535 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. [Vol.41 



of irrigation upon tlie protein content of wheat, the fundamental reasons for 

 the influence of soil water upon protein formation, and the cumulative effect 

 of different amounts of irrigation water on the protein content. The plan of 

 the experiment involved the growing of three varieties of wheat side by side 

 on one-fifth and one-tenth acre plats in such a manner that varying amounts 

 of irrigation water could be applied. Quantitative determinations of the 

 soil nitrates were made at frequent intervals on certain of the phits to de- 

 termine the relative amounts present and their possible concentration under 

 the influence of irrigation water In zones beyond the feeding range of the 

 plant roots. Milling tests and analytical work on repre.sentative samples of 

 grain from each plat are also reported. Field observations and analytical 

 data are presented in tabular form for each year of the experiment and briefly 

 discussed. 



Substantial variations in the amount of irrigation water failed to produce 

 any marked effect on the protein content of the grain. The data also failed 

 to reveal any concentration of soil nitrates in zones beyond the feeding range 

 of the wheat plant. No cumulative or permanent effects of large amounts 

 of water upon the protein content of wheat were observed. 



The results secured are held to indicate that while wheat grown under irri- 

 gation in the Snake River region is in general soft, starchy, and of low protein 

 content, this condition is not due to irrigation but to a lack of available 

 nitrogen in the raw sagebrush soils brought under cultivation on irrigation 

 projects. The rotation of wheat with alfalfa or red clover is said to result 

 in a decided improvement in the quality of the grain, vvhile protein elabora- 

 tion was also somevv'hat stimulated. It is stated that nevertheless careless- 

 ness in the use of irrigation water may offset otherwise favorable soil con- 

 ditions for maximum protein elaboration. It is concluded that however " de- 

 teriorated '* in quality a really good variety of milling wheat may have be- 

 come through growth under irrigation on soils depleted of available nitrogen, 

 seed from it will respond with the production of maximum amounts of pro- 

 tein for the variety if given the favorable conditions of growth indicated, 

 and that nothing is to be gained by importing seed of that variety from distant 

 localities. A more rigid selection of varieties on the basis of well-recognized 

 milling qualities is also emphasized. 



Official field crop inspection, H. L. Bolley (Jour. Amer. Soc. Agron., 11 

 {1[I19). No. 5, pp. 196-205; also in Science, n. ser., 50 (1919), No. 1287, pp. 193- 

 199). — In this paper, a contribution from the North Dakota Experiment Station, 

 the author discusses the necessity and desirability of a legal basis for bring- 

 ing about stability and standardization of varieties in cereal cropping. It 

 is suggested that this be accomplished by a law authorizing crop inspection 

 in the field, seed certification, seed standardization, and seed listing, all under 

 the supervision of an expert preferably associated with the State experiment 

 station. 



The size of seed, W. M. Findlay (North of Scot. Col. Agr. Bui. 23 (1919), pp. 

 16). — Field tests, conducted at various experimental centers in Scotland, are 

 described in which observations were made on the effect upon yield of different 

 sized seeds in the same sample of oats, barley, turnips, and red clover ; of dif- 

 ferent sized seeds in different samples of oats, turnips, and red clover ; and of 

 sifting out small oat seeds. 



The results are held to indicate that in a single sample of seed large seeds 

 produced more than small seeds. In different samples of the same kind of 

 seed the strain and origin of the seed v.ere of more importance than the size 

 of the seed. When ungraded seed was employed, the plants produced by the 

 Large seeds exerted a considerable adverse influence upon those from small 



