COLORADO. 83 



The lines of work pursued by the horticulturist, mainly with State 

 funds, included observations on the culture, storage, and diseases of 

 potatoes, a study of the possibility of establishing more hardy strains 

 of apples, experiments with celery, asparagus, and cabbage, tests of 

 cover crops for orchards, and comparisons of horticultural rotations. 

 Some study was made of the milder flavor of high-altitude vegetables 

 and fruits, and experiments with different vegetables and fniits were 

 begim at high altitude at Fort Lewis. 



The animal-husbandry work was also largely supported by State 

 funds and included comparison of rations, especially those contain- 

 ing alfalfa, ground and unground, and molasses for cattle, sheep, 

 and hogs. California feed barley was compared with corn in com- 

 bination with alfalfa in rations for steers and sheep. Experiments 

 in crossing hogs and in breeding up the dairy herd were in progress. 

 No experimental work with poultry was done, but equipment and 

 stock were improved, and 12 demonstration breeding plants in dif- 

 ferent parts of the State were established. The station cooperated 

 with this department in the study of dairying in the State and in 

 horse breeding as in previous years. In the horse-breeding work the 

 animals in the stud now number 84, but 14 of these were condemned 

 as not conforming to the type desired. 



In addition to its Adams fund work on plant lice the department 

 of entomology studied methods of repression of grasshoppers and of 

 foul brood of bees. The work on bees was connected with the duties 

 of the head of the department in the capacity of State entomologist. 



The irrigation engineer took up work on the studies of pump irri- 

 gation, of concrete structures for canals and ditches, evaporation 

 experiments to determine the law of the effect of wind velocity, 

 humidity, temperature of both air and water on evaporation from 

 water surfaces, and to derive a formula for ready calculation of 

 evaporation losses. In this connection a record is made of meteorc^ 

 logical facts, especially those relating to agricultural meteorology, 

 humidity, precipitation, temperature, soil temperature, solar radia- 

 tion, sunshine, direction and velocity of the wind, evaporation from 

 water surfaces, etc. A bulletin giving the results of 25 years of 

 meteorological observations at the station and the results of evapora- 

 tion experiments is soon to be published. Cooperation was carried 

 on in rather extensive experiments for the purpose of determining 

 water supplies in the subsoil, and the practicability of using this 

 water by means of large pumping plants for the irrigation of the 

 land above it. The experiment also included the duty of water. 



The botanist continued experiments on the destruction of dande- 

 lions in lawns, made observations on the relation of seasonal condi- 

 tions to plant growth, and engaged in cooperative tree planting of 

 black locust and hardy catalpa with State funds. 



