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the most important for the State and region, but there are many locali- 

 ties in which investigations can be conducted that will apply well to 

 all the sagebrush-plains regions of Washington, Idaho, and Oregon. 

 This work can, perhaps, be undertaken better with the Washington 

 station than with those of the other States, while, on the other hand, 

 other problems that are encountered by the farmers and stock raisers 

 of Washington can be as well or better met and answered in the other 

 States, as has already been suggested under the discussion of cooper- 

 ative work possible with those stations. Owing to the lack of time, 

 no visit was made to the Oregon station. But I was given to under- 

 stand that this station would be glad to join the Division in coopera- 

 tive investigations ; and, as already suggested by you, the subject of 

 sand and soil binders would be a good line of work to be undertaken 

 in this State. Oregon is particularly well situated for the investiga- 

 tion of this problem, and urgent requests for its consideration have 

 been made to the Secretary by members of Congress and private 

 individuals. 



MONTANA. 



The forage problems in this State are essentially the same as those 

 already discussed for Idaho and Wyoming, the most important being 

 those of the improvement of the cattle and sheep ranges and crops 

 resistant to drought. As in Wyoming, the question of crops suitable 

 for meadows in relatively high altitudes is one of considerable impor- 

 tance, the demand for such crops having increased very rapidly 

 during recent years. Another question which is becoming more and 

 more important as lands are being brought into cultivation is that of 

 alkali-resistant crops. Through injudicious irrigation, seepage from 

 canals, and other causes, considerable areas of land which have here- 

 tofore given good crops of grain or alfalfa have become so strongly 

 impregnated with alkali that expensive special treatment of the soil 

 has become necessary, unless crops can be found sufficiently resistant 

 to the alkali to flourish under the present conditions. The State sta- 

 tion has already demonstrated the practicability of growing clover, 

 timothy, redtop, and other of the more commonly cultivated forage 

 crops in the more favored sections, but there is much to be done in 

 the solution of the above-mentioned problems in this State. Experi- 

 ments already under way in South Dakota and other of the range 

 States of the Northwest are equally applicable to this State and it 

 would seem hardly advisable to undertake this line of investigations 

 here. The station authorities are prepared to test drought-resistant 

 crops and doubtless much can be done in this direction through the 

 distribution of seeds of promising varieties from the Department. 

 The authorities here realize the importance of cooperative investiga- 

 tions and are eager to join with the Department in any lines that 

 may seem advisable. The agriculturist and botanist of the Station 



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