VARIETIES OF OATS 289 



and a long season of gro\^th. The Red Rust Proof appears to 

 have a wide adaptation to the conditions existing in the 

 Southern States. 



"It can be sown both in fall and in late winter in this latitude. It is generally 

 not greatly injured by rust, but is rust resistant rather than rust proof. The straw 

 is short, an objection in very poor or stony land, since short straw means loss in 

 harvesting. The height of straw can be increased by the liberal use of nitrogenous 

 fertilizers, such as cotton seed, cotton seed meal and nitrate of soda.'-' 1 



The Station resiihs clearly indicate that there are t}-pes of 

 oats specially adapted to Southern conditions, but do not appear 

 to indicate any marked adaptability among the Xorth Atlantic, 

 North Central and Western States. 



388. Improvement of Varieties. — The qualities to be sought 

 in oats are (i) high percentage of kernel, (2) yield, and (3), to 

 meet commercial demands, high weight per bushel, which is 

 not necessarily related to per cent of kernel. Factors which 

 influence yield, and to some extent quaht}^, are (i) hardiness, 

 (2) earliness, (3) stiffness of straw, (4) resistance to heat and 

 drouth, (5) rust resistance. Oats have been improved by selec- 

 tion and by crossing. Improvement may be accomplished 

 through continuous seed selection (402) and through the selection 

 of individual plants by means of the breeding nurser}'. (108) 

 The oat grower may keep his variety true to t}-pe and possibly 

 improve it by maintaining a small seed patch (say an acre) on 

 which is grown seed selected from the best portion of his field 

 or the best plants of his seed patch the previous year. 



389. Introduction of New Varieties. — The most important 

 variet}- improvement in America has been due to the introduc- 

 tion of new varieties from northern Europe. Probably more 

 new varieties of oats are imported and distributed by seedsmen 

 than of any other cereal. It is not clear, however, to what 

 extent the improvement has been merely in weight per bushel 

 rather than in yield, except in instances where specially tested 



1 Ala. BuL 95 (1S9S), p. 161. 



