FIELD CROPS. 559 



of the interior along the trails between Eagle and Valdez, the Fortyniile country, 

 the Tanana Valley, and the Coj^per River region are presented. Reports on the 

 culture of tield and garden crops by settlers at different ])oints are given, and soil 

 temperatures taken daily at various places for several years during the growing 

 seasoUj^nd meteorological observations at different points, for 1899 to 1900, inclusive, 

 are tfll)ulated. 



Work at Sitka Station. — Swedish winter rye sown October 3, 1900, survived the 

 winter and ripened September 15. Wheat sown at the same time did not live through 

 the winter. Romanow spring wheat, which has given the best results in previous 

 tests, was the only variety grown in 1901 . Two jilats of old ground were seeded May 

 8 and a plat of new ground May 11. The wheat on the old ground was harvested 

 September 17 and the crop on the new ground October 3. The following varieties of 

 l)arley were tested: Manshury, Sisolsk, Manchuria, Lapland, Black Hulless, and 

 Chevalier. All of these varieties proved promising with the exception of Chevalier. 

 Ivapland was the earliest of the varieties grown. Black Hulless is not considered a 

 very productive barley, but is recommended for its earliness and its value as a food 

 material for the natives, being well adapted for this purpose on account of its naked 

 kernels. 



Of 2 varieties of oats under test, Burt Extra Early gave the best yield. This 

 variety has proven one of the most promising and has never failed to mature. The 

 other variety. North Finnish Black, did not mature satisfactorily and is not consid- 

 ered adapted to the region. The following quantities of fertilizing substances were 

 applied per acre and compared in connection with growing North Finnish Black oats 

 on new ground: 30 tons of seaweed, 30 tons of stable jnanure, 5'00 lbs. fish guano, 

 30 tons of seaweed plowed under and 500 lbs. of guano sown broadcast after plowing, 

 and 30 tons of stable manure plowed under and 500 lbs. of guano appHed broadcast 

 after plowing. The oats were sown May 22 and on June 15 they ranked in appear- 

 ance in the following order from the best to the poorest: (1) Manure and guano, (2) 

 seaweed and guano, (3) manure, (4) seaweed, and (5) guano. The check plat, 

 which had received no fertilizer, was the poorest. This relative rank was maintained 

 throughout the season and the yields of hay obtained from the different plats were 

 also in the same order. The yield on the check plat was practically nothing. "The 

 experiment simply proves in an emphatic way . . . that new cleared and broken 

 land is unproductive unless it is fertilized." The results of growing oats and peas as 

 a mixture were quite satisfactory. 



A plat of Orenbor^ buckwheat sown May 22 was ripe September 5. This variety 

 and a so-called Finnish buckwheat can be grown successfully in Alaska, but Japanese 

 and Silver Hull buckwheat have quite generally been failures. Flax on new ground 

 was not a success. The results of vegetables on old ground were highly satisfactory, 

 while on new ground they were practically failures. Seaweed was found to be an 

 excellent fertilizer for potatoes, followed in productiveness by guano. The culture 

 of raspberries, currants, and gooseberries was successful. 



Work at Kenai Station. — Sisolsk rye was sown August 20, 1900, and harvested Sep- 

 tend)er 26, 1901. The plants grew from 5 to 6 feet high. At the close of the blos- 

 soming period the plants tillered profusely and much of the straw remained green 

 up to the time of harvesting. Only about 50 per cent of the heads produced grain. 

 Promising results were obtained with Sandomer and Yarasloff winter wheat. It is 

 believed that on old ground and in ordinary seasons Yarasloff, the earlier of the two 

 varieties, will mature. Sandomer showed a greater tendency to sucker. Several 

 varieties of spring wheat were sown May 10 and 11, but owing to a drought the 

 growing season was shortened and the crop was cut for hay September 6. 



Manshury barley sown May 24 on old and new ground was harvested October 4. 

 The old ground produced a uniform growth, while on the new ground the plants 

 were quite uneven in height and threw uj) many suckers. At the time of harvest 

 only the older heads were ripe. Beartown barley was grown on old ground from 



