11 



much practiced that to overcome losses in these directions exceeding'ly 

 laro-e yields are considered necessarj' in order that much prplit may 

 be gained in the end. On the other hand, in the Southern States the 

 problem of increasing the yield is entirel}^ independent of deficiencies 

 in other regards, for the home demand alone is sufficient to make 

 prices good as a rule; but the average yield is extremely low, being 

 under 10 bushels per acre. It would add one-half to the profit in 

 these States if the yield could be increased even to the average of the 

 entire country (slightly over 13 bushels per acre). In the South 

 manuring the land must also be practiced in order to obtain the best 

 results, which is an item not at present considered in the West. 



In the States of the Plains the actual average yield is also rather low 

 (a little over 12 bushels), so that here, too, the reason for a demand 

 for an increased yield is evident and is usually independent of other 



deficiencies. 



The average yield for the United States is far lower than it ought to 

 be. The yield for the semiarid districts, which is much less, can and 

 should be as high as that for the entire country at present. 



EARLY MATURITY. 



There is no part of the United States where early maturing wheats 

 ar(^ not desirable for one reason or another. The reasons are various 

 in difi'erent localities. As before stated, early ripening varieties are, 

 in most seasons, more likely tp escape damage by rust. In a large por- 

 tion of the country this is a very important matter for consideration, 

 but especially so in the Southern States and the States east of the Mis- 

 sissippi River, where the whole wheat crop is occasionally entirely 

 destroyed by this parasite. But the need of early maturity is most 

 ui-gent in the Palouse country, as the shriveling efi'ects of the annual 

 dijought in that region which sets in just before harvest may be avoided 

 l)y the use of early varieties. In the North Central States and the 

 Great Plains region early maturing and winter varieties are less liable 

 to the ravages of chinch bugs than are late maturing and spring varie- 

 ties. In all the Northern States early maturity also allows the variety 

 a l)etter chance to escape early autumn frosts. 



There are instances in which late maturity is apparently an advan- 

 tage, but such cases are rare. 



Finally it should be noted that there is quite a distinction between 

 early wheats and early-sown wheats. A late-maturing wheat will ripen 

 earlier than usual if sown earlier, or will ripen still later than usual if 

 sown later. In the case of winter wheats early seeding allows the wheat 

 plant to accunmlate more reserve force in th(^ roots during the autunni, 

 tluis enabling it to begin growth with greater vigor in the spi'ing and 

 get the start of the later-sown crops. In the case of spring sorts earlier 

 seeding, of course, simply I'naljles the crop to get an earlier start and 



