UTAH. 247 



made of the seed qualities of diiferent strains of alfalfa on an acre 

 at Benson, where conditions for seed growing are favorable. Ex- 

 periments with potatoes related to size of t,uber for planting, deep 

 versus shallow culture, furrowing and flat culture, water require- 

 ments, number of applications in irrigation, shallow irrigation, and 

 breeding by selection. With beans variety, culture, and irriga- 

 tion experiments were carried on. An exchange of potatoes for seed 

 was made between irrigated and dry farms in cooperation with the 

 Bureau of Plant Industry. In the sugar-beet breeding work strict 

 methods of pedigree breeding w^ere employed. and the total hereditary 

 power of each original mother ascertained. The seed produced last 

 3'ear showed a gain of over 1| per cent in the sugar content as com- 

 pared with the imported seed of the same original strain. This 

 work has been in progress for eight years and was originally con- 

 ducted in cooperation with the Bureau of Plant Industry. In con- 

 nection with sugar-beet work the amounts of water and times and 

 methods of irrigation were also studied. 



From the work on formalin in its relation to the vitality of seed 

 grain, it Avas found that the treatment was effective in preventing the 

 loose and covered smut of oats, the covered smut of barley, and the 

 bunt of wheat. A solution as dilute as 1 pound of formalin to 60 gal- 

 lons of water reduced to some extent the vitality of the seeds of 

 wheat, oats, and barley. Oats proved more resistant to the influence 

 than wheat and barley. It was concluded that the seed may safely 

 be treated for 1 hour in a solution of 1 pound to 50 gallons of water. 



The work in animal husbandry was limited largely to a feeding 

 test with 225 lambs, which were fed different amounts of different 

 grains in connection with alfalfa hay from December 8 to February 

 19. It was found that one-half the ordinary grain ration with alfalfa 

 gave good and economical results. The station has four Percheron 

 mares which are used in field work. The cost of theii* keeping and 

 of their work was recorded. 



Irrigation w^ork was pursued with State funds in cooperation with 

 this office, and especial attention was given to the water requirements 

 of peaches and apples. Some w^ork along this line was also done 

 with sugar beets and potatoes. The results of the first two years' 

 experiments with peaches have shown conclusively that the character 

 and amount of fruit produced can be very materially modified by the 

 time of application of a given amount of water. It was further dem- 

 onstrated that an excessive amount of water, instead of producing the 

 heaviest fruit yields, resulted in such an excessive wood growth that 

 the fruit was small and poorly colored and flaA^ored. A bulletin 

 published during the year treats of cultivation, shading, quantity of 

 water applied, surface and subirrigation, soil fertility, and soil tex- 

 ture as factors influencing evaporation and transpiration. 



