EEPORT OF OFFICE OF EXPEEIMENT STATIONS. 179 



MONTANA. 



Montana Agricultural Experiment Station, Bozeman. 



Department of the Montana College of Agriculture and Meclianic Arts. 



F. B. LiNFiELD, R. S. A., Director. 



The Montana station continued to make steady progress during the 

 year in its work and in the improvement of its equipment. The new 

 sheep barn (PL II, fig. 2) and the new steer-feeding barn, for which 

 the State appropriated $10,000, were nearly completed during the 

 year. The State appropriations for the year 1910-11 are as follows: 

 Maintenance, $12,000; dry-farm experiments, $9,000; Fergus County 

 substation, $2,000; horticultural substation, $1,250; and the donations 

 for dry-farm work — Xorthern Pacific Railway, $7,500; Chicago, 

 Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway, $4,000 ; and the city of Helena, 

 $1,500. These appropriations did not include the grants of $10,000 

 for buildings at the home station, $5,000 for buildings and improve- 

 ments at the Fergiis County substation, and $3,000 for buildings 

 and equipment at the horticultural station made for the biennium" 

 1909-1911. 



The work at 2 permanent substations, 9 temporary dry-farming 

 stations, and 3 horticultural substations is under the supervision of 

 the director. During the year the governor of the State turned the 

 Fort Ellis reserve of 640 acres OA^er to the experiment station. This 

 is a dry-farm tract with 300 acres plowed and the rest in pasture. 

 About $1,000 was invested in improvements on the place. This 

 reserve is located near Bozeman, and the station has begun experi- 

 mental work upon it. 



Good progress was made in nearly all of the Adams-fund projects 

 upon which the station is at work. The cement investigations have 

 already been completed. The chemical change in the breaking down 

 of cement when act-ed on by alkali has been determined and a bulletin 

 on the results is in preparation. It was found that by the action of 

 sodium sulphate the calcium hydrate or the binding material of 

 cement was changed to calcium sulphate, which increased the volume 

 of the substance and caused crumbling. The sodium hydrate set 

 again, but was not as strong. As a remedy it is recommended that 

 the cement be made less absorbent and more resistant to water, and 

 for this purpose a 1 per cent soap solution was used, which gave an 

 insoluble calcium stearate and palmate. The strength of natural 

 cement was increased by using solutions of aluminum sulphate or 

 soap solution in place of tap water in mixing up the cement. 



The recent work on the incubation project was with reference to 

 temperature, and additional equipment was provided for the more 

 complete control and measurement of the conditions surrounding the 

 eggs. Especial attention was given to the influence of temperature 

 on the respiration of the chick and the development of carbon dioxid. 



