18 FEEDING VALUE OF CEREALS. 



ing the last few years. The following cereal grains are represented: 

 Oats, emmer, einkorn, wheat, rye, barley, proso, sorghum, and maize. 

 Under each class the samples consist, when possible, of both the 

 original imported seed and grain grown from this seed- in various 

 sections of the United States. 



The greater part of the work on the introduction of new cereal 

 grains has had to do with the semiarid regions of this country, the 

 cereals introduced having been selected either on account of (1) 

 drought-resistant qualities, or (2) rust or disease resistance, in addi- 

 tion to their yield and general character. Whether or not these quali- 

 ties are maintained on introduction into this country can only be 

 determined by field tests, moreover, two questions arise in regard to 

 these introduced grains: (1) Are they of equal or superior quality to 

 domestic varieties, and (2) do they maintain their characteristic 

 properties and qualities when .grown for successive years in the 

 United States. 



The analyses made in this investigation and their correlation for 

 the relative valuation of the samples studied are an attempt to 

 answer these questions without entering into a study of the direct 

 effect of change of environment on the properties of cereals. 



DISCUSSION OF RESULTS. 



The complete tabular results of all analyses with the calculated 

 production values for each nutrient and for the whole food are given 

 in the tables at the close of the bulletin (p. 48). The discussion of 

 tables of average results are presented in the following pages, each 

 cereal being discussed under a separate caption. 



OATS (Avena saliva). 



COMPARISON OF DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN OATS. 



The present investigation was undertaken primarily to study the 

 properties and composition of the Swedish Select oat, a very desir- 

 able variety, the seed of which was introduced from Russia in 1899 

 by the Office of Grain Investigations, U. S. Department of Agriculture. 

 This oat is especially resistant to drought and rust, is strong and 

 hardy, and makes a good yield. It answers, therefore, particularly 

 well all the requirements for introduction. 



Among the oats analyzed there are 128 samples of the Swedish 

 Select- oat grown in various sections of the United States. In addi- 

 tion to these, there are 89 samples from 13 varieties of introduced 

 oats which have been grown in the United States for a short time, 

 usually not more than three years. There are also 25 samples, 

 representing 10 varieties of purely domestic oats. This makes 242 

 samples, representing 24 varieties of oats grown in the United 

 States either from purely domestic seed or from recently introduced 



