FIELD CROPS. 



Sol 



1903, 98 per cent of the tubercles of this new potato were in good condition, while of 

 the Early Rose potato grown under similar conditions, 1 >ut having been affected by 

 plant diseases, only 15 per cent were good. The yield of this new potato was also 

 much greater than that of the Early Ruse and the American Marvel. 



Sorghum as a sirup plant, J. S. Newman et al. (South ( 'arolina Sta. Bui. 88, pj>. 

 31). — The study of sorghum as a sugar and sirup producing plant is briefly noted, 

 and the results obtained at the station from 1900 to 1903, including chemical data, 

 are reported. 



In 1900, 13 pedigreed varieties were grown; in 1901, 12; in 1902, 6, and in 1903, 7. 

 Prior to 1903 the results were based on the analysis of the cane and the practical 

 working of the same for the production of sirup, but during the last season only 

 chemical analyses were made. The yield of sirup per acre in 1900 ranged from 30.3 

 to 155.6 gal. per acre, the corresponding yields of stripped cane being 15,756 and 

 6,201 lbs. per acre, respectively. These yields of cane also represent the extremes. 

 In 1901 and 1902 the sirup production ranged from 53.6 to 94.7 gal. and from 24.9 to 

 72.8 gal., respectively. The results obtained in 1903 are given in the table below: 



Results with nineties of sorghum in 1903. 



Name of variety. 



Stripped 



cane per 



plat. 



Pounds. 



Amber, western grown 250. 



Amber, home grown 417. ."> 



Earl y Orange ! 425. 



Kansas Orange 400. 



Fclger 330. 



Coleman 395. 



Collier 385.0 



■deeper S -'"ice per 

 Plat. ta i , 1 ' ( '. rt p, acre. 



Pounds. Pounds. Pounds. 



78. 8 

 118.9 

 154.4 

 112.5 



89 5 

 117.8 

 109.5 



6, 250. 

 10, 137.5 

 10,625.0 



10, 000. 

 8, 250. 

 9,875.0 

 9, 625. 



1,970.0 

 2, 972. 5 



:;,xi ;n.o 

 2, 812. 5 

 2, 237. 5 

 2, 945. 

 2,737.5 



Juice in 

 cane. 



/'. a. 



31.52 

 28. 17 

 36. 32 

 28.12 

 27. 12 

 29.82 

 28.44 



Cane 



sugar in 



juice. 



P. ct. 



13.65 

 16.12 

 15. 49 

 15. 77 

 13.02 

 13.43 

 15. 97 



Sugar per 

 acre. 



Pounds. 



268.90 

 479. 36 

 566. 56 

 1 13. 52 

 291. 32 

 395. 51 

 437.17 



In one test plants were thinned to 4, 3, 2, and 1 stalks per foot of row and the 

 yields of sugar obtained per acre were 78.14, 87.36, 115.45, and 116.55 lbs., respec- 

 tively. The best yields of cane and sugar per acre were obtained from a planting 

 made April 21, as compared with plantings made May 6 and 22 and June 10; but the 

 percentage of sugar was highest in the cane planted latest. The results of a ferti- 

 lizer test lead the authors to infer that 250 lbs. of cotton-seed meal per acre would 

 be as effective in producing cane and sirup as 200 lbs. of cotton-seed meal, 300 lbs. of 

 acid phosphate, and 80 lbs. of kainit per acre. These experiments have been in 

 progress only one season. 



The total solids, sucrose, and purity coefficient were determined in the samples for 

 the different experiments and are recorded. In the variety test for 1903 the average 

 of all the samples gave 20.04 per cent of total solids, 14.78 per cent of sucrose, and 

 73.8 per cent of purity. The average results of 6 fiber determinations gave 10.15 per 

 cent of liber and 89.85 per cent of juice. Data obtained in connection with work on 

 sorghum in 1898, -1899, 1900, and 1901 are also recorded in tables and noted. 



Experiments with sugar beets in 1903, C. D. Smith i Michigan Sta. Bui. 215, 

 pp. 19). — In studying the variation of sugar content in beets the author found that 

 in one instance the difference in sugar content of adjacent beets grown from the same 

 seed and under identical conditions amounted to over 3 per cent, while a difference 

 of over 2 per cent was frequently shown. 



Two methods of sampling were compared. In the first, 1 beet was selected every 

 5 paces in each row of the plat, making a composite sample of 45 beets, and in the 

 second, 10 beets were taken from the low and high areas of the plat for the purpose 

 of representing each soil type. The first sample showed 14 per cent of sugar with a 

 purity of 83.9, and the second, 13.2 per cent of sugar with a purity of 80. The loss 



