June, 1910.] 



543 



Miscellaneous. 



colonies. Similarly a large area is avail- 

 able for seed growing at the Lyallpur 

 farm and a fair quantity of seed has 

 been already distributed. There is a 

 steady expansion iu the demand for 

 such seed. 



United Provinces.— In the United 

 Provinces no special seed farms are at 

 present considered to be necessery. 

 Two or three privately owned farms 

 make a speciality of seed production, 

 and these have been largely used, more 

 especially for obtaining larsre quantities 

 of Muzaffarnagar wheat. Beyond this, 

 considerable quantities of selected seed 

 have been distributed from the experi- 

 mental farms, and great attention ha* 

 been given to the organisation of the 

 seed supply, especially in the case of 

 wheat and American cotton. The ex- 

 perience so far obtained indicates that 

 there is a considerable demand for good 

 seed. It is essential that this should 

 be met for the present from seed grown 

 under the supervision of the Agricul- 

 tural Department. When large quan- 

 tities are required, it seems feasible in 

 most places to get the seed required 

 grown, under contract, for the depart- 

 ment, and provided there be careful 

 supervision this is probably better than 

 that the department itself should own 

 and manage large areas for seed grow- 

 ing. The seed farms should be selected 

 in localities which will serve as wide 

 a field as possible in each province. 



XI.— Seed Depots. 



Even when the department does not 

 glow seed for distribution, great good 

 can sometimes be done by opening depots 

 where superior seed, purchased in other 

 districts, can be had by cultivators. 



United Provinces.— The most striking 

 success in this direction has been achiev- 

 ed in the United Provinces where Muzaf- 

 farnagar white wheat has been spread 

 over large areas by means of depots 

 where sales are effected on credit. This 

 system continues to increase in popul- 

 arity and its extension is only limited by 

 the difficulty of providinsr responsible 

 supervision. The successful restocking 

 of Bundelkhand with seed after the 

 great famine of 8 years ago indicates 

 what can be done by the use of seed 

 depdts on the lines indicated. Recently 

 the supply for cash of the be^t local 

 cotton seed available has been success- 

 fully carried out by means of temporary 

 village depots as a result of the famine 

 of 1907-1908. This has been so much 

 appreciated that it is being continued. 

 The best local seed cotton is bought, 

 hand-picked and ginned, the seed being 

 then distributed at bazar rates during 

 the sowing season. 



Bombay.— In Bombay certain of the 

 experimental farms have been made to 

 serve as seed dep6ts. This has been 

 particularly the case in connection with 

 the effort to grow Egyptian cotton in 

 Sind and with the extension of Broach 

 cotton cultivation in the Southern 

 Maratha country. 



Bengal. — In Bengal a depot has been 

 established where the seed of various 

 important crops can be obtained at 

 normal prices. Here the quantity of 

 seed available for a single buyer is 

 limited. The chief sales effected up to 

 date have been to members of the local 

 agricultural associations. The demand 

 for good sound seed from the ryots is, 

 however, likely to increase in the near 

 future. 



Eastern Bengal and Assam.— A 

 similar central seed depot has recently 

 been established at Dacca in Eastern 

 Bengal and Assam which stores and 

 supplies the best available seed of the 

 crops of most importance to the pro- 

 vince. Seed grown at Government farms 

 is also sold at bazar prices. Seed obtain- 

 ed from outside is selected on the field 

 by an officer of the department and is 

 supplied at cost price. The work of the 

 depot is rapidly increasing. 



Madras. — In Madras seed depots for 

 good and pure cotton seed have been 

 established for several years. So far 

 only fairly large depots have been main- 

 tained, but it is felt that better control 

 could be effected if village agency depots 

 were started, so that the area and 

 survey numbers of lands to be sown 

 could be noted and checked. The in- 

 spection of crops sown with pure seed is 

 a most important point when pure seed 

 is being distributed. 



There is no doubt that the establish- 

 ment of good seed depots is likely to 

 lead to good results. It is essential, how- 

 ever, that only the very best seed should 

 be stocked and sold and that very com- 

 plete arrangements for storage should 

 be made. A single distribution of 

 inferior or unsuitable seed is likely to 

 discredit the department. The system 

 adopted in the United Provinces has 

 proved itself satisfactory and is fully 

 described in the Agricultural Journal 

 of India, Volume II., Part III. 



XII.— Colonisation with Expert 



Cultivators. 

 In some parts of India there are groups 

 or castes of cultivators particularly 

 skilled in some class of agricultural work. 

 The importation of a body of these men 

 into a new area will generally raise the 

 standard of cultivation in the district to 

 which they are transferred. The diffi- 



