THE SMALL GRAINS 161 



possessed by the short-strawed and compact heads of the club 

 varieties which are commonly used. Australian Club and Little 

 Club are common in this area. 



196. Palouse district. The Palouse district of Washington 

 and Oregon is in many respects similar to the Pacific coast 

 district. The rainfall is much less and the wheat is somewhat 

 harder. The varieties grown, however, are often the same as 

 those of the Pacific coast, so that the difference is less than 

 would otherwise be the case. The hard Turkey wheat of the 

 Plains is being introduced to some extent, and appears to be 

 superior to the more common varieties. 



197. Intermountain district. The area between the Rocky 

 Mountains and the Pacific coast grows a small amount of wheat 

 in various localities. Nearly all of it is produced by dry farming. 

 Very little spring wheat is grown. The most prominent varieties 

 are Washington, Bluestem, Lofthouse, Koffoid, and Turkey. 



198. Atlantic coast district. The amount of wheat produced 

 on the Atlantic coast is very small compared with the total for 

 the United States. This wheat is important, however, in sup- 

 plying the local demand. It differs from the soft- or semihard- 

 winter-wheat district, since the higher precipitation produces 

 wheat that is softer. The principal varieties grown are Purple 

 Straw, Lancaster, and Fultz. 



199. Time of plowing. Wheat requires a finely pulverized, 

 compact seed bed. Therefore it is very important to plow con- 

 siderably in advance of the time of seeding, in order to allow the 

 soil to settle and to favor the accumulation of available plant 

 food near the surface where the young wheat plants may easily 

 reach it. To prevent the loss of moisture by evaporation and 

 to keep the weeds from using the moisture and plant food the 

 land must be disked and harrowed often enough to maintain a 

 surface mulch. 



200. Depth of plowing. The cost of plowing increases with 

 the depth. It is, therefore, important to know just what depth 

 of plowing will give the most profitable yields. The deeper the 

 soil and the drier the climate, the deeper the land should be 



