FIELD CROPS. 1087 



these crops wore drilled in double rows 7 in. apart, with each pair of rows 

 ;^5 in. from the next pair. Cane and Kalir produced about equal quantities of 

 excellent forage. Dwarf milo also gave good results, but showed no advantage 

 over cane, with the exception that the seed is perhaps better for feed. German 

 and Siberian millet yielded only about one-half as much per acre as cane, 

 wliich. with the exclusion of alfalfa, is considered the main forage crop for 

 western Nebraska. The yield of seed on :\ plats of brome grass ranged from 157 

 to 700 lbs. per acre. The heaviest yielding plat had been in alfalfa previous 

 to being seeded to brome grass. Directions for sowing brome grass are pre- 

 sented in detail. 



The experience witli alfalfa at the station and in its vicinity is given, 

 together with notes on its culture esi)ecially for seed. 



Principles of tillage and rotation, W. II. Day {Ontario Dcpt. Agr. Bui. 

 156. pp. <S). — This bulletin discusses tillage in relation to soil moisture and 

 considers, in addition, the necessity of the proper conditions in soil tempera- 

 ture, air supply, and the sanitary environment of the roots of the plants. 



I'ot experiments were conducted to determine the water requirements of dif- 

 ferent crops. In 1905, a season with ordinary rainfall, wheat refpiired 22.60, 

 peas 27.38, barley 18.52, and oats 21.15 in. of water, and in 1906, a wet season, 

 wheat used 17.32. peas 18.32. barley 18.82. and oats 18.47 in. of water. It is 

 concluded that during a wet season crops do not use as much water as during 

 ;i dry one, although the supply is much more abundant. In these experiments 

 (luring the wet season the crops required one-half more than the rainfall, and 

 it is pointed out that any soil, whatever its condition, retains enough of the 

 spring and winter precipitation to supply this deficiency. 



A loam soil was allowed to dry out until the grain growing in it began to wilt. 

 The water content of this soil at the wilting point was found to be 7.3 per cent. 



Forage crops of high, medium, and low protein content, H. Snyder (MIh- 

 ncHOtn 8ta. Bui. 101. pp. 229-2-56). — The protein content and the composition 

 of the dry matter of a list of forage crops and forage-crop combinations are 

 given and briefly discussed. The dry matter and protein content of corn fodder 

 at different stages of growth are shown in a table, as is also the composition of 

 silage and that of corn smut. 



It was found that corn fodder, timothy hay, rape, pasture grass, and hay 

 crops from mixed grasses were materially influenced in composition by the 

 use of farm manures. Less fiber and from 25 to 30 per cent more protein were 

 secured on soils in a good state of fertility than on similar soils low in plant 

 food. Legimiinous crops like clover, alfalfa, and peas did not appear to be as 

 susceptible to the influence of fertilizers in increasing the protein content as 

 crops like corn fodder and rape. 



An examination of a number of samples of clover, alfalfa, pea. bean, and 

 millet seeds of known quality showed each sample to contain 2 distinct tj^pes 

 of seed, 1 of high and the other of low protein content. The high protein 

 seeds were darker in color and more corneous in character than the low protein 

 seeds. It is believed that by selecting seeds on this basis, forage crops of the 

 maximum protein content may be produced in the same way as has been accom- 

 ]ilished with wheat and corn. 



Analyses of 18 samples of the more common weeds showed that many of them 

 assimilate large amounts of soil nitrogen, and it was found that when they 

 were harvested with grain crops the amount of nitrogen removed by them from 

 tlie soil was often larger than that contained in the grain. 



The dry matter of nearly matured rape was found to contain about the same 

 amount of protein as clover. Rye fodder, prairie hay. and millet showed about 

 the same general composition in feeding value as timothy hay produced under 



