32 BULLETIN 1112, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
Flax. 
Representative varieties of flax were sown in single and in repli- 
cated rows in some or all of the seven years from 1914 to 1920. In 
most cases sowings were made in the fall. In one of the seasons the 
crop winterkilled, and in two others very low yields were produced. 
Tashkent (C. I. No. 11) and Williston Golden (C. I. No. 25) were the 
best varieties in a three-year average of yields of 13 varieties. Flax 
is not well adapted to the Sacramento Valley but produces the best 
yield as well as quality when sown in the fall. 
Grain Sorghums. 
Grain sorghums, known locally as " corn," are grown to some extent 
in the Sacramento Valley. They usually are sown on fallow land in 
alternation with wheat. The reserve supply of moisture in the fallow 
is depended upon to produce the crop. 
Grain sorghums were grown in a limited way at the Plant Intro- 
duction Station in the seven years 1912 and 1914 to 1917, inclusive. 
A varietal experiment was conducted in 1912, and an environmental 
experiment to determine the chemical analysis of the kernels in crops 
grown from seed raised in different sections of the country was con- 
ducted during the longer period. Dwarf milo appears to be the 
variety best adapted to the section. 
Date-of-Seeding Experiments. 
Pacific Bluestem and Baart wheat, Coast and California Mariout 
barley, Fulghum and Winter Turf oats, and North Dakota No. 1215 
flax were grown in replicated rows in a nursery date-of-seeding 
experiment during 1920 and 1921. Sowings were begun in October 
and continued at intervals of two weeks for 13 and 14 dates, re- 
spectively. The results in these two years agree closely with those 
reported by successful commercial growers. The largest yields were 
produced from the early sowings in all cases. Observations on the 
results of growers as well as on the date-of-seeding experiments 
indicate that wheat generally may be sown as late as the middle of 
January with fairly good results. Barley may be sown somewhat 
later, but oats and flax should be sown before the end of December. 
SUMMARY. 
Cereal experiments have been conducted at the Plant Introduction 
Station, Chico, Calif., in the 12 years 1910 to 1921, inclusive. 
The principal lines of investigation have been varietal experiments 
with wheat, barley, and oats and breeding and classification studies 
with wheat. The most important cereals in the Sacramento Valley 
are barley and wheat. 
The Plant Introduction Station is located 4 miles southeast of 
Chico near the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains at an alti- 
tude of 189 feet. The soil is a loam to sandy loam and is fairly 
representative of the more fertile soils of the valley. 
The average annual precipitation at Chico in the past 51 years 
was 23.69 inches. The average seasonal precipitation (September 
to May, inclusive) in the same period was 23.24 inches. The summer 
months are practically rainless. 
