KiiW YouK Aguigultuual ExPEuiMiiJNT JStaxxon. b3 



sufficiently wide to make it possible to relocate them after plow- 

 ing. Accordingly, the field was divided into ten equal plats, each 

 being 7| by 157 feet, having an area of^V of an acre. During 

 three successive seasons, 1898 to 1900 inclusive, the plats were 

 planted with onions (six rows 15 inches apart on each plat) and 

 every alternate plat treated with sulphur and air-slaked lime 

 applied in the drills at the rate of 100 pounds of sulphur and 50 

 pounds of lime per acre. The remaining five plats were left 

 untreated for checks. Thus there were five treated plats and five 

 untreated plats alternating with them. (See diagram on page 

 85.) 



Notes for 1S9S. — ^The seed was sown April 23. On June 1 an 

 attempt was made to determine the percentage of smut-infested 

 plants on the various plats by taking a portion'of a row contain- 

 ing 100 plants and noting the number which were smutty. These 

 observations showed that on an average 64 per et. of the plants 

 on the treated plats were smutty, while on the check plats 91^ 

 per et. were smutty. A similar count made on June 10 showed 

 41^ per ct. of the treated plants and 75 per ct. of the untreated 

 plants infested. It may be asked why the latter count shows 

 a smaller percentage of infested plants. The answer to this 

 question is as follows: Some of the affected plants enumer- 

 ated in the first count had dried up and disappeared by the time 

 the second count was made. Many of the diseased plants barely 

 succeed in pushing their heads above the surface of the soil before 

 they are killed, and the tissues, being very soft, decay and dis- 

 appear quickly. The truth of this last statement is shown by the 

 fact that to get 100 plants one must 'invariably cover a greater 

 distance on a check row than on a treated row, notwithstanding 

 the two rows received the same amount of seed. At best, such 

 counts are only apj>roximations, because it is impossible to avoid 

 overlooking a good many of the affected plants. 



The small yield in 1898 was due to a hail storm, during the lat- 

 ter part of July,and wet weather, which caused many of the bulbs 

 to rot.^ The crop was harvested August 10. 



'For an account of the rot see Bui. 164 of this Station. 



