4 



BULLETIN 270, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



miles west of Williston. In December of that year the station of 

 the Weather Bureau was moved to Williston. The Biophysical Lab- 

 oratory of the Bureau of Plant Industry installed weather instru- 

 ments at the Williston substation in 1909, and since that year the 

 rainfall recorded there for the months during the growing season 

 (April to July, inclusive) is used in the rainfall table. The growing 

 season for the small grains extends from April to about August 1 

 to 10. The crops are so nearly mature en August 1, however, that 

 precipitation after that date has little effect on yields. The table 

 shows the rainfall, by months for the growing season and for the 

 year, with monthly averages, maxima, and minima. 



Table I. — Monthly,' annual, and seasonal precipitation, with the average, maximum, 

 and minimum for each month, at Williston, N. Dak., 1879 to 1914, inclusive. 



[Data (in inches) from the records of the U. S. Weather Bureau and the Biophysical Laboratory of the 



Bureau of Plant Industry.] 



Year. 



Jan. 



Feb. 



Mar. 



Apr. 



May. 



June. 



July. 



Aug. 



Sept. 



Oct. 



Nov. 



Dec. 



An- 

 nual. 



April 



to 

 July, 

 sea- 

 sonal. 



1879 



1880 



1881 



1882 



1883 



1884 



1885 



1886 



1887 



1888 



1889 



1890 



1891 



1892 



1893 



1894 



1895 



1896 



1897 



1899 



1900 



1901 



1902 



1903 



1904 



1905 



1906 



1907 :. 



1908 



1909 



1910 



1911 



1912 



1913 



1914 



0.58 

 .10 



1.98 

 .26 



1.98 

 .11 

 .64 

 .41 

 .51 

 .47 

 .13 

 .22 

 .19 

 .14 



2.04 

 .88 

 .53 



2.02 

 .56 

 .01 

 .58 

 .03 

 .54 

 .09 

 .40 

 .58 

 .10 

 .82 



1.03 

 .04 

 .31 

 .27 

 .56 

 .44 

 .52 

 .55 



0.59 



.51 



1.10 



.29 

 .36 

 .12 

 .44 

 .71 

 .18 

 .33 

 .30 

 .18 

 .14 

 .38 

 .31 

 .20 

 .47 

 .71 



1.10 

 .74 

 .10 

 .85 

 .34 



1.52 

 .27 

 .59 

 .14 

 .03 

 .13 

 .39 

 .10 

 .34 

 .34 

 .17 

 .14 

 .28 



0.03 

 .21 



1.17 

 .69 

 .91 

 .10 

 .03 

 .31 

 .12 

 .44 

 .20 

 .58 

 .27 

 .38 

 .12 



2.23 

 .07 



1.80 



2.10 



1.25 

 .79 



1.25 

 .26 



1.36 

 .09 



1.57 

 .18 

 .16 

 .66 

 .79 

 .12 



1.23 

 .42 

 .35 

 .94 

 .50 



2.75 



.74 



1.34 



.94 



.48 



1.30 



1.71 



2.25 



1.09 



.61 



.60 



.60 



1.84 



2.65 



.38 



2.07 



2.52 



2.86 



1.17 



1.08 



.60 



.57 



.46 



.53 



.79 



.78 



.04 



1.59 



.53 



1.96 



.64 



1.40 



.32 



2.13 



.15 



.49 



5.56 

 4.02 

 1.00 

 1.61 



.59 



.14 

 1.02 

 1.14 

 1.59 



.96 

 2.69 

 1.58 

 1.49 



.48 

 4.79 

 3.15 

 3.02 

 5.79 



.72 

 1.21 

 2.39 

 1.46 



.71 

 2.69 

 3.94 

 1.27 

 1.74 

 4.55 

 1.11 



r.8o 



2.84 

 1.30 

 3.00 

 4.59 

 1.05 

 1.31 



3.35 

 5.46 

 3.45 

 1.87 



.97 



.99 

 6.05 



.93 

 3.25 

 6.75 

 1.03 

 5.23 

 7.08 

 2.41 

 1.84 

 4.68 

 3.67 

 3.45 

 2.71 

 4.56 

 3.72 



.65 

 8.84 

 3.92 

 2.06 

 2.58 

 3.44 

 8.80 

 2.03 

 2.64 

 3.72 

 1.65 

 1.37 

 1.59 

 2.15 

 7.98 



3.63 

 4.17 

 1.22 

 2.25 

 1.69 

 1.87 

 3.02 



.56 

 2.00 

 2.12 



.63 

 1.06 

 2.99 

 4.49 

 1.85 



.02 

 2.55 

 1.22 

 1.36 

 1.93 

 1.91 

 2.34 

 2.71 

 3.43 

 2.43 



.56 

 1.94 



.50 

 1.82 



.60 

 1.72 

 1.27 

 1.40 

 3.60 

 2.60 

 2.32 



0.18 



2.36 



1.10 



.16 



1.96 



1.06 



1.50 



- .87 



3.91 



1.61 



.95 



.22 



.78 



.62 



.31 



.73 



1.03 



.72 



.45 



.23 



.56 



4.47 



.74 



1.26 



5.02 



.57 



.74 



2.39 



2.06 



1.11 



.38 



1.69 



2.56 



3.47 



5.50 



3.55 



Trace. 



1.04 



.58 



2.86 



.22 



.53 



.26 



.05 



1.07 



.62 



1.13 



2.05 



.66 



.11 



.64 



1.50 



.32 



.89 



.58 



.99 



.01 



2.24 



1.77 



.33 



1.39 



.12 



1.93 



1.18 



.45 



2.18 



1.27 



.14 



2.49 



1.21 



1.13 



.64 



1.55 



.90 



.39 



1.00 



1.41 



.44 



.19 



1.57 



1.43- 



.62 



.01 



2.45 



1.96 



.15 



1.14 



1.05 



.35 



.34 



.43 



2.08 



1.06 



1.03 



.14 



.32 



.05 



.23 



.06 



.26 



.08 



1.18 



.17 



.05 



.53 



1.12 



.94 



.38 



0.37 

 .66 

 .39 

 .29 

 .14 

 .31 

 .56 

 .59 

 .10 

 .10 

 .37 

 .03 



1.44 



1.12 

 .56 

 .85 



1.91 



2.10 

 .85 

 .30 

 .13 

 .71 



1.02 

 .72 

 .18 

 .01 

 .31 



1.00 

 .02 

 .16 

 .20 

 .66 



1.25 

 .14 

 .15 

 .24 



1.68 

 3.08 

 .09 

 .51 

 .11 

 .40 

 .14 

 .55 

 .18 

 .07 

 .42 

 .04 

 .14 

 1.33 

 1.92 

 .40 

 .63 

 .14 

 .16 

 .06 

 .76 

 .21 

 .83 

 .68 

 1.07 

 .58 

 .04 

 .73 

 .26 

 .01 

 .46 

 .28 

 .59 

 .18 

 Trace. 

 .33 



20.27 

 23.25 

 13.81 

 12.73 

 10.82 



7.37 

 15.56 

 10.24 

 15.43 

 14.70 



8.46 

 14.24 

 18.98 

 14.26 

 15.90 

 17.76 

 17.07 

 22.04 

 12.19 

 14.44 

 12.61 

 15. 81 

 18.36 

 16.85 

 17.69 



9.44 

 10.66 

 22.01 

 10.18 

 13.49 

 11.93 

 10.28 

 14.83 

 18.99 

 15. 27 

 18.47 



15.29 



14.39 

 7.01 

 6.67 

 3.73 

 4.30 



11.80 

 4.88 

 7.93 



10.44 

 4.95 

 8.47 



13.40 



10.03 

 8.86 

 9.92 



11.76 



13.32 

 5.96 

 8.78 

 8.62 

 5.02 



12.72 



10.57 

 9.22 

 5.19 

 7.16 



15.44 

 5.49 

 7.00 

 8.92 

 5.62 

 6.09 



11.91 

 5.95 



12.00 



Aver- 

 age. . . . 



Maxi- 

 mum . 



M ini- 

 mum . 



.57 

 2.04 



.01 



.41 



1.52 



.03 



.66 



2.23 



.03 



1.17 



2.86 

 .04 



2.17 



5.79 



.14 



3.c2 



8.84 

 .65 



1.99 



4.49 



.02 



1.58 



5.50 



.16 



.96 



2.86 



Trace. 



.75 



2.45 



.01 



.55 



2.10 



.01 



.53 



3.08 



Trace. 



14.90 

 23.25 



7.37 



8.86 

 15.44 

 3.73 



The average annual precipitation for the period of 36 years, as 

 shown by Table I, is 14.90 inches. The maximum for any one year 

 was 23.25 inches (in 1880) and the minimum was 7.37 inches (in 

 1884). During the same period the average precipitation for the 



