134 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Ill 1906 the leading varieties aiul tbeir yields were as follows: North Fin- 

 nish S. P. I. No. 5513 oats 58 bu., Silsolsk No. 89 barley 35 bu., Velvet Chaff 

 spring wheat 17 bu., Black English field i)eas 33.00 bn., Northwestern corn GS.OO 

 bu., Swedish Brown field lieans 43.17 bu.. Rye buckwheat 25.83 bu., flax 10.30 

 bu., einkorn 29.04 bu., Dolsen potatoes 272.25 bu. 



I'otatoes planted November 5-9, 1904, sprouted and blossomed about 1 week 

 earlier the following spring than potatoes of the same varieties planted May 18 

 and 20, 1905. A i acre of fall planted potatoes yielded 3,390 lbs., as compared 

 with 3,266 lbs. for a i acre of spring planted tubers. 



In 1906, on drained muck land these varieties of potatoes ranged in yield 

 from 123.75 bu. to 284.62 ])U. per acre, the leading variety being Northern 

 Beauty. This same year a comparison of fall and spring i)lantiug on /, 

 acre plats again favored the fall planted crop in sprouting and blossoming. 

 The yield on this area was in favor of sju-ing planting by 3()9 lbs. In both years 

 the average differences in yield between level and bill cultui-t' and in 1905 

 between sjjraying and not spraying were immaterial. In 1906, si)raying with 

 Bordeaux mixture gave an average increase at the rate of 22 bu. per acre. A 

 sprayed i)lat of Delaware potatoes this same season yielded at the rate of 

 460.8 bu. per acre, while the nnsi)rayed plat iiroduced at the rate of only 

 358.4 bu. 



Kherson oats stood second in 1905 with a yield of 4(> bu. per acre. Burt 

 and Sixty Day, two white varieties, and North Finnish, a black oat, are con- 

 sidered promising for that region. French Chevalier 2-rowe(l barley has given 

 only low yields. 



The results of a corn-breeding experiment in 1906 showed that corn will 

 readily adapt itself to new environments and demonstrated the importance of 

 breeding a type sure to ripen in all localities and in all seasons in the Upper 

 Peninsula. Geliu has proved to be the earliest coi'n of 100 early varieties under 

 test. 



The yields of numerous forage crops are given in tables and the growth of 

 these crops is briefly noted. 



Forag-e crops in northwest Texas, A. B. Conner (Texas 8tu. Bui. 103, pp. 

 5-21, figs. 6, map 1). — Cooperative forage crop investigations were begun by the 

 Texas Exi)eriment Station and the Bureau of Plant Industry of this Depart- 

 ment in 1905 at Chillicothe, and in 1906 at Amarillo, in northwestern Texas, or 

 that part of the State known as the Panhandle. Brief descriptions and cultural 

 directions are given for the different forage crops tested. 



Sorghum is by far the most important forage crop of this section. The best 

 forage varieties, according to this report, are Sumac, Orange. I'lanter, Black- 

 hull Kafir corn, lied Kafir corn, lied Amber, Minnesota Amber, and Milo maize. 

 In 1907, a season not at all favorable to heavy forage production, medium early 

 planting sufficiently thick and regular in the drill to allow the utilization of all 

 available moisture gave the following yields at Chillicothe: Sumac and Orange 



5 tons, Blackhull Kafir corn and Red Amber Ah tons, Minnesota Amber and 

 Planter 4| tons, Red Kafir corn 4 tons, and Milo maize 3 tons of thoroughly 

 dried-out forage per acre. Careful seeding was found to control largely the 

 growth and yield of the crop, and the use of a planter with a pack-wheel is 

 recommended. Hand-thrashed seed was found more satisfactory than machine- 

 thrashed seed. 



The heaviest yields of forage with most varieties were obtained from drills 

 21 in. apart with stalks every inch in the drill. Milo maize gave the large.st 

 yield of forage in rows 42 in. apart with stalks every inch, and the best yield 

 of seed in rows 3 ft. apart with stalks every 6 in. The yields ranged from 3 to 



6 tons per acre at Chillicothe and from 3 to 8 tons at Amarillo. 



