180 



The Journal of Heredity 



There also are varietal differences in 

 size and length of kernel, and in the 

 presence and absence of awns. Panicles 

 and spikelets of naked and common 

 oats are shown in Figures 14 and 15, 

 respectively. 



Varieties 



The number of varieties of naked 

 oats is comparatively small. Most ot 

 the lots introduced into this country 

 have been of the Chinese variety (A. 

 nuda chinensis, Fisch.). with spreading 

 panicles and with either awned or 

 awnless lemmas. This variety is the 

 one which has been most commonly 

 exploited. 



In recent years several new varie- 

 ties of naked oats have been developed 

 in this country by crossing the Chinese 

 variety on some of the best common 

 varieties. The most notable is that 

 of the Liberty Hull-less, (Ottawa No. 

 480) (see Fig. 16) developed by Dr. 

 C. E. Saunders of the Central Ex- 

 periment Farms, Ottawa, Canada, 

 from a cross between Chinese Hull-less 

 and Swedish Select. Dr. Saunders 

 succeeded in getting a stiffer strawed 

 variety in the Liberty Hull-less, but in 

 yield it apparently is not greatly su- 

 perior to the Chinese Hull-less parent. 

 It may also be slightly less susceptible 

 to disease than the naked parent, all 

 of the strains of naked oats which 

 have been introduced into this country 

 being very susceptible to smut and 

 rust. 



Recently the South Dakota Agri- 

 cultural Experiment Station at Brook- 

 ings has bred a new naked variety 

 from a cross between Kilby Hull-less 

 and Swedish Select. This new variety 

 is practically identical with the Liberty 

 Hull-less. One year's observation of 

 this variety indicates that it is not 

 sui)eri(jr to other naked varieties. The 

 Dei^artment of Plant Breeding at Cor- 

 nell University also has bred several 

 new naked sorts from a cross between 

 naked oats and Swedish Select. 



Yield 



The agronomic value of any crop 

 variety is determined primarily by its 

 yielding power. Naked oats have been 

 included in a few scattered varietal 

 experiments. The earliest reported ex- 

 periments in which the naked variety 

 was compared with ordinary ones were 

 conducted by the University of Wiscon- 

 sin at Madison in 1871. The results 

 of these experiments as reported by 

 McAfee,"* farm superintendent, shows 

 that Bohemian Hull-less oats yielded 

 970 pounds of grain to the acre, as 

 compared with 2,489 pounds of White 

 Schonen, 1,992 pounds of common 

 local oats, and yields of other varieties 

 vary from 1,510 to 2,404 pounds. 



In 1 91 6, the Washington Agricul- 

 tural Experiment Station at Pullman 

 reported'" some results with hull-less 

 and other varieties of oats grown in 

 1913, 1914 and 191 5. Only yields in 

 grams per plat are shown, but these 

 provide a basis for satisfactory compar- 

 isons. The average yield of naked oats 

 for the three years was 1,456 grams; 

 of Chinese Hull-less, 1,063 grams; of 

 Abundance, 3,246 grams, and of Ban- 

 ner, 3,248 grams. If the yields of 

 these two latter hulled varieties are 

 reduced by twenty-five per cent, the 

 approximate weight of the hulls, they 

 are still in excess of 2,400 grams of 

 dehulled grain. 



Some of the more recent introduc- 

 tions of naked oats have been grown 

 for one or two years at the field sta- 

 tions of the Office of Cereal Investiga- 

 tions. At some stations they were so 

 ])oor that they were not thought worth 

 harvesting. As a consequence, few 

 yield data on hull-less varieties have 

 been accumulated. Such data are avail- 

 able for 1 91 4 and 191 5 at both Moc- 

 casin, Montana, and Highmore, South 

 Dakota, on one variety of naked oats. 

 At Moccasin, the hull-less averages 

 1,098 pounds to the acre, as against 

 1,802 pounds of Swedish Select oats. 

 At Flighmore, the average yield of the 



* FVir mimhered references, see Literature Cilcd, at end of article. 



