\<%.>. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 ^^ Hi I.I m III u & gzo M 1-25 iu 11.6 IHJ^l Photographic Sciences Corporation 4^ L17 V s> 23 WIST MAIN STRHT WIISTM.N.Y. I45M (716)t72-4S03 CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHM/ICMH Collection de microfiches. Caiadian Instituta for Historical IWiicroraproductions / Institut Canadian da microraproductiont historiquaa Tttchnical and Bibliographic Notas/Notat tachniquas at bibiiographiquas Til to Tha inatituta has attamptad to obtain tha baat original copy availabia for filming. Faaturaa of thia copy which may ba bibliographically uniqua. which may altar any of tha imagaa in tha raproduction, or which may aignificantly changa tha uaual mathod of filming, ara chackad balow. 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T^ pe of fill Oi bs thi sic oti fir sic or Th sh Til wl Ml dil en be rig re< mi This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ Ce document est film* au taux de rMuction indiqu* ci-deaaous. 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X 3GX J 12X 16X 20X 24X 28X 32X Th« copy film«d h«r« has b««n r«produc«d thanks to tha ganarosity of: Library AgrieuHura Canada L'axamplaira film* f ut raproduit gr&ca i ia ginArotitA da: Bibiiotfidqija Agricultura Canada Tha imagas appaaring hara ara tha bast quality possibia considaring tha condition and laglbillty of tha original copy and in kaaping with tha filming contract spacif icationa. Las imagas suh^antas ont 4ti raproduitas avac la plus grand soin, compta tanu da ia condition at da la nattatA da l'axamplaira filmA. at an conformity avac las conditions du contrat da filmaga. Original copias in printad papar covars ara filmad baginning with tha front covar and «nding on tha last paga with a printad or illustratad impras- sion, or tha back covar whan appropriata. All othar original copias ara filmad baginning on tha first paga with a printad or illustratad impras- sion, and anding on tha last paga with a printad or illustratad imprassion. Laa axamplairas originaux dont la couvartura an papiar ast ImprimAa sont filmte an commanqant par la pramiar plat at an tarminant soit par la darniAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'imprassioR ou d'illustration. soit par la sacond plat, salon la cas. Tous las autras axamplairas originaux sont fllmAs an commandant pmr la pramlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'imprassion ou d'illustration at an tarminunt par la darnlAra paga qui comporta una talla amprainta. Tha last recordad frama on aach microficha shall contain tha symbol -^ (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha symbol V (moaning "END"), whichavar applias. Un das symbolas suivants apparattra sur la darnlAra imaga da chaqua microficha, salon la cas: la symbols — ► signifia "A SUIVRE", la symbols V signifia "FIN". Maps, platas, charts, ate, may ba filmad at diffarant raduction ratios. Thosa too larga to ba antiraly includad in ona axposure ara filmad baginning in tha uppar laft hand cornar, laft to right and top to bottom, as many framaa as raquirad. Tha following diagrams illustrata tha mathod: Las cartas, planchas, tablaaux, ate, pauvant Atra filmte A das taux da r6duction diff Arants. Loraqua la documant ast trop grand pour Atre rsoroduit an un saul ciichA, il ast filmA A partir da I'firtgia supArlaur gaucha, da gaucha A droita, at da haut Bti bas. an pranant la nombra d'imagas nAcassaira. Las diagrammas suivanta illuatrant la mAthoda. 1 2 3 4 5 6 CENTRAL EXPERIMENTAL FARM, :o:- DEPARTMBNT OF AGRICULTURH, :o: BULLETIN No. 8. :o: Results of Early and Late Seeding of Barley, Oats and Spring Wheat. -:o: JTJ^KTTJJPS.T^^X' 1891. ill 1 ■\.i' 1! ' Chntkal Experimhntal Farm. — :o:- DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. OTTAWA, ----- CANADA. BULLETIN No. 8. Results of Early and Late Seeding of Barley, Oats and Spring Wheat. -:o:- By \Vm. SAUNDERS, Dikkctob Experimkntal Farms. :o:- l^he experience gained at the Central Experimental Farm during the past season on this subject, points to the great importance of early seeding. So vital a bearing does this appear to have on the profits of agriculture, that the results are deemed of sufficient importance to justify their being brought under the notice of the fanners of the Dominion, in a special bulletin with the least possible «]elay, so that opportunity might be given for discussing the subject at the winter meetings of Farmers' Institutes and Conventions, Farmers' Clubs and Agricultural Circles, with the hope that farmers will undertake tests for themselves in this particular line of work, so that further experience may be gained under those varying conditions of soil and climate, which obtain in different sections of the several Provinces. It is generally conceded that the farmer who makes a practice of getting his seed into the ground at the earliest opportunity, after the land is in suitable condition to receive it, realizes, as a rule, the best returns, but to ^ I *I3 I 1 « 1 ; ; 1 1 > 1 ' ' m u i JL..U wliat extent the advantage in on his sido, has not ht'it'tofort; lu'cn bubmitted to careful test in Canada. KXPERIMBNTS UNDEKTAKKN. Thirty-six plots of one-tenth of an acre each, wore devoted to a test of the relative advantages of early, mcdip.m and late sowing of barley, oats and spring wheat, two varieties of each grain being sown. It was decided to sow one of these ranges of six plots, every week until all were seeded, making altogether six sowings. The varieties of grain chosen were as follows : — Barley, Prize l*roliJin, and Danish Chevalier (both two-rowed sorts ) ;, Oats, Prize Cluster and Early Jiace Horse ; Spring Wheat, lied Fife and Ladoga. The soil selected was as uniform as could be found ; it was a piece of light sandy loam, which when the Experimental Farm was purchased in 1886, was in sod. A crop of hay was taken oflf in 1887, and finding that the land was much exhausted, a coating of stable manure, about twenty tons to the acre, was applied to it early in the autumn and shortly after the manure was ploughed under with the sod. In the s}>ring of 1888 it was again ploughed, then harrowed and sown with experimental plots of wheat and oats. It was ploughed again in the autumn, and in the spring of 1889 planted with Indian Corn in drills, which was cut in September for ensilage. Subsequently the land was ploughed again and early in the spring of 1890, it received a uniform dressing of unleached wood ashes about 150 bushels to the acre. The first twelve of the 36 plots were cultivated with a disc harrow, and six of them harrowed with a common iron harrow, on the 21st of April, 1890, and sown on the 22nd ; the other six plots in this series were harrowed and sown on the 29th. The next twelve plots were similarly cultivated, six of them were harrowed on the 5th of May and were seeded on the 6th, while the other six plots in this range were harrowed and sown on the 13th. The remaining twelve plots were cultivated with the disc harrow and six of them harrowed with the iron harrow, on the 19th and sown on the 20th, the last six plots of the series being well harrowed on the 27th of May immediately before sowing. From these particulars it will be seen that the ground was well stirred before each sowing so as to destroy all young weeds which might have started. By the treat- ment given, the later plots may be said to have had at the start some advantage over those earlier see^led as far us weetls wen* (umceriied ; but before the grain matured thu weeds made greater heaThe loss on Prize Prolific barley by a delay in sowing of one week is nearly sixteen f - I if I: mi if isira A ii i h biiHlicls per acre, and on Danhli ('hc^HiUer a little more than eleven htiHliels, while a delay of two weeks shows an average Iohm in the two experiments of more than half the crop, or al>out eighteen buHhcls per at-re. In the "Statistics of Crops in Ontario" for 1800 recently published by the Bureau of Industries, tlie area under barley is estimated at 701,;i20 aeres and should one half the average loss which has been shown to have oetujrred in the experiments at Ottawa, he taken as the basis for an estimate, it would appear that the farmers of Ontario may lose by a delay of one week in the time of seeding over 2| millions of dollars on the barley crop alone, and by a delay of two weeks, taking the average results of the two experiments, more than 3f millions, estimating the value of barley at 50 cents per bushel. The loss incurred by similar delay in the crop of spring wheat has i)roved proportionately less, being about one-sixth of the whole where seeding has been delayed one week, and one-fourth where it lias been deferred for two weeks, while a three weeks delay shows a loss of considerably more than one-half. Spring wheat, however, owing to an unfavourable season, has given an unusually light crop, and how far these results might be modified under average conditions, can only be determined by further tests. Reckoning the money value of the loss on a similar basis to that of the barley, — that is one half of the actual loss in the average of the two experiments, taking spring wheat at 90 cents per bushel, we find that a delay of one week in sowing shows a possible shrinkage in the value of the crop of Ontario of |473,8'79, and a delay of two weeks 1744,669. The oat crop appears to be less influenced by delay in seeding than either barley or spring wheat. In the case of the *' Prize (Jluster " it is a falling off of about three bushels per acre for the first week, but with the delay of two weeks it is a little over six and a half bushels, but the oat crop is so very large that every bushel of loss per acre in Ontario alone, taking oats at 40 cents per bushel, is equal to $752,940. In the following tables are given some further particulars of the growth of the several varieties which may prove of interest. They include dates of sowing, when up, when headed, dates of ripening, with the number of days which elapsed between dates of sowing and ripening : — KAKLKY. l*ri«o I'rolitio, l»t sowiinr 2nd •' *» Srd 4th 5th 6th l>nnii " 27 A'«ril 22 '• 29 .May 6 •' 3 " 20 *' 27 j April 12 Up. 1 IIkadru. N. KiPi. d 1 mat May 9 .luly (( Aug. 4 " 14 '* \i 6 " 18 " 14 " 12 " 22 •• l.i '• 17 " 26 " 2() " 21 June 3 " 2;> " 21 May 6 '• 6 4 , " 14 •• 9 " 7 " 18 •' 14 " 12 " 22 •• 16 •• 17 " 26 •• 2.. " 21 June 2 •• 2(i " 23 1 \ \ May 10 " 4 July ;!0 " 16 " 11 Auk. H " 20 " 12 ■• » " at " 13 " 11 '• 27 " 16 '• 13 June 3 " 21 " 16 1 May 16 " 9 " 8 " 20 •' 13 " 9 .. 24 " 13 " 11 '• 27 " 16 " 13 June 8 " 21 •• 16 ' May 9 July 5 August 13 f day- " 15 " 19 " 23 " 26 June 2 May 9 " 15 '• 19 *• 23 '• 26 June 2 May 9 " 9 •' 13 " 14 " 18 •• 24 •' 4 •• 7 '• 9 " 13 .. j7 " 24 July 8 19 21 21 24 26 7 11 II l.'J 17 21 13 IM 09 W 96 93 89 IU4 OH Its V> 93 8K W 101 93 9U 8.'') 81 101 94 90 85 81 113 112 107 100 96 91 1(J7 104 97 92 89 W> 113 f\\ f 1 f I I ' Thcfso rPHiiIts hIiow that t)u' mimlicr of davH roqiiirod by the •liffcrent varicti«!H of grain, fiotii the time of Noe■ h • ; '^"3 it iht i i ^' c . 9 ee^ -d s . < . 0 n d <*< >t >. >> sA t^ 5" 2 3 e 1 1 1 u u ^ a •-* W Til S /. i> 1 6 6 1^ ;£5 33 • V . » /. -3 : a ° 4- > • .S 0.2 «d • CO o «C J a 'li a ^w e^i CI «"?! ^ s »; ft% »^ »; - ^ -2 2 S|i1 i-^il u^t ^^Ifi zif -3 i'2 %'^rH ^^*-| s-3 vi; 1 ^ < 8 - 8._ ® d "3 d IB 8.... b ig u U4 £■=1 CO ^ - 9 a b4 « 5 ■-■ « Aj ^ Z U n . a • a o V 2-2 d2 k a d^ Ceo c — — a> ■-■£, to n •^^ 04 C4 N ^3 "2 6^ K ^ si (A >i a • :52§ 6 2 O O *3 8£2 ^ •- ij ■ 0 o o u w w 0 « — , — ' ■ ■ ~~' ■■"^ * • • • « Pm • ■ o • Wl • Ed ^ SI 8 a « s a ^ A 3 H >< ►1 ►• 1 ( 4 '4 '4 ■< S ■^ S 10 ■si 6 " p 5 ** 03 « e 1 eS"0 41 a 2 t^ •^ 3 cetJ-a 4( C O ^-1 M Oh o .£1 'S n e.2 it- to c.S 5-2 .5 J (M .00 C4 3^3 5 « 01 a 13 •« ^ a S3 m is ' CO a u 00 ^1^ ,3 ^S gii-2 5 « § ■S 5 * s c 5) 4, - O ,c a B o a u t3 ft o o '" a^ o OS 4* i k'S2 o '3 o.S eo . a B— ' O.S c< '« .2 .2 C4 e4 «.2 a • 2 >» " :52 s a e:^ o a S QQ ^ ai ^ S3 e g eS 5 St! 4) I e eS S OS Q 00 » £ * OS « g * aj g-5 a ■« O "B ; 0 o H O 41 . J3 u O no • - o a .tJ— a B 33 « 6 2 ga-o c 5. « u — "O C CI. cca^a •J ""^ i-Sga .5SS« :^ a o rn «, B«j li^ i g s >-3 (a a d eo 5.2 0.= e<5 > m ® M) > o-^ cS 41 j3 s aH s " a S B o ja "U c s s i-3 a M t-i ;»; a g ?- 2 ~ 3 S-s a « fl 85 a. •< (0 >> < s < 11 i o The single plot of Amjlo- Canadian wheat had the leaves badly stems considerably and heads slightly ruste.l ; the growth wa^ uneven and patchy and the height 3 feet 6 inches to 4 feet. It will be seen that all the varieties experimented with suffered from rust, the wheat being injured most. It is proposed to continue this line of experimental work next year at ^11 the ExperimenUl Farms. 3.0 3 O i I