58 Eeport of the First Assistant of the 
REPORT OF THE FIRST ASSISTANT.* 
The work of the First Assistant during 1887, as in previous years, 
has been mostly confined to assisting the Director in field and feeding 
experiments, to taking various meteorological and other observations, 
having a general oversight of the laborers of the station, and con- 
ducting such experiments in addition to these duties as circumstances 
would permit. This supplementary work has been specially confined 
to the cereals, grasses and forage plants. The following experiments 
reported upon were, practically speaking, finished. Other studies 
were in the course of progress, but not sufficiently completed for 
reporting upon, when the First Assistant was called to a new field 
of labor. The season of 1887 has been most unsatisfactory for the 
study of grasses owing to the exceedingly dry weather in April and 
May, when the grass crop most needed moisture. The plants did not 
attain their proper growth, and great difficulty was experienced in 
securing vegetation from spring sowings. Hence it is not thought 
advisable to report upon the grass plots, as no fair results can be 
recorded. 
Testing the Productiveness of Wheat Varieties. 
In testing the relative productiveness of varieties of farm and 
garden plants, the general custom is to plant equal quantities of seed 
over equal areas of ground, give the plants like treatment in every 
respect, and at harvest publish the result of the yields. The variety 
or varieties producing the greatest yields are generally noted as 
being especially productive, or more so than those which gave a less 
yield in this test. However, this method of testing varieties is fal- 
lacious, as it proves nothing. Of fifty varieties, Finley may lead the 
list one year in productiveness, and the next rank low in the scale. 
The reason for this difference in yield, one year with another, is due 
to varied climatic, soil and other conditions. Ten plats of one-twen- 
tieth of an acre each, equally treated in every respect, year after year, 
from uncontrollable circumstances, will not yield like results in the 
quantity of crop. 
This being the case, how are we to determine the relative produc- 
tiveness of varieties? With the aim in view of obtaining data that 
* C. S. Plumb. 
