834 EXPEEIMENT STATION RECORD. 



that these results are uot without exceptions, and that upon thoroughly ex- 

 hausted land the application of mixed manures very frequently results in au 

 improvement of quality and yield. On irrigated plats the use of manures 

 resulted in an additional yield of 4i tons of cane and of i ton of sugar per 

 acre, while without irrigation the manures gave an additional yield of 3J 

 tons of cane, the increase in the sugar per acre being very small. 



Cane from rows planted 4 ft. apart weighed 20 tons per acre more than cane 

 from I'ows 7 ft. apart, and it was noted that the gradation was regular and 

 progressive along the line of different widths. The cane from rows 4 ft. 

 apai't yielded 11 J tons of sugar per acre, while that from rows 7 ft. apart 

 yielded 2^ tons per acre less. 



Notes are also given on cane diseases, distribution of cane varieties, intro- 

 duction of new varieties, subsidiary crops, substation work, and experiments 

 in raising seedlings. 



L Cultivation of plant crop and rattoon stubble], N. A. Cobb (Haicaiian 

 Sugar J'hiiifcrs' ,St(i., Dir. Path, and I'lnjsloJ. Bui. 5, 2. ed., pp, 85-90, flgs. .))• — 

 Methods of opening up stools of plant cane and rattoon crops are described and 

 illustrated, and the advantages from the treatment accruing to fields infested 

 with root disease are pointed out. Hoeing the eartb away from the base of the 

 stubble of a poor plant crop, and thus letting the air and light into the old stool, 

 resulted in a fair rattoon crop. The fact that the stool of rattoon stubble under 

 certain soil conditions is very firmly embedded in the ground brought about the 

 construction of implement.; embodying the principles of the disk plow and the 

 subsoiler, for the purpose of breaking open the stool in order to expose it to the 

 air and the sun and to induce i^etter growth through root pruning. A descrip- 

 tion, with illustrations, of these imi)lements is given. 



Experiments in growing Cuban seed tobacco in Alabama, G. T. McNess 

 and L. W. Ayek (U. S. Dept. Agr., Bur. Soils Bui. 31\ pp. 3.^. pis. J).— Culture 

 experiments with Cuban seed tobacco were conducted in 1903, 1904, and 1905. 

 The soils taken for the experiments are described as Orangeburg clay and 

 Orangeburg fine sandy loam, and their mechanical analysis is shown in tables. 

 The clim;ite of the region is also discussed, and the methods of soil preparation 

 and cultivation are described in detail. 



The object of the work was to demonstrate that a high (|u;ility of Cuban seed 

 filler leaf can be produced on a certain soil and to secure information as to the 

 value placed on the product by dealers and manufacturers. 



In 1903 1 acre of tobacco was grown on Orangeburg fine sandy loam and 2 on 

 Orangeburg clay. The yield amounted to 435 lbs. of merchantable tobacco to 

 the acre. In 1904 li acres of each kind of soil were secured in a different 

 locality for this work. The 3 acres yielded 1,380 lbs. of air-cured tobacco, but 

 unfavorable conditions reduced the yield of commercial leaf to 1,001 lbs. This 

 crop was produced at a cost of 23.7 cts. a pound. 



In 1905 9 parties entered into a cooperative agreement and raised 12i acres 

 of tobacco under the direction of the Bureau of Soils. The yield of merchant- 

 able tobacco from this acreage amounted to 4,457 lbs., or 35()i lbs. per acre. 

 The weight of the crop as harvested ranged from 2G0 lbs. to 848 lbs., and aver- 

 aged 380 lbs. per acre. The largest yield was produced at a cost of G cts. per 

 pound and the smallest at a cost of 12 cts. per pound. The reduction in cost 

 of growing the heavier crop is regarded as due to better soil preparation. The 

 profits from the largest yield amounted to $114.05 on 1* acres, and from the 

 smallest yield to .$10.02 on 1 acre. 



The crop of 1903 sold for 30 to 40 cts. a pound, and the total amount realized 

 was sufficient to cover the original cost of growing the tobacco, the expense of 

 fermenting, sorting, and packing, the shrinkage in weight, and other losses. 



