488 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Methods of seediufi and preparation of the seed bed (pp. 15-18). — On 5 

 of tlieU plats used barnyard maiuire had been applied for tlie previous 

 crop, in part as fast as made and in part at the time of planting. 



Trials were made with deep and shallow drilling, broadcasting, roll- 

 ing the land before sowing, and rolling after sowing. Plowing was 

 also compared with surface cultivation with a disc harrow. 



"Ill luauuiiug grouud for coru [applying] directly from the stable during mid. 

 -winter, and manuring from the barnyard just l)efore plowing . . . left a residual 

 effect, noticeable on the oat crop following, in favor of the [former method] . . . . 



"Seeding 1 in. deej) gave the highest results in 1895, but the average for a series 

 of years indicates better results from covering about 2 in. deep. 



"On our clay soil compacting the grouud either before or after seeding has resulted 

 in lower yields. 



" The results this year have not shown any appreciable difference between plowing 

 the laud and surface cultivation as a preparation for the seed, but a series of experi- 

 ments shows a marked difference in favor of plowing the land." 



Restoring pasture, C. F. Curtiss ( Jo ?r a 8ta. Bui. 5;?, pp. 467-469). — 

 In the spring of 1893 on tenth-acre plats of blue-grass pasture, on a 

 gravelly soil, a trial was made of sowing clover seed at the rate of 10 

 qt. per acre, following with a disc harrow, and of applying fine barn- 

 yard manure at the rate of 40,000 lbs. per acre. The yields of hay were 

 increased by the two operations at the rate of 1,500 lbs. and 1,700 lbs. 

 per acre, respectively. 



In a similar experiment in 1895 on richer soil and better grass laud 

 clover and timothy seed, mixed "in equal parts," were sown at the rate 

 of 30 lbs. per acre, followed by 2 workings with a disc and 2 with 

 another harrow; gypsum was applied at the rate of 500 lbs., and liquid 

 manure at the rate of 4,000 lbs. per acre. 



The author states that the increased yield was equivalent to 800 lbs. 

 of hay per acre where the seed was sown and G50 lbs. where the liquid 

 manure was applied. 



The plat treated with gypsum yielded less than the check jjlat. 



Tests of sorghum varieties, C. L. Penny [Delaware l>!ta. Bpt. 1895, 

 pp. 170-197, charts S). — A very careful study was made of 6 varieties of 

 sorghum grown from seed sent out by this Department. Over 1,400 

 separate stalks were measured in length, weighed in gross and stripped, 

 crushed, and specific gravity and sugar content determined in the juice. 

 Tables show summarized data of crop production, composition, and 

 coefficient of availability for all varieties; classification by sugar con- 

 tent and purity for the stalks of each variety; and comparison between 

 richer and poorer halves of each variety. 



The author believes imi^rovemeut in sorghum nuist come not from 

 richer varieties, but from varieties freer from poor stalks. The resist- 

 ance of the varieties to windstorms is calculated, and charts are given 

 showing graphically the changes in weight of stalks and richness and 

 purity of juice throughout the ripening season. 



(Iraphic methods for calculation of polaiiscope results and for deter- 

 mination of purity are shown and <liscussed. 



