in the stooks occurred to a very seriou3 extent. 



Cereal investigations and the propagation of new and approved varieties for dis- 

 tribution and sale could not make very good progress in such an adverse season, but 

 pome valuable observations were made, and on some of the Experimental Farms a 

 considerable quantity of seed grain of good germination was harvested. 



VISITS TO BRANCH FARMS AND STATIONS. 



The eastern Farms were visited by the Dominion Cerealist in July, and those in 

 the west in August and September. The conditions affecting cereals were carefully 

 studied and plans were made, by consultation with the Superintendents, for modifica- 

 tions and improvements in the work whenever such seemed practicable. 



At Cap Rouge the very unfavourable, wet spring had been followed almost 

 immediately by hot, dry weather. Under such abnormal conditions the prospects for 

 grain crops were very poor. At Charlottetown and Nappan, the grain was in a much 

 healthier state, and gave promise of reasonably good yields. 



Harvesting was in progress — between showers — at the western Farms when these 

 were visited in August. While, for the reasons already explained, the season was an 

 unfavourable one for early-maturing varieties of grain, general satisfaction Was 

 found to prevail in regard to the harvest prospects for the early varieties of wheat. 

 Marquis and Prelude. In most instances, the high expectations were fully justified 

 by the weight of grain threshed. 



"While the varieties of cereals under cultivation in some of the older settled 

 portions of Manitoba and Saskatchewan are satisfactory, and the need of new and 

 improved kinds is not very great, the condition of affairs is quite otherwise in 

 northern districts an. 1 over a large portion of Alberta, where the early-maturing 

 varieties of wheat hitherto introduced, including Marquis, can not be depended on 

 to ripen every season, especially when sown on summer-fallow land. For these con- 

 ditions, Prelude wheat will be of enormous value, but tests of a large number of the 

 new cross-bred sorts produced by the Dominion Cerealist at Ottawa and now available 

 for trial elsewhere should be inaugurated without delay, so that the very best vnrie- 



