122 



THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



GROW YOUR OWN SEEDS. 



The department of agriculture is investigating the 

 quality of seeds being sold in the United States by pur- 

 chasing sample lots from places scattered over all the 

 country and subjecting them to careful tests. The re- 

 sults are surprising. The actual number of germinable 

 seeds in a bushel of clover seeds costing $5.50, and in 

 a bushel costing $3.50 was ascertained. In the former, 

 where the price was apparently higher, the cost of good 

 seed was 9 8-10 cents per pound, while in the latter, 

 where the initial cost was lower, it was 12 6-10 cents 

 per pound. But this is not all. In 56 per cent of waste 

 in a seed of cheaper quality there are innumerable seeds 

 of noxious weeds. In one sample containing in all 1-5 

 of 1 per cent of spurious seeds the number of weed seeds 

 per pound averaged up to 990. In a bushel of 60 

 pounds there are, therefore, more than 59,000 weed 

 seeds. A sample containing 4-5 of 1 per cent of spur- 

 ious seeds has about 3,000 weed seeds to the pound, 

 while in another sample, in which 2 5-10 per cent was 

 spurious seed, there were more than 27,600 weed seeds 

 in every pound. If 15 pounds were sown the farmer 

 would distribute about 144,000 of weed seeds, all of 

 which would have an equal chance with the crop with 

 which they grew. The same holds true to even a greater 

 extent of alfalfa. 



The acreage of alfalfa in this country is increasing 

 rapidly in the well-known area of the arid portion from 

 the Missouri river westward, as well as in the southern 

 humid part of the United States, where its cultivation 

 has been more recently introduced. The larger area 

 sown each year, together with the short crop of the 



last two years, has created a demand for seed far in 

 excess of the domestic production. The usual results 

 have followed this scarcity, the price of good seed has 

 advanced, larger importations of foreign seed are being 

 made, a considerable amount of adulterated seed is be- 

 ing offered, and the quality of clover and alfalfa seed 

 is low. During the eighteen months from June 30, 

 1902, to December 30, 1903, 1,999,335 pounds of alfalfa 

 seed were imported. This seed is mostly of inferior 

 quality. 



On the question of imported seed Farmers' Bulle- 

 tin No. 260, issued by the United States Department 

 of Agriculture, says: "The United States is a large 

 exporter of clover and other seeds, our annual sales 

 ranging from five million to twenty million pounds per 

 annum. At the same time we are importing a rela- 

 tively smaller quantity of various seeds of lower qual- 

 ity. In most European countries there is some sort 

 of seed control, either voluntary or otherwise, by means 

 of which the people have been educated to the use of 

 seed of good quality. This leaves a large bulk of poor 

 seed that cannot be sold there which, being offered for 

 export at low prices, is sent to the United States and 

 either sold as low grade seed, or, in case it is especially 

 bad, mixed with better seed in the so-called grading 

 down process before being put on the market." 



A very stringent seed law has been recently enacted 

 in Canada prohibiting the sale there of seed contain- 

 ing more than a very small number of weed seeds. It 

 contains the following clause: "The provisions con- 

 tained in this act shall not apply to seed marked, 'Not 

 absolutely clean,' and held or sold for export only." 



While the provisions of this law prevent the legal 



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Designed especially for the excavation of irrigation ditches and canals. Sold on 

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Wheeled Scrapers, Drag Scrapers. Buck Scrapers, Road 

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Send for Catalog JHJUORJl, ILL. 



