Department of Plant-Breeding. 45 



Experimental Division. 



investigation. 



The support of this department is derived almost wholly from federal 

 funds appropriated under the Hatch and Adams Acts for the mainte- 

 nance of the Experiment Station, and the work of the department is 

 therefore almost entirely limited to investigations of problems connected 

 with plant-breeding. 



The department was organized in April, 1907, hence many of the 

 experiments have not been under way long enough to warrant definite 

 conclusions. Some of them, however, have developed far enough to 

 give promise of valuable information. 



Timothy breeding experiments. — The timothy breeding experiments 

 conducted by Dr. H. J. Webber and Dr. C. F. Clark have been continued 

 in a similar manner to that outlined in the last report of this department. 



Comparisons have been made between strains propagated vegetatively, 

 by open-fertilized seed, and by self-fertilized seed. In many instances 

 the self-fertilized seedlings show that they have transmitted their char- 

 acters to a comparatively high degree when compared with the parent 

 types or the clonal propagations. This fact is of very great importance 

 to the timothy industry, since we know that many of these highly selected 

 strains reproduce themselves, and since many of them are superior to 

 the ordinary timothy we may expect to obtain some very high yielding 

 strains from certain of these selections. During the past year seed from 

 some of the best selections was sown in isolated plats in the hope of 

 obtaining enough pure seed to test out on a larger scale. These small 

 plats were surrounded by rye to prevent cross-fertilization, hoping by 

 this method to obtain strictly in-bred seed. Several strains were sown 

 broadcast on small plats to test their high yielding and other desirable 

 qualities when grown under ordinary conditions. 



Corn breeding experiments. — Experiments in the selection of corn 

 have been continued at three places, namely, at Ballston Lake with 

 Funks' Xinety Day, at Utica with Reid s Yellow Dent, and at Aurora 

 with Pride of the North ; in addition one new experimental plat has 

 been established at Bedford Hills with the Funks' Ninety Day. As 

 this latter variety is one of the larger, early varieties, it is desirable to 

 determine to what extent it may be grown in this State. Since it has 

 been grown at Ballston Lake, which is comparatively far north, it was 

 thought advisable to take the variety farther south, hence the plat was 

 located at Bedford Hills. 



