Methods of Breeding Nursery Wheat. 55 



necessary and care must be used in pulling out of the 

 hills every weed, as a weed will make the conditions 

 poor for the plant beside which it grows, thus destroy- 

 ing the primary basis of the comparison of the indivi- 

 dual plants. 



When nearly ripe the border plants are all re- 

 moved by means of a grass sickle or sheep shears from 

 around and between the plots, the grain being tied in 

 bundles and shocked up at one side of the field. Notes 

 are now taken according to the purpose of each experi- 

 ment. In some cases it is desired simply to secure a 

 large number of superior plants. In other cases a 

 smaller number of the very best plants are wanted for 

 mothers of centgener plots. In the comparison of the 

 progeny of mother plants the best heads are wanted 

 for the best plants and the number of plants harvested 

 and their yield of grain are desired. In yet other cases 

 theoretical studies of breeding require that statistics be 

 gathered of numerous measureable qualities of each 

 individual plant. The plants may be pulled up by the 

 roots or may be harvested, or may be cut off with sheep 

 shears or grass hook, as the purposes of the experiment 

 require. 



This article is already too prolix with details and 

 the system of numbering, the detailed herd-book method 

 in use, would seem a little cumbersome to insert here. 

 Each variety secured by the station is given a number 

 with the name of the state prefixed, as Minnesota No. 

 169 wheat and Minnesota No. 13 corn. Each plot in 

 the nursery is alloted one or more hundreds in a system 

 of numbering which allows a number for each individ- 

 ual plant. Each new plot begins to number with the even 

 hundred and one, thus 101, ITOI and 1201, even though 

 the previous plot did not fill out the fr 11 Im^red last 

 previous numbers. By discarding the two figures at 

 the right the remaining figures at the left have come to 

 be used as the centgeners i, IT, 12, while the entire 

 number stands for the first plant of the respective 

 centgener plots. It should be observed that should 



