550 HORTICULTURE, FORESTRY, FLORICULTURE 



porters. Many planters claim that the cluster or short-limbed vari- 

 eties are best on deep and rich soil, while the longer-limbed sorts 

 are superior for lighter soils. The results which have been secured 

 in a large number of comparative tests, however, do not seem to 

 show any foundation for this opinion, and indicate that the differ- 

 ences, if any, are attributable to other reasons than the mere length 

 of the limbs. The short-limbed and cluster sorts can be planted 

 more closely than can those varieties having longer and more spread- 

 ing branches, but usually have smaller bolls, and none of the cluster 

 varieties produces a long staple. Many of the cluster varieties have 

 sharp points to the bolls, which make them unpleasant to pick, though 

 this objection does not apply to all.. Most of the cluster varieties ma- 

 ture early, though none of them mature as early as do some of the 

 medium and short-limbed sorts, and a few mature quite late. The 

 general results of the tests made show the cluster varieties to be bet- 

 ter adapted for cultivation in the middle and southern cotton re- 

 g;ion than in the extreme northern belt. The bolls should be of good 

 size, and a cross section should show a circle and not a triangle with 

 rounded corners. When mature they should point downward rather 

 than upward, so that rain and heavy dews will not enter and rot the 

 contents; and they should also open widely enough to permit easy 

 picking, but not enough to allow the seed cotton to drop to the 

 ground. It is of no advantage to have more than three or four 

 divisions or "locks" in a boll, as when spherical in shape, and with a 

 given diameter, its contents can be no greater in six sections than in 

 three. The bracts at the base of the boll should be small, so that 

 they will not be in the way and become entangled with the seed 

 cotton in picking. The lint should be pure white in color, strong, 

 even, silky, uniform in length and twist, and should be easily sepa- 

 rated from the seed in ginning. The staple should be not less than 

 25 mm. in length, and if 30 mm. can be secured it will be still bet- 

 ter, though it will not be advisable to sacrifice a larger yield for a 

 longer staple so long as the present relative prices of the long and 

 short staples are maintained. 



With early maturity and a medium length of staple secured, 

 the only additional feature which need be considered is how to se- 

 cure the greatest possible yield of lint per acre. It is often claimed 

 that the larger the percentage of lint to seed cotton the more valuable 

 the variety. This belief has no foundation in fact, and is really the 

 reverse of true, provided the total yield of lint per acre remains the 

 came. A crop of 500 pounds of lint and 1,100 pounds of seed per 

 acre is certainly more valuable than the same crop of lint with only 

 900 pounds of seed. At present prices the seed is an important part 

 of the crop, and if the yield can be increased without detriment to 

 the total yield of lint it will add just that much to the value of the 

 entire crop. 



It may be said by way of caution that there is no necessary re- 

 lation between the yield of lint per 100 pounds of seed cotton and 

 the actual yield of lint per acre. A variety may yield a high per- 

 centage of lint, calculated on a given weight of seed cotton, and yet 



