424 



REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS OF 



pounds of water for one pound of dry matter, while the average in 1894 is 593.2 

 pounds of water to one pound of dry matter, the general average of seven trials being 

 557-3 pounds of water to one pound of dry matter. 



\ 

 EXPERIMENTS ON WATER CONSUMPTION OF PLANTS AT THE IOWA 

 AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE. 



During the growing season of 1895, experiments on the water consumption of 

 several agricultural crops were made at the Iowa Agricultural College by J. B. Weems 

 and W. H. Heileman. The land selected for the experiments is part of the station 

 farm, upon which were grown clover, corn, oats, potatoes and blue grass. Samples of 

 soil were taken each week at different depths and the amount of moisture determined 

 in the usual manner. The investigation began April 9 and ended October 29, 1895. 

 The nature of the soil in the experimental fields was as follows: 



Clover field. First two feet consisted of black loam of a uniform good quality; 

 third foot being composed of fine gravel and gravel clay and the fourth of 

 gravel and clay. 



Corn field. First two feet were loam soil ; third foot was a yellowish clay loam 

 mixed with black loam, the fourth foot being of a yellow sandy loam. 



Oats field. First two feet consisted of a loam soil like the preceding, third foot 

 being yellow loam mixed with black and the fourth foot consisted of yellow clay loam. 



Root field. First two feet composed of the same soil as the preceding, with the 

 third foot a black loam mixed with yellowish clay and the fourth foot consisting of 

 stiff yellowish clay and fine gravel. 



Blue grass meadow. First two feet consisted of a loam soil, the third being a fine 

 sandy loam, brown in color, and the fourth foot composed of a fine sandy 

 loam of yellowish color. 



The results of the tests are shown by the following table : 













TOTAL 











MOISTURE 



WATER 









TOTAL 



TAKEN 



CONSUMP- 



KIND OF CROP 





PERIOD CONSIDERED 



RAINFALL. 



FROM 



TION. 









IN INCHES 



GROUND. 



IN INCHES 



INCHES ON 



GROUND 



AREA 



Clover meadow, 



April 



9 to October 29, 



25.08 



2.48 



27.56 



Corn field, .... 



May 



7 to September 17, . 



I9.27 



2.12 



2I.39 



Oat field, .... 



April 



9 to July 18, . 



I3.O9 



3-97 



I7.06 



Root field mangels, 



May 



21 to October 15, 



I9.86 



!-39 



21.25 



Blue grass meadow, 



April 



9 to October 29, 



25.08 



3-4i 



28.49 



