ANNUAL REPORT, 1938 21 



The most promising of these new strains is Havana Seed 211. It is highly 

 resistant to black root-rot. In general appearance it closely- resembles common 

 Havana Seed tobacco. It is a good producer with respect to both amount and 

 quality of tobacco produced and it withstands drouth considerably better than 

 most strains of common Havana Seed tobacco do. It has been observed also 

 that flea beetles and thrips do not attack Ha\ana Seed 211 so readily as they do 

 common Havana Seed tobacco. 



In small plot tests conducted for six years under favorable producing condi- 

 tions where black root-rot was not an important factor, Havana Seed 211 averaged 

 2214 pounds of tobacco per acre and outyielded the common Havana Seed 

 control by 164 pounds per acre, or 8 percent. It outgraded the control by ap- 

 proximately 12 percent. On the basis of both yield in pounds per acre and quality 

 of tobacco produced, it surpassed the control by approximately 21 percent. In 

 other small plot tests conducted for five years under black root-rot promoting 

 conditions, Havana Seed 211 averaged 1938 pounds of tobacco per acre and out- 

 yielded the common Havana Seed control by 607 pounds per acre, or approx- 

 imately 45 percent. It outgraded the control by approximately 45 percent. On 

 the basis of both yield in pounds per acre and quality of tobacco produced, it 

 surpassed the control by approximately 88 percent. 



Havana Seed 211 has been grown to a limited extent commercially. It com- 

 monly has outyielded and outgraded common Havana Seed tobacco when they 

 were grown under comparably favorable producing conditions. Under black 

 root-rot promoting conditions, it has far surpassed common Havana Seed tobacco 

 with respect to both amount and quality of tobacco produced. 



A majority of the growers of Havana Seed tobacco in the Connecticut Valley 

 who have grown Havana Seed 211 approve of the strain in its present stage of 

 development. And it is acceptable to one group of tobacco buyers in the Connec- 

 ticut Valley. However, another group of buyers admit freely that the strain 

 possesses much merit but suggest that it be modified in certain respects to make 

 it more acceptable to them. 



So, recognizing the close approach which Havana Seed 211 makes toward ful- 

 filling the objectives of the project, and using the strain as a foundation stock, 

 work has been done during the last two years to improve upon the strain in ac- 

 cordance with the suggestions made by the latter group of buyers. This was 

 first attempted by selecting within Havana Seed 211 certain plants which seemed 

 possibly to possess the desired characteristics. The progeny of these selections 

 are now being grown to determine whether any of them possess the desired char- 

 acteristics in sufficient degree to satisfy the criticisms made of Havana Seed 211. 

 And secondly, in order to provide new strains for use in the project in case the 

 selections made with Havana Seed 211 fail to provide the desired improvements, 

 numerous crosses have been made between the most acceptable selections and 

 three highly approved strains of common Havana Seed tobacco. The progeny 

 of these crosses are now being grown for the purpose of selecting new strains which 

 may possess the desired characteristics. The selections made from the crosses 

 will be tested in due time to determine their worth. By these procedures it is 

 hoped to produce strains of Havana Seed tobacco which are improvements over 

 Havana Seed 211 and which may more nearly satisfy those who criticise Havana 

 Seed 211. 



Reductions in Yield and Quality of Tobacco Caused by Mosaic. (C. V. Kight- 

 linger.) Experiments were made in 1936 and 1937 to determine and to compare 

 the reductions in yield and quality of Havana Seed tobacco in the Connecticut 

 Vallev caused bv common tobacco mosaic. Four inoculations for mosaic were 



