WHEAT 77 



cracks and heaves greatly in the late winter, thus exposing 

 the wheat roots to the weather. The chief variety of 

 wheat is the Mediterranean, which is quite hardy, but 

 not sufficiently so every season for the higher portions of 

 the Panhandle. A very large undeveloped western por- 

 tion of the district can be used for wheat by the establish- 

 ment of hardier varieties. The Hessian fly and green 

 bug are sometimes serious pests in this district. 



1 . Varieties now grown : 



Fultz Mediterranean 



Fulcaster 



2. Needs of the district : 



Drought-resistance Rust-resistance 



Winter-hardiness Resistance to Hessian Fly and 



Green Bug 



69. Durum wheat district. By the year 1905 the 

 durum wheat became well established in this country. 

 The crop is now so large, and the territory so large in 

 which no other wheat can take its place, that it is quite 

 proper to regard this area now as a separate wheat dis- 

 trict. The district adapted includes western Nebraska, 

 eastern Wyoming, the western portions of South Dakota 

 and North Dakota, eastern Montana, the extreme south- 

 western portion of Saskatchewan, and southeastern Alberta. 

 Drought and the winters are extremely severe in the 

 greater part of this district, and only the hardiest spring 

 wheats, such as the durum wheats, can succeed. Also 

 as the area lies far westward near the mountains the soil 

 is lighter, not so deep, and has less humus than in the 

 eastern Great Plains, and therefore retains less water 

 from the same amount of rainfall. The constant need is 

 for drought-resistant varieties. 



The great rust-resistance of durum wheats has caused 



