228 AGRONOMY [BoT. Absts., Vol. VII, 



1536. Bkeakwell, E. Native and introduced grasses at Mount George, Manning River. 

 Agric. Gaz. New South Wales 31:399-400. 1 fig. 1920.— The author reports on trials of 

 native and introduced grasses. Coolah grass (Panicum prolutum) was especially drought 

 resistant. It jaelded about 8 tons dry fodder per acre. Native Australian millet {Panicum 

 decompositum) was nearly as good as Coolah grass. Phalaris bulbosa proved the best winter 

 grass, producing excellent feed through the cold months. — L. R. Waldron. 



1537. Breakwell, E. Popular description of grasses. Agric. Gaz. New South Wales 

 31: 789-792. 2 fig. 1920. — Deals with 5 species of Sporobolus — S. indicus, S. diander, S. vir- 

 ginicus, S. Lmdleyi, and *S. aciinocladus, all but S. virginicus being figured. These grasses 

 are not economically important, either because of unpalatability or scarcity. None is 

 cultivated. — L. R. Waldron. 



1538. Burt, B. C., and Nizamuddin Haider. Cawnpore-American cotton: An account 

 of experiments in its improvement by pure line selection and of field trials. 1913-1917. Agric. 

 Res. Inst. Pusa, Bull. 88. 31 p., 10 pi. 1919. — Isolation of pure races was started in 1912. 

 Plants were classified according to branching habit, hairiness of leaf, color of stamens, ginning 

 percentage, length and fineness of lint, shape and size of boll, leaf shape, stem and foliage color. 

 In later work the character of the root system was found to be an important factor. Attention 

 was also given to the length of vegetative period prior to flowering, length of internodes, and 

 tlie characteristics of secondary fruiting branches. In 1916 the number of selections had 

 been reduced to 14, and these were divided into five groups according to the dates of maturity. 

 Field tests were made and practical commercial valuations were secured on the ginned cotton 

 during the seasons of 1915-1918 inclusive. The results indicate that selected strains of Cawn- 

 pore-American Cotton will yield as much as the desi cotton commonly grown and that it will 

 bring a much better price, under proper marketing conditions. The Cawnpore-American 

 Cotton must be sown early, with irrigation; desi cotton is best grown under similar conditions. 

 The methods of sowing and culture are somewhat different for Cawnpore-American than for 

 the desi cotton. — N. J. Giddings. 



1539. Calvino, Mario. Quinientas toneladas de forraje fresco por hectarea mediante la 

 Yerbe Elefanto de Rhodesia. [Five hundred tons of fresh forage per hectare by means of the 

 elephant grass of Rhodesia.] Rev. Agric. Com. y Trab. 3:172-183. 14 fig. 1920.— The 

 Napier or elepliant grass {Pennisetum purpureum Schum.) was introduced into Cuba by the 

 author' in 1918. Its history and introduction into various countries is given. It may be 

 propagated in various ways but most easily by cuttings. Best crops were secured by cutting 

 at intervals of about forty days. Crops of about 60 tons (metric) per hectare were secured. 

 Analyses showing the food value and the mineral constituents are given. The analyses of the 

 fresh grass show the water content to be 24.5-38.2 per cent. — F. M. Blodgett. 



1540. Clouston, D., and F. J. Plymen. Principal fodders in the central provinces and 

 Berar, including the small bamboo (Dendrocalamus strictus). Agric. Jour. India 15: 380-:385. 

 1920. — Egyptian clover (Trifolium alexandrinum) and the small bamboo (Dendrocalamus 

 strictus) show promise for adoption on a large scale. D. strictus is especially valuable for 

 light soils which cannot be irrigated. The yield (20 tons per acre) is large and the leaves 

 contain four times as much protein as the common grasses while the proportion of indigestible 

 fiber is greater in grasses. The seed may be used as feed and the mature culms serve many 

 practical purposes. — F. M. Schertz. 



1541. CocKERELL, T. D. A. Sugar-beet seed. Nature 104: 661. 1920.— Prior to 1909 all 

 sugar-beet seed used in the U. S. A. was imported from Europe. The first attempt to grow 

 seed in the U. S. A. was made in Montana in 1909 by Mr. Hans Mendleson, who continued his 

 experiments on a small scale. When the supply of foreign seed was cut off by the war the 

 industry had developed to such an extent that the United States was able to produce 5,211,000 

 pounds of seed in 1916 and 5,546,000 pounds in 1917. — 0. A. Stevens. 



