432 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. I Vol. 38 



Cooperative tests with Sudan grass, Dakota Amber sorghum, Dwarf hegari, 

 and feterita were conducted by farmers on irrigated and nonirrigated lands 

 of eastern Oregon during 1915. Sudan grass is said to have done very well 

 on dry farms but was not so uniformly successful under irrigation. Dakota 

 Amber and Dwarf hegari proved to be superior to feterita under both irri- 

 gated and nonirrigated conditions. 



Field tests with Japanese sugar cane, teosinte, broom corn, and millet are 

 briefly noted, but none of these crops is deemed suited to the region. 



[Field crops work for 1916], D. A. GrLcnRiST (County Northumb. Ed. Com. 

 Bui. 24 (1916), pp. 6-34, 42-49, 51-53, 5//-77).— This reports extensive fertilizer 

 tests on poor pasture lands and old meadows ; variety tests with oats, barley, 

 wlieat, beans, and root crops ; cultural tests with potatoes : tests of the compo- 

 sition of swedes and turnips as affected by varietal, seasonal, and nuinurial 

 differences; and studies of the manurial requirements of all crops grown in 

 rotation and of the residual value of manures conducted in Northumberland 

 during 1916. 



Basic slag has given the best results with poor pastures on heavy soils, 

 while on the lighter soils basic slag with potash lias proved most effective. 

 Active nitrogenous fertilizers are said to have depreciated the feeding value of 

 hay on old meadow lands, while phosphatic fertilizers, supplemented with 

 potash when necessary, have greatly developed clover and improved the feeding 

 value of the hay, Basic slag as a supplement to manure has given the best 

 results on old meadow lands. The residual effects of feeding oil cake to 

 grazing stock have not proved as beneficial as was expected. 



Early plantings of potatoes gave increased yields over medium and late 

 plantings. Sprouted seed increased the yield more than a ton per acre over 

 unsprouted seed. Injuries from late frosts resulted in a reduction of nearly 

 50 per cent in the total crop, and in the proportion of large tubers from about 

 86 to about 60 per cent of the total. 



[Field crops work for 1917], D. A. Gilciiiust (County Northumb. Ed. Com. 

 Bui. 26 (1917), pp. 20-34, 42-77). ~A continuation of work noted above. 



Field experiments, 1916 (Dept. Agr. and Tech. Instr. Ireland Jour., 17 

 (1917), No. 2, pp. 2//2-256).— Continuing work previously noted (E. S. R., 36, 

 p. 529), variety tests with barley, mangels, oats, turnips, potatoes, and wheat, 

 and manurial and cultural tests with potatoes and wheat are reported from 

 numerous centers for 1916. 



Tests with sprouting seed potatoes showed an average increase in yield for 

 the 13-year period 1903-1915 of nearly 2 tons per acre over unsprouted seed. 

 Cultural tests, including the use of sprouted seed, the application of 20 tons of 

 manure and 6 cwt. of a standard fertilizing mixture, and with the crop sprayed 

 twice at an estlmatetl cost of $20 per acre, yielded an average increase of 4 tons 

 of potatoes over plats seeded with whole, unsprouted tubers, with 20 tons of 

 manure only and unsprayed. Change-of-seed experiments are reported from 

 which it was concluded that where suflicient attention is devoted to the selec- 

 tion of home-grown seed, seed importations are unnecessary. 



Comparative tests of farmyard manure and seaweed as a fertilizer for pota- 

 toes in the 4-year period 1912-1915 indicated that with applications of equal 

 amounts seaweed did not produce quite so heavy a crop as the manure, but 

 that when seaweed was used with commei'cial fertilizers muriate of potash 

 could be omitted without any material reduction in yield. A standard mixture 

 of 1 cwt. of sulphate of ammonia, 4 cwt. of acid phosphate, and 1 cwt. of 

 muriate of potash, together with farmyard manure, is recommended for 

 potatoes on most of the soils of Ireland. On peaty soils the above mixture has 



