THE BREEDING OF OATS, BARLEY, AND WHEAT. 839 
Ontario Agricultural College in 1902. Of each of these six varieties 
one-sixteenth of an acre was sown with a grain drill by using every 
second tube of the drill; one-sixteenth of an acre was sown with a grain 
drill by using every tube of the drill; one-sixteenth of an acre was 
planted by hand, placing the seeds eight inches apart both ways; and 
one-sixteenth of an acre was planted by hand, placing the seeds one foot 
apart each way. It will therefore be seen that one and one-half acres were 
devoted to this work in 1903. No less than 9,972 seeds of each variety, 
or a total of 59,832 seeds of the six varieties, were planted by hand. 
The four methods of planting were used in order that a comparison 
might be made as to the best method to use in plant selection. It was 
found that the grain which was sown with a grain drill, either from every 
tube or from every second tube, gave a very poor opportunity for plant 
selection. From grain sown with a drill heads may be selected, but it is 
practically impossible to make a satisfactory selection of plants owing 
largely to the uneven distribution of the seed. When plants are grown 
at unequal distances apart they vary greatly owing to the relative amount 
of soil, moisture, and air furnished the individual plants owing to the 
uneven manner in which the seeds are distributed in the soil. On 
a careful examination of the plants obtained from the drilled seed it was 
found that some of them would be separated from all other plants by ten 
or twelve inches; while in other cases two or three plants would be 
growing so closely together that their roots and stems would become 
so much entangled that it was difficult to ascertain whether there was 
simply one plant or whether there were two or three or four plants, 
until a considerable amount of time and labour was expended in making 
the examination. It was therefore decided to make a few selections of 
heads, but not to make a selection of plants from the crop produced 
from the seed sown with a machine. The grains which were sown by 
hand, however, gave an excellent opportunity for the plants to grow under 
uniform conditions. As all the plants in each of the two methods of 
hand planting were at equal distances apart, it afforded an excellent 
opportunity for studying the stooling properties, the comparative strength 
of straw, and the size and uniformity of the heads &c. of the individual 
plants. When the crops of each variety on the hand-planted plots had 
reached the proper stage of maturity, careful examinations were made 
and the results recorded for reference. After this had been done a few of 
the very best plants were selected and harvested separately. All of the 
seed of the most promising plant of each variety was sown in the spring 
of 1904, and nearly all the grain produced in 1904 was sown in the 
spring of 1905. A number of the other choice plants of each variety 
was also selected and harvested separately, and afterwards the best seed 
was selected and sown in single rows in the spring of 1904. From those 
strains which gave the best satisfaction in 1904 a sufficient amount of 
seed was selected and sown on uniform plots in the spring of 1905, and 
the yield and the quality of the crops produced were carefully recorded. 
The results so far are encouraging. A statement of a few of the records 
is here given. 
Increased Stooling Properties—The crops grown from the seeds 
planted one foot apart each way showed the following average number 
xy 2 
