FIELD CROPS. 239 



Peas. — Forty-seven varieties of peas were sown in drills 1 link apart. 

 The yields varied from 14.55 bu. to 33.1 bu. per acre. Chancellor matured 

 first and Oaksbott Field last, there being' a difference of 24 days in the 

 ripening period of the 2 varieties. The best average yields for 7 years 

 ranged from 33.36 to 38.04 bu. per acre and were produced by White 

 Wonder, Early Briton, Field, Mummy, Brown, and Blue, in the order 

 given. All excepting Early Briton and Mummy are New Zealand 

 varieties. In general, during a two-years' test, drilling gave better 

 results than broadcasting. Sowing on different dates resulted in the 

 highest average yield from the seeding made April 22 as compared with 

 earlier and later dates. 



Spring wheat. — Tests were made of 48 varieties. Bart Tremenia, Wild 

 Goose, Medeah, Sorentina, and Algiers were the most productive of 

 the coarse-grained wheats and Herison Bearded, Saxonka, Konisburg, 

 Red Fern, Red Fife, Colorado, Rio Grande, Washington, Wellman 

 Fife, and Blue Democrat among the fine-grained varieties. Herison 

 Bearded in 9 years' trials has given an average yield of 26.5 bu. per 

 acre, at an average weight of 62£ lbs. per measured bushel. In gen- 

 eral, broadcasting gave better results than drilling. The first seeding 

 of wheat, made April 19, gave a better yield than the later ones. As the 

 time of seeding advanced the crop decreased in quantity and quality. 



Winter u-lteat. — A test of 91 varieties was made on 189 plats. Early 

 Red Clawson, Golden Drop, Early Genesee Giant, Imperial Amber, 

 Dawson Golden Chaff, Tuscan Island, and Egyptian, in the order given, 

 produced the largest yield. These varieties also stand first in produc- 

 tiveness among 86 varieties grown for 4 years in succession. Dawson 

 Golden Chaff has given a yield of 50.5 bu. per acre in the average of 

 6 years' tests. 



For 5 years winter wheat has been sown on September 3, 9, and 20. 

 This season's sowing (September 9) gave the best results, but the aver- 

 age tor the whole period is in favor of the earlier date. The results from 

 drilling and broadcasting the seed were very similar in this year's test, 

 as well as in the average for 4 years. Sowing seed at the rate of 2 bu. 

 per acre gave better results than sowing at the rate of li and 1 bu. per 

 acre. An experiment in the selection of seed resulted in the best yield 

 from the large plump seed as compared with small plump, shrunken, 

 or cracked seed. The use of sprouted grain for seed showed that 

 sprouting impairs the germinating power and tends to produce an 

 uneven crop. 



On 12 plats, each 1 rod wide by 6 rods long, the soil was given dif- 

 ferent treatment previous to sowing. The experiment was duplicated, 

 there being 6 plats in each set. These plats were plowed in the fall of 

 1895 and received surface cultivation the following spring. Four plats 

 of each set were sown to oats, buckwheat, rape, and clover, and the 

 other two were worked as bare summer fallow. The green crops were 

 plowed under about August 1 and barnyard manure at the rate of 20 



