CEREALS AND FORAGE PLANTS 



353 



soils, cool climate and warm climate, but it is not able to 

 endure an excess of water. 



In connection with the sowing of oats, the soil is not always 

 ploughed when it is rich and deep, as corn land, but the seeds 

 are sown broadcast and then covered by means of a corn- 

 cultivator or a spe- 

 cial harrow, being 

 smoothed over after- 

 wards by an ordinary 

 harrow. Upon gen- 

 eral principles, how- 

 ever, a good seed-bed 

 should be prepared by 

 ploughing, not neces- 

 sarily so deep as for 

 other cereals, and pul- 

 verizing. Most of the 

 oats are sown early 

 in the spring, so that 

 most of the growth, 

 which takes approxi- 

 mately three months, FlG 30 ._ Oats> showing detaila of flower clus ~ ter: AI 

 may occur during the 

 cooler part of the 

 growing season. Oat3 

 are also sown in the 

 fall (" winter oats "), 

 but this practice seems to be restricted to the more southern 

 areas of oat-cultivation. 



part of the cluster, showing the stalked spikelets ; 

 B, a single spikelet, showing the two glumes enclos- 

 ing two flowers (a third abortive one is shown), 

 each consisting of a pistil (whose branching style is 

 shown) and three stamens infolded by the palet ; C, 

 the palets of the two flowers, one of them with a long 

 awn. After SARGENT. 



Wheat 



56. Production of wheat. It is perhaps a surprise to some 

 that the United States produces less wheat than oats, the 

 amount for 1912 being 730 million bushels. Nevertheless, 



