26 
BULLETIN 498, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
the early seeding in the four years was 6.2 bushels per acre. In the 
early seeding the thickest rate (8 pecks) gave the highest average 
yield, and in the late seeding the 3-peck rate gave the highest average 
yield. The average date of the early seeding was March 22 and of 
the late seeding, April 20. 
Table XIV. — Annual and average yields obtained in a rate-of-seeding test of Pacific 
Bluestem wheat sown on two dates at the Moro substation during the 4-year period, 1912 
to 1915, inclusive. 
Year and date of seeding 
Season of 1912: 
Early (Mar. 25). 
Late (Apr. 26).. 
Season of 1913: 
Early (Mar. 25). 
Late (Apr. 25).. 
Season of 1914: 
Early (Mar. 16). 
Late (Apr. 16).. 
Season of 1915: 
Early (Mar. 22). 
Late (Apr. 15).. 
Average yields: 
All dates 
Early seeding.. 
Late seeding . . . 
Yields per acre (bushels) at given rates of seeding. 
2 pecks. 
7.0 
18.5 
10.5 
17.5 
13.7 
12.5 
14.3 
10.6 
3 pecks 
17.5 
10.0 
15.5 
11.7 
18.6 
10.4 
13.5 
15.1 
11.9 
4 pecks 
13.6 
11.8 
20.8 
7.7 
15.1 
11.1 
12.9 
16.0 
9.8 
Specks. 
12.5 
14.0 
7.6 
5.3 
17.2 
10.5 
13.3 
17.2 
9.4 
6 pecks. 7 pecks. Specks. ^ er ~ 
10.5 
15.1 
IS. 3 
8.3 
16.3 
3.7 
20.6 
11.4 
13.3 
16.4 
9.6 
13.1 
15.5 
20.0 
10.4 
17.3 
4.0 
18.0 
12.8 
13.9 
17.1 
10.7 
20.0 
13.1 
18.1 
3.7 
19.2 
10.2 
14.0 
19.1 
9.0 
19.5 
9.7 
16.7 
7=3 
18.1 
11.1 
16.3 
10.1 
On April 9, 1913, and April 6, 1914, eight check plats were sown 
with the same variety, Pacific Bluestem, at the rate of 5 pecks per 
acre. This provided a medium date of seeding to compare with the 
early and late dates discussed above. The earliest seeding at the 
rate of 5 pecks per acre gave higher yields in both years than any 
check plat, further indicating the advantage of early seeding. 
SPRING OATS. 
From the standpoint of total production, oats are a less important 
crop than wheat and barley in the Columbia Basin. Judging from 
yields obtained at the substation at Moro, oats probably have not 
received the attention they deserve from the farmers of this section. 
This undoubtedly is due to the fact that the header and the combined 
harvester-thrasher, the harvesting machines most commonly used 
in the Columbia Basin, are not adapted to the economical handling 
of this crop. Grain must be thoroughly ripe before it is cut with a 
header or thrashed with a combined harvester-thrasher. Much of 
the oat crop is lost through shattering if left too long after maturity 
before it is harvested. The oat varieties at the substation have 
always been cut with a binder and thrashed from the shock. 
VARIETAL EXPERIMENTS. 
In 1912 the oat varietal experiment was on spring-disked corn ground. 
In the other years reported the oats were grown on ground summer 
tilled the previous year, as in the case of the spring barley and wheat. 
