THE MARKET GARDENS OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO. 



no hothouse, nor any artificial means of plant propagation in this terraced valley, with 

 its Amsterdam windmills. 



There were growing on Washington's Birthday, 1905, such vegetables as young peas, 

 lettuce, artichokes, cabbage, beets, radishes and others which those of us not of Califor- 

 nia, are more apt to associate as belonging to the summer months than to February. 



Some of the artichokes have brought as high as seventy-five cents apiece, some only 

 ten cents apiece, while others are sold by the dozen. Then there is lettuce which has 

 often brought between ten and twenty-five cents a dozen. The beds themselves are about 

 twenty feet long by twelve feet wide. The luxuriance and vigor of the plants seemed al- 

 most phenomenal. The artichokes seemed to be "growing like weeds," as some one ex- 

 pressed it. 



THE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION AT CHICO. 

 By Professor P. H. Dorsett 



in Charge. 

 The California Promotion Committee, 

 San Francisco, California. 

 Gentlemen: — The following is an outline of some of the more important immedi- 

 ate plantings at the plant introduction garden, preparatory to demonstration experi- 

 ments, and to the work of plant breeding and selection. 



CEREALS. 

 Some of the highly nitrogeneous barleys will be planted to determine if possible 

 their value for feeding purposes as compared with the sorts in general cultivation. 

 In as much as a heavy yielding barley is always of great interest, as well as economic 

 value to the farmer, it is possible that one of the selected barleys of Prof. Willet M. 

 Hays, formerly agriculturist in the Agricultural Experiment Station of the University 

 of Minnesota but recently appointed Assistant Secretary of Agriculture, which has 

 shown remarkable yielding qualities, will be planted to determine its value in Cali- 

 fornia. 



FORAGE PLANTS AND GRASSES. 

 These plants especially new introductions and originations will receive more or 

 less attention and will be tested in comparison with those already in general cultiva- 

 tion. 



It is possible that Vicia sativa, which has proved so successful in Oregon on 

 heavy clay soils might be equally as successfully grown upon the adobe lands of this 

 State. 



JUNCUS EFFUSUS. 

 JUNCUS EFFUSUS (CALIFORNIA RUSH). 

 In view of the fact that the California rush which grows on the tule lands is so 

 promising for matting material, that Mr. Sawyer, of the Boston Matting Manufactur- 

 ing Company, has written that they would start a factory in this region provided the 

 California rush by cultivation can be made equal to the Japanese. The office of Seed 

 and Plant Introduction has taken up the matter of collecting a quantity of the roots 

 of the several species, to determine the best method of propagation, growing, etc. 

 Plants and seeds of the best known varieties in Japan will be introduced to test in 

 connection with the native species and for breeding and selection experiments. This 

 work will be co-operative with the State Experiment Station. 



ALMOND. 

 Almond growing is one of the important industries of the State, but is fraught with 

 uncertainity and frequently immense loss; all of which could be avoided, and the in- 

 dustry be made an exceptionally paying one, provided a late blooming variety of good 

 quality can be secured. With these ends In view, as many varieties of almonds as 

 possible will be secured and established at the garden. The Jordan, a very recently 

 imported Spanish hard-shell variety, of excellent quality, will be tested and although 

 it may bloom too early to be profitable, its qualities will be useful in breeding experi- 

 ments designed to produce later flowering almonds of good quality. 



UDO SALAD PLANT. 

 Myoashi Udo salad plants will be planted at the garden this spring, for propaga- 

 tion, in order to obtain a supply with which to experiment and also to call the atten- 

 tion of the vegetable growers of California who may be able to take up the cultiva- 

 tion of these plants and make a market for them in this vicinity. 



