300 Annual Report Agricultural Experiment Station 



study was made of feeding yucca to cattle as practiced at WiJlcox, 

 Arizona. An improvised yucca feed chopper was described as 

 made at small expense from a discarded pump-jack. With care a 

 silage cutter may be used. There are at this time several yucca 

 choppers, or yucca shredding machines, on the market, which are 

 desirable for use where a considerable number of stock are to be fed. 



The chemical analysis of yucca forage as made by the Chem.- 

 istry Department of the Experiment Station shows that the protem 

 content is little higher than that of native cactus forage ; the fiber 

 was somewhat more than double that in cactus forage, and the 

 •carbohydrates or nitrogen-free extract averaged 21.94 percent as 

 against 15 percent in cactus feed. Aside from the fact that yucca 

 forage acts as a succulent when fed along with dry range feed, its 

 value as a feed lies chiefly in the carbohydrates. A microscopic 

 study showed that the carbohydrates present were largely in the 

 form of glucose, which explains the sweet taste of the freshly chop- 

 ped feed. 



Circular No. 22, "The Home War Garden," was published in 

 August by the Extension Service. This is a revision of Timely 

 Hint No. 106, "The Home Vegetable Garden," which publication it 

 replaces. This circular attempts a popular presentation of present 

 day gardening under southwestern conditions. The different vege- 

 tables are considered in part from their botanical and physiological 

 characters. The first half of the circular discusses the following 

 topics : soil and location ; fertilization, irrigation and cultivation ; 

 flat culture versus ridged culture, rotation of crops ; botanical group- 

 ing of vegetables; crop pests; seeds and seed-testing; aids to earli- 

 ness in the garden ; and, altitudes and seasons of planting. The 

 second half discusses vegetables for the winter and spring garden 

 and likewise those for the summer garden. 



NOTES ON PLANT INTRODUCTION 



Japanese Kudzu vine (Fucraria hirsuta). This herbaceous 

 climber, noted in a recent Annual Report of this station, deserves 

 further mention as an economic plant. It grows from starchy, 

 tuberous roots, increasing in vigor as these become larger. The 

 stems are hairy, and the leaves resemble those of the common bean, 

 but are larger. The flowers are purple, produced in clusters, and 

 pea-like. They are not showy. The pods are flat, hairy, two to 

 - four inches long, and contain several small, mottled beans. The 

 plant propagates readily from root cuttings and by layering. It 

 can also be grown from seeds. Being semitropic, the Kudzu vine 



