REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. XXXIII 



tofore distributed. Seedsmen are now cooperating- Avith the Depart- 

 ment in furnishing- these specialties and novelties, and the Department 

 will distribute them possibl}^ only one 3'ear, dropping- them then and 

 allowing- the demand, if demand there be, to be met by the regular 

 trade. Particular attention will be given in all this work to the dis- 

 tribution of special crops, such as forage, tobacco, cotton, sugar beet, 

 cereals, etc. In the handling- of these special seeds and plants the 

 work of the plant-breeding laboratories will be utilized, and the require- 

 ments of different sections of the country will receive careful consid- 

 eration, so that crops will be selected to meet the needs and require- 

 ments of the districts into which thej" may be sent. 



Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction. 



During- the year the Department pushed forward the lines of work 

 on introduction of foreign seeds and plants as rapidly as the means 

 at hand would permit. In carrying on this work the various branches 

 of the Bureau have contributed to the expert knowledge to be applied 

 to the best handling of the crops. 



Agents have been sent to the Orient with a view to securing infor- 

 mation on crops particularh" adapted to the South. Rice has received 

 special attention, and in addition the question of forage crops suitable 

 for this region was also kept constantly in mind. An agent visited 

 India, China, and Japan, and secured many valuable introductions in 

 the wa}^ of seeds and plants which will be useful in building up new 

 industries. This work has been greatl}' aided by the generosity of 

 Hon. Barbour Lathrop, who, at his own expense, has carried on 

 extensive agricultural explorations during- the year, assisted b}?- Mr. 

 David G. Fairchild, an agricultural explorer of this Department. 

 Mr. Lathrop has secured and forwarded to this country a number of 

 valuable plants, which are being handled b}- the Department's agents 

 and by private individuals, to whom such plants have been sent direct 

 by Mr. Lathrop. Particular attention was given to the introduction 

 of the bamboo, which it is believed will prove a promising crop in 

 sections of the West and South, where this plant is hardy. 



In former reports attention was called to the efforts of the Depart- 

 ment in establishing date growing as an industry in this country. Con- 

 siderable advance has been made in this direction during the past year, 

 a large shipment of young date trees having been received from Mr. 

 Lathrop. The}' were planted in the large cooperative date orchard 

 established bv the Department in Arizona. This orchard now com- 

 prises about 11 acres and contains 580 imported trees, besides 80 

 native seedlings. Another important introduction during the year 

 through Mr. Lathrop's efforts is the Egyptian or berseem cloA^er, 

 which is very valuable for certain portions of the country as a soil 

 reclaimer and enricher and as a forage plant. The continued fertility 

 AGR 1902 III 



