u 



FORAGE-CROP EXPERIMENTS AT SAN ANTONIO. 



Table XIX. — Number of days necessary to mature several varieties of millets grown in 



1908, with yield of hay. 



s. P.I. 

 No. 



21533 

 21287 

 22340 

 22425 

 21601 

 22423 

 22420 

 22426 

 22427 

 22424 

 21074 

 22422 



Valid \ . 



Kutki (Panicum psilopodium) 



Shama (Panicum colonuvfi) 



German ( Chaetochloa italica) 



do 



Sanwa (Panicum frumentaceum) 



( 'ommon ( Chaetochloa italica) 



Kursk ( Chaetochloa italica) 



Hungarian ( ( 'haetochloa italica ) 



Japanese (Panicum frumentaceum) 



Siberian ( Chaetochloa italica) 



Broom-corn millet (Panicum miliaci um i 

 do 



Yield 

 per acre. 



Tons. 

 2.50 

 1.93 

 1.70 

 1 65 

 1 60 

 1.57 

 1.56 

 1.50 

 1.34 

 1.25 

 .25 

 .25 



Pearl millet (Pennisetum americanum) was grown in 1910 under 

 irrigation. It gave two cuttings, totaling 10.3 tons per acre, but the 

 hay was of poor quality and the yield less than that of Sumac sorghum 

 under like conditions. 



In 1 009 and 1910 tests were made, but the season was very unfavor- 

 able and practically no hay yields were obtained. 



On the whole, millets are not to be recommended for use in the 

 cropping system in the locality of San Antonio, since they are not 

 dependable as a crop without irrigation, and under irrigation certain 

 grasses are much more productive. 



GRASSES. 



Up to the present time no perennial grass except Johnson grass 

 has survived for any great length of time and given a satisfactory 

 yield in the locality of San Antonio. There is need of a good grass, 

 especially by the irrigation farmer, owing to the fact that alfalfa, 

 clovers, etc., are attacked by root-rot and that none of the grass 

 family are subject to this disease. Johnson grass is grown com- 

 mercially in a few cases, but on the whole it is rightfully considered 

 more of a pest than a profitable crop. Owing to the nature of its 

 rooting system it is capable of withstanding long periods of drought 

 without dying out, but its culture should be discouraged, as there are 

 much more profitable grasses without the objectionable features of 

 Johnson grass which can be grown in its place. 



Para grass (Panicum barbinode) has been tried, and although it 

 made a luxuriant growth under irrigation at the field station, when 

 it was tried without irrigation it made practically no growth and 

 completely died out during the season of 1909. The plat that was 

 irrigated proved somewhat difficult to handle on account of the 

 thick mass of roots which had formed during the two years the grass 

 was being tested. The ground on which it was grown was very 



[Cir. 106] 



