1920 J FIELD CROPS. 823 



fiys. 7). — Cultural, variety, fertilizer, and rotation tests are reported, and tield 

 practices and cultural methods with potatoes and root crops described. 



Maximum average yields in the spring wheat variety tests for 1915 to 1918 

 were made by Minnesota 951 and Kubanka, both durum wheats, with 24.58 and 

 22.72 bu., respectively; Red Chaff, fife wheat, 22.24 bu. ; and Prelude, 22.3 bu. 

 The leaders in the 1919 tests included emmer and Acme (durum) with aver- 

 age yields of 21.48 and 10.41 bu. per acre, respectively. Poor yields in 1916 

 and 1919 were attributed to black stem rust. Although Prelude, a very early 

 short-strawed variety of durum, was susceptible to the disease, it showed 

 superiority over the fifes and bluestems as to hardiness, and is recommended as 

 one of the best hard .spring wheats for the district. Milling tests indicated that 

 Prelude is fully as good as any of the common varieties. 



Variety tests of winter wheat showed Minnesota Selections No. 1507 and 

 1493, Turkey X Odessa hybrids, leading in the average of two crops, 1916 and 

 1919, with respective acre yields of 24.7 and 23 bu. Lack of moisture rather 

 than hardiness was the determining factor in 1917 and 1918, and the yields for 

 those years were not considered indicative of winter hardiness. No evidence 

 was presented showing that bearded varieties were better yielders than awnless. 



Kherson, an early variety, with acre yields of 76.75 bu., and Banner, a mid- 

 season sort, with 75.24 bu., averaged best in oat tests during the period 1915 

 to 1918; and Iowa No. 103, with 45.67 bu., was first in 1919 tests. Odessa, a 

 6-rowed barley, and Austrian Hannah, a 2-rowed variety, were fii'st with re- 

 spective average acre yields of 38.68 and 37.54 bu. for the 4-year period, and 

 Minsturdi led the tests in 1919 with 40.27 bu. per acre. In 1919 tests of winter 

 rye Rosen was highest with a yield of 31.7 bu. per acre and a total yield of 

 4,069 lbs. of grain and straw. Spring rye yielded only about one-third as much 

 as the winter varieties and the grain was of poorer quality. 



Rate-of-seeding tests with winter wheat and winter rye indicated that 6 pk. 

 is the minimum amount that can be recommended for both crops. This amount 

 gave maximum yields when sown between August 20 and September 1. Winter 

 wheat and winter rye sown August 15 in time-of -seeding tests made 2-year 

 average yields of 24.49 and 33.25 bu. per acre, respectively, surpassing all later 

 plantings in yield. 



In a test of 8 field pea varieties, Wisconsin No. 508 was first with an acre 

 yield of 30.5 bu. 



Northwestern Dent and Squaw Flint, with respective acre yields of 47.5 and 

 36 bu. of air-dry shelled grain, were the highest producers among the corn 

 varieties in 1919. The improvement work with Minnesota No. 13 was continued. 

 riiis variety is recommended for silage and forage purposes in the district 

 but is considered rather late for ripe grain. 



(Jrimm. alfalfa has given consistently most satisfactory yields, producing a 

 3-year average of 3,789 lbs. of hay per acre. This variety planted in a rotation 

 in April, 1918, with Prelude wheat as a nurse crop, yielded 11,440 lbs. of hay 

 per acre in 1919 in two cuttings. Inoculation with soil from an old tield was 

 decidedly beneficial, while an application of 1 ton of lime per acre was of no 

 noticeable value. Meadow fescue, with a 3-year average yield of 1.32 tons 

 of hay per acre, was best among the grasses. 



Potato investigations included variety, cultural, and fertilizer tests, together 

 with improvement work conducted in cooperation with the Bureau of Plant In- 

 dustry of the U. S. Department of Agriculture. Green Mountain was the 

 highest yielder among 8 standard varieties, producing a 3-year average yield 

 of 354.16 bu. per acre, 92.9 per cent of which was of U. S. grade No. 1. Itasca, 

 a Green Mountain seedling, averaged 378.75 bu. per acre for the period 1918-19. 



