2 BULLETIN 823, U. S. DEPARTMENT OE AGRICULTURE. 
from 4 to 14 years. The large mass of data now available indicates 
quite definitely the adaptability of these varieties to the different sec- 
tions of the United States and their value in comparison with other 
oats. It is the purpose of this bulletin to assemble these data and to 
present such conclusions as they appear to warrant. 
SOURCES OF DATA. 
Three sources of data have been drawn upon for this publication, 
viz, the results of experiments conducted independently by the United 
States Department of Agriculture, of those conducted cooperatively 
by the United States Department of Agriculture and the State agri- 
cultural experiment stations, and those conducted independently by 
the State agricultural experiment stations. Data from the last-men- 
tioned source are included in order to present fully the present status 
of the .Kherson and Sixty-Day varieties in the United States. Full 
credit is given in all cases where such data are used. In a number of 
instances where results have not been published recently the experi- 
ments have been summarized for this bulletin by officials of the various 
stations. 
The data presented herein have been obtained under a wide range 
of climatic and soil conditions. However, the varietal yields obtained 
at any one place should be fairly comparable, while the data from 
several stations in the same general area supplement each other. At 
nearly all stations the aim has been to grow the varieties in the varietal 
experiments under conditions similar to those on the best farms in 
the localities where the experiments were conducted. 
Those experiments which have been conducted under similar con- 
ditions have been grouped whenever practicable. The results obtained 
in the eastern half or humid portion of the United States are presented 
first, followed by those obtained in the western half or semiarid portion, 
including the results of a few experiments on irrigated land. 
In addition to the presentation of data on yield of grain, brief 
statements on yield of straw, weight per bushel, percentage of hull, 
and the improvement of Kherson and Sixty-Day oats are included 
in this bulletin. 
HISTORY OF KHERSON AND SIXTY-DAY OATS. 
Both the Kherson and the Sixty-Day oats were introduced into the 
United States from southern Russia. The first lot of the Kherson 
oats sent to this country was obtained by the Nebraska Agricultural 
Experiment Station (24) 1 in 1896 through Prof. F. W. Taylor, then 
superintendent of farmers' institutes in Nebraska, while traveling 
through Russia. As it was obtained in the Kherson Govern- 
1 The serial numbers in parentheses refer to " Literature cited " at the end of the bulletin. 
