4 GEORGE V. 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



A. 1914 



REPORT FROM THE CEREAL DIVISION 



Ottawa, March 31, 1913. 



J. H. Grisdale, Esq., B. Agr., 



Director, Dominion Experimental Farms, 

 Ottawa. 



Sir, — I have the honour to submit the tenth Annual Keport of the Cereal 

 Division. This report is intended as a brief review only of the more important fea- 

 tures of the work carried on between April 1, 1912, and March 31, 1913. 



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 tc 

 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 num- 

 ber 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 

 time, 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 harvest- 

 ing 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 mis- 

 leading, especially 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 of 

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

 of the grain was, however, considerably lowered in most districts, while in some locali- 

 ties sprouting of the seed in, the stooks occurred to a very serious extent. 



Cereal investigations and the propagation of new and approved varieties for 

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

 but some 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 FABMS AND STATIONS. 



The eastern Farms were visited 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 modifications and improvements 

 in the work whenever such seemed practicable. 



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

 mediately 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 



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