DIVISIOX OF HOUTICL'LTIRE 



689 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



GARDEN" PEA, 



A considerable amount of work has been devoted to the improvement of many of 

 our best known varieties of garden pea. The method employed has been that of rigid 

 selection and then isolation of the desirable types. It has been found that a marked 

 improvement has been obtained from the stock originally chosen to work with. Each 

 season some of the original stock, upon which no selection work has been attempted, 

 is grown as a check beside the new strains. 



The season of 1913 was not a satisfactory pea season ; 1914 proved to be an 

 exceptionally good year, and the early part of 1915 was all that could \)e desired for 

 the growing of a pea crop, but the heavy rains towards the end of the season greatly 

 retarded the maturity of the crop, and a considerable quantity of seed was lost by 

 shelling out. Attempts were made to reduce this loss to a minimum but, nevertheless, 

 the ultimate results were undoubtedly affected by these conditions. 



The following table shows the comparative yields for a number of strains of 

 several varieties for the past three years. In each instance the amount of seed sown 

 was the same, the cultural and soil conditions as nearly identical as it was possible 

 to make them, and yet it will be noted that though the season of 1915 was not a satis- 

 factory season for a pea crop, the average yields are considerably higher than those 

 of 1913, though somewhat below those of the previous year 1914. 



Record No. 



3!1 

 312 

 321 

 322 

 331 

 341 

 342 

 351 

 352 

 353 

 354 

 361 

 362 

 363 

 364 

 371 

 372 

 373 

 374 

 375 

 376 

 381 

 411 

 421 

 422 

 423 

 424 

 425 

 431 

 432 

 441 

 442 

 443 

 444 

 445 

 446 

 447 



Variety. 



Enslish Wonder. 



American Wonder. 



McLean Advancer. 



Stratagem . 



Yield 1913. 



oz. 



19 

 19 

 20 

 20 

 18 

 19 

 19 

 19 

 19 

 19 

 19 



6 



6 



6 



6 

 18 

 18 

 18 

 18 

 18 

 18 

 18 

 22 

 22 

 22 

 22 

 22 

 22 

 17-5 

 17-5 

 17-6 

 17 

 17 

 17 

 17 

 17 

 17 



Yield 1914. 



oz. 



69 



69 



71 



71 



74 



80 



80 



78 



78 



78 



78 



81 



81- 



81- 



81- 



70 



70 



70 



70 



70 



70 



59 



88 



75 



75 



75 



75 



75 



59 



59 



63 



5S 



51 



49 



44 



55 



55 



Yield 1915. 



oz. 



60 

 45 

 56 

 60 

 60 

 65 

 50 

 61 

 65 

 70 

 70 

 66 

 68 

 70 

 63 

 71 

 65 

 71 

 60 

 72 

 62 

 73 

 60 

 56 

 72 

 78 

 67 

 78 

 64 

 62 

 67 

 76 

 69 

 67 

 65 

 77 

 74 



Ottawa. 



