12 BREEDING DROUGHT-RESISTANT FORAGE PLANTS. 



13.3 inches. The greater part of the rainfall in this region occurs 

 during the early growing season, and the latter part of the summer 

 is liable to be exceedingly dry. 



Although the soil type at Bellefourche is peculiar to only a part of 

 the region, the similarity of the climatic conditions is such that we 

 may expect that strains of forage crops developed at this station will 

 be adapted to the greater part of western North and South Dakota 

 and eastern Montana. a 



AKRON DRY-LAND STATION. 



The Akron Dry-Land Station is conducted by the Office of Dry- 

 Land Agriculture Investigations of the Bureau of Plant Industry. 

 The farm is located about 4 miles east of Akron, Washington County, 

 in northeastern Colorado. It was selected as a desirable place for 

 breeding drought-resistant forage crops because of its central loca- 

 tion in the Great Plains. The climatic conditions are probably more 

 severe here than in the greater part of the central Great Plains, but in 

 general the station is representative of a large part of the area. The 

 altitude of the station is nearly 4,700 feet, being about 1,800 feet 

 higher than the Bellefourche station. The average annual precipi- 

 tation, as computed from the records at several places in eastern Colo- 

 rado, is about 17 inches, though the precipitation at Akron for the 

 past few years has slightly exceeded this. 



The land at the Akron station, on which the plant-breeding nursery 

 is located, was broken from the native sod in June, 1907, and has been 

 under cultivation ever since. The soil may be classed as a loam, and 

 is generally favorable for the production of crops when sufficient 

 moisture is present. The soil is typical of the "hard lands" of the 

 Great Plains, as distinguished from the "sand lands" of eastern 

 Colorado, western Nebraska, and other sections of this region. The 

 moisture equivalent of the Akron soil is about 17 per cent, which 

 indicates that it is only medium in water-storing capacity. 



ALFALFA BREEDING FOR DROUGHT RESISTANCE. 

 ALFALFA BREEDING AT THE BELLEFOURCHE EXPERIMENT FARM. 



SEGREGATION OF STRAINS. 



In the alfalfa breeding at Bellefourche, while increased drought 

 resistance has been the principal object in view, it has been necessary 

 also to take into consideration hardiness, seed production, and the 



a In transferring the breeding work from Highmore to Bellefourche, the crops were 

 placed under different conditions of soil and a slightly different climate. The soil 

 at the Highmore substation is a glacially deposited clay loam, containing some sand. 

 The altitude is a little less than 1,700 feet, as compared with 2,900 feet at the Belle- 

 fourche station, and the precipitation is about 17 or 18 inches annually. Highmore 

 may be considered as located near the eastern edge of the Great Plains, while Belle- 

 fourche is representative of the more arid portion of the northern Great Plains. 

 196 



