96 DEPAETMENTAL REPORTS. 



VEGETABLE WORK. 



Up to the present time comparatively little attention haj been given 

 to cultural work with vegetables at tlie Department; but now that we 

 have sufficient and suitable land for this work it is proposed to devote 

 as much energy to the study of the ])est methods of propagating, cul- 

 tivating, and harvesting such crops as potatoes, tomatoes, peas, beans, 

 celery, sweet potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, etc., as the appropriation 

 to the farm will admit. 



The location of the experimental farm, near one of the greatest 

 centers for the commercial production of the various market-garden 

 crops, warrants us in undertaking this work on a somewhat extended 

 scale. Then, too, the difficulties with which the commercial growers 

 of these staple crops have to contend is a further evidence of the 

 imjDortance of this work. 



Another line of work which we hope to take up as a demonstration 

 experiment is the reclaiming of a large tract of rich alluvial bottom 

 land, which is now submerged at high tide, but which is quite dry at 

 low tide. It is proposed to reconstruct a levee which formerly existed, 

 and thus shut out the tide, and to so open drains that the surface of 

 the ground shall be easily and quickly cleared of water. Pumping 

 facilities are to be provided in order to maintain the water in the 

 ditches at proper depth below the surface to insure success witji such 

 crops as celery, onions, cabbage, etc. 



There are thousands of acres of land similar to that belonging to 

 Arlington Farm along the banks of Chesapeake Bay and its tribu- 

 tary rivers. If it can be demonstrated that at a small outlay these lands 

 can be reclaimed and made profitable when devoted to trucking crops, 

 it is believed that the end will justify the undertaking. 



IRRIGATION. 



Upon the upland of the farm it is desired to establish a plant of 

 sufficient capacity to demonstrate the efficacy and value of irrigating 

 land devoted to fruit and garden purposes in a region subjected to 

 spring and fall droughts of considerable duration. This question 

 has long been agitated by market gardeners, some of whom have the 

 scheme carried out in a good working manner; but up to the present 

 time this question has not been taken up by the Federal Government 

 or by the State experiment stations. 



COOPERATIVE TESTING STATIONS. 



As soon as the horticultural work of the Department can be placed 

 upon a basis comparable with that of the other offices of the Bureau, 

 that is, so as to permit of conducting investigations other than those 

 upon the Experimental Gardens and Grounds and at the Arlington 

 Farm, a series of cooperative testing stations should be established to 

 work in conjunction with the above-named divisions. In general, 

 arrangements can be perfected with the authorities of the several 

 Federal experiment stations located in the various States, but in such 

 work it is only fair, when the land and equipment are supplied, that 

 we should provide seed, i^lants, and labor for carrying on such 

 investigations. 



The need for such testing stations becomes apparent in view of the 

 value of the material annually brought to this country through the 



