142 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRTCULTTJRE. 



vestigations. For the present this work is confined to cattle and 

 sheep. The work with hybrid strawberries at Sitka has been con- 

 tinued with marked success and this station continues to propagate 

 and distribute for trial a large number of fruit trees and bushes, 

 and some ornamental plants. Comparative tests of about GO varie- 

 ties of potatoes, and of many varieties of cabbage, cauliflower, and 

 other vegetables are being continued at the Sitka station to determine 

 which varieties arc best adapted to the climatic conditions of the 

 coast region. 



At the Rampart Station efforts to grow barley and oats have been 

 uniformly successful and a number of crosses of varieties of barley 

 have been made, some of which appear to have desirable qualities. 

 Most of the spring-sown grains matured their crops this year. Some 

 of the winter grains were partially destroyed by hard freezing before 

 the ground was covered with snow. Potatoes have also been grown 

 with success at this station. At the Fairbanks Station an attempt 

 is being made to grow grain, hay, and potatoes on a commercial scale, 

 but up to the present the principal energies have been expended in 

 extending the area of cultivable land, about 70 acres being now 

 under the plow. In 1910, in spite of injury to the plants by frost, 

 several hundred bushels of potatoes were produced, of which $1,500 

 worth was sold. At the Kodiak Station, which is devoted mainly 

 to animal production, 82 head of purebred Galloway cattle of all 

 ages, 10 grade cattle, and 89 sheep and lambs were successfully win- 

 tered on native forage supplemented by a small amount of purchased 

 grain feed, and there does not appear to be any reason why stock 

 raising should not be made a success in the coast region of Alaska, if 

 care is exercised in selecting the stock and keeping it well housed and 

 fed during the winter. 



THE HAWAII STATION. 



At the Hawaii Station the investigations outlined in previous 

 reports have been continued and a number of new lines of work have 

 been begun. The work with cotton continues to attract favorable 

 attention, and it would seem that the profitableness of this new 

 agricultural industry has been demonstrated. The Japanese rices 

 imported by the station have been successfully grown, and samples 

 submitted to rice consumers have been pronounced equal in quality to 

 the imported Japanese rice. The importance of this fact is apparent 

 when it is known that one-half to 1 cent per pound more is paid 

 for Japanese than for other rice. Fertilizer experiments with rice 

 and taro have given results which show how important improve- 

 ments may be made in the methods of fertilizing these crops. In 

 continuation of the work with pineapples, it has been shown that the 

 chief difficulties with this crop are due to a lack of drainage and in 



