A Study of Colorado \\’iilat 
35 
wheats. I am inclined to think that it is a jreneral statement without 
distinction of any special physical properties. The principal point in 
all of this, however, is evident, that they consider the weather condi¬ 
tions as determining the quality and quantity of their crops. 
I believe that all of the publications upon this subject that have 
appeared in this country have adopted the same general views, to which, 
in a certain measure, we must subscribe, for it is evident, without 
statement, that the growth of the plant and the quality of the prod¬ 
uct is dependent in a measure upon weather conditions, i.e., upon ac¬ 
cidental conditions from year to year. There are, however, some 
characteristics of the grain which are neither determined nor obliter¬ 
ated by the weather conditions, though they have been very largely at¬ 
tributed to the latter. Kosutany and also Schindler attribute, in an in¬ 
definite way, influence to the soil, but the latter, especially, attributes 
a predominating influence to the climate, and he uses the term in its 
larger sense. 
The writers in this country go, perhaps, even farther in attributing 
to climatic influences, a determining influence upon the character of 
the grain produced. I would like to mention all of these writers but 
there are too many of them- The only one among them who, so far 
as I know, attaches any considerable influence to soil fertility is Snyder, 
formerly of Minnesota. The views of the great majority of the rest 
of these writers are represented by the statements of Te Clerc of the 
Bureau'o£ Chemistry of the U. S. Department of Agriculture in Bul¬ 
letin 128, from which the following quotations are made: “Eckenbrech- 
er* grew six varieties of barley in twelve different localities and found 
that the same variety showed a much larger variation in nitrogen content 
and in weight per 1000 grains when grown in the twelve localities than the 
six varieties did when grown in any one locality, that is, that climatic condi¬ 
tions, or environment, exerted a greater influence than did the seed or even 
the variety. Yet Hall in the article just quotedt makes tihe statement that 
variety is the chief factor in affecting the composition of plants, that each 
race or variety possesses characteristics which are modified only to a rela¬ 
tively slight extent by soil, seed, or climate”. § 
“Bogdan found that an increase of salt content of alkali soils produced 
an increase in the nitrogen and ash content of wheat though the absolute 
amount of these constituents decreased due to the fact that the grains were 
smaller. This, in a certain way, explains the good quality of the rather 
small grains of wheat grown in southeastern Russia, northwestern America, 
Hungary etc., where the soil is rich in soluble salts, especially nitrates. 
It has, however, generally been assumed that fertilizers influence the yield 
* Wockenschrift Bran, 1907, 24-491. 
t Science 1905-22-461. 
§ Bui. 128, Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. D. A., p. S. 
