ALABAMA. 71 



the college work in afrriciiltnre. was al)()ut completed at the close of 

 the fiscal yeai-. 



Progress in all Adams fund projects is rei)ortod. In the determina- 

 tion of the fertilizer reqiiiroments of a soil for cotton, the plants grown 

 in the field and by the wire-basket method were samjjled and ana- 

 lyzed at four different stages of growth. The work for the past two 

 years was confined to potash, and the results showing the difference 

 in composition of the crop when grown with and without potash 

 indicate the need of this element. 



A study of the effect of difi'erent foods on the quality of pork, 

 especially its solidity, was continued and the data secured were 

 recorded. The studies of the toxic properties of cotton-seed meal 

 were continued by extracting the meal with gasoline and feeding the 

 marc, which j^roved injurious. Alcohol and aqueous extracts were 

 also made, but no particularly new' pojnt was developed. The inju- 

 rious effects were not produced when materials equally rich in protein 

 were fed. 



The entomologist gave most of his time to the project on the fac- 

 tors governing the production, diffusion, and insecticidal efficiency 

 of hydrocyanic-acid gas and carbon bisulphid. During the past year 

 the effects of carbon bisulphid on the germination and viability of 

 grains and the minimum (|uantity required for killing grain insects 

 were given particular attention. The effect of temperature, moisture, 

 and other factors bearing on the problem were also taken into consid- 

 eration. Owing to lack of material, little work was done on the life 

 history and economic relations of the fire ant. 



In the breeding work with corn and cotton considerable attention 

 was given to the correlation of qualities with each other and with 

 yield. The corn breeding was confined to two varieties, using the 

 ear-to-row method. With cotton the relation between the percent- 

 age of lint and the yield of seed cotton was studied. Among other 

 })roblems considered were the constancy of inheritance l)y percentage 

 of lint, the influence of the size of seed and the correlation of size or 

 individuality to oil content, and the relation of type of cluster and 

 form of plant to productiveness. Correlations in oats were also 

 studied, and some progress was made in securing hardiness and 

 greater rust resistance. For this work about 10,000 seedlings were 

 grown. Extensive records of all plant-breeding work were kept. 



With the Hatch fund the Alabama Station pursued work on sirups, 

 coojwrative experiments with fertilizers for cotton, variety and ferti- 

 lizer t^sts with cotton and corn, experiments on the time of seeding 

 oats, rotation tests. in)provement of sweet corn, and the extermina- 

 tion of the cattle tick. In the rotation experiments the results of 

 thirteen years are on hand. Work in animal husbandry included 

 experiments in feeding for beef in ccM)peration with this Department, 



