570 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Thoroujilily i-nrc(l sheaf oats from the uiitVrtili/cd plats and from those receiving 

 the smaller and the larjxer (|nantity of nitrate of st)da contained UH, '.W, and 33 per 

 cent of grain, respecti\ely. A jilat of oats sown January 31 and fertiHzed at the rate 

 of 80 Ihs. nitrati' of soda per acre showed an increase of 8 l)n. per acre over the check 

 plat, which was eijuivalent to a i)rofit of $1.(>0. Oats receiving an excessive applica- 

 tion of 3,46t) lbs. fresh cotton seed per acre yielded 39 bu., or 18 bu. more than the 

 unfertilized crop, while the plat receiving an equal quantity of nitrogen in the form 

 of cotton-seed meal jiroduced only 23.2 bu. per acre. Nitrate of soda at the rate of 

 160 lbs. per acre on oats sown March 25 proved detrimental. On these late oats 200 

 lbs. cotton-seed meal i)er acre was practically without effect. 



Tlie results of these and previous experiments were in favor of fall sowing. Seed of 

 Red liust Proof oats scalded for 10 minutes in water at a temperature of 133° F., pro- 

 duced a croj> free from smut, while the oats from untreated seed contained 3 per cent 

 of smutted heads. The scalded seed also produced 1 bu. of grain more per acre than 

 the mitreated seed. Of different methods of soil preparation for oats, plowing and 

 harrowing the soil, plowing in the seed, and tlien rolling the ground gave the best 

 results. Leaving the surface a little rough is considered a partial ])rotection against 

 winterkilling. 



Ow'ing to rust, fertilizer experiments with wheat did not give reliable results. 



On the improvement of the Sw^edish potato industry, -with a report on 

 culture trials ■with potatoes, II. Juhlix-Daxxfelt (A'. Landt. Akad. Ilandl. och 

 Tkhkr., 42 {1903), Xu. 2, pp. 147-180). 



Sugar beet experiment, C. L. Penny {Delaware Sta. lipt. 1902, p. 84). — Only one 

 test was made. The average weight of the beets was about S^- oz., the sugar content 

 of the juice by weight 20.7 per cent, and the purity 87.2. The beets lost 19 per cent 

 in topping, and the yield of topped beets per acre was 11,887 lbs. On this basis the 

 yield of sugar would ainount to 2,209 lbs. per acre. The experiments in this line 

 thus far conducted by the station are not regarded as conclusive, but the results given 

 above are not considered favorable for the sugar-beet industry in Delaware. 



Respiration in the sugar beet, F. Strohmer {Abs. in Centbl. Agr. CJiem., 32 

 {1903), Xo. 7, pp. 465-469) . — Experiments were conducted to study the cause of the 

 loss in sugar occurring in stored beets. The respiration products in several series of 

 sample beets, all of the same variety and obtained from the same source, were 

 determined and the infiuence of various factors was noted. The tops of the beets 

 were removed and only a few" buds allowed to remain at the ci'own. Each sample 

 beet was under test from 70 to 72 hours. 



The results did not show that the respiration products of the sugar beet contain 

 other carbonaceous gases in addition to carbon dioxid. The loss of sugar in stored 

 beets was found to be larger than was indicated by the quantity of carbon dioxid 

 exhaled. A definite relation ]>etween the original sugar content of the beet and the 

 quantity lost by respiration could not be established, and tlie total loss in sugar, 

 other conditions being equal, was not parallel with the increase in sugar content. 

 Neither did the quantity of sugar lost during storing and the quantity reduced to 

 nonsugars show any connection. Respiration is regarded as the strongest factor in 

 causing loss of sugar in nonsprouting beets. 



Storing at the low'est possible temperature is recommended because it reduces the 

 loss in sugar to a minimum and in other ways preserves the quality. In sprout- 

 ing beets the loss from reduction to nonsugars is much greater than the loss due to 

 respiration. It is stated that cane sugar in the beet serves as material used in respi- 

 ration, in which connection it is broken up into carbon dioxid and water and as a 

 reserve substance utilized in the development of new organs, or in growth in gen- 

 eral, in which a mere rearrangement of its atoms takes place. 



According to results obtained l>y the author and others the fodder and sugar beet 

 are injuriously affected by a temperature between — 1° and — 1.1° C A temperature 



