VARIETIES OF WHEAT 57 



couid best be conducted by breeders' associations, by the State 

 or National agency is still an unsettled question. In the mean- 

 time there is an opportunity for breeders to form associations 

 and reap a benefit similar to that obtained by live stock 

 breeders' associations. 



91. Number of Varieties. — ^In 1895 the United States De- 

 partment of Agriculture collected about 1,000 rather distinct 

 varieties of wheat, having obtained varieties from every wheat 

 country of the world. After three years' trial less than 200 

 varieties were selected as being worthy of continued trial. 

 After five years' trial, it was determined that in all the species 

 and subspecies of wheat there were 245 which may be regarded 

 as leading varieties of the world, at least so far as they have 

 any adaptability to American conditions. 



92. Variety Characteristics. — The following are some of the 

 characteristics which may be taken to constitute variety differ- 

 ences : color, shape and hardness of grain, color and smooth- 

 ness of glumes, glumes bearded or beardless, time of ripening, 

 length and other characters of straw. If grown under like 

 conditions, probably the size of the grain, when the differences 

 are marked, should be considered. With winter whe^t the time 

 of ripening is not a very important characteristic through much 

 of the winter wheat area. The Ohio Station finds usually about 

 tAvelve days as the extreme difference in sixty-five varieties 

 tested, although a difference of sixteen days has been noted. 

 This static a is confirmed in the belief that seasons which 

 produce early maturity give crops of better quality.^ Hays 

 found among 400 plants of a single spring variety that the time of 

 ripening varied from 97 to 127 days.*' In those States west of 

 the Missouri River where hot dry winds frequently prevail during 

 the ripening period, especially if delayed, earliness of maturity 



1 Ohio BuL 129, p. 18. 



> Bfinn. Bui 62 (1899) p. 424. 



