10 



BULLETIN 526, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



however, 18 to 24 inches in the row. When inspected on June 3, the 

 old-method plants were branching normally, indicating fairly early 

 thinning. At this time, also, the plants in the single-stalk rows were 

 rather too far advanced for the best results, numerous fruiting 

 branches being visible. Although thinning was completed within 

 the two d&js following, on June 4 and 5, it is reasonable to assume 

 that more significant results would have been obtained had thinning 

 been done several days earlier. When thinned the plants were 8 to 

 12 inches high with 6 to 8 leaves. With a long-staple variety, this 

 would have been more nearly the proper time to thin, but with Half- 

 and-Half, a short-staple cotton, it unquestionably was too late. The 

 plants were spaced about 8 inches apart. 



There were 12 rows in the experiment, and the two systems of 

 culture were compared in alternate rows. Two pickings were made, 

 the yields of each row for each picking being as reported in Table V. 



Table V. — Row yields obtained in a single-stalk culture experiment with cotton 

 conducted in 1915 on the farm of R. K. Boney, Duck-port, La. 





Yield of seed cotton (pounds). 



Row. 



First picking. 



Second picking. 



Total. 





Single 

 stalk. 



Old 



method. 



Single 

 stalk. 



Old 

 method. 



Single 

 stalk. 



Old 



method. 



No. 1 



38 

 34 

 38 

 40 

 35 

 42 



34 

 35 

 34 

 30 

 35 

 38 



16 

 31 

 29 

 27 

 24 

 22 



24 

 24 

 22 

 21 

 21 

 28 



54 

 65 



67 

 67 

 59 

 64 



58 



No. 2 



59 



No. 3 



56 



No. 4 



51 



No. 5 



56 



No. 6 



66 







Total 



227 

 21 



10 



206 



149 

 9 



6 



140 



376 



30 



9 



346 







Increase per cent. . 















Table V shows that the yield per row at each picking favored 

 single-stalk culture in all but 4 instances, in one of which the yields 

 were identical. In total yield, single-stalk culture led in four of the 

 six rows. The total yield at each picking favored single-stalk culture 

 by 10 and 6 per cent, respectively, the total increase for both pick- 

 ings being 9 per cent. This difference is considerably less than was 

 forecast by boll counts made on August 14, when it was found that 

 single-stalk rows had from 40 to 50 per cent more bolls than old- 

 method rows. The chief reason for this discrepancy between the 

 boll counts and the yields reported may lie in the probability that 

 more bolls opened earlier on the single-stalk rows than on the old- 

 method rows and more of the cotton on the former was lost before 

 picking time. This explanation appears the more credible if we 

 take into account the fact that varieties of the type used in this ex- 

 periment are lacking in stormproof qualities. 



