CEREAL INVESTIGATIONS ON THE BELLE FOURCHE FARM. 



29 



Table XV. — Annual and average yields of the best varieties of winter and of durum and 

 common spring wheats on the Belle Fourche Experiment Farm, 1908 to 1913, inclusive. 



Group and variety. 



C.I. 



No. 



Yield per acre (bushels). 



1908 



1909 



1910 



1911 



1912 



1913 



Aver- 

 age. 



Winter: 



1442 



1516 



2492 

 3025 

 3020 



25.4 



23.8 



16.2 

 18.5 

 18.3 



40.3 



22.6 



16.0 

 17.3 

 13.8 



22.7 



5.3 



12.8 

 10 6 



9.0 













 

 











4.5 











38.6 



19.1 



17.1 

 16.6 

 14.1 



21.2 



Spring durum: 



11.8 



Spring common: 



11.1 





10.5 





9.2 







To summarize: In three of the six years covered by the experi- 

 ments the winter varieties have produced about double the yield 

 obtained from the spring varieties. In one year the yield was only 

 slightly larger and in two years practically all varieties of both 

 spring and winter wheats were total failures. The average yield of 

 the best winter variety for the sLx years was 21.2 bushels, while the 

 average yield of the best durum variety was 11.8 bushels. Winter 

 wheat is to be preferred to spring wheat, because the growing of a 

 fall-sown grain allows a better distribution of labor throughout the 

 year. Winter wheat also matures earlier and so is more likely to escape 

 hailstorms, hot winds, and other unfavorable climatic conditions. 

 On the other hand, sufficient moisture for germination is less likely 

 to be available in the fall than in the spring, and there is also danger of 

 damage to the crop from the blowing of the soil during the winter. 

 Winterkilling has not been a factor of much importance in the experi- 

 ments at Newell, nor is it likely to be if varieties of the Turkey group 

 are grown. If a crop of winter wheat is lost because of the blowing 

 of the soil, winterkilling, or other factors, there is still opportunity to 

 sow the land to some spring crop. For these reasons the growing 

 of winter rather than spring wheat is strongly recommended. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH OATS. 



The yields of oats which have been obtained at Newell have for 

 the most part been unsatisfactory. In 1908, 1909, and 1913 fairly 

 good yields were obtained, but in 1910 and 1912 the returns were 

 less than the cost of production, while in 1911 a total failure was 

 recorded. 



^ The average yield of the best variety for the six years from 1908 

 to 1913 was only 19.4 bushels, which is less than the average yield 

 of winter wheat for the same period. The yield of the best spring 

 wheat for the six years was slightly less than 12 bushels to the acre, 

 but the production in pounds is greater than that of oats and the 

 value of the crop is also higher. For this reason the oat crop can not 



