140 TWENTY-FIRST RErORT. 



Among the prominent varieties of oats introduoed, mostly from different 

 provinoes in Russia, are the Swedish Select, Kherson, Sixty-Day and Clydes- 

 dale. 



The barley group has one important variety known as Manchuria. This 

 was introduced into Wisconsin from Germany in ISGl. It was brought into 

 Germany in 1859 from the mountains of Manchuria. 



During recent years the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station has 

 been fortunate in securing an introduction that has added greatly to the food 

 production of the state during the past few years. In 1909 there was intro- 

 duced into Michigan a Russian rye. This crop was introduced by a Russian 

 by the name of Rosen, who at that time was a student in the Michigan Agri- 

 cultural College. The crop produced from the sample proved to be much 

 superior to the common rye grown at the station. The Rosen rye compared 

 with common rye has a much shorter and stiflfer straw and much larger and 

 more symmetrical heads. The heads of common rye vary considerably in size, 

 and the rows contain only scattering kernels. At the present time fields of 

 Rosen rye produced from certified seed may be inspected, and if the crop 

 meets the standard, it is classed as pedigreed seed and sold under guarantee 

 through the Michigan Crop Improvement Association. The pure seed of this 

 variety was first distributed in 1912 ; and in 1916 there were 15,000 acres 

 grown in the state. In the fall, 1918, there were about 6,000 acres of pedigree 

 and 426,000 acres of mixed Rosen rye seeded. The total acreage of the state, 

 seeded last fall, is about 483,000 acres. The fact that rye is an open fertile 

 plant, makes it diflicult to maintain purity, especially when common rye is 

 grown nearby. Ten to fifteen busliels is an average yield for common rye, 

 while forty to forty-five bushels per acre is not uncommon for pedigreed 

 Rosen rye. 



Although we have many important varieties of grain that have come to 

 use through introduction, there are others of importance that were secured 

 through careful and painstaking selection. It is largely in the field of selec- 

 tion and hybridizing (crossing) that the plant breeder and the scientist have 

 been interested, and it is to this group of men that the farmer is greatly 

 indebted for the present understanding of the fiuidameutals of crop improve- 

 ment. 



It is not the purpose of this paper to discuss the theory and effects of 

 mass selection and pure lines, except as they relate to the laws of crop improve- 

 ment. We cannot, in passing, help but recognize the facts established by the 

 work of Galton, Mendel, DeVries, Johannsen, Nilsson-Ehle and other noted 

 scientists. 



To Mendel, DeVries and Johannsen is given the credit of explaining the 

 principles upon which the occurrence of hereditary variation depends. These 

 men worked upon the principle that plants and animals are composed of a 

 group of distinct and independent unit characters, and that nature, oftentimes 



