CROP ROTATIONS 197 



rotations, alfalfa. The most promising intertilled crop 

 in the South is corn. No hoed crop suited to large 

 acreages is available for the North, although a small 

 acreage of roots and sunflowers may very profitably be 

 grown in this area. 



153. Rotation Tests at Brandon. — The general con- 

 clusions from eight years' work with different crop ro- 

 tations at the Experimental Farm at Brandon have been 

 summarized by Mr. W. C. McKilUican, the Superin- 

 tendent of the Farm, in a discussion of the rotations 

 known as "E", "F", "G", "H", "I'' and "W" as follows :— 



"The rotations under test at Brandon are as follows : — 



154, "Typical Grain Farming Rotations. — 



Rotation "E":— 



1st year — "Wheat. 



2nd year — Wheat. 



3rd year — Oats. 



4th year — Fallow. 

 "This is the typical grain farming rotation of Mani- 

 toba. No manure is applied at any time. This rotation 

 has the fallow for a cleaning season, has three cash 

 crops, but no fodder crop unless the oats are used in that 

 way, and no leguminous crop. By means of the fallow 

 it conserves moisture and makes plant food more readily 

 available for the crop that follows, and attempts at least 

 to control weeds. It makes no attempt to return any- 

 thing to the soil, so that gradual depletion and increased 

 tendency to blow are the inevitable results. During the 

 time that prairie soils are giving up their virgin fertility, 

 good results are obtained from this rotation, but it 

 cannot continue indefinitely. 



Rotation "D":— 

 "This rotation has exactly the same order of crops as 



