EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETINS 



285 



soils are well adapted. It not infrequently happens, however, particularly 

 in dry seasons following mild winters, that wheat sown on the borders of 

 swamps and other low places gives a better yield than that sown on the 

 higher and more typical wheat lands. As the swamps constantly tend to 

 disappear by the wasting away of the muck under cultivation more and 

 more land of this kind is being devoted to grain crops. Deep muck is par- 

 ticularly unsuited to wheat and only the very hardiest varieties will grow 

 upon it. The choice of varieties for the various kinds of low lands is a 

 matter of considerable importance, and at all times certain varieties have 

 been held in repute for lands of this character. In England forty years 

 ago Klippart informs us that Fenton and Piper's Thickset were favorite 

 kinds for "soft, growthy land." The Mediterranean and Wild Goose were 

 formerly chosen for such lands in this country, but are no longer in 

 general cultivation. A test of twelve varieties on black prairie soil at the 

 Ohio experiment station a few years ago showed Penquite's Velvet Chaff 

 to give the best results. For the past two years our Michigan station has 

 tested a number of varieties on muck soil and a brief account of the 

 results obtained in 181)5 appeared in the report of the station for that 

 year. The figures are repeated below however for comparison with the 

 results the present season. 



In the fall of 1894 eight varieties of wheat were sown in quarter acre 

 plots upon muck, the varieties being such as were grown in larger areas 

 elsewhere upon the college farm. They were sown with the drill during 

 the third week in September, at the same time and in the same manner 

 as the other wheat. The next year ten varieties were sown broadcast 

 September 9 on similar soil, the area being three-fourths of an acre 

 divided into ten equnl plots. Owing to the fact that this year the product 

 was small, the weights of the entire product only appear in the table. 

 The names are arranged in the order in which the plots were located in 

 1890), tlie numbers at the left indicating the order in which the varieties 

 mentioned stood in 1895. 



It will be noticed that there is some variation in the order of produc- 

 tiveness of the varieties in the two years but the two varieties, White 

 Clauson and Dawson's Golden Chaff, which stood much ahead of the 

 others in 1895 are also far ahead in 1896. White Clauson is quite gen- 

 erally recognized as a variety well adapted to low or heavy lands where 

 wheat is subject to winterkilling, and is particularly popular in Saginaw, 

 Lai)e(jr and adjacent counties where such lands are abundant. From the 

 above trials, and other reports that have come to us, it appears probable 

 that Dawson's Golden Chaff will prove equally hardy in such locations. 



