272 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Improvement of quality under weevil conditions. — The in- 

 cn'jised cost of producing cotton in regions infested by the boll weevil 

 makes it more important than ever to improve the quality in order to 

 maintain the industry on a remunerative basis. Experiments have 

 shown that the special methods of culture required to avoid boll- 

 weevil injury by shortening the period of development also improve 

 the fiber. These considerations add to the practical value of the 

 work that has been done in the improvement of the staple of Upland 

 varieties that are to be grown under boll-weevil conditions. 



Preservation of superior varieties of cotton. — A study of the 

 causes of degeneration of cotton varieties has resulted in the develop- 

 ment of an improved method of selection for preserving the uni- 

 formity of superior varieties of cotton. The preservation of uni- 

 formity in cotton is a factor of enormous practical importance. Ex- 

 periments have shown that both yield and quality are affected, the 

 increase from selection often amounting to 10 per cent and upward. 

 The new method is based on the fact that undesirable variations can 

 be recognized by their vegetative characters before the flowering 

 stage is reached, so that crossing with the pollen of the inferior plants 

 can be avoided. This was not possible under the old method of de- 

 ferring selection till the bolls were open at the end of the season. 

 The new method of selection is also superior to the old in being more 

 quickly and easily done and with a smaller reduction of the crop. 



New varieties avith distinctive characters. — Since the value of a 

 superior variety of cotton depends very largely upon the preserva- 

 tion of uniformity after it has been introduced into cultivation, the 

 possibilities of maintaining uniformity must be taken into account 

 in breeding. Varieties with distinctive peculia rites are the more 

 valuable because it is much easier to detect and remove undesirable 

 individual variations that would destroy the uniformity of the stock 

 if allowed to remain. New varieties with readily distinguishable 

 characteristics are being bred and distinctive characters of existing 

 varieties are being determined, in order to give a better basis for 

 selection. 



Cotton improvement on a community basis. — X general study 

 of the subject shows that many factors of the improvement of cotton 

 could be much more effectively utilized if cotton-growing communi- 

 ties were organized to grow a single variety of cotton and to main- 

 tain its uniformity by selection. The present multiplicity and mixing 

 of varieities is a serious obstacle to the improvement of the cotton 

 industry. In a community that planted only one kind of cotton the 

 crossing of varieties in adjacent fields and the mixing of seed in gins 

 would be avoided, selection could be made much more effective, and 

 the production of a larger quantity of uniform fiber would insure 

 higher prices. In view of these and other obvious advantages it is 

 proposed to give special attention to establishing improved varieties 

 and methods of selection in communities organized for the production 

 of a single type of cotton. 



Malformations of cotton seedlings. — Malformation of the leaves, 

 accompanied by frequent abortion of the terminal buds, is a wide- 

 spread disorder of young cotton seedlings. It hinders the growth 

 of the plants and causes the development of abnormal sterile branches. 

 Though generally confused with the leaf-curl caused by plant lice. 



