UNIVOR TORAH loimmany = RAN NAA Ad Ads ats Sie, a y Mave TURAN J ‘ ah utp t h : , 4 i : ‘ ’ 1 i pa ‘ we 3 : ie SATA Fiery ti : ‘ wii.) + ’ wily ayy * uF : i | ne iy ; vel 4 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2010 with funding from University of Toronto http://www.archive.org/details/bulletin19011371 unit NG i La 1 al | Ae t 7 bh Sd a ee 1 + Te be gf ‘ tf 6 / . - 6 & a] t * " \ A ; 4 XY { b uit Li 4 ¢ i Ria ay ' y 4 ’ rs Ove \ Bul. 71, Bureau of Plant Inaustry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE I. 5. DEPARTMENT OF AGF BUREAU GE OF INOCULATING MATERIAL SUFFICIENT FOR FOUR ACRES OF ALFALFA. p NE: n\ VAC xy » a4 Zo , ara 4 al Vi, OMS 14 f Eu IV~LALU a4 ApS. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. y BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY.) BULLETIN NO. 71.~ % © B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau. SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES; WITH REPORTS UPON THE SUCCESSFUL USE OF ARTIFICIAL CULTURES BY PRACTICAL FARMERS. GEORGE T. MOORE, PHYSIOLOGIST IN CHARGE OF LABORATORY OF PLantT PHYSIOLOGY. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. IssuED JANUARY 23, 1905. —— tu € WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1905. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. T. GALLOWAY, Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in Absence of Chief. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK V. CovILLE, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. SPILLMAN, Agrostologist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. \ G. B. BRACKETT, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A.J. Preters, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. Consett, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND GROUNDS. E. M. ByRNEs, Superintendent. J. E. ROCKWELL, Editor. JAMES E. JONES, Chief Clerk. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. SCIENTIFIC STAFF. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge. ERWwWIN F. SmiTH, Pathologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Pathology. GEORGE T. Moore, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Physiology. HERBERT J. WEBBER, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Breeding. WALTER T. SWINGLE, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Life History. NEWTON B. PIERCE, Pathologist in Charge of Pacific Coast Laboratory. M. B. WAITE, Pathologist in Charge of Investigations of Diseases of Orchard Fruits MARK ALFRED CARLETON, Cerealist in Charge of Cereal Investigations. HERMANN VON SCHRENK,@ in Charge of Mississippi Valley Laboratory. P. H. Rours, Pathologist in Charge of Subtropical Laboratory. C. O. TOWNSEND, Pathologist in Charge of Sugar Beet Investigations. P. H. Dorsett,’ Pathologist. RopNEY H. TRUE,¢ Physiologist. T. H. KEARNEY, Physiologist, Plant Breeding. CORNELIUS L. SHEAR, Pathologist. WILLIAM A. ORTON, Pathologist. W. M. Scott, Pathologist. JOSEPH S. CHAMBERLAIN, Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. ERNST A. BESSEY, Pathologist. : FLORA W. PATTERSON, Mycologist. CHARLES P. HARTLEY, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding KARL F. KELLERMAN, Assistant in Physiology. DEANE B. SWINGLE, Assistant in Pathology. no . / 40) A. W. EDSON, Assistant Physiologist, Plant Breeding. Z JESSE B. NorTON, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. JAMES B. RORER, Assistant in Pathology. LLOYD 8. TENNY, Assistant in Pathology. GEORGE G. HEDGCOCK, Assistant in Pathology. PERLEY SPAULDING, Scientific Assistant. P. J. O'GARA, Scientific Assistant, Plant Pathology. A. D. SHAMEL, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. T. RALPH ROBINSON, Scientific Assistant, Plant Physiology. FLORENCE HEDGES, Scientific Assistant, Bacteriology. CHARLES J. BRAND, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Life History. HENRY A. MILLER, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. ERNEST B. Brown, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. LESLIE A. FITz, Ceretinte Assistant, Cereal Investigations. LEONARD A. HARTER, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. JOHN O. MERWIN, Scientific . Assistant, Plant Physiology. W. W. CoBEY, Tobacco Expert. JOHN VAN LEENHOFF, Jr., Expert. L. T. SPRAGUE, Expert, Plant Physiology. J. ARTHUR LE CLERC, 4 Assistant Chemist. T. D. BeckwitH, Expert, Plant Physiology. a Detailed to the Bureau of Forestry. b Detailed to Seed and Plant Introduction and Distribution. ¢ Detailed to Botanical Investigations and Experiments. a Detailed from Bureau of Chemistry. —— - We LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, BureEavu oF Puant INpDusTRY, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, Washington, D. C., November 18, 1904. Str: I have the honor to transmit herewith a paper entitled ‘‘Soil Inoculation for Legumes; with Reports upon the Successful Use of Artificial Cultures by Practical Farmers,” and to recommend that it be published as Bulletin No. 71 of the series of this Bureau. This paper was prepared by Dr. George T. Moore, Physiologist in Charge of the Laboratory of Plant Physiology, in the Office of Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations, and was submitted by the Pathologist and Physiologist with a view to publication. The subject of nitrogen fixation from the atmosphere is one of the most important problems lying at the foundation of agriculture. The great value of leguminous crops in this connection has long been well known, but until the method of distributing the proper nitrogen-fixing bacteria in pure cultures was perfected by the Department of Agri- culture their yalue in soil improvement was not so great as it now is. The ten half-tone plates are necessary to a clear understanding of the text. Respectfully, B. T. Gatioway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. JAMES Wi1son, Secretary of Agriculture. bd . 7 Trnie iti abl ert eds . Bee oh in Ae} ' a i Bet! bli a ‘a Ch % TAM ie es ets qeatode oF re | iene Al sae xf DS ae 4 ai thts 8 Th Lea ay tA Hzdl ari : . Ait ae Ae et iy all © Vt = 7 cL LRRAG 1. ‘pT ¢ ‘ae \ y Ly! Ulla Saeeeh cP a ei i payor > i= ? ae PR eee. The great importance of leguminous crops in maintaining and increasing the fertility of soiis was long ago shown to be due to the nitrogen-fixing power of certain bacteria which gain entrance to and live in legume roots. It is now generally recognized that without these bacteria, legumes, like other crops, exhaust the soil of nitrogen. It is thus a matter of the greatest importance in the cultivation of these crops that the proper bacteria be present in the soil under con- ditions favorable for their development. The old method of inoculat- ing soils by distributing soil from fields containing the desired bacte- ria is not only expensive, but there is very great danger of spreading at the same time weeds and destructive crop diseases. Investigators in America, as well as in Europe, appreciate the great importance of securing nitrogen-fixing bacteria in pure cultures for distribution. We had great hope that Doctor Nobbe’s nitragin would meet the requirements. These cultures were tested very carefully in this country and in Europe, but were found to be unsatisfactory. We still hoped, however, that the method could be perfected. Mr. W. T. Swingle was therefore instructed to proceed to Europe and confer with Doctor Nobbe regarding the future prospects of his method of pure-culture distribution. Finding that the outlook was rather unsat- isfactory, upon Mr. Swingle’s return we decided to undertake a thor- ough investigation of the legume and other nitrogen-fixing organisms, with a view to increasing their agricultural value. The plan was care- fully considered and approved by the Chief of the Bureau, the Secre- tary of Agriculture, and by Congress, and the necessary funds were provided. Finally, we succeeded in securing the services of Dr. George T. Moore to undertake this investigation. With the able assistance of Messrs. Kellerman, Robinson, and Goll, he has succeeded in perfecting the pure-culture method of distribution even beyond our expectations. Doctor Moore in the course of the investigations soon discovered why it was that the former methods of culture and distribution were so uncertain in their results. He worked out improved methods of making the cultures and increasing by growth in non-nitrogenous media the nitrogen-fixing power of the organisms, and perfected a method of 5 6 PREFACE. drying them by which their activity can be preserved indefinitely. These processes have been patented by the Department in the name of Doctor Moore for the purpose of protecting them for the use of the general public. It is now possible as a result of this work to inoculate at very small expense the seed of all leguminous plants which it may be desirable to cultivate. Bacteria for various legumes were distributed during the past year to a very large number of applicants scattered in nearly every section of this country and in many foreign countries. The results obtained have, as a whole, been extremely satisfactory. The report submitted herewith presents the results of the work up to the present time. While investigation in connection with legumes is at present the most important phase of the work, careful attention is also being given to nitrogen-fixing bacteria which occur in connection with other plants, and especially those forms which live independently of special plants. The facts presented in this report demonstrate the great practical value of thorough and accurate scientific investigation of the problems lying at the foundation of agriculture. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist. OFFICE OF VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS, Washington, D. C., November 17, 1904. CONTENTS. IN eee sa acs se ecm ere ae ae eee eee cee sa eeee PEEING NCE NITOMEN! 52 220 seas a ns esse eee eee cee ne Pemevamsenecn Ol leguminous (CLOpSs- 22-2222. 2-s-4-24-525----2252422- =. 2% Seeeedmect of nodules upon lesumes):-.- 2. -2--225.5.2.--.5-2---25)------- Effect of nodule-bearing legumes upon succeeding crops.......-------------- PCMMe ATO OF tHE SOIL. - 22252-55555 -.2 5+ J. see -222-----225-'------ i pe ee ST A ES ee ee a I Te er oa a ees Pe pe is ee tee Meee SERCO A ISM ee oer aes ee a. Se eee ae ooh oo sesist bs eas Peeeamocniation aud specific characters -....-.---.-.----------------.----- SILL PRICK Ete et ea oe a yk oa ee Mmm eNONIIONS )- 2-5 oes baa esse e ott io -l oeesbedeseerl..-. 2. ES STAG) Na ee eee ee ee TUITE al ee a ee Infection and fixation of nitrogen without nodules........---...------------ MnNUe IME CMIMIEGI SS o- 2556- Swine. ot soe sak leleecteds wots Seeeermreaiiaie Hetnid CMGUTe) <4 5.551. 220 bao 1 2 eae see ls el eek IIS SEL EER ie ew a SOM raMOIis Tinnecedsary 22. 5: 2s sec s2sk ted 2s Se ses ece c= -----e DMI 1h nepensary 2. - = 22. 8 gles alk Jagsiebs dees suk. --..- Z Peaemaeesepect failure with inoculation .2..--:-2:-:-22..--.----.-.-------- EE ee ee ere ae eee ee ee Ee aes mies eee a st yo es ees Sis wk OP DE all TR SCTRS RN ee ee he ee eee p26 eee ee WADED 22s see o aoe Be! ON 3 5 Sete es a ee LY (EUR Speed Seo soot code as S55 ee A pe a oe ee 0 SE RS SoS Se ea on Man) SBP Tea ea NS S88 oe aes Se ae a ee oD aE ie Sy ta Se rr ULL [EDI ae ee RS AR 8 eee en rr An PLaTE I. Il. ie IV. We Vane VIII. ILLUSTRATIONS. Package of inoculating material sufficient for 4 acres of alfalfa. Frontispiece. Effect of rich nitrogenous soil upon formation of nodules of soy beans. Same culture and seed used as in Plates III and IV --..-. Effect of poor sandy soil upon formation of nodules of soy beans. Same culture and seed used as in Plates IT and IV --..--.-...... Effect of poor clay soil upon formation of nodules of soy beans. Same culture and seed used as in Plates II and Til ---........... Large alfalfa plants grown on sandy upland. Inoculated and internal infection produced without nodules. B.—Small alfalfa plants grown on rich bottom land. Inoculated from melilotus field 2 .2ec ose c cs Fen ok Oss es SU ee A. . Fig. 1.—Alfalfa one year old. Few remaining plants from field which completely failed. Inoculated with culture improperly prepared. Fig. 2.—Alfalfa two months old. Good stand. Field adjoining one which grew plants in figure 1 and soil exactly the same. Inoculated with bacteria from precisely the same culture used in — which failed, but solution carefully prepared accord- Inoc ciated nd cienoudate:t field peas grown by J. 7. Campbell, Hartstown, Pa. (Photo. by Mr. Campbell).. --.2-i 222 esaeee Alfalfa plants from different parts of the same field, the greater growth being due to successful inoculation. Farm of A. W. Brayton, Mount, Morris, Tll_...-....22.22t i = eee . Ground thickly covered with alfalfa two months after seeding on soil where previous attempts to grow this crop without inoculation have absolutely failed to get a catch. Farm of W. W. Giles, Occoquan, Va., July 28; 1904.3. ..-... =... s4a55s55= . Fig. 1.—Best vine in uninoculated row of peas. Fig. 2.—Best vine in inoculated row of peas. Grown by John R. Spears, North- wood, N. Y 8 72 72 72 72 72 72 72 72 72 B. P. I.—129. V. P. P. 1.—125. SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES; WITH REPORTS UPON THE SUCCESSFUL USE OF ARTIFICIAL CULTURES BY PRACTICAL FARMERS. INTRODUCTION. The primary object in undertaking an investigation of the fixation of nitrogen by the root nodules of legumes was to devise, if possible, some method of bringing about the artificial introduction of the nec- essary organisms into a soil which was naturally devoid of them, and at the same time to attempt, as far as possible, to correlate and recon- cile the vast amount of conflicting evidence that has been accumulated by various investigators in regard to the exact nature of the organism, where the nitrogen is fixed, the effect upon the host, and similar problems. It will not be possible in an article of this kind to give more than a brief historical sketch of the work that has been done by previous investigators, but in view of the satisfactory review of the literature up to 1892 by Atkinson? and by Jacobitz’ in 1901 an exhaustive con- sideration of the subject in this way hardly seems necessary. THE FIXATION OF FREE NITROGEN. Ever since anything has been known in regard to plant nutrition and the necessary part that various gases and minerals play in the successful growing of crops, scientific men have realized the tremen- dous importance of conserving the world’s store of nitrogen, and have made every effort either to husband or to increase all available sources of supply. In the early days, when it was first being realized that nitrogen was so essential to plant life—in. fact, was at the very founda- tion of agriculture—no particular alarm was felt. Botanists had demonstrated that plants obtained their carbon from the carbon dioxid of the air, and since this gas is present in so much less quantity than nitrogen it was believed that by no possible means could the most «Bot. Gaz., xviii, pp. 157, 226, 257. 1893. 6Centralbl. fiir Bakt., Pur. u. Infec., I] Abt., VII. November, 1901. 9 10 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES, essential of plant foods be exhausted. However, when it was shown that plants were unable to use free nitrogen and must obtain it direetly from the soil in a highly organized form, the importance of the prob- lem increased greatly, and the gravest consequences were predicted — by those familiar with the rapidity with which this valuable element was being wasted. But a short time ago Sir William Crookes* pre- dicted that within thirty or forty years England would experience a wheat famine. due to the exhaustion of nitrogen in the soil, that would be appalling in its effect; and Prof. Bela Korasey’s warnings to Hungary have been even more emphatic. Indeed, Liebig, more than fifty years ago, in speaking of one of the most common methods of destroying sources of available nitrogen, said: Nothing will more certainly consummate the ruin of England than the scarcity of fertilizers. It means the scarcity of food. It is impossible that such a sinful viola- tion of the divine laws of nature should forever remain unpunished, and the time will probably come for England, sooner than for any other country, when, with all her wealth in gold, iron, and coal, she will be unable to buy the one-thousandth part of the food which she has during hundreds of years thrown recklessly away. The ways by which combined nitrogen is rendered unavailable for plant food are well known and need no elaborate discussion. The constant cropping of land, combined with our modern sewage system, which prevents the return to the soil of such a large and legitimate nitrogen supply, are sufficient to indicate the extent of this loss with- out considering the destruction of nitrogenous compounds by the de- nitrifying bacteria, the burning or exploding of nitrate of soda, and the leaching out of this and other salts which would otherwise be most val- uable as fertilizers. These things would not merit so much considera- tion were it not for the fact that, unfortunately, the world’s supply of two of the richest sources of nitrogen-—guano and saltpeter—is being exhausted rapidly. Guano has already ceased to be of any great im- portance, and while it is difficult to obtain precise estimates as to the available amount of. saltpeter, it is very certain that at the present rate of its consumption (estimated at 1 billion tons per year) it can not last for a very great length of time, some placing the limit at less than fifty years. It should also be remembered that the natural product, while so rich in nitrogen, is also so expensive that for the general farmer the cost is almost prohibitive. The same may be said of the process recently proposed for the manufacture of nitrogen salts by means of electricity. While the discovery and perfection of such a method is calculated to calm the fears of those who predict a nitrogen famine, it is not one that appeals very strongly to the farmer so long as the price remains where it is. Regardless of these facts, there are many well-informed men, both at home and abroad, who have always maintained that the possibility « Brit. Assoc. Ad, Sci., Bristol, 1898. Presidential Address. THE FIXATION OF FREE NITROGEN. ue: of anything approaching a nitrogen famine is so remote as to be unworthy of consideration. In order that this view may be substan- tiated, it will be necessary to examine into the conditions existing in nature which permit of the restoring of gaseous nitrogen to a com- bined form. One of the sources which was formerly supposed to be of consider- able importance in returning nitrogen to the earth was by means of the ammonia compounds of nitrous and nitric acid which are present in the air and are often carried into the soil by rainfall. This need not be considered, however, it having been shown that the amount of potas- sium or sodium nitrate per acre brought into the soil by the rain is, with the exception of a few places in the Tropics, almost infinitesimal, being less than 1 pound per year. That electricity has some part in fixing nitrogen in a form suitable for plant food has been understood for a considerable length of time. Lightning discharges fix in the soil nitrogen from the air, and a small percentage of this element becomes available in this way. The theory has even been advanced by M. Berthelot that plants in high altitudes will produce good crops without the use of any artificial fertilizer, owing to the greater tension of electricity in these regions, the in- fluence of electric waves permitting the plants to absorb nitrogen in a way that plants not so influenced are unable to do. It certainly seems true that plants elevated to a considerable height will absorb more nitrogen than those at a lower level, but whether this is due to a direct influence of electricity upon the plant itself is perhaps a question. It has likewise been a matter of common observation that some land allowed to lie fallow frequently increases in its supply of available nitrogen, and to an extent much too great to have been fixed merely by lightning or electrical action of any kind. Consequently, the dis- covery by Schloesing and Miintz“ in 1877 that the formation of nitrites from the organic products of animal and vegetable life was produced by living organisms, and the isolation of these bacteria by Jordan and Richards’ in our own country, as well as by Winogradsky,° Frank- land,“ and Warington¢ abroad, were expected to throw much light upon this hitherto little understood subject. Nothing of any practical importance, however, was attempted until after 1891, when Schloesing and Laurent showed that certain organisms had the power of fixing nitrogen in the soil directly from the atmosphere. Experiments were then undertaken along this line, and results obtained which demon- strated that there are unquestionably in the earth a few organisms, «Compt. Rend., Paris, 84: 301. - )Mass. State Board of Health Rept., 1890, pp. 865-881. ¢ Ann. de I’Inst. Pasteur, 1890, p. 23. @Phil.-Trans. Roy. Soc., London, 1890, B., 107. € Trans. Chem. Soc., 1891, p. 502. 12 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. probably both bacteria and alge, which can directly fix free nitrogen without the aid or interposition of any other plant. Kruger and Schneiderwind “ have given the result of a test with a bacterium which was able to fix 0.0046 of a gram of nitrogen in 100 cubic centimeters, and numerous other results are recorded showing the beneficial effect of certain organisms of this class upon all crops. Since in many cases the bacteria increased the nitrogen content of the soil so decidedly, it seemed worth while to attempt to bring about an artificial introduction of the peculiar bacteria involved. Before long a patented product, known as alinit, was placed on the market, and numerous trials designed to demonstrate its efficiency were made, but with such indifferent success that the product was withdrawn from sale. Up to the present, therefore, it can safely be said that nothing has been accomplished which would lead to the extensive use of such a process for enriching the land, although the possibility of eventually securing the proper organism and method for distributing it is not unlikely. BENEFICIAL EFFECT OF LEGUMINOUS CROPS. From the earliest days of agriculture it has been recognized that all plants belonging to the Leguminosx had a decidedly beneficial effect upon the soil. Pliny wrote, ‘* The bean ranks first among the legumes. It fertilizes the ground in which it has been sown as well as any manure,” and again, ‘‘ The lupine enriches the soil of a field or vine- yard as well as the very best manure. The vetch, too, enriches the soil and requires no attention in its culture.” Varro, in De Re Rustica, I, 28, writes, ‘‘ Legumes should be sown in light soils; indeed, they are planted not so much for their own crop as for the following crop, since when they are cut and kept upon the ground they make the soil better. Thus the lupine is wont to serve as a manure where the soil is rather thin and poor.” There are also in ancient writings many other references to the importance and necessity of including some leguminous crop in the regular rotation. Naturally the explanations offered to account for this beneficial effect were various, perhaps the most universal belief being that the root system of these plants was much more extensive than that of grains and root crops and conse- quently brought up plant food from considerable depths, which not only served the legume, but was likewise available for subsequent crops. ‘Thaer’ in 1809 advanced the theory that the cultivation of leguminous crops might improve the soil by taking up nutriment from the air and depositing it in the soil through the roots and stubble; but this was merely a conjecture without any experimental basis. Still “Landwirthsch. Jahrb., 19, Heft 4-5, 1900, pp. 801-804. ’Rationelle Landwirthsch., 1 Aufl., Bd. 1, 1809. BENEFICIAL EFFECT OF LEGUMINOUS CROPS. jis later, John” demonstrated that there was not only an increase in humus after a leguminous crop, but also a definite increase in nitrogen. He was unable, however, to suggest any explanation. In 1854, Boussin- gault’ promulgated his classic experiments demonstrating the fact that plants could not assimilate free nitrogen gas. His work was substan- tiated by the joint labors of Gilbert, Lawes, and Pugh,’ and although Ville? and others still maintained the fallacy of the investigations, it soon became as well established as any fact in plant physiology that the only efficient source of nitrogen supply was in the fixed forms supplied through the roots. By this time it was beginning to be more generally known that the Leguminose were capable of growing in soil practically devoid of nitrogen, and consequently great difficulty was experienced in recon- ciling what certainly appeared to be two contradictory statements. So well established, however, was the work of Boussingault and others that no very great doubt was cast upon the question of how plants obtained their nitrogen, and an attempt was made to explain the difference through some inherent peculiarity of the legumes them- selves. After a series of suppositions, all of which were incorrect, Helriegel’ announced at a scientific meeting in 1886 that the source of nitrogen for these plants was unquestionably the atmosphere, and two years later, together with Willfarth,” he demonstrated the fact that the growth of plants in soil free from nitrogen always occurred after the development of nodules or swellings upon the roots. Later the results of these two men were fully substantiated by many other investigators, and the explanation of the long unsolved problem was made possible. The statement is made by Doctor Young’ that while the discovery of the fact that the nodules of the legumes enabled them to fix ‘‘free nitrogen” is usually ascribed to Helriegel, in reality ** Messrs. Hunter and McAlpine were teaching the same fact to their students years before.” Attempts to verify this statement have been unsuccessful. Although Helriegel and Willfarth were probably the first to connect definitely the function of nitrogen fixation with the root nodules, they were not by any means the first who had noticed these structures or had attempted to ascribe some function to them. Malpighi,” in 1687, “Kuhn’s Ber. a. d. Lab. d. Landwirthsch. Inst. Halle, 1895, p. 111. > Mem. de Chim. Agric. et de Physiol., Paris, 1854. ¢ Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc., London, 1861. Deutsch. Landwirthsch. Presse, 1886. ¢ Journ. fiir Landwirthsch., xxxiii, 1885. @ Ber. der Deutsch. Bot. Gesellsch., VII, 1887. 16 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. under controlled conditions or by observations upon distinct groups of © plants in the field, one lot grown in contact with the bacteria, the other without. Atwater and Woods” were the first investigators to show that legumes planted in quartz sand from which all nitrogenous matter nad been burned and watered with a nutrient solution devoid of nitro- gen inany fixed form would flourish and produce a normal growth when root nodules were present, but would perish as readily as wheat or corn, or similar plants when deprived of the proper bacteria. This experiment has been repeated since by numerous investigators, with various modifications, until it is universally believed that the presence of the bacteria is of the utmost importance and necessity to the legume when growing in a soil containing little or no nitrogen. Indeed, it is possible to demonstrate that a legume growing in a poor sandy soil provided with nodule-forming bacteria will be even more vigorous and produce a better crop than plants growing in moderately rich soil devoid of the bacteria. This fact is well illustrated by the following experiment: Three pots of sand from which all nitrogen had been burned were planted with yellow vetch seed and treated in the following manner: Pot No. 1 was inoculated with nitrogen-fixing organisms and watered with a nutrient solution devoid of nitrogen. Pot No. 2 was not inoculated, but was watered with the same nitrogen-free solution. Pot No. 3 was likewise uninoculated but was supplied with a liberal amount of nitrogen in the form of potassium nitrate. The results were as follows: Pot No. 1, which was inoculated, grew plants averaging 6.16 grams in weight. Pot No. 2, which had no nitrogen provided, showed the poorest growth, average plants but 0.33 gram in weight, while pot No. 8, which was well fertilized, produced plants weighing but 2.65 grams. That is to say, in this particular instance, the inoculated vetch exceeded the uninoculated but fertilized vetch nearly three times in weight, while plants receiving no nitrogen were nearly twenty times smaller than those having nodules. Similar results have been obtained in the field. Rey. William Brayshaw, of Grayton, Md., reports that he ‘‘sowed two lots of seed side by side, one inoculated, the other with 100 pounds of South Carolina rock. Inoculated made double the growth and bade fair to give three times the quantity of hay.” With peas, S. N. Lowry, of Philadelphia, found that ‘‘ inoculated vines yielded once and a half the crop yielded from ground not inocu- lated, but which was manured,” and Jeremiah Gardner, of Gaffney, 5. C., writes, “My peas were better than the peas of others who used commercial fertilizer. They ripened early and evenly. I con- — sider inoculation a boon to agriculture.” “Conn. Storrs Ag. Exp. Sta. Rept., 1889, p. 211; and 1890, p. 312. ~ DIRECT EFFECT OF NODULES UPON LEGUMES. vy H. D. Rixley, of Utica, N. Y., reported that inoculation of five acres of peas was in ‘‘every way satisfactory. Got as large a yield per acre as on five acres in same field with heavy barnyard fertilization.” With Canada field peas G. L. Thomas, near Auburn, Me., was able to secure about the same yield with inoculation that he obtained upon similar land after the addition of 800 pounds of fertilizer and 1 ton of barnyard manure, at less than one-half the cost. One of the first as well as the most satisfactory demonstrations of the beneficial effect of the presence of nodule-forming bacteria upon leguminous creps was made by Prof. J. F. Duggar“ at the Alabama Experiment Station in 1896 and 1897. In one field where hairy vetch had not been grown previously and the fertilizer used contained phos- phoric acid and potash without any nitrogen, the yield was but 235 pounds of hay per acre. Ona similar plot, treated in a similar man- ner, with the exception of the addition of some soil from an old field containing the proper bacteria, the yield of hay was 2,540 pounds, or an increase of over 1,000 per cent. Similar experiments with field peas, clover, and other legumes showed an increase of from 50 to 300 per cent in those plants bearing tubercles as compared with those not possessing them. In addition to these pioneer experiments of Duggar, there have been numerous other investigators in this country who have obtained similar results. The experiment stations in Mississippi, Kentucky, Kansas, and elsewhere have almost without exception demonstrated most strikingly the immediate advantage of the presence of nodules in all leguminous crops. Perhaps one of the most satisfactory demonstrations of the ability of legumes to put nitrogen into the soil was the one carried on at the Rothamsted Experiment Station’? in England for a number of years. Indeed, the great value of the experiments consists in the compara- tively long period of time which they cover, thus permitting a thor- ough comparison of results and a more perfect elimination of external factors. Ina series including white clover, vetches, lucern, and other legumes, begun in 1878 and continued for twenty years, it was found that in the first 27 inches of soil the ten sets of samples taken from leguminous plots averaged 6,604 pounds of total nitrogen per acre, while the three sets of wheat soils averaged but 5,847 pounds, showing an average gain of 757 pounds of nitrogen per acre under the influence of leguminous vegetation. It should also be borne in mind that the annual output of nitrogen in the crops from leguminous land was very much greater than from the other plots, in most cases being more than ®6U.S. Dept. Agr., Of. Exp. Sta. Bul. 8, 1892, 12628—-No, 71—05——2 18 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. fallow lands yielded only 12 pounds of nitrogen per annum, white clover produced 24 pounds, so that in addition to the actual accumu- lation of nitrogen in the soil there is a tremendous output of organic nitrogen in the crops, which has been fixed from the atmosphere, a large part of which will become available if the crop is turned back into the soil as a green manure. EFFECT OF NODULE-BEARING LEGUMES UPON SUCCEEDING CROPS. Another graphic way of showing the effect of a leguminous crop possessing nitrogen-fixing nodules upon a soil is to note the vast dif- ferences between crops of grain or vegetables that follow legumes and a similar crop grown on fallow land or following a grass or vegetable crop. In addition to the experience of every scientific farmer, which, of course, has given rise to the very common practice of including some legume in rotation, the results of trials by nearly every experi- ment station in the United States have shown time and again the importance and even necessity of sowing the land to some leguminous crop at the end of a definite period. It is easily proved that part of this benefit is due to the additional amount of nitrogen fixed by the root nodule and not to the unusual length of the root system or other peculiarities of the plant. J. F. Hickman“ showed that wheat sown on very poor clay land where Jelilotus alba had been grown for three years yielded 26.9 bushels per acre, while the same variety on adjoining land which had been in corn and oats produced but 18.6 bushels. I, EK. Emery? gives a record of the yields in three and four years from plots on which wheat had been grown continuously. The land upon which a crop of cowpeas was grown every summer increased the yield of grain in 1891 by an average of 13.78 bushels per acre, and in 1892 by 15.6 bushels. In addition, the use of cowpeas as a manure resulted in nearly doubling the number of stalks per stool and increased the height of the plants by nearly 9 inches and the length of the heads by 52 inches. Ff’. E. Gardner, and Davenport and Fraser, in the Illinois Experi- ment Station Bulletins Nos. 37 and 42, show that corn grown in rota- tion with oats and clover yields 40 per cent more than corn in contin- uous culture. A. T. Neale’ demonstrates that one dollar invested in clover seed returns four times as much as one dollar invested in nitrate of soda. Four acres dressed with pea vines yielded 93 bushels of rye; four acres of timothy sod yielded 18 bushels of rye. Thus, green manure with peas increased the rye crop more than fivefold. @Ohio Exp. Sta. Bul. 42. ON. C. Exp. Sta. Bul. 91. ¢ Del. Exp. Sta. Rept., 1892, EFFECT UPON SUCCEEDING CROPS. 19 J. F. Duggar® found that oats grown after cowpeas, the vines hay- ing been plowed under, produced 10.4 bushels of grain and 229 pounds of straw per acre more than oats grown after German millet plowed under as fertilizer. The average yield of oats per acre after velvet beans was 33.6 bushels, after cowpeas 31.6 bushels, and 8.4 bushels after crab-grass and weeds and German millet. R. H. Miller and S. H. Brinkley’ have shown that when crimson clover was plowed under as a manure early in May the yield of pota- toes was increased by more than 19 bushels per acre the first year and 34.4 bushels the second year, or more than 50 per cent. G. B. Irby,’ in experimenting to determine the value of cowpeas to succeeding crops of cotton, found that fields where no fertilizer was used, but which had been sown to cowpeas, gave a difference of 372 pounds of seed cotton per acre over those where fertilizers had been added. On the other hand, some experiments with soy beans at the Massa- chusetts Experiment Station” would seem to indicate that legumes do not always have a beneficial effect upon the succeeding crop. W. P. Brooks and H. M. Thompson,’ in the Massachusetts Hatch Experi- ment Station Report for 1899, recorded such results. Goesmann/ some seven years earlier had had the same experience with this crop, finding that the increase in yield was, in general, proportionate to the amount of nitrogen which he had added as fertilizer. In 1896, Goes- mann’s’ results showed ‘‘that there was not the least evidence of any ability on the part of the soy bean, when grown before a grain crop and harvested, to make nitrogen manuring of the grain crop unneces- sary.” The examples demonstrating the great benefit which a leguminous crop has upon the succeeding crop might be extended indefinitely, but enough haye been given to prove that it is the almost universal belief, as the result of definite experiments, that a leguminous crop is equal to a considerable amount of nitrogenous fertilizer, and that the crop which follows the legume is benefited to a marked degree. In Ger- many the number of pounds per acre of nitrogen added to the soil by legumes is estimated at 200 pounds. In the United States the average from sixteen States is 122 pounds. When it is remembered that a high grade of nitrate of soda contains but about 15 per cent of nitrogen, while much that is on the market contains considerably less, it will be seen that a crop of legumes is equal to from 800 to 1,000 pounds of nitrate of soda per acre, which at the present rate for this fertilizer is equal in value to from $20 to $25. @ Ala. Exp. Sta. Bul. 105, 1899. éTbid., 1899, p. 32. bMd. Exp. Sta. Buls. 31, p. 75, and 38, p. 58. f Ibid., 1892, p. 170. ¢ Ark. Exp. Sta. Bul. 46, 1897, p. 86. g Ibid., 1896, p. 171. @ Mass. Hatch. Exp. Sta. Rept., 1899, p. 37. 20 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. ARTIFICIAL INOCULATION OF THE SOIL. Since the desirability of introducing a leguminous crop into rotation seems to be of such importance, and the benefits to be obtained from a nodule-bearing plant are so evident, it is natural that every effort has been made. to obtain crops which possess the power of using atmospheric nitrogen. It has been found, however, that although in a great many instances the organisms pr oducing nodules are naturally abundant in the soil and the mere planting of the legume seed is suffi- cient to produce a crop capable of fixing nitrogen, there are also some localities which are devoid of the necessary bacteria, and in such places the leguminous crop is of no more benefit to the soil than corn | or wheat, or other crops whose yield might be a greater source of revenue. SOIL TRANSFER. It therefore has become necessary to devise some means of arti- ficially introducing into the soil the nodule-producing bacteria, and naturally the simplest means of accomplishing this has been to trans- fer earth known to contain the proper organisms and capable of pro- ducing nodules to the fields where it was desirable to introduce such bacteria. This soil-inoculation method is one which has been prac- ticed widely, both in this country and abroad, oftentimes with the best results, but not with universal success. Reports have been received from various places stating that even where soil known to — contain the proper germs was used the results were not satisfactory. That this failure was not due to the character of the soil or other adverse conditions is proved by the success of other methods of inocu- . lation upon the same kind of land at the same time. The large amount of earth necessary to produce thorough inoculation often makes it a laborious and expensive process when the fields to be treated are at aconsiderable distance. In addition to the expense and labor involved, however, there is a more serious objection because of the possibility of penne eeninie plant diseases from one field to another. H. C. Coesten, of Walnut, Kans., reports having transplanted the ‘*leaf-blight” to his field by this method, and many instances are known in the South of the wilt of cowpeas being disseminated by carrying soil from one field to another. There can be no doubt that certain diseases of plants, the spores of which remain in the earth, are widely disseminated by such a means of attempting to produce inceuaaal by the transfer of soil; and where the disease is one which causes great damage to leguminous crops and is readily transported, it has become necessary to abandon inoculation altogether. There is also great danger of introducing objectionable weeds wherever soil from one locality is introduced into another region. Even though the weeds may not have been serious in the first field, the great numbers of dor- NITRAGIN. Gt mant seeds which often require but the slightest change in environ- ment to produce germination are always a menace, and a number of instances have been reported to the Department where the desired leguminous crop was completely choked out by the introduced weed. The director of the Mississippi Experiment Station writes: ‘* Owing to the fact that our alfalfa fields are more or less full of Johnson grass, we are unable to send soil for the purpose of inoculation without dis- tributing this objectionable grass to sections where the farmers are trying to keep it out.” NITRAGIN. In order to escape the difficulties previously mentioned, Nobbe con- ceived the idea of bringing about inoculation by means of pure cul- tures. This was to be accomplished by isolating from the nodule by means of a gelatin plate the right organisms and then transferring to tubes or bottles containing nutrient agar. To this culture of nodule- forming bacteria was given the trade name of ‘‘nitragin.” Seventeen different kinds of nitragin were prepared from the nodules of as many different plants, and arrangements were made to have them put up on a large scale and placed upon the market by a well-known firm of manufacturing chemists. Experiments with nitragin in Germany met with varying degrees of success. In some instances its use seemed to produce an abundant formation of nodules, while in other cases no ben- efit could be obtained. In this country the results obtained by Dug- gar were very satisfactory, but certain other investigators were not able to secure inoculation. W. M. Munson,? while having fair success with soy beans, failed to get any satisfactory results with clovers, peas, vetches, and other legumes, and his results did not warrant the recommendation of the use of nitragin for a leguminous crop. W. P. Brooks’ tried nitragin on crimson clover, alfalfa, and common red clover without appreciable effect. B. D. Halstead’ experimented with a number of legumes and tried three different kinds of nitragin, and as a result there was no evidence that nitragin was of any value in the formation of nodules. More recently, Maria Dawson,¢ in a series of experiments extending over three consecutive years, concluded that on peat, clay, loam, or ordinary garden soil the inoculation with nitragin proved to be both useless and superfiuous. In spite of these failures, however, a large number of citations might be given which indicate that under certain favorable conditions nitra- @ Maine Exp. Sta. Repts., 1897, p. 144, and 1898, p. 208. b Mass. Hatch Exp. Sta. Rept., 1897, p. 26. CN. J. Exp. Sta. Rept., 1899, p. 375. @ Ann. Bot., 15: 511-519, 1901. 22 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. gin was successful in producing nodules upon leguminous crops. The chief difficulties seem to have been in securing cultures of the proper degree of virulence and in preventing deterioration because of being subjected to too much heat or varying degrees of moisture. The age of the culture was also of importance, the manufacturers limiting the time of efficiency to about six weeks. Owing probably to inability to maintain the efficiency of the culture to its highest degree, and the adverse conditions to which it was often subjected during transporta- tion, the percentage of failures in the use of nitragin was so great that its manufacture was given up, and it is no longer for sale under that name. Consequently, even though this preparation had been found to be satisfactory in Europe, the necessity for devising some method of producing nitrogen-fixing nodules free from the objection- able features of transferring soil remained the same. For this reason the Laboratory of Plant Physiology of the Department of Agriculture undertook a scientific investigation of the root-nodule organism, and us a result it is believed that a thoroughly practical and satisfactory method of bringing about artificial inoculation has been devised. NATURE OF THE ORGANISM. Before any improvement could be hoped to be made upon methods already in use for bringing about artificial inoculation it was necessary to become thoroughly acquainted with the precise nature of the nodule- forming organism, for, in spite of the fact that these organisms occur in great quantities and that the interior of the nodule constitutes what is practically a pure culture, there has been the widest difference of opinion as to the morphology and life history of these bodies. Beye- rinck“@ was the first to cultivate the bacteria successfully, although a year previous Marshall Ward? had, by a series of careful experiments, established the fact that the nodule was due to some fungus-like organ- ism present in the soil, and as early as 1886 Woronin® expressed a belief that the cause of these abnormal growtlis was due to foreign organisms, possibly the ‘*‘ vibrio-like bodies” which he was the first to discover and describe. One reason for the different theories in regard to the true cause of the legume nodule has undoubtedly been on account of the various and diverse forms assumed by the organisms found in the nodule at differ- ent times and under different conditions. An examination of a mature nodule of almost any legume will show large numbers of rod-shaped bacteria as well as the characteristic branched forms, but it is probable that in most cases the organism producing the infection is different “Bot. Zeit., xlvi, 1888, pp. 725-804. »Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc., London, vol. 178, 1887. ¢Mém. del’ Académie Imp. des Sciences de St. Petersburg, Ser. VII, X, No. 6, 1866. NATURE OF THE ORGANISM. 23 from either of these, being an extremely minute, motile rod usually measuring less than 1 micron in length and about 0.2 of a micron in width. According to Beyerinck, there is a single flagellum attached to the posterior end of these “‘ rovers,” but repeated efforts have failed to demonstrate this, although there is no question about motility. These minute bacteria gain admission to the plant through the root hairs, a number of them often penetrating the same hair. It requires but a short time for them to increase greatly in number, and there is then formed the strandlike colony of bacteria which has been respon- sible for the idea that the nodules were formed by true fungi. One of the first and most thorough investigations of these fungus-like threads was made by Ward,“ who followed their development from the root hairs to the cells of the nodule, and came to the conclusion that the bacteria-like bodies originated by a kind of budding from enlarged portions of the ‘“‘hyphe.” Because of the resemblance of this pro- cess to certain known methods of forming spores in the Ustilaginee, he considered the cause of nodules to be due to a fungus related to this group. Eriksson,’ Cornu,’ Prillieux,’ and Kny“ have all held similar views as to the fungus origin of the nodule. Frank,¢ while at first adhering to this theory, later came to consider the nodule a natural formation of the legume root developed for the purpose of absorbing nitrogenous substances from the soil. In 1890 the same author/ returned to the idea of an external cause and accounted for the hyphal- like structures by explaining that they were made up of the protoplasm of the cell and of bacteria-like bodies, to which he gave the name of Rhizobium leguminosarum. Some have held the theory that because of the resemblance of these strands to plasmodia, the cause of the nodule must be due to a myxomycete—possibly a form related to the Plasmodiophora of the Cruciferee. Careful investigation has demonstrated, however, that these struc- tures resembling hyphe are in reality nothing more than a zooglea mass formed by the swelling of the outer layers of the extremely small bacteria which penetrate the root hairs. It is not necessary to assume the presence of minute pores in the cell walls to account for the man- ner in which the strand passes from one cell to another, as was done by Beyerinck,“ for the same secretion which enables the original organism to dissolve the wall of the root hair will also in greater quan- tity produce the same effect upon the root tissue. Although these zoogloea masses, or ‘‘ infection threads,” are usually present in great numbers in the young nodules of most legumes, they do not always occur, and it is not necessary that the bacteria pass from cell to cell @ Bot. Zeit., xlvi, 1888, pp. 725-804. d@ Bul. de la Soc. Bot. de France, xxvi, 1879. b Acta, Univ. Lund., 1874. € Bot. Zeit., 1879. ¢ Etude sur le Phylloxera, 1878. J Landwirthseh. Jahrb., 19, 1900. 94 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. in this form. The lupines are particularly free from these strands, it often being difficult to find them even in the root hairs. As the nodule develops, due to the irritation set up in the cells of the root by the entrance of the bacteria, the zooglea threads, which were at first made up entirely of the minute bacteria, begin to develop bacteria of a larger size which may or may not be motile, according to the con- ditions under which they are grown. These larger rod-shaped bacteria, measuring from 2 to 5 microns in length and about 1 micron in width, as they become older usually give rise to the peculiar branching forms so frequently described and considered as being peculiar to the legume nodule. How these branched forms originate has been the cause of some investigation and much speculation. According to Beyerinck, “ the larger rods have an unsymmetrical, one-sided outline, slightly curved at the middle in such a way that as this swelling increases the two- armed structure is attained. The generally accepted view is that the branched forms are degenerate or involution forms of the rod-shaped bacteria, and for this reason they are frequently designated as bacte- roids. Stutzer’? regards them as a higher rather than a lower type, with which view Hiltner¢ takes issue, he considering them merely enlarged rod bacteria. Greig Smith? explains the so-called branching by regarding the nodule organism as a yeast, which, multiplying by budding, causes the various shapes assumed, the capsule often hinder- ing the ready separation. While there is no reason to believe that the nodule-forming organism has any affinities whatever with the yeasts, there are good grounds for the belief that the peculiar, irregular out- lines assumed are due to the fact that as a single rod-shaped form divides, it is under certain conditions unable to free itself from the enveloping capsule, and consequently two or more individuals are held together, giving the y or XY appearance. The condition is not so unusual among the bacteria as is generally supposed, similar branch ing forms occurring in Mycobacterium denitrificans and Pasteuria ramosa,© as well as in the bacillus of tuberculosis. / Further arguments against the degeneration theory of the branched forms are to be found in the fact that they can readily be produced in artificial cultures, provided the conditions are‘right. A faintly acid medium containing potassium phosphate will usually produce them in a short time, although they are often found upon jelly of different composition. If a solid medium is used, the surface should be covered “Verh. d. Konink. Akad. d. Wetensch. te Amsterdam, 25: 1887. >Centralbl. fiir Bakt., Par. u. Infec., II Abt., II, 1896. ¢Centralbl. fur Bakt., Par. u. Infec., II Abt., VI, 273. “Proc, Linnean Soe. of New South Wales, 34, 1899, pp. 653-673. é¢ Ann. de l’Inst. Pasteur, 2: 165. 1888. J Brit. Assoc. Ad. Sci., 1015-1016. 1896. A. Coppen Jones. CROSS-INOCULATION AND SPECIFIC CHARACTERS. 95 with a thin film of water; if fluid, the amount in the flask must not be too great. Although it is generally supposed that the irregularly branched forms occur only in old nodules, this is by no means the case, as they may frequently be observed in the small, recently formed nodules of young plants. CROSS-INOCULATION AND SPECIFIC CHARACTERS. Because of the fact frequently observed that one kind of legume would not produce nodules in soil which abundantly supplied another legume with these growths, it has been supposed that each legume required a special and peculiar nodule organism. Efforts have been made to distinguish between these bacteria specifically, and separate names have been assigned to the microbes from the nodules of peas, beans, clover, etc. Most investigators, however, have been unable to discover any constant difference in the appearance and general characteristics of the bacteria of the various legume nodules, and even Beyerinck, * who described at least two distinct groups of these organ- isms, says that the failure to produce inoculation upon all legumes with one microbe is a difference in variety rather than in species. In order that such an important point might be thoroughly tested, a large number of legumes were grown in pots in the greenhouse for the purpose of testing the efficacy of various cultures derived from nodules of different hosts. The seeds were either planted in quartz sand which had been burned red-hot, or in earth thoroughly sterilized. All of the usual precautions were taken in regard to sterilizing the seed, the water, etc. ,and the checks proved that these methods were adequate. It would occupy too much space to give the results of all the cross- inoculation experiments carried on, but a single example will suffice. Nodule-forming bacteria from the common pea (swum satvvum), which had been grown for two weeks upon nitrogen-free media, were used for inoculating seed of the following plants: Crimson clover (7Z77- folium inearnatum), red clover (Trifolium pratense), white clover (Trifolium repens), berseem (Trifolium alecandrinum), alsike (Zri- folium hybridum), sweet clover (Melilotus alba), cowpea (Vigna catjang), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), broad bean ( Vicia faba), common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), fenugreek (Trigonella jfoenum-graecum), hairy vetch ( Vicia villosa), scarlet vetch (Vicia fulgens), yellow vetch ( Vicia lutea), blue lupine (Lupinus angustifolius), and white lupine (Lupinus albus). In every case, with the exception of the lupines, the culture produced nodules. Out of the 25 lupine plants one had four nodules, but this was probably due to insufficient sterilization of the seed. A great many similar cross-inoculations were made in every possible combination, and it was satisfactorily demonstrated 4 Bot. Zeit., xlvi, 1888. 26 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. that it is possible to cause the formation of nodules upon practically all lezumes, no matter what was the source of the original organisms, provided they were cultivated for some time upon a synthetic nitrogen- free medium. It is undoubtedly true that the long adaptation of the bacteria to the special conditions obtaining in a particular species of legume enables such organisms to produce more abundant nodules in a shorter length of time than bacteria isolated from some other legume and grown upon nitrogen-free media. While this is of considerable prac- tical importance, and will probably always make it necessary to dis- tribute the specific organism for the specific crop, it does not in any way indicate that the bacteria found in the nodules of beans, peas, clovers, ete., are separate species. The most that can be maintained is that there is a slight physiological difference due to the long asso- ciation with a plant of a peculiar reaction which enables the bacteria more easily to penetrate the host upon which they have been accus- tomed to grow. These slight racial characteristics can readily be broken down by cultivation in the laboratory, and it is entirely possible to secure a universal organism capable of producing a limited number of nodules upon all the legumes which now possess these growths. As the result of experiments carried on in the Laboratory of Plant Physiology and elsewhere, it isa generally accepted fact at the present time that the organism producing the nodules of the legumes is a single species of bacillus having three well-defined forms. These are: First, a very minute motile rod occurring in the soil and penetrating the root hairs, which may or may not develop peculiar strandlike zoog]cea masses; second, a larger rod, measuring from 0.6 of a micron up to 2.5 microns in width and from 1.5 to 5 microns in length. This great diversity in size does not occur in the same culture or nodule, but varies according to different hosts. The larger rods are likewise motile at times, and give rise to the third form, which may appear to be variously branched, but in reality is nothing more than an aggregation of two or more rods held together by a gelatinous sheath. Spores are not known to exist. sultivating any of these forms upon gelatin produces slowly devel- oping colonies of a clear, transparent appearance, which do not liquefy the medium. Similar appearing colonies occur upon various solid media without any especial characteristics to distinguish them. The organism is strongly aerobic, growing best at a temperature of from 23° to 25° C., although it may be accustomed to a temperature as high as 40° C. There does not seem to be any necessity for creating a new group to include these organisms, as has been done by Frank, under the name of Khizobium, for although there is a certain amount of polymor- phism, it is no greater than frequently occurs in the bacteria. Conse- quently, the name proposed by Beyerinck of Bacillus radicicola would METHODS OF CULTIVATION. yard be retained except for the fact that, according to the modern interpre- tation of this genus, the organism must have flagelle over the entire surface. According to Beyerinck’s own statement and other observa- tions made upon both minute and full-size rods, the flagella are found at but one end. For this reason it becomes necessary to transfer the nodule-forming bacteria to the genus Pseudomonas, the name then standing as Pseudomonas radicicola (Beyerinck). METHODS OF CULTIVATION. The usual method of growing the nodule-forming organism has been to make a medium froma decoction of the particular legume upon which the organism originally grew. This was the method used by Nobbe and Hiltner, and the latter” has gone so far as to say that they can only be grown in nutrient media containing legume extract. This, however, is not the case, the number of organic and inorganic sub- stances in both solid and liquid media upon which Pseudomonas radi- cicola will thrive being very great. More than fifty different com- binations consisting of various nutrient salts, such as magnesium sulphate, potassium phosphate, ammonium phosphate, together with peptone, sugar, glycerin, asparagin, as well as potato, cabbage, squash, etc., have been found to produce at least a fair growth, although of course an extract of the host plant, plus 1 to 3 per cent peptone, with about 2 per cent cane sugar, will give the most luxuriant growth in the shortest time. As the result of numerous trials, however, it has been found that although the bacteria increase most rapidly upon a medium rich in nitrogen, the resulting growth is usually of very much reduced virulence, and when put into the soil these organisms have lost the ability to break up into the minute forms necessary to penetrate the root hairs. They likewise lose the power of fixing atmospheric nitrogen, which is a property of the nodule-forming bacteria under certain conditions. For this reason the mere matter of an abundant growth is one of the least desirable considerations in propagating these organisms for any practical purpose, and a medium had to be devised which, while admit- ting of a fair growth, would at least retain, if not increase, the ability of the organism to produce nodules and fix nitrogen. This condition was met by using an agar for plating out from the nodule to which no nitrogenous salt was added, the usual combination being 1 per cent agar, 1 per cent maltose, 0.1 per cent monobasic potassium phosphate, and 0.02 per cent magnesium sulphate to 100 cubic centimeters of dis- tilled water. While sucha medium is not, of course, absolutely devoid of fixed nitrogen, the percentage is so much less than that found in a 28 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. factory. Silica jelly was also used as a solid basis to which the above salts were added, giving a culture medium as free from nitrogen as could be obtained. Bacteria grown upon media of this character were found to be much more virulent than those cultivated on a rich nitrogenous base, and field experiments by the acre showed the greatest difference in the nodule-producing power of organisms grown by these two methods.¢ That there should be such a considerable increase in the nodule- forming and nitrogen-fixing power of these organisms when grown under different conditions is not surprising when it is remembered how susceptible the bacteria are to a change in their environment and the rapidity with which new generations are formed. Perey Frank- land” has shown that the mere transfer of the bacillus which ferments calcium citrate from a liquid to a gelatin medium is sufficient to cause it to lose its fermenting power. Rosenau’ found that a bacterium pathogenic to rats loses its virulence if cultivated in contact with air, and many other instances of the great rapidity with which bacteria may modify their seemingly fixed functions might be given. There- fore, one of the most important advances in developing a method of perfecting a culture of the nodule-forming microbe suitable for practi- cal purposes consisted in getting away from the old and seemingly more natural methods of propagation and resorting to the combination which would result in producing a type of fixed virulence. It would seem that for bacteriology in general, helpful and necessary as the solid nitrogenous media have been, much information of value has been lost by abandoning some of the older and less rapid culture methods. EFFECT OF VARYING CONDITIONS. The influence of heat, light, alkalinity, etc., upon the organisms producing nodules is of considerable practical importance, and for this reason a number of experiments were tried to ascertain the effect of various external conditions upon the growth and eflicieney of the bacteria. LIGHT, HEAT, AND AIR. As the result of numerous tests, it was found that except for the deleterious effect of strong sunlight there seemed to be no difference in ~ organisms grown in the light and in the dark. The optimum temper- ature is from 28° to 25° C.,and above 40° C. there is usually no appre- ciable growth. It was not possible to produce death by any degree of cold, although below 10° C. practically no multiplication took place. The presence or absence of air was found to be of the utmost importance. “ Yearbook of the Department of Agriculture for 1902, pl. xlii, figs. 1 and 2. » Proc. Brit. Inst. Great Brit., 18: 531. 1890-92. ¢ Bul. V, U. 8. Marine Hosp. Sery., 1901. EFFECT OF VARYING CONDITIONS. 29 Cultures from which the air was exhausted soon perished, and even cultures in tubes filled with air but sealed deteriorated rapidly. It is also undoubtedly true that lack of air prevents the formation of the branched forms, which are of the greatest service to the plant in sup- plying it with nitrogen. This is one reason for certain nodules being of little or no value to the plant, a point which will be discussed more fully in another chapter. The aeration of the medium likewise has considerable to do with increasing the ability of the organism to fix atmospheric nitrogen in liquid cultures, and the necessity for securing an ample supply of air in soil which is to be used for growing legumes can not be too strongly emphasized. An effort was made to deter- mine whether the necessity for a good supply of air was not due to the presence of an abundance of nitrogen gas. Tubes in which the air was replaced by pure nitrogen were able to sustain vigorous cultures of the bacteria for a number of weeks, and it seems probable that this gas is really the only essential obtained from the atmosphere. The action of denitrifying bacteria in the soil, releasing large quantities of nitrogen gas, thus becomes a most important source of supply to nodule-forming organisns. © ACIDS AND ALKALIS. So far as the growth of the organism upon culture media is con- cerned, the effect of acids or alkalis within reasonable limits has no decided effect. Experiments tried upona number of bacteria from various legume nodules proved that it was possible for them to flour- ish in media containing as high as 0.05 per cent of calcium carbonate, as well as in media containing an equal percentage of free citric and other similar acids. Trials upon plants in pots demonstrated the fact that the bacteria would stand any degree of acidity or alkalinity of the soil that would permit the growth of that particular legume. In general, it may be said that potassium and sodium salts in strengths of from one-third to 1 per cent often entirely inhibit the formation of nodules, and less quantities reduce the formation considerably, while calcium and magnesium salts greatly favor their production. That this action is due to the production of an osmotic state prejudicial to the entrance of the organism through the root hairs, as suggested by Marchal,? is a possibility, but the direct effect upon the germs is also a factor which must be considered. On the other hand, there is no question that with lupines and certain other plants adapted to acid soils the addition of calcium and magnesium carbonate is as injurious to the formation of nodules as it is to the plants themselves. The importance of neutralizing the acidity of certain soils in order to be successful in growing clover, alfalfa, etc., is well known, and «Compt. Rend., Paris, 1901, p. 1032. 30 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. the addition of lime is frequently recommended where such crops fail. In such cases it is probable that ‘the acidity of the soil not only is prejudicial to the growth of the plant, but has likewise prevented the development of the nodule- forming bacteria. Thus, the addition of the lime serves a double purpose. According to Maze,“ there are but two groups of nodule-forming organisms—those adapted to an acid soil, and normally found on lupine, broom, furze, ete., and those adapted to an alkaline soil, oceur- ring upon most of the common forage and garden legumes. While experience has not borne out this theory in the United States, there can be no doubt about the readiness with which the nodule organism from calcium soils may be accustomed to live upon an acid medium, and the reverse; and there is every reason to suppose that the adapta- tion of special bacteria to suit special kinds of soil may be readily brought about. NITRATES. The fact that the nodules do not occur abundantly upon plants grow- ing in very rich earth has been frequently observed, so that the dele- ‘erious effect of nitrogenous substances upon artificial cultures is to be expected. Alkaline nitrates in the proportion of 1 to 10,000 are sufficient to prevent the formation of nodules, and, as has already been referred to, the cultivation of the bacteria upon media containing appreciable quantities of nitrogen for any length of time is sufficient to cause them to lose both the power of infection and that of fixing atmospheric nitrogen. It will thus be seen that many of the factors influencing the size, number, and location of the nodules are those affecting the bacteria quite as much as the plant, and any information in regard to the life history of the organism, together with the physio- logical effect of conditions and substances with which the nodule- forming bacteria come in contact, will be of much practical importance. Plates II, III, and IV illustrate well the difference in the effect of the same bacteria upon the same kinds of plants in different soils, and fully as striking difference might be shown where the moisture, or the acidity, or the air supply varied. MOISTURE. Experiments by Gain? and others have shown that with peas, beans, and lupines, watered and unwatered, the number of nodules in moist soil exceeded those in dry soil from ten to twenty times, and experi- ments in this country have demonstrated most conclusively that the humidity of a soil greatly favors nodule formation. This fact must be due either to > the 1 inability of the organism to come in contact with the a ad. dev rest: Panter ur, xi, 1897, pp. 145-155. ’Compt. Rend., Paris, 116: 1394-1397. WHERE IS NITROGEN FIXED? dL root hairs in the absence of sufficient moisture or to a failure to pene- trate the root hairs under such conditions, for drought is in no way fatal to the bacteria. WHERE IS NITROGEN FIXED? Having briefly discussed some of the results obtained by the presence of nodules upon the roots of legumes, and having indicated the char- acter of the organisms causing these growths, it is important that we inquire into the precise method by which nodules are of benefit to the plant, if, in fact, they always are beneficial. After it was definitely established that the legumes were actually able to obtain free nitrogen from the atmosphere, naturally the next question was in regard to where and how this gas was fixed. Frank advanced the theory that nitrogen entered the plant just as carbon dioxid does, the transforma- tion into an available form taking place in the leaves in the same way that carbon is obtained. This view soon gave way to a second one, which maintained that the nitrogen was fixed in the soil by the action of the bacteria and then used by the roots in the same way that any com- bined nitrogen would become available. Still another idea has been that the presence of nodule-forming bacteria in a plant acted as a stimulus which enabled it to use nitrogen gas in some new and unknown manner; and, finally, the explanation has been offered that the nodules with their bacteria act as accumulators of nitrogen which afterwards be- comes available for the plant through the destruction of the contents of the nodule. One of the points which might assist in establishing this latter theory would be to demonstrate that the nodule bacteria have the power of combining free nitrogen within their own cells. The chief difficulty in attempting to gain such proof is that it is read- ily possible that although they possess this function inclosed in the nodule, the power might be lost when removed from contact with the host plant and no fixation would take place under artificial conditions. Indeed, Maze,” in discussing the fixation of free nitrogen by the nodule-forming organism, claims that it is acquired in the plant and lost in the soil. That this property is quite unstable in the bacteria of legumes there can be little doubt, and it is not surprising that many investigators have reported an absolute failure in attempting to demonstrate the fixation of nitrogen by these bacteria in pure cultures. Experiments have shown, however, that the nodule-forming organ- ism in the large rod stage has the property of fixing free nitrogen independent of any host plant, when grown upon the proper media and thoroughly aerated. In order to demonstrate this fact, 90 Ehrlen- meyer flasks containing 100 cubic centimeters each of culture fluid were inoculated with nodule-forming organisms from red clover, soy 4Ann. de |’Inst. Pasteur, xi, 1897, pp. 145-155. 32 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. bean, white lupine, hairy vetch, berseem, and garden pea. The cul- ture medium contained magnesium sulphate, potassium phosphate, and — maltose, and a Kjeldahl determination showed that there was present per 100 cubic centimeters 0.0003 gram of nitrogen as nitrites, making a fluid as free from nitrogen as could be obtained under the cireum- — stances. After inoculation, air which was first passed through a flask filled with pumice stone and sulphuric acid to remoye any ammonia was drawn through the flasks by an aspirator. Precautions were also taken to prevent evaporation. Kjeldahl determinations of the inocu- lated and uninoculated flasks were made at the end of one, two, and three weeks, and in every case a most decided gain in nitrogen was obtained by the end of the third week. Some of the flasks failed to show any difference the first week; in fact, the analysis indicated ina few cases that instead of 0.0003 gram it was impossible to find any trace of nitrogen. This was probably due to the fact that the organ- ism did not develop very rapidly at first and the original amount of combined nitrogen was used before any free nitrogen was fixed. It may be that this took place in all the flasks, but as determinations could not be made oftener than every seven days many of the cul- tures had begun to gain before the analysis was made. The actual gain as above determined varied from 0.0002 gram to 0.0022 gram per 100 cubic centimeters. The checks or unimoculated flasks, of which there were twelve, four being analyzed at the end of each week, at no time showed an increase over the original 0.0003 gram per 100 cubic centimeters. Thus, it would seem that there could be little doubt about the power of Pseudomonas radicicola to fix free nitrogen independent of any leguminous plant. A second series of the same number of flasks was started some time after the results from the first analysis were obtained, in order to determine whether or not the nitrogen was combined with the potas- sium in the medium or was actually contained in the cells of the bac- teria. In this set of flasks the fluid medium was varied by adding ammonium phosphate to some and glycerin to others, as well as by substituting cane sugar and peptone for maltose. The results were practically the same as in the first test, except that the percentage of nitrogen fixed was considerably greater in the flasks containing the ammonium phosphate, sometimes showing a gain of 0.0031 gram per 100 cubic centimeters in three weeks. The exact composition of this liquid was as follows: Magnesium sulphate 0.02 gram, potassium phosphate 0.1 gram, ammonium phosphate 1 gram, glycerin 1.5 cubie centimeters, maltose 1 gram, distilled water 1,000 cubic centimeters. After growth had become thoroughly established in these flasks and a Kjeldahl determination showed that nitrogen was being accumulated toa considerable extent, the remainder of the fluid was filtered through WHERE IS NITROGEN FIXED? ao a Pasteur-Chamberland filter for the purpose of removing all the bac- teria. The analysis of the filtrate, while showing a small percentage of nitrogen, established without question that a very large proportion of the gain in nitrogen was due to the enormous increase in number of the nodule organisms, each one of which contained a minute quantity of this element. Since the legume bacteria can fix nitrogen and store it up within themselves, it becomes necessary to investigate carefully the behavior of these organisms within the nodule with a view to determining, if possible, how the nitrogen is supplied to the plant. Analyses of the nodules of legumes show that they frequently contain as high as 7 to 8 per cent of nitrogen, while other parts of the plant will not possess more than 2 per cent. This high percentage is before flowering and the formation of fruit, it being a well-recognized fact that the contents of most of the nodules disappear as the plant reaches maturity and the inclosing tissue shrivels up. Such a high percentage of nitrogen is not constant, however, there being a distinct relation between the character of the nodule and its nitrogen content. Asa rule, it may be said that the abnormally large nodules contain the smallest percentage of nitrogen, the most efficient forms being those upon the smaller roots of medium size. Examination of the nodules of such sizes as to be considered unusual shows them to be filled not with branched forms but straight rods, which, as will be seen later, are not suited to supply nitrogen in any quantity. A microscopical examination of the nodule at this time will demonstrate that whereas formerly it was packed full of the branched capsulate organisms, these have now nearly disap- peared, leaving only a few rodlike forms. Chemical analysis of the bacteria themselves indicates that they are‘largely albuminous. Frank found certain nodules developing amylodextrin, and he attempted to distinguish between the organisms forming this substance and those producing albumin. It is not believed, however, that there is any distinction to be made in the contents or substance of the organisms giving rise to the nodule. The young nodule is at first packed with rod-shaped bacteria and is of a pale red color, changing to greenish gray as the nodule matures and the rods become transformed into the various irregular branched forms so characteristic of these bacteria. Finally, the cells of the roots are able to secrete an enzyme which dissolves the nodule organ- ism when in the branched condition, and by this means renders avyail- able considerable quantities of nitrogen, which is then diffused through the plant. This method of absorbing the contents of the nodule is facilitated by the structure of the nodule, which, according to Van Tieghem,’ originates in the pericycle of the mother root ———— « Bul. de la Soc. Bot. de France, 35: 105-109. 12628—No. 71—05——3 34 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. opposite or on each side of the woody bundles. Sometimes the nod- ules possess from two to four distinct central cylinders, inserted one above the other, at points in the woody bundle of the central cylinder of the mother root. Because of their origin, structure, and dis- position, there can be little doubt about nodules being morpho- logically merely rootlets that have enlarged, the first investigation calculated to establish this fact being made by Van Tieghem® and later reaffirmed by Peirce.’ . NODULES NOT ALWAYS BENEFICIAL. That the bacteria are almost always able to resist the action of the host ‘plant, except when in the branched condition, is undoubtedly - true, although there are a few exceptions in the case of the pea and one or two other plants. If the only source of nitrogen is by dissoly- ing the bacteria, it will readily be seen that should the nodules con- tinue to be filled with the unbranched rods the benefit to the plant will be little or nothing, and the presence of nodules upon the roots may even be a detriment. Too little attention has been paid to this point, the almost universal opinion being that all nodules are able to supply nitrogen to the plant, and any failure in a crop well supplied with these growths must be due to other causes. This is not the fact, how- ever, there being no question that frequently the organisms producing nodules have lost the power of going into the branched condition; and thus, while preventing their destruction by the plant, they defeat the very object for which they are supposed to be so valuable. That this condition is due to the organism itself, and is not the result of lack of vigor on the part of the plant which prevents its secreting the enzyme that will make the bacteria available, is proved by the fact that it is possible to control this situation by modifying the character of the bacteria. Thus, if nodule-forming organisms be grown upon artificial media for a long time, where they are almost invariably in the rod condition, this form becomes so firmly established that plants inocu- lated with such cultures, although forming nodules, receive practically no benefit, the nodules remaining firm and hard and furnishing no nitrogen to the roots. It is precisely the same as trying to furnish a plant with its supply of calcium or potassium in an insoluble form. These essentials of plant food may be present, but so long as they remain fixed and will not pass into solution they are valueless to the plant. The nodule organism of most legumes, so long as it retains the rod form, is insolu- ble, and the plant must be supplied with bacteria capable of passing into the branched stage under the conditions existing in the nodule if 4 Bul. de la Soe. Bot. de France, 35: 105. 1888. b Proc. Cal. Acad. Sci., 2, June, 1902. SYMBIOSIS OR PARASITISM? 35 they are to be of service. Thus it is plain that the nitrogen is fixed not by the plant but by the bacteria within its roots, and this element becomes available to the plant only on account of its ability to dissolve and absorb these nitrogen-containing bodies. Consequently, there is after all no conflict with the original dictum of Boussingault that the higher plants can not use directly the nitrogen of the atmosphere. It is no more proper to insist that the legumes themselves can combine nitrogen gas than it is to claim this function for wheat or potatoes. The ability to absorb bacteria rich in nitrogen is the only property peculiar to the nodule-bearing plants. If nematode worms were largely nitrogenous, and violets and other plants infected by them were capable of destroying and absorbing these parasites, it would be just as correct to term the nematode-infected plants ‘‘ nitrogen-fixing ” as it is to ascribe any such function to the legumes. SYMBIOSIS OR PARASITISM? Granting the facts just stated, we are at once confronted with the old idea of the supposed symbiotic relation between the bacteria and the plant. Painful as it may be to disturb one of Nature’s mutual benefit societies, there seems to be no other way than to consider the nodule- forming bacteria as true parasites which penetrate the roots of the plant for the purpose of obtaining the necessary carbohydrates for food. Fortunately for the host plant, there are certain conditions under which it can overcome the bacteria and eat them up, as it were, thus obtaining a considerable amount of nitrogenous food which would not otherwise have been available. That there is anything ideal or truly symbiotic (in the sense that De Bary used the term) about this arrangement is difficult to comprehend. The only cooperation between bacteria and host seems to consist in the microbe having the best of the situation at first, when it is able to secrete substances injurious to the cells of the legume, and later the host plant retaliates by secreting still other substances which result in the complete destruction of most of the bacteria. So long as it was maintained that the nodule organ- ism could only grow in the root of a legume or upon an extract of these plants, as was claimed by Hiltner“ and many others, there might have been some slight foundation for the theory, but even this basis is now gone. While not agreeing with Peirce? in considering it difti- cult to understand how the leguminous plant as a whole can benetit by an association with Pseudomonas radicicola, which is injurious and finally destructive to the cells in which the bacteria occur, his conclu- sion regarding the parasitic nature of these bacteria is undoubtedly correct. aSelskoe Khozyaistvo 1 Lyesovodstvo, St. Petersburg, 1899, pp. 425-462. bProc. Cal. Acad. Sci., 2, June, 1902. 36 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. INFECTION AND FIXATION OF NITROGEN WITHOUT NODULES. The wide distribution by the Department of Agriculture of cultures for the purpose of experimenting with the artificial inoculation of the soil has led to some very interesting results, some of which may have ‘a considerable bearing upon the final perfection and success of the method now inuse. One of the most striking effects reported by some careful observers was the apparent beneficial action of the culture without the formation of nodules. In one instance at a State experi- ment station three plots of soy beans were planted, one inoculated with a Department of Agriculture artificial culture, another treated with soil from a field which grew nodule-covered soy beans in abun- dance, and lastly an uninoculated plot for the purpose of checking the other two. The soil for the three experiments was as nearly alike as possible, and the treatment, except as to inoculation, was precisely the same. As the season advanced it was noted that the check plot devel- oped no nodules and rapidly failed; the plot inoculated by the transfer of soil produced nodules and made a fair average growth, but the plot treated with the artificial culture far exceeded it in every way. This was not so surprising until an inspection of the roots showed the entire absence of nodules. No explanation could be offered at the time, but later, when practically the same conditions were noted in some experi- ments with berseem in the West, plants were secured which threw some light upon the situation. As the result of a careful microscopical examination of the roots, it was found that although no nodules were evident—in fact, did not exist—the cells within the smaller roots were packed with the characteristic branching forms of Pseudomonas radiet- cola, and that undoubtedly the plant was able to obtain considerable benefit from the presence of these organisms. The same condition has been found in alfalfa, and it is presumed that it was this internal infection which was encountered several years ago in white lupine, although not recognized at the time. Plate V illustrates most strikingly the difference which may occur in plants producing normal nodules and those inoculated but showing no exter- nal evidence of infection. The small bunch of alfalfa plants was grown upon rich creek bottom land which had been overflowed and inoculated by the carrying in of bacteria from a melilotus field. These plants were abundantly supplied with nodules. The larger plants were grown upon the same farm, but upon sandy upland where no legumes had been previously planted. Consequently, the seeds were inoculated with a culture supplied by the Department and with most satisfactory results. There was, however, no evidence of nod- ules, and not until after a microscopical examination of the roots was it known that they were thoroughly infected with nitrogen-fixing bacteria. . * , , INOCULATION BY PURE CULTURE. 37 Since the production of this peculiar result under control conditions has not as yet been possible, it is difficult to conjecture just what cir- cumstances would produce such an effect. It was undoubtedly of advantage to the plants in all of the known cases and may be a much more universal phenomenon than is supposed. Of course, wherever nodules are produced abundantly there will be little opportunity for detecting internal infection. The absence of noduies in poor soil upon a crop that was failing would seem to indicate that no nitrogen was being fixed and that no bacteria were present. Where legumes have been successful without nodules it has generally been supposed that the soil was rich enough in nitrogen to support the plant and that the requisite bacteria either had never found their way into the soil or because of the excess of nitrogen had been prevented from developing. Cases of this character must be more fully investigated before it is known how frequently inoculation without nodules may occur. That it is not an impossibility is sufficiently evident to warrant further study. INOCULATION BY PURE CULTURE. As has already been shown, in order to secure artificially a satisfac- tory inoculation of any leguminous crop it is necessary that the greatest precaution be taken in procuring the original culture. The method of growing the organism upon some medium relatively free from nitro- gen is important in order that its virulence may not be lost, and from the time the bacteria are plated out from the nodule until they are introduced into the soil, every effort must be made to preserve and increase as far as possible the nitrogen-fixing and root-penetrative power of these organisms. Even though the efficiency of the culture be at its highest point, the mere fact of its having to grow for a con- siderable time under artificial conditions is apt to weaken it; conse- quently, the means of preserving and distributing the bacteria after they are propagated are fully as important as the method of obtaining them in sufficient quantity for such distribution. This is another reason why the nodule-forming bacteria sent out upon rich nutrient media failed to maintain their original strength, and if it had not been possible to devise some more satisfactory way of delivering these organisms to the farmer, it is probable that but little success could ever have been attained by the pure-culture method. Fortunately, how- ever, although Pseudomonas radicicola does not produce spores, the large rods will withstand desiccation for a year or more, and there- fore, because they may be sent dry any distance and upon being revived be in the same condition of efficiency with which they started, the problem becomes a very simple one. The method which has been employed in the Department of Agri- culture for the past year has been to saturate absorbent cotton in a 38 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. liquid culture of the nodule-forming organism. In this way millions of the bacteria are held within the cotton, and after this is carefully — dried out they remain dormant in much the way that seeds do, waiting — for the proper conditions to revive them. Where it is possible to obtain sterile utensils and to prevent absolutely the entrance of micro- organisms it is sufficient to insert the inoculated cotton into sterilized water, when in the course of time the bacteria will have multiplied suffi- ciently to produce a decided clouding of the culture and will be ready to introduce into the ground. This would require too long, however, and it is also difficult, when preparing to treat large quantities of seed, to prevent the entrance of other bacteria, molds, yeasts, etc., all of which may have a deleterious effect upon the growth of the nodule-producing organism. For this reason it has seemed best to prepare the water in such a way as will facilitate the growth of the desired bacteria and yet delay or prevent the development of the forms which might be intro- duced from the outside. Consequently, two packages of nutrient salts have been distributed with the cotton culture, one containing sugar, magnesium sulphate, and potassium phosphate, and the other ammon- ium phosphate. (See Pl. I.) By the addition of the first three ingredi- ents to the water containing the cotton saturated with bacteria a solution is formed which is not well adapted for the growth of the organisms usually carried about in the air, but is well suited for the multiplication of the nodule-forming bacteria. The addition of the ammonium phos- phate at the end of twenty-four hours tends to increase still further the growth of these bacteria, which are already well started if the temperature has not been too low or too high. METHODS OF USING LIQUID CULTURE. After the water containing the nutrient salts and bacteria-laden cotton has been allowed to stand until it becomes milky with the nodule-forming organisms, it is necessary to introduce this culture into the ground. This may be accomplished in two ways, either by moistening the seeds with the fluid, the bacteria adhering to their sur- faces and consequently being in close proximity at the time of germi- nation, or by mixing earth or sand with the culture and spreading over the field as one would apply fertilizer. Greenhouse and small- plot experiments indicated no particular advantage of one method over the other, and the hundreds of reports received from all over the country show that either means of introducing the organisms will pro- duce satisfactory results if the directions are properly followed. The sheet of directions which has accompanied each package of inoculating material as distributed by the Department of Agriculture reads as follows: TIME OF INOCULATION. 39 DIRECTIONS FOR USING INOCULATING MATERIAL. ( Method patented in order to guarantee the privilege of use by the public. Letters Patent No. 755519 granted March 22, 1904.) Put 1 gallon of clean water (preferably rain water) ina clean tub or bucket and add No. 1 of the inclosed package of salts. Stir occasionally until all is dissolved. Carefully open package No. 2 and drop the inclosed cotton into the solution. Cover the tub with a paper to protect from dust, and set aside in a warm place for twenty-four hours. Do not heat the solution or you will kill the bacteria—it should never be warmer than blood heat. After twenty-four hours add the contents of package No. 3. Within twenty hours more the solution will have a cloudy appearance and is ready for use. To inoculate seed.—Take just enough of the solution to thoroughly moisten the seed. Stir thoroughly so that all the seeds are touched by the solution. Spread out the seeds in a shady place until they are perfectly dry, and plant just as you would untreated seed. If bad weather should prevent planting at once, the inoculated seed, if thoroughly dried, may be kept without deterioration for several weeks. The dry cultures as sent from the laboratory will keep for several months. Do not pre- pare the liquid culture more than two or three days previous to the time when the seeds are to be treated, as the solution once made up must usually be used at the end of forty-eight hours. To inoculate soil_—Take enough dry earth so that the solution will merely moisten it. Mix thoroughly, so that all the particles of soil are moistened. Thoroughly mix this earth with four or five times as much, say half a wagonload. Spread this inoc- ulated soil thinly and evenly over the prepared ground exactly as if spreading fer- tilizer. The inoculated soil should be harrowed in immediately. Either of the above methods may be used, as may be most convenient. TIME OF INOCULATION. The results of numerous laboratory experiments have seemed to dem- onstrate that it is impossible for the nodule-forming bacteria to pene- trate the roots of legumes after they have attained an age of from two to four weeks. Maria Dawson? found that plants having roots from 14 inches to ¥ inclies long produced no nodules, while those with roots only about one-half inch in length were thoroughly inoculated with the same culture. For this reason it has been considered that it was useless to attempt to add the nitrogen-fixing bacteria to a growing crop, and the directions were adapted to be used at the time of seeding only. Practical experience in the field, however, has given some results which would seem to indicate that under some circumstances the use of inoculating material upon a standing crop of any age will be of benefit. | F. G. Short, of Fort Atkinson, Wis., writes: In July the Department sent mea sample of alfalfa bacteria, with directions for application. This was used on a field of alfalfa which had been newly seeded this spring and up to that time had shown a very small growth of yellow, rather stunted plants. I used the bacteria according to directions and can see there is quite a decided change for the better. @ Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc., London, 1899, p. 21. 40) SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. John C. Lloyd, of Utica, Nebr., used a culture upon 5 acres of alfalfa sown three years ago. The result was ‘‘ranker growth than before treatment and much heavier crop of hay. Cut three times and could have cut four, but pastured the last crop.” In Hoard’s Dairyman for November 11, 1904, an account is given of the treatment of old alfalfa fields with liquid culture applied by means of a street sprinkler. An experimental trial of this method was made by one of the editors of the paper with ‘‘ very evident success.” "From Levy, Mo., Thomas O. Hudson writes regarding a field of alfalfa planted in 1901 and treated with inoculating material in March, 1904: Results good. It was sickly and yellow and spindling, and did not do any good until this year. This year it was dark green and thrifty. I think it will be better next year. Another report upon an alfalfa field to which bacteria were added during the fourth year was recently sent by U. J. Hess, North Yakima, Wash.: The crop, which had been short, pale, and spindling, took on a darker color and a rank growth and yielded, I think, about three times as much as formerly. The same results have been noted for clover, H. W. Dunlap, Hol- land Patent, N. Y., reporting that having more of the liquid culture than could be used for some seed he was inoculating, he mixed it with a light loam and spread it upon a part of a field already in clover. The difference in color and size of the plants later on indicated where the soil had been distributed. Mrs. J. A. Wells, of Bryn Athyn, Pa., tried watering pea vines a month old, with undoubted success, and the results of a similar treat- ment by John R. Spears, of Northwood, N. Y., are shown on Plate X. Mr. Spears treated his peas with the culture solution with the excep- tion of one row, after they were two or three inches high, and the decided benefit is indicated by his report printed elsewhere in this bulletin. In the light of these and similar experiments, there can be no doubt that bacteria of a high state of virulence are capable of produc- ing inoculation at practically any time during the life of the legume if the conditions in the soil are favorable. It is probable that similar results have not been previously noted because bacteria of such high efficiency have not been used. While it can not be stated that as sat- isfactory an inoculation will be obtained in this way as by treating at the time of planting, it certainly seems that under most circumstances where a crop is failing for the lack of nitrogen-fixing bacteria it is worth while making an effort to introduce them, even though the plants be several years old. WHEN INOCULATION IS NECESSARY. 4] WHEN INOCULATION IS UNNECESSARY. Since the only purpose of the bacteria added to the soil is to furnish nitrogen to the plants in an available form, usually within root nodules, it is evident that where the organisms are already abundant and the crop is thriving, but little benefit can be expected from an additional inoculation. Of course, the nodules may be of the parasitic kind, fur- nishing little or no nitrogen, or they may be insufficient in quantity, in which case the addition of a fresh lot of bacteria may produce bene- ficial results. A considerable number of reports have been received, indicating that even with such universally distributed organisms as those occurring on cowpeas and red clover, the artificial inoculation of an old field produced a noticeable increase, and there is every reason to believe that where the land contains bacteria of a less degree of virulence than those sent out in the Department cultures, an inocula- tion is worth while. On the other hand, it should be remembered that many fields are thoroughly supplied with bacteria of the highest efficiency, and no additional supply, however abundant, will increase the yield. Inoculation would also be of little, if any, benefit to a rich soil con- taining a large amount of available nitrogen. As has been shown, the nitrogen-fixing bacteria will not grow well under such conditions, and being in an enfeebled stage the plants are able to withstand their action. Furthermore, the earth already being supplied with a suf- ficient amount of nitrogen, the plants will draw upon this direct source and produce as abundantly as if provided with nodules. This condi- tion, however, is very undesirable for leguminous crops, and they should not be grown upon such a piece of land unless poorer soil can not be obtained, or unless a legume is the most profitable crop for that region. The use of artificial cultures is preeminently designed for poor soil which it is desirable to bring into condition for produc- ing some root or grain crop demanding large amounts of nitrogen. WHEN INOCULATION IS NECESSARY. All legumes grown either for the purpose of enriching the soil or for the crop must, in order to be of the greatest benefit to the land and the plants, be provided with the nitrogen-fixing bacteria. It is believed that the artificial culture is the method most efficient, cheap- est, and freest from objectionable qualities. For these reasons inocu- lation should a/ways be practiced under the following conditions: (1) On poor land which has not previously grown legumes. (2) On land which, although planted to legumes, has not produced a crop, and the roots of which legumes, upon examination, fail to show the presence of nodules. 42 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. It is probable that good results will follow the artificial introduction of bacteria if— (1) The legumes to be planted belong to another group than thi already cultivated upon the land. (2) The same crop is to be planted upon land which previously pro- duced a yellow and sickly lot of legumes possessing nodules which, instead of being a benefit, acted as parasites. If the conditions favor the trial, good results may be obtained from the use of pure cultures when— (1) The crop has already been planted and gives evidence of failure due to the absence of bacteria in the soil. (2) A field which has previously grown good crops of legumes begins to give even a slight evidence that, all other conditions being — the same, it is not producing the highest yield. This situation is the hardest to detect, because it depends upon a gradual loss of virulence of the bacteria already in the soil, and the only way of being certain of this condition is to try inoculation and note results. WHEN TO EXPECT FAILURE WITH INOCULATION. Failure with inoculation may be expected— (1) When the directions for preparing the culture media are not carefully followed. While the method is so simple that anyone observing ordinary care can have no difficulty in securing the proper growth, it is absolutely essential that the few necessary instructions be observed. The fact that thousands of farmers throughout this country with nothing but the printed directions have been able to obtain such satisfactory results is proof that no special knowledge of bacteriology is necessary in preparing and applying the culture fluid. Placing the solution upon ice before it has had time to develop the bacteria, planting the unopened packages ina hole in the ground, pouring the liquid culture into small depressions at intervals of a rod or more, and similar pro- cedures contrary to the directions will not have the effect desired. Unfortunately, the distribution of bacteria for the purpose of increas- ing the nitrogen supply can not be as definite and complete as if a finished product were sent out. The culture does not itself contain the nitrogen, but simply the organisms which potentially possess the - power of fixing nitrogen, and which, if properly handled, will increase in such numbers as to be of material benefit to the plants with which they become associated. Plate VI will illustrate the difference in results obtained from dis- regarding directions and from properly following them. Figure 1 represents the best of a very few plants remaining upon a field planted and inoculated more than a year and a half ago. The result was a failure, but because some question was raised as to whether proper RESULTS. 43 care had been observed in preparing the culture another package of cotton saturated with bacteria from precisely the same lot as the first was sent, with instructions to use especial care in making and apply- ing the solution. The result of the second trial is shown in figure 2, the plants being about two months old. (2) When the ground is already thoroughly inoculated. (3) When the soil is so rich in nitrogen as to prevent the growth of nodule-forming bacteria. (4) When the soil is too acid or too alkaline to permit the develop- ment of either plants or bacteria. (5) When the soil is deficient in Stier necessary plant foods, such as potash, phosphorus, etc., as well as nitrogen. It should also be borne in mind that no amount of inoculation will overcome poor results due to bad seed, improper preparation and cultivation of the land, and decidedly adverse climatic conditions. RESULTS. All of the foregoing discussion regarding the benefits to be derived from inoculation and the methods devised for propagating and distrib- uting the nitrogen-fixing bacteria amounts to nothing unless it can be shown that these cultures really accomplish, under the general con- ditions to be found upon any farm, a decided increase in a crop over one grown without inoculation. In order that the bacteria might have the most thorough practical test possible, the Department of Agricul- ture has for the last year conducted one of the largest experiments of its nature ever undertaken in any country. By the free and unlimited distribution of cultures to practically everyone who was sufliciently interested to request a package, it has been possible to secure about 12,500 tests, under the most varied conditions, in almost every State of the Union. The following list indicates the number of packages distributed up to November 1, 1904. TaBLE I1.—Number of packages of inoculating material (or inoculated seed) distributed from November, 1902, to November, 1904; arranged by States, Territories, and foreign countries. | Clover. Pea. Bean. ke x = 7 | fo) ; te a | 4 F |_| E State or Territory. | 2 5 S S 2 s : = | Sst APB) elerslseis\sla 2 | < Poetieeaiees. tee Or | | | eel oe PU Ub ee 242 17 80 10 45 1 a 10|} 8} 109 79 | 608 PDT ae 5 EE Pn aL | | nae ee Lhe aes Sl See See tomes Cae) Me SR Ey BE pe 2 iii re Di St gee Eos ie tee al [Ee De es Pa De Protas 1 | 14 ho ee | 64| 15 1 9 28 1 5 NN eee 2 10 137 ow as 171 1 4 61 15 | 120 41 Shed 30 23 490 Galamigde so}. a... 20 | el oes Se 8 3 1 OU et | Pe | 1 2 | 47 oe = po ei A a » 30 ly eee 8 Ls Pees a 6 | yA | 1 4 63 DGMWARG =. .--<.5:2-00.. 10) 2) 10 2 | re te Se IY see ae eae leah 3 | 33 District "of Columbia . 28 12 6 6 2: | ee 3d eee } 2 6 4 | 71 GM ee | 40 a, 4 22 28 28 De lee 17 15 | 184 RACE cee ccc ce ZI 89 17| 26| 16 45 5 5 4\°3)] 45) See “287 44 Taste I.—Number of packages of inoculating material (or inoculated seed) dist from November, 1902, to November, 1904, etc.—Continued. SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. | Clover. Pea. Bean. Z h : : : r=] P =| State or Territory. £ 2 } FA : iS} s ee Sa) | Br eB ee S/d |5|8) = |-s |) 8) eee a G 3) oO oS) Fy iS) ae ea se a pels ct eee Se ee ae cole 4 DP eseses 1 Dies oe 1 2) 22225 sieer TANG SS a ea see <5 16 17 3 aileeoe eee 2 4 5 i ee 4 3 LOD Uva) 1 eae ee ee 147 101 3 17 39 3 11 33 hie 8 48 (APD EE oa 239 103 5 6 31 2 2 16 (“2 6 36. Indian Territory --.-..---- 10 eee 5 ee See ae ee) See eae WOW Sto secs secs esas cs 91 41 24 fi 6 2 7 et a 4 WEANISAN oo oe 3 foo senses 122 7A" eae 7 13 1 11 10 |.ecs z WCOHMtNCKY = 2-=-o-- << 2- 66 55 8 13 22 1 5 Oe es 8 MOMUIAINN DY eee ae ec cae 50 3 1 6 aE eee LB Se 1 3 Main@siesss soo ee cones 12 A Vel jen ae ly Bee 11 T ress 2 IMaTVIENOl oo 55 sh ssc | 91 28 6 8 13 6 7h lel 4| Massachusetts ...-...--- 71 73 3 71 6 48 u 6 I Pee 8 1S CE CLINT 79 en a om 95 95 8 20 9 28 10)| 2 4 Minnesota ..22.2.2--25-: 34 38 2 oe) eee 6 5 A ee 3 : Mississippi --.-------.--- 87 3 4 2 5 |- 1 11222) 22 Mussourl'.t2¢ 2 52 722.3228 211 63 6 10 20 8 foe if Montane- =~ -----e----- 1 INGDISSKS < ocsccsc255522 2 INGVRO Seo oose ee eee New Hampshire ........ 11 De axe ote 13 PA ae 8 2 acc 2 INGWi else Vie. 55-22 ->-o-5 68 32 12 9 7 4 14 Die, 5 New Mexico ........-.... 18 A Eee = Vy Peaeenetal ee PA ee es Sea | o--- ING wr YVOrkecccose ce oee 285 174 19 73 25 18 77 SO ess 21 North Carolina.......-.. 200 54 64 8 48 3 5 TLS 67 North Dakota......----- 25 16) 250526 Cl le ee = 2 4 EN aa 1 ODIOS 5. 25s fo2kateweecs Are 157 9 20 23 2 24 25 12 10 Oklahoma. 22.22.25 72 2 2 1 1D eee 2 re eee 1 Onprouien--e-sece eee 126 99 3 23 2Z; 6 15 3120 eee Pennsylvania. .......-.- 128 108 15 63 14 3 46 17 |.-.2| eee Philippine Islands ...... 1 es eee rene ler ween ee es See ome eee eo )/222---/2-2--- PO BICOe oss -2- =e 3 7a eer 2, A ees 3 nll Wien] pe = = Rhode Island ........-... 6 5 3 Sill? Dw ee 4 By ak i) es South Carolina.........- 70 15 48 8 287 |eocees 5 pW ees [aes South Dakota..<2.-.222< 28 5a eee 5 if gf 3 2) wks if: Pennessee: 2 sce. ee- eee 185 55 if 17 26 1 10 5] 2 9 ROSAS om cncsa sees sees 276 10 3 13 28 6 if 25 ee 3 Wtale foo ee ce aaeemetece: ol fase in| eae Ad) berets ah | ees 7 Pe bel ee | WET ON eee creme eee 23 21 1 6 I isos: 8 2 |--.-|------ Winpinia ss... cceseease- 5Al 184 68 26 114 2 7 48| 5 56 Washinieton= 5.22. 5-0 106 81 1 27 3 4 24 Sten 22 West Virginia .25..:--.-- 34 19 w 5 1 ba a 3 6 --=-| 2 Wisconsin.............-. pit 261 3 48 8 | 4| 20-|acdd:) ote WYOMING, ot cose cescesoe it kl) EO | eee 5 Bgl baa pores gi se | | Beers (as FOREIGN COUNTRIES. AGHUTANIS fcc lec wcccese Ae ets] ee 1 si Pe Siem Le He eee 14s: British Guiana.......... LT [sccdecc|secccc] pode Se eee ee eee CHNEOR( <=. - 5.52% 0 2-—5 6 a} eee Pisces 1 1 1S] ose D Bel be Costa dRita cose. scence ces Oe ae ol (eee (an | eee. | ae 1l| lL). eee (O11) 0 eS ie caine a ht eee ed es 2 Bile aes 1 2 2 if Muelsnd eee oso 2 il ie | Eco | sence eee ol Bees eee 2 MMANCG Sia. ecole oe laceseee Sileeecee A Se (eee eis pee ere | Lie bh ee JJ) eee fie es 2 ce Pee A Bills: Seas 8 ee MGRICO cocina wees cece Sol i len coc on Sale se | ee ee ee South-Africa. so sis..2-2 1 i a eee | ‘lp |Qaeene 1 Ot eee Telsxcoed Unclassified........... 378 146 79 90} 370 8 | 122 54 13 24 tye) 1 enna ee 5, 129 | 2,079 | 523 778 | 1,094} 216| 676} 391 | 86| 647 | | | | REPORTS. While it has been impossible to receive reports from all experi- menters, the percentage of replies has been unusually large and is quite sufficient to enable the formation of a fair opinion as to the value In calling for a report it was, of course, understood that in some cases where the culture was used the result- of the cultures distributed. REPORTS. * 45 ing crop could not be a success, and the users were asked to indicate, as far as possible, when the failure was evidently due to some fault of seed or weather. Likewise, if the soil was shown to have been stocked previously with the proper bacteria and good crops were produced, the use of inoculating material was not expected to be of benefit, and no difference would be detected between treated and untreated land. It is obviously difficult, however, to get all experimenters to make a note of these conditions, a report upon the general result being about all that can be expected in most cases. For this reason the sum- mary of the reports is not as favorable for inoculation as it probably would be if all of the experiments could have been followed in the same way as is possible when such investigations are conducted upon a small scale. It should also be remembered that no selection of the region in which tests were to be made was possible. Experiments with inoc- ulated seed of crops manifestly unadapted for the locality in which they were sown which were reported as a failure of the inoculating material have been recorded as such. In spite of counting unfavor- able reports of this kind, which by no fair adjustment should be included, but which, on account of the impossibility of being certain of the conditions, could not be thrown out, the average percentage of failures is less than is generally expected from the indiscriminate planting of seed known to be good. The tabulated reports so far as reeeived up to November 15, 1904, for all of the principal crops are as follows: TaBLe I1.—Reports of experiments with principal crops. ee deanitely No increase! N i evident tion result-| —~-- in crop; |advantage | . | Total | ing in Sal | organisms | from inoc- P or reports.| definite peeuced already ulation; raaeenc increase of | P Weed” | Present in nodulesnot, : TOP. —lerowth, ete. the soil. formed. DATs 1 a eee | 1, 043 522 287 59 175 \ 25 ri | "532 302 116 84 | 30 9 Gardeminen ss fons - =... 2 os 184 102 32 32 18 | 15 (Caiemor DEAN. .-.+-2.2..2......- 174 85 39 23 27 24 2D. a 290 148 42 68 32 17 INO ee eA eee 129 54 22 11 A2 43 (Shel Cl a 53 28 13 3 9 | 24 ui 49 27 15 4 3 10 Siu jit lek 22 14 4 A iS a asoneceee|sscocseeee WE SE oT 10 5 3 1 it 6 DOS Se 7 3 Paes 2 | ie} 25 OLE LES Se 7 7 Eee eee D ekcnw as eeeeeel smeceeeene WoL PE) 221-253 eae 2 Te oc She SOSOe ACER ees Weassseacsc Cul. | 2, 502 1, 296 574 293 | 339 26 aIn computing the percentage of ‘failures,’ the number of cases where there resulted no evident advantage from inoculation (fifth column) has been compared with the number which were posi- tive successes (second column), no allowances being made for experiments carried on under condi- tions precluding any chance of success. The following reports have heen selected with a view to showing the results obtained by using the cultures sent out by the Department of Agriculture upon various crops in practically all of the States where | SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. they can be grown. It is believed that a careful examination of the replies received from so many different experimenters who have had no- other instructions than those sent with the inoculating material will demonstrate the success of the new methods devised by the Depart- ment in a way that would be impossible by a mere discussion of results _ obtained in the laboratory or greenhouse. ALFALFA. ALABAMA, Clayhatchie. EF. A. Thompson.—The few plants which were not overcome by the drought show that the inoculation was effectual. Opelika. Cecil G. Lee.—The nodules formed on the roots, and I have a good stand. Tuscaloosa. T. J. Ozment.—Seed treated with the bacteria produced 100 per cent more than untreated seed. Arkansas, Mount Ida. D. Peters.—Made a crop where it would not grow before. Am of opinion that the inoculation is all right. Cauirornia, Sanger. KE. C. Southworth.—I had only material enough to inoculate 5 acres; seeded 25 acres to alfalfa. The inoculated seed grew, the other did not. I used it with such success last winter that I feel that must have it for all this winter’s seeding, and am anxious to secure enough for about 900 pounds of alfalfa seed. Mecca. ¥E. Brauckman.—I am glad to state that the inoculation of the alfalfa field is a success. The soil is, or was, exceedingly salty, growing nothing but saltwort and bushy samphire. I had grave fears whether the microbes could flourish in such soil. Mesa Grande. Morgan R. Watkins.—The crops (alfalfa and cowpeas) were far in excess of the best results heretofore, though planted on the poorest soil and in the driest weather. Other plantings were absolute failures. Connecticut, Granby. Daniele P. Cooley.—The nodule formation is perfect. No crop has been harvested this season. Has been cut four times to kill weeds: The stand at this date (October 20, 1904) is good. Marbledale. J. E. Watson.—No alfalfa has ever before grown for me except ina well-prepared seed bed. I have a good stand of alfalfa where I sowed it; have cut it twice and will do so again later in the season. Am forced to believe in its value [i. e., of the inoculating material]. DeLawareE, Townsend. James Flanagan.—A heavy storm just as plants came up covered many of them, but those remaining looked nicely and have bacteria nodules on the roots. Ipano, Freese. I. KE. Lobaugh.—Made fine growth for first year. Good stand. Clipped three times. Left on ground. Iuurnots, Hillsboro. Thomas 8. Eyans.—The field of alfalfa is perfect; whole field deep rich green, not a single pale or yellow plant. If it does not winterkill it will be the first successful attempt in growing this legume in this section, which success is without doubt due to your inoculating material. Mount Carmel. W. ¥. Chipman.—Nodule formation on almost every plant exam- ined yesterday, and foliage rich dark green. Fine, vigorous stand. I find more nodules on the alfalfa sown about a month ago than on that sown last May. The reason perhaps is the difference in the amount of ground covered with each package, the first being about 9 acres, while the last was spread over but 1 acre. REPORTS—ALFALFA. 47 ILttuinors—Continued. ; Mount Morris. “D. E. Brubaker.—I find nodules quite evenly distributed over the entire plot of 1 acre. Am much pleased with the success. I saturated seed instead of soil. Three cheers for the discovery. Mount Morris. A. W. Brayton.—A portion of the field is like the larger plant sent you; apparently the inoculation did good work here. (See Plate VIII.) Inpiana, Aurora. E. L. Cannon.—I have got a fine stand. I sowed 300 pounds lime per acre on the clay land; then harrowed. I drilled 3 pecks of oats per acre. I cut 40 bushels oats per acre. Then we had a severe drought. The alfalfa died down, but as soon as we had rain it came up from the roots. It is fine. I got a good crop of oats and a good stand of alfalfa. I have a near neighbor who sowed oats with his alfalfa, mowed them, and left them on the ground fora mulch. He has not nearly as good a stand as I have. He did not inoculate. Butler. L.G. Higley.—Bacteria for alfalfa was received in good condition about May 1. I prepared it and mixed it with about 20 bushels of rich soil and sowed it on the field after plowing it. I sowed my alfalfa seed May 11, along with 2 bushels of smooth barley per acre. It has done better than any alfalfa that I ever sowed. It stands over a foot high nearly all over the field. There is hardly a square foot of land in the field that is not well set with plants. I took a spade to-day and went in the field to see if I could find any trace of the bacteria, and I soon found that the soil was full of it, every plant having lots of the nodules on the roots. I then went toa field of 2-year-old alfalfa, which never was treated with bacteria, to see if there were any nodules there, and after hunting a long time I found a few very small nodules, but hardly enough to be really worth mentioning. This field is failing and I will have to plow it up. Alfalfa will grow on real rich soil without its bacteria, but I believe it will grow better with it; and if the land is the least bit poor it will starve to death if it has not its bacteria. InpIAN Territory, Pecasset. Don ‘Nolian.--We had tried it (alfalfa) twice before, Iowa, this being the third trial. Had perfect stand and have cut three crops and have good covering for winter. There is about 1 acre in lot, and I have taken about 3 tons of hay from it, or a ton at each cutting. Algona. Judge W. B. Quarton.—I took one gallon of nice rain water and fol- lowed the directions received from your Department with the culture of bac- teria, and received the identical results that your Department said I would. I personally inoculated this bushel of seed, then spread it out to dry, took it to the farm the next morning, and planted the seed. * * * I have been upon my farm many times between the middle of July and this writing, taking my pocketknife and digging down to the roots of the alfalfa plant. I have never failed to find plenty of thrifty looking tubercles on the roots, they rang- ing from one to clusters of one hundred, and I am satisfied that my field is thoroughly and completely inoculated, and I believe that your method is a complete success. * * * I feel like congratulating your Department upon the very thorough and practical work that you are doing in the line of plant industry and especially as to leguminous plants. I hope that you will continue it, because the legume is the one plant, above all others, that fertilizes the soil and at the same time furnishes the protein necessary to balance the food ration in our corn-growing States like Iowa. Garwin. William 8. Dobson.—Good. Seed came up and grew. Had tried same field in alfalfa the year before, but did no good. Has proved inoculation asuccess. Many have tried alfalfa experimentally in central Iowa, but with indifferent success. 48 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. Iowa—Continued. 2 Hornick. George O. Shedd.—The stand is good. I thought that it would die on — the thin, poor, yellow places, but looks now as though it may not. Treated 1 bushel, sowed 4 acres. Kansas, Arkansas City. Rufus R. Marsh.—The seed was used on sandy knolls in ~ field, and made better showing than balance of field without inoculation. Halstead. G. R. McWilliams.—The inoculated seed has a good colored plant; the — uninoculated plants were yellow and did not make any hay. I would not try — alfalfa without inoculating the seed. Halstead. A. Murray.—The alfalfa inoculated could not have done better. I will not plant any after this without inoculation. I think inoculated alfalfa is as good at 1 year old as uninoculated is at 3 years old. Holton. R. J. Linscott.—Harvested three crops of hay. An exceedingly thick, even stand. Plenty of bacteria on roots. A success in every way. Hopel © can treat alfalfa seed this way every time I sow it, as I never had a successful stand before. oe Holton. S. K. Linscott.—All that could be desired. At seven weeks from date of planting it was 10 inches high in some places. Every root so far examined has from one to six nodules. Many thanks for your kindness. Stockton. J. J. Coppersmith.—Proved very satisfactory. Did about one-fifth better than that not treated, but other chances equal. Amount, 33 acres; first . cutting, 3 tons; second, 5 tons. Kentucky, Berlin. John A. Buser.—One acre was planted; one half was inoculated, the other half was not. Received good stand in all parts. On examination of some roots the treated plants had root nodules and the untreated were barren. Eminence. R. R. Geltner.—I succeeded in getting an excellent stand of alfalfa, Former trials proved a failure where not inoculated. Believe the inoculation will be a great success. Moreland. N. J. Cone.—Cut alfalfa first year. I inoculated 1 bushel of alfalfa seed and sowed one-half bushel without inoculating. Got very fine stand of that inoculated, not so good on that which was not. . Marne, Seal Harbor. Ida M. Bodman.—The inoculated seed produced a good though not luxuriant crop; the uninoculated seed (or, rather, piece of ground) was more buckwheat weed than alfalfa. My soil is poor, thin, and shallow. Wayne. S. H. J. Berry.—Last year I tried to raise alfalfa but was unable to get a stand, but this year, by the use of the inoculation, I have a very pretty plot of this valuable grass. I believe it to be what my land requires. Maryianp, McDaniel. William Bielefeldt.—Inclosed please find your ecard filled out as to general results. I did not harvest any hay off the field, but pastured it lately. Iam sorry that I am not able to give you any definite figures on the crop, and as your card is not large enough to express my appreciation and enthusiasm for your method of inoculation you will please excuse this letter, - in which I will try to sum up my observations of the experiment in the fol- lowing: I inoculated 1,800 pounds of alfalfa seed with the material received. I dried the seed well after inoculating and sowed it from May 1 to August 15. The land is a medium heavy fine clay soil and originally, I think, a fairly good soil, but has been entirely farmed to death with continuous tobacco raising, and after that wouldn’t grow any more they followed it up with wheat and corn till that failed to grow any more; then the farm was sold. So I can say the soil is in a very poor condition chemically and physically, so much so that on 2 acres sown with seed not inoculated, alfalfa failed to make a stand at all. But on all ground in the same condition the inoculated seed made a brilliant REPORTS—ALFALFA. 49 Maryianp—Continued. : stand and is looking a real deep green in color, when nearly everything else is dried up, as we have had_no rain for six or seven weeks. In all, allow me.to say that in my opinion your Bureau has made the greatest discovery toward helping the growing of alfalfa that could be made, and that you may well be proud of it, and I thank you for giving me a chance to use it. A neighbor adjoining me sowed uninoculated seed three successive times on the same piece of ground and failed to get a stand; that is positive proof of the inoculation being a benefit. MicuiGan, Croton. E. L. Hornbeck.—I have a nice stand of alfalfa. I think I never before saw young plants push forward as rapidly on the start. The land is sandy but I have a nice young meadow as the results of my applying the bacteria. It was a complete success. Kifie. A. L. Rockwell.—Mixed bacteria with soil; sowed broadcast after seed- ing; harrowed lightly. Seed all grew and made a good stand. Other seed without bacteria failed. Missourt, Alexandria. Jasper Blines.—The material is asuccess. After six weeks I found large bacteria tubercles upon the young alfalfa roots. Brewer. 1. S. Hogan.—Seed sown has plenty of nodules on the roots and promises a good crop next season. The same piece of land sowed to alfalfa in 1902, seed not inoculated, all died out the following summer. Levy. Thomas O. Hudson.—Planted in 1901. Inoculation good. Alfalfa was sickly and yellow and spindling, and did not do any good till this year after inoculation. This year it has been dark green and thrifty, and I think it will be better next year. Nepraska, Agee. Sam Nelson.—Got a good stand and it has made good aftergrowth where twice before it was practically a failure. Am satisfied inoculation gave good results. Atkinson. H. E. Henderson.—I gota good stand where I had failed twice before. I think it the only safe and sure way to secure a stand. Liberty. Warry D. Huyck.—I sowed seed and inoculated soil on a 2-acre field of 2-year-old alfalfa to thicken stand. Produced 10 loads of hay as against 5 loads in 1903. All young plants thriving, old plants much better stand, prob- ably due to severe harrowing and inoculation. Omaha. A. L. Cottrell.—Alfalfa bacteria successful for alfalfa inoculation. Growth larger. Full report of experiment is given in my post-graduate thesis on ‘‘ Alfalfa as a forage crop for Iowa.”’ Page. 1. M. Butler.—The seed inoculated was more satisfactory in stand and growth than that sown without. Think it is all right. Utica. John C. Lloyd.—Ranker growth than before treatment and a much heavier crop of hay. Cut three times and could have cut four, but pastured the last crop. The bacteria were used on 5 acres of alfalfa sown three years ago, with above result. New Jersey, Rosenhayn. A. F. Lewis.—This year I have a fine stand on the same ground that I failed on twice without inoculation. Vineland. ¥. L. Bolles.—First cutting on May 25, 1904, of 2 to 3 tons from 1 acre (seeded August 25, 1903), nine months from seeding. Scores of trials without inoculation have been made in this section with universal failure. Alfalfa wintered well, while we had a killing winter for crimson clover. New Mexico, Nogal. Ed. C. Pfingsten.—Inoculation applied on seed, no bacteria; soil inoculated shows bacteria on all roots examined. Soil inoculated plants from 20 to 30 inches high, others 6 inches. 12628—No. 71—05——4 50 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. , New York, Fillmore. C. V. Mills.—It looks very promising to go into winter. F had a good color and never turned yellow during its growth. I can find plenty of nodules. I think the bacteria a benefit. Tried growing it two seasons: without, and it made a sickly growth. Amsterdam. Barlow W. Dunlap.—Sowed April 27, after treating seed and drying, 90 pounds to 3} acres with 1 bushel of barley per acre. Have cut twice, and now have a very thick even stand of alfalfa about 10 inches high, of a very dark-green color. I have recently examined the plants in all parts of — the field and find nodules on nearly every root. The same piece was sown with untreated alfalfa seed in 1902. The plants started well, but nearly all died before fall. I could not then find a single nodule on the roots. Apalachin, C. L. Yates.—Sowed last year on piece adjoining and had no luck. Plowed the ground this year Ist of May and have got a good stand. Think © the inoculation was a good thing. Briarcliff Manor. Walter W. Law, manager, Briarcliff farms.—Good stand. I~ never could get any to take before. Canastota. W.R. Groat.—A grand success. Carefully carried out yourinstruc- — tions in preparing the culture and in inoculating the seed; rolled it in and have a heavy even stand 8 inches high over the entire 3} acres. Have spent a great deal of time in getting information about what success others have had in these parts, and all complain of not being able to get a good stand, and some sow 1 bushel per acre and then donot get it. This is my first attempt, but I am satisfied that my success is due to the inoculation, but one in prepar- ing must carefully carry out your instructions to insure success. Stanfordville. Albert Knapp.—This seed was sown on ground where I tried to get alfalfa the year before and failed, the plants turning yellow when about six weeks grown, and dying. I now have a fine stand on same ground, the result, I think, of inoculation. Waterport. F.C. Broadwell.—Continuous rains prevented seeding in spring as expected. Catch remarkable and growth fine for the time sown (August 22). Benefit of inoculation very noticeable. Willard. Frank L. Warne, steward, Willard State Hospital.—Beneficial and satisfactory. A portion not inoculated does not show the sturdy and healthy growth that the main portion of the field does. Two crops have been cut, August 10 and September 30, though not seeded until June 16. Youngstown. Elbert L. Baker.—Nodules seem abundant, and color of plants — good throughout the season. Nort Carourna, West Raleigh. C.K. McClelland.—Four cuttings have been made; second and third cuttings contained much alfalfa. Examination shows plenty of tubercles on the roots, so inoculation was successful. Onto, Cincinnati. Jas. P. Holdt.—A good stand, while another field about same quality of ground not inoculated had a poor stand and was severely affected by the drought. Tried seed inoculation and ground inoculation, and there seemed to be no difference in results. East Springfield. Jos. D. Flenniken.—On examining the plants July 8, every plant had the nodules formed on the roots. I think it a success. So far I am pleased with result. (Later, November 2.)—I have a good stand of alfalfa and it is at present about 10 inches in height. My neighbor planted some same day I did, with the same attention and same treatment, except he did not inoculate. I was in his field October 28, and his plants were small,-puny, sickly things and very scarce. What he had I don’t think will winter, while REPORTS—ALFALFA. 51 Ont —Continued. the roots had no nodules that I could find. My plants have roots as large as a lead pencil and nodules as large as peas on them and as many as fifteen stools on one crown. Leesburg. Arthur Ladd.—Date of planting May 12; date of clipping August 1. The inoculated seed was 8 inches high and a dark green color. The uninocu- lated was 2 to 4 inches high and yellow in color. Uninoculated seems to be dying out. Malta. C. A. Clements.—Got a stand of thrifty growth and of dark-green color. Think the inoculation successful as there are nodules on the roots. Neighbors say if I can grow alfalfa on that land it can be grown anywhere in the country. Montpelier. D. W. MeGill.—Good stand where none stood without inoculation. Am satisfied inoculation helped. New Alexandria. A. C. Fellows.—Result of inoculation is good. Alfalfa is dark green, while strip not used on is turning yellow. Sharon. J. B. Keys.—Have a fine prospect; find splendid nodule formations on the roots. Yellow Springs. M. R. Grinnell.—Seed came up very quickly and has made wonderful growth; roots have nodules on them very thick. Bushel of seed sown on 2 acres with 1 bushel of oats per acre. Harvested 43 tons of hay at two cuttings. OxiAnoma, Lambert. T. W. Croxton.—Good, a perfect stand, and of healthy color. On upland prairie. OrxEGON, Applegate. C.H. Elmore.—Seed all grew and lived through a dry summer on high, dry hill land; bids fair fora good crop next year. Without treatment the seed did not germinate at all. Bedfield. Albert Mark.—We sowed 10 pounds of seed on about three-fourths of an acre. One-half was richly manured, which did not do very well as it mostly went to weeds. The other half made a good stand, grew 18 inches high, and came up very thick, all without water. Days Creek. C. N. Wood.—Will say I followed the directions and succeeded well. I planted alfalfa seed May 2, 1904, on fairly good clayey loam. Had to cut it twice. The last cutting one-half ton per acre on August 25, 1904, or in four months from date of planting. I sowed red clover the same day and cut the same date and harvested 1 ton per acre in four months from date of plant- ing. This resultis with irrigation. My neighbor sowed alfalfa and red clover the same time I did, also with irrigation, equally as good seed and equally as good or better soil, and his crop did not get large enough to clip at all this year yet, and it looks sickly, while mine is thick and a rich green in color. My crop of alfalfa and red clover is at least 60 per cent ahead of my neighbor’s. Mine was inoculated and his was not. I shall use soil from the inoculated field to inoculate other fields of the same kind of crop. PENNSYLVANIA, Hookstown. S. M. Ramsey.—A success at the present time. A good stand and good color. The same ground sowed last year was a total failure; came up sickly and yellow and dwindled away. Hosensack. E. A. Mackling.—The stand was much thicker than that from seed planted on the same ground the year previous. Muddycreek Forks. Vallie Hawkins.—Sowed 3 acres without inoculation last year. Good stand but few nodules. Had to resow this year (August 2), and inoculated seed. Roots are well supplied with nodules and I have a good stand, 8 to 12 inches high, on October 18. 52 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. PennsyLvANIA—Continued. Tyrone. HH. C. Blair.—Alfalfa tried last year (1903) did not grow. Inoculated ; seed produced a good stand. Last measurement of a stock showed plant 12 inches high, root 4 inches. We consider the results fine. Sourn Caroiina, Williamston. A. W. Attaway.—Very dry time on it, nevertheless a very good stand. Think inoculation very profitable. Others tried without inoculation and fell behind me. TrennessEE, Clarksville. Gold Goodlett.—You sent me a package last year, but the weather turned so cold that I did not sow seed; kept all until spring, treated seed, and secured a wonderful stand; think every seed came up. I mowed it three times. Columbia. Horace B. Hanson.—It has tubercles formed on the roots; is looking fine and healthy. Some of it is on very thin land. I have been trying this plant on the same land for three years without success. Texas, Fort Worth. W.H. Irwin.—Sowed 1,000 pounds of seed on 50 acres. Obtained one-third more alfalfa hay where inoculated; three-fourths ton per acre first cutting, 1 ton each other two cuttings. San Antonio. B. G. Barnes.—The inoculated appears to be more vigorous and healthy than that without inoculation, although the latter was planted first and originally came to a better stand by reason of the ground being in good condition at the time of planting, while the inoculated was not. Vermont, Randolph. John W. Burt.—We think the result is very good. If we had cut as a crop this season we would have gotten a good yield, and we are con- fident that next year will show satisfactory results. VirainiA, Hast Leake. A. K. Leake.—It is 18 inches high and could not be more promising; looks splendidly. You will see by the samples I send you that it is full of nodules, showing in an astonishing manner the bacteria-bearing nodules. There are nodules on every plant I dug up. When I dug up some old plants from a field which has failed, I saw no nodules. No one has ever succeeded with alfalfa here. Ettrick. W.S. Ivey.—On land sown dry, splendid results; plants 8 inches tall and well spread; on wet land, poor results. Bacteria nodules plentiful on most of plot larger than grains of wheat. Glenallen. Mrs. Imogen Holladay.—A very good stand. I have been unable to get one without inoculation. The roots are plentifully supplied with nodules. Norfolk. Dr. Livius Lankford.—A most decided difference between inoculated and uninoculated 4 acres; 4 to 6 inches high (6 weeks old), deep green all over. One acre not inoculated nine-tenths dead, rest yellow. Occoquan. W.W. Giles.—I sowed the inoculated alfalfa seed May 24, 24 pounds to the acre, with a wheat drill, sowing slaked lime at same time and in direct contact with the seed. It came up splendidly, and, I believe, too thick. Thirty days after it was sowed it was 6 inches high, and is now looking elegant. Twelve years ago I sowed 2 acres of alfalfa here and never discovered a spear — of it growing. Of course, this was before the inoculation was known. (See Plate IX.) Wasnineton, Belma. Chas. Richey.—Inoculation very beneficial. Growth had formerly been very poor; plants turned yellow and many died, making it hard to get a good stand. Now difficulty is overcome. Cheney. Roswell K. Johnson.—My experiment seems to be successful. We have the nodules on the inoculated plants, but none on those not inoculated. I think there is an improvement in the growth of the inoculated plants. REPORTS—RED CLOVER. 53 W asHincton—Continued. : North Yakima. W. J. Hess.—Fourth year. The crop, which had been short, pale, and spindling, took on a darker color after inoculation and made a rank growth. Yielded, I think, about three times as much as formerly; did not weigh. Sprague. Arthur A. Baldwin.—Results very satisfactory. Yielded about 1 ton per acre on dry hill land. Good prospects for next year. Has had posi- tively no rain since last of May. (Report dated October 9.) Winona. W.H.Mumford.—Inoculation appeared to be perfect, all plants having good color from the first, and at no time have there been any yellow leaves. Wesr Vireinia, Berea. John E. Meredith.—Have been trying to grow alfalfa twelve years, and have now the finest prospect of success that I have yet experienced. Wisconsin, Fort Atkinson. ‘‘ Hoard’s Dairyman,’’ November 11, 1904.—An experi- mental trial of this method of inoculation was made by Professor Short, one of the editors of this paper, last summer with very evident success. Our field already shows the good effect of inoculation. (The method consisted in going over an alfalfa field which was not thriving with a sprinkling cart con- taining the culture liquid. The operation was comparatively inexpensive, as a 16-foot pipe drilled full of holes was attached to the rear of the sprinkling cart, the water thus taking a sweep of nearly a rod in width. ) Stevens Point. F. G. Pattee.—Where treated, found some roots with clumps of nodules as large as small hickory nuts; where not treated, only an occasional one. RED CLOVER. CaLiForniA, Arcata. William W. Turner.—A part of the ground was a loose sand, a deposit from the river. It was a hard matter to get anything to grow on it. Here is where my inoculated clover seed seems to grow and flourish. The rest of the ground was a sediment loam and very rich. It was not long before the pigweed started, and it came so thick that it choked out the clover, except what was on the sand. That is growing nicely; has a nice dark-green color. Connecticut, Bethel. George H. Pearson.—Clover made strong growth before rye wasripe. Cut one ton of red clover the middle of September, after rye was cut. Poor sand and gravelly knolls did nearly as well. Wolcott. Samuel Wilson.—I sowed about 8 pounds of seed, not inoculated, all over field and 3 pounds of inoculated seed in the form of a cross. Result, cross distinct with clover; balance of field none. In company with Mr. E. R. Bennett, of Storrs Agricultural College, I went over fields about September 1 and found stand of clover apparently increased since harvesting. Detaware, Townsend. J. H. Lamb.—Sown on ground where clover failed in spring of 1903. Now have a beautiful stand all over the field. Ipano, Ceur d’ Alene. James Reid.—Considerable improvement. On examination, found few nodules on clover uninoculated and very abundant on clover inoculated. Dupont. J. H. Coon, sr.—Seed was sown on a plot 6 by 7 feet, and has made a good stand about 10 inches high. I sowed a similar plot with same seed not inoculated, and can not find a single plant on it. Inuinors, Anna. J. W. Fuller.—Splendid. Got good crop where I had failed eight years in succession. Emington. C. H. Gilbert.—A more vigorous growth than where seeds were not treated. Madea good growth where I could not raise clover in former trials. 54 SOIL INOCULATION FOR LEGUMES. Intinois—Continued. - " Neoga. ©. L. Wallace.—Seed treated with bacteria was seeded on extra thin — land and secured very good stand. Rantoul. Karl Ekblaw.— ae eee. rete B. P. I.—163. -IV.—INOCULATION OF SOIL WITH NITROGEN-FIXING BACTERIA. By A. F. Woops, Acting Chief of the Bureau of Plant Industry. INTRODUCTION. The publication of the results obtained with pure cultures in inocu- lating leguminous plants has resulted in a very great demand being made upon the Department of Agriculture for inoculating material. The distribution made during 1904 was for the purpose of obtaining a large number of tests of the method under average farm conditions, and it was impossible to anticipate the demand which has arisen this spring (1905), the total quantity prepared for spring distribution having been promised early in February. It is expected, however, that this fall and next spring a further distribution will be made as far as our limited facilities will permit. Statements to the effect that the Department has stopped the distribution of these cultures are therefore erroneous. Applications for future distributions should state what legume is to be sown, time of sowing, and quantity of seed to be treated. THE COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION OF CULTURES. The patent which the Department of Agriculture holds upon the method of growing and distributing these organisms was taken out in such a way that no one can maintain a monopoly of the manufac- ture of such cultures. It is held in the name of Dr. George T. Moore, who developed and perfected the method, as described in former publications. Upon application the Department furnishes without discrimination all necessary information, and as far as_ possible “ starting ” or foundation cultures, to the bacteriologists representing experiment stations and commercial concerns which claim to be prop- erly equipped, but it does not in any way guarantee their product. It is not likely that persons without expert knowledge can success- fully multiply cultures of these organisms for sale or distribution, and it is understood that any cultures furnished are to be treated according to the methods devised by the Department. Before experimenting with any bacterial preparations for legumes, 25 94 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. the farmer should study thoroughly the soil conditions under which the use of cultures offers any possibility of gain.* Briefly, these conditions may be summed up as follows: WHEN INOCULATION IS NECESSARY. Inoculation is necessary— (1) On a soil low in organic matter that has not previously borne leguminous crops. (2) If the legumes previously grown on the same land were devoid of nodules, or “ nitrogen knots,” showing the need for supplying the nodule-forming bacteria. (3) When the legume to be sown belongs to a species not closely related to one previously grown on the same soil. For instance, soil in which red clover forms nodules will often fail to produce nodules on alfalfa when sown with alfalfa for the first time. WHEN INOCULATION MAY PROVE ADVANTAGEOUS. Inoculation may prove advantageous— (1) When the soil produces a sickly growth of legumes, even though their roots show some nodules. If the cultures introduced are of the highest virility, their use will often result in a more vigorous growth. (2) When a leguminous crop already sown has made a stand, but gives evidence of failing, due to the absence of root nodules. The use of the culture liquid as a spray or by mixture with soil and top-dressing may save the stand if other conditions are favorable. WHEN INOCULATION IS UNNECESSARY. On the other hand, ‘noculation is unnecessary and offers little pros- pect of gain— (1) Where the leguminous crops usually grown are producing up to the average and the roots show nodules in normal abundance. Cultures of nitrogen-fixing bacteria are not to be regarded in the light of fertilizers, increasing yields under all average conditions. They do not contain the nitrogen itself, but the bacteria make it pos- sible for the legumes to secure nitrogen from the air (through the formation of root nodules), and where the soil is already adequately supplied with these bacteria it will not usually pay to practice any form of artificial inoculation. (2) When the soil is already rich in nitrogen. It is neither necessary nor profitable to inoculate a soil rich in nitro- gen when sowing legumes. Not only does the available nitrogen in «Fully described in Farmers’ Bulletin No. 214 of the Department of Agricul- ture, which will be sent without cost upon application to any Senator, Repre- sentative, or Delegate in Congress, or to the Secretary of Agriculture. NITROGEN-FIXING BACTERIA. ae the soil render the formation of nodules less necessary, but nitroge- nous materials in the soil largely prevent the bacteria from forming nodules. Any increased virility in nitrogen-fixing power possessed by any types of bacteria yet distributed may be rapidly lost in a soil con- taining an abundance of nitrogen, because the bacteria are rapidly multiplying in a medium in which there is no premium on vigor in securing atmospheric nitrogen. WHEN FAILURE IS TO BE EXPECTED. Inoculation will fail where other conditions (aside from the need of bacteria) are not taken into account, as the following: (1) In soil that is acid and in need of lime. Liming to correct acidity is as important for the proper activity of the bacteria as for the growth of the plants. (2) In soil that responds in a marked way to fertilizers, such as potash, phosphoric acid, or lime. The activity of the bacteria in securing nitrogen from the air and rendering it available to the legumes does not do away with the need for such fertilizing elements as potash and phosphorus. (3) It must also be remembered that ¢noculation does not * act like magic; it will not overcome results due to bad seed, improper preparation and cultivation of ground, and decidedly adverse condi- tions of weather or climate. In the use of cultures, also, failure is almost certain where the direc- tions are not carefully studied and intelligently followed. (4) As the physics, the chemistry, and the biology of soils are studied in the laboratory and by means of actual field-plot trials to determine yield and quality of crops and the effect of one crop on the following crops, the very great complexity of soil and farm manage- ment becomes more manifest. The value of pure-bred bacteria, whether associated with the crop or existing independently in the soil, as is true of fertilizers, can not be predicted with certainty on any soil without trial. Success on similar near-by lands may be taken as good evidence. But, unlike fertilizers, bacteria should in time be so inexpensive that each farmer can afford to try them for each leguminous crop on each field or soil type on his farm. The methods of distributing in dried form and the easy methods of multiplying on the farm in sufficient quantities to inoculate fields will make it possible to have all fields inoculated at all times. COST OF CULTURES. The question of the proper price for the commercial product is causing considerable inquiry among prospective experimenters and is of importance. The expenses which a commercial concern must 26 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. necessarily meet, such as rent, heat, light, insurance, postage, adver- tising, etc., aside from laboratory assistance and clerical hire, make any comparison with the cost to the Government of similar cultures difficult. The statement that the cultures cost but a few cents an acre refers only to the raw materials which make up the package. It is more than probable that natural competition will considerably reduce the present valuation of the commercial product, and the wisdom of patenting the Department’s methods to prevent the formation of a monopoly is already demonstrated. INCREASING CULTURES. We are receiving numerous requests from persons who have se- cured commercial cultures, as well as those sent out from the Depart- ment of Agriculture, for information as to the methods employed in producing a large quantity of liquid culture from the dry culture secured as a starter; that is, how to make an “ acre culture ” do for 25 or 100 acres. Such methods will give good results only when special precautions are taken, and on this account have not been gen- erally recommended. The contaminations, such as yeasts, molds, ete.. which are bound to occur to a greater or less extent, are apt to take possession of the culture solution in which the bacteria are being mul- tiplied, and unless great care is taken in thoroughly sterilizing all utensils employed the resulting culture will have no beneficial effect. The extra time required to secure sufficient growth of bacteria in 10 gallons of solution from a dry culture originally intended to produce a 1-gallon liquid culture makes the risk from contamination much greater than where the dry culture is proportioned in size to the larger amount of solution. Ifa growth sufficient to cloud the solution takes place within two days, the chances of securing an efficient cul- ture are much better than where a longer time is taken; so that the volume of solution prepared should never exceed the actual require- ments of the occasion. The following directions are based on making 10 gallons of liquid culture, sufficient to inoculate 20 bushels of seed. By a litle compu- tation the directions may be adapted to 5 gallons or to any intermedi- ate quantities. PREPARING AND USING THE CULTURE SOLUTION. To prepare the culture solution, first select the tub, bucket, or other vessel in which you wish to grow the bacteria. Clean and scald it out thoroughly. For making the culture solution, rain water that has been thoroughly boiled and allowed to cool is best, though any good drinking water will answer. Add to 10 gallons of water 12 ounces of either brown or granulated (preferably granulated) sugar, 14 ounces : NITROGEN-FIXING BACTERIA. 27 of potassium phosphate (monobasic), which can be obtained at any drug store, and one-sixteenth ounce (30 grains) of magnesium sul- phate. Stir until dissolved, then carefully open the small package containing the bacteria-laden cotton and drop the cotton into the solu- tion. Do not handle any more than is absolutely necessary. Cover the tub with a moist, clean cloth to protect from dust, mold spores, etc. Keep in a warm place, but never let the temperature rise above blood heat. After twenty-four hours add 6 ounces of ammonium phosphate and allow the mixture to stand for another twenty-four hours. The liquid should now be cloudy and ready for use; if suffi- cient growth has not taken place to bring about this cloudiness, fur- ther time should be given, not to exceed a few days. To inoculate seed—Use enough culture liquid to moisten the seed thoroughly—about one-half of a gallon per bushel. This inoculating may be done either in a tub or trough, or by sprinkling the culture liquid on the seed on a clean floor and stirring and turning the heaps of seed with shovels until all are thoroughly moistened. After inoc- ulation the seed should be spread out in a clean, shady place until sufficiently dry to handle. If planting is not to be done at once, the seed must be thoroughly dried to prevent molding. In dry weather about 25 bushels can be dried in half a day on 300 square feet of floor space. To do this there must be several open windows or doors to allow a free circulation of air, and the seed must be frequently stirred with a lawn rake. The inoculated seed, if thoroughly dried, may usually be kept without deterioration for several months. To inoculate soil—Take enough dry earth or sand so that the solu- tion will merely moisten it. The soil should be preferably from the field to be inoculated, so as to avoid spreading diseases or weeds. Mix thoroughly, so that all the particles of soil are moistened. Thoroughly mix this earth with four or five times as much; spread this inoculated soil thinly and evenly over the prepared ground exactly as if spreading fertilizer. The inoculated soil should be har- rowed in immediately to protect the bacteria from sunlight. In using this method allow 1 gallon of the liquid culture to 4 acres or less. Either of the methods described may be used, as may be most convenient. To prevent any possible delay, the necessary chemicals should be ordered in advance. If the local druggist does not have them in stock, he can doubtless secure them within a reasonable time. KEEPING CULTURES FOR FUTURE USE. The question is frequently arising as to the possibility of the farm- er’s keeping over cultures from one year to another by soaking up a little of the liquid culture in cotton and drying this cotton. This pro- 28 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. posed practice is not to be advised in any case. Contaminations take place so readily, and once started spread so rapidly, that for assured good results it is absolutely necessary to start with a pure culture. The pure culture, moreover, can only be prepared by a trained bac- teriologist with laboratory facilities. These cultures in the dry state will keep, under ordinary conditions, from six months to a year. There is an additional reason, fully as important, which makes the above method impracticable. The cultivation of the bacteria for any considerable length of time in solutions containing ammonium salts rapidly lessens their infective power and their ability to gather nitro- gen from the air, so that transfers or new cultures made with absorb- ent cotton from the cultures prepared for field use would contain organisms of reduced efficiency. It is partly owing to these factors that it is impracticable to distribute the bacteria in liquid cultures and maintain the requisite effectiveness. In the use of cultures for inoculating soil the farmer should be guided, as in all other matters pertaining to soil treatment, by his own peculiar needs, and should not give too great weight to the expe- riences of others whose soil conditions may differ widely. Jt would be unwise to invest largely in any new method for increasing plant growth, whether bacterial or of any other nature, without previously experimenting in a small way. DANGER OF INOCULATION BY SOIL TRANSFER. Satisfactory inoculations have been obtained by transferring soil from old fields on which the legume has been grown, but experience has shown that there are dangers incident to such methods of soil transfer which it is wise to avoid. The source of supply of such soil should be very definitely known, and in no case should soil be used from fields which have previously borne any crops affected with a fungous disease, a bacterial disease, or with nematodes. Where a rotation of crops is practiced, it is often difficult to make sure of this factor, so that the method of soil trans- fer is, under average circumstances, open to suspicion, if not to posi- tive objection. Numerous animal and plant parasites live in the soil for years, and are already established in so many localities that it is manifestly unwise to ship soil indiscriminately from one portion of the country to another. The bacterial diseases of the tomato, potato, and eggplant, and the club-root, brown-rot, and wilt disease of the cabbage, all more or less widely distributed, are readily transmitted in the soil, while in the South and West there are the wilt diseases of cotton, melons, sweet potatoes, cowpeas, and flax, and various nematoid and root-rot dis- eases which might easily become a serious menace over areas much NITROGEN-FIXING BACTERIA. 29 larger than they now occupy if deliberately spread by the careless use of soil for inoculation purposes. There are several insect and fungous diseases of clover to be avoided, and various diseases of beans and peas. There is also a disease of alfalfa, the “ leaf spot,” which is causing damage in some regions. These are only a few of many dis- eases liable to be transmitted in soils. The farmer should therefore be on his guard. The danger from such sources is by no means imaginary. The Department of Agriculture has had specific cases of such accidental distribution reported, and if the business of selling soil for inoculation is made to flourish by farmers purchasing with- out question “ alfalfa soil,” “‘ cowpea soil,” etc., there is every reason to believe that experience will demonstrate the folly of such hap- hazard methods. Of scarcely less importance is the danger of disseminating noxious weeds and insect pests through this plan of inoculation by means of soils. Even though weeds may not have been serious in the first field, the great numbers of dormant seeds requiring but a slight change in surroundings to produce germination are always a menace. The enor- mous damage to crops caused by introduced insects and weeds should convey a warning and lead to caution. It is not the part of good judgment to view the risk as a slight one justified by the end in view. PURE-CULTURE INOCULATION. The extensive experiments carried on by the Department of Agri- culture during 1904 demonstrated the fact that, by the proper use of pure cultures, the nodule bacteria are actually carried into the soil in such a way as to form root nodules, and where other conditions are favorable the inoculation thus brought about makes possible the growth of each legume in soils where it had previously failed from the lack of bacteria. The original cultures used, however, must be prepared with the utmost care and with a view to preserving and increasing the natural power of the bacteria as “ nitrogen fixers ” rather than merely to make them grow under favorable conditions. The methods devised in our Laboratory of Plant Physiology are based on well-recognized principles of plant breeding and selection, and mark a decided advance in the production of cultures for soil inocu- lation. The old pure-culture methods were not effective, for reasons clearly stated by Doctor Moore in Bulletin No. 71 of the Bureau of Plant Industry and by Doctor Moore and Mr. Robinson in Farmers’ Bulletin No. 214. The Department of Agriculture is continuing the work of develop- ing types of the bacteria associated with leguminous plants, which will have greater activity, collecting from the air more nitrogen per acre than forms now common in nature or available from laboratories. It is desirable that similar investigations should be conducted with 30 MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS. reference to the nitrogen-fixing bacteria existing in the soil independ- — ent of the legumes. Important steps have already been taken along this line, but the very large demand for cultures for leguminous crops, by consuming the time of the laboratory force, has seriously retarded these investigations during the past year. The Department is ready to cooperate with experiment stations and commercial firms, to give and to receive suggestions, to test the prod- uct of others, and to furnish, as far as possible, cultures to be tested in the laboratory and under field conditions. There is nothing in the nature of the processes involved which would prevent a competent bacteriologist, after some experience in this particular field, from producing cultures of as high a grade as those sent out by the Department, and every assistance will be given to competent persons desiring to undertake the work. O : : ; ATE SOeee s & G if Gh awe ye Ae * fF Bde 8 He €¢ ge as ow Sear denke ee Ge S2 2 2SSBR oO BS See @ fh @O8BHe iP SSE ZAG Gare ee a & BR ae Gt we * @et yw & B Ss as 8s a2e%é¢ef 89 PP? @ B ao @ee?eete eas g @ se op @ Ff & HF S&H BS F %'eeywpetgeasereower 4 ee eee Fanageeae sa @ US eErAR IMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY— BULLETIN NO. 73. B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau. ) TIE DEVELOPMEN EOF SIMGDE-GER AL BEET SEED, BY C. O. TOWNSEND, Patuocoaist, AND E. C. RITTUE, Assistanr. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. Issu—eD Marcn 25, 1905. WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. LOO. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. T. GALLOWAY, Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in Absence of Chief. — BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK VY. COVILLE, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. SPILLMAN, Agrostologist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. G. B. BRACKETT, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A. J. Preters, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. CorBEttT, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND GROUNDS. E. M. BYRNES, Superintendent. J. E. ROCKWELL, Editor. JAMES E. JONES, Chief Clerk. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. SCIENTIFIC STAFF. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge. ERWIN F. SMITH, Pathologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Pathology. GEORGE T. Moore, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Physiology. HERBERT J. WEBBER, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Breeding. WALTER T. SWINGLE, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Life History. NEWTON B. PIERCE, Pathologist in Charge of Pacific Coast Laboratory. M. B. WaITE, Pathologist in Charge of Investigations of Diseases of Orchard Fruits. MarRK ALFRED CARLETON, Cerealist in Charge of Cereal Investigations. HERMANN VON SCHRENK,4@ in Charge of Mississippi Valley Laboratory. P. H. RourFs, Pathologist in Charge of Subtropical Laboratory. C. O. TOWNSEND, Pathologist in Charge of Sugar Beet Investigations. P. H. Dorsett,? Pathologist. RopNEY H. TRUE,¢ Physiologist. T. H. KEARNEY, Physiologist, Plant Breeding. CoRNELIvs L. SHEAR, Pathologist. WILLIAM A. ORTON, Pathologist. W. M. Scott, Pathologist. = JOSEPH S. CHAMBERLAIN,@ Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. Ernst A. BEssEY, Pathologist. FLoRA W. PATTERSON, Mycologist. CHARLES P. HARTLEY, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. KARL F. KELLERMAN, Assistant in Physiology. DEANE B. SWINGLE, Assistant in Pathology. A. W. Epson, Assistant Physiologist, Plant Breeding. JESSE B. Norton, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. JAMES B. RORER, Assistant in Pathology. LLoyD S. TENNY, Assistant in Pathology. GEORGE G. HEDGCOCK, Assistant in Pathology. PERLEY SPAULDING, Scientific Assistant. P J. O’GaARA, Scientific Assistant, Plant Pathology. A. D. SHAMEL, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. T. RALPH ROBINSON, Assistant in Physiology. FLORENCE HEDGES, Scientific Assistant, Bacteriology. CHARLES J. BRAND, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Life History. HENRY A. MILLER, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. ERNEST B. Brown, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. LESLIE A. FITZ, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. LEONARD A. HARTER, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. JOHN O. MERWIN, Scientific Assistant, Plant Physiology. W. W. CoBEy, Tobacco Expert. JOHN VAN LEENHOFF, Jr., Expert. L. T. SPRAGUE, Expert, Plant Physiology. J. ARTHUR LE CLERC,e Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. T. D. BeckwitH, Expert, Plant Physiology. E. C. RITTUE, Assistant. aDetailed to the Bureau of Forestry. b Detailed to Seed and Plant Introduction and Distribution. ce Detailed to Rotanical Investigations and Experiments. aDetailed to Bureau of Chemistry. e Detailed from Bureau of Chemistry. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. U.S. DEPARMENT OF AGRICULTURE, Bureau oF Piant INpustrY, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, Washington, D. C., January 26, 1905. Str: I have the honor to transmit herewith the manuscript of a paper submitted by the Pathologist and Physiologist, entitled ‘*The Development of Single-Germ Beet Seed,” by Dr. C: O. Townsend, Pathologist in Charge of Sugar-Beet Investigations, and Mr. E. C. Rittue, Assistant, Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investi- gations, and recommend its publication as Bulletin No. 73 of the series of this Bureau. The accompanying eight plates are necessary to a clear understand- ing of the subject treated in the text. Respectfully, Bl. GaLLoway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. James WILson, Secretary of Agriculture. PREECE. Efforts to produce a single-germ beet seed have created considerable interest among sugar-beet growers, and numerous inquiries have been received in regard to the progress of the undertaking. It has been considered advisable, therefore, to present at this time a preliminary report relative to this work, giving a brief description of the sugar- beet flower, single and multiple germ seed balls, and the methods employed in carrying the work forward from its inception two years ago until the present time. It is encouraging to know that some progress has been made toward the solution of this problem and undoubtedly it is only a question of time when beets will be grown commercially from single-germ seed. Acknowledgment is hereby made to Mr. T. R. Cutler, manager; Hon. George Austin, general agricultural superintendent, and Mr. Parley Austin, local agriculturist for the Utah Sugar Company, for their assistance in carrying forward this work. A. F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist. OFFICE OF VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAS AND PuHystoLoGicaL INVESTIGATIONS, Washington, D. C., January 20, 1905. CONTENTS. ache SESE ee a a Demanmemeeaneiipie perm beet seed... 2227-2522... --------.--------- a LES Ta Cees ot ee ee on... ee elu Cue hL oin Sono) qa ee NR oe eek ee ES UST GS ee SS Se ee ae ec Mee ee I es re eh ek we ws ed we oe Soe me Change of location of experiments ---.--.------.----- SSO Sage ene a ae Seeemmmmemener ark Wald 2222-2 Sain ee Se ee ee eee Pianiimeranc-erowth of the seed beets........-.---...-.-.-.-2.-...---- POMP Pen eNO e SINMLE:NOWEIS: == 55252 ---2-5-522.--202-+-- 2s s+--encs eee “et cs GEE [ecole 0) ope ae eee BP SU 9 ee a EE ES De Se Se ee ee a ree RereeiiaPeotsingle-cerm seeds). 222. 52-2542. 2.222-2--2-2-222-e55e22 sce a a ee ee EPIRA ert ee eee ss cos te ee ee 7 ILLUSTRATIONS: PLATES. PLate I. A—Multiple-germ beet-seed balls. B—Single-germ beet seeds. Nat- UMAUSIZC eee os 22 soe ae oe a eee ee ee ee Frontispiece. Il. Upper part of flower stalk from beet plant. Natural size ...--.---- 26 Ill. Upper parts of flower stalks, with only single flowers remaining. NaturalisiZe 225035 So. st een none eae eee ee 26 IV. A—Commercial beet seeds. B, C, D, E, F, G—Siiftings. Natural SIZGWRS ene ae SS - ce Looe Sah eas cee eee eee 26 V. ‘Two types of beet-seed stalks......-2:-..-2.--::.1252.55)52 eee 26 VI. Fig. 1.—Flower stalks with multiple flowers removed. Fig. 2.— _ Flower stalks possessing only single flowers, covered with paper Gaps ee tee eee 26 VII. Fig. 1.—Placing cloth tent in position. Fig. 2.—Cloth tent properly ROjOsted Sees: 2 oe 2 be co eee 26 VIII. Various forms of sugar-beet seed. Natural size. Fig. 1.—Multiple- — germ beet-seed balls. Fig. 2.—Double beet-seed balls. Fig. 3.— Single-germ beet seed, naturally pollinated. Fig. 4.—Single-germ beet seed, hand pollinated...-....-..2s--£ 2.2 =e eee 26 TEXT FIGURES. Fia. 1. Clusters of closed and partly open beet flowers ........------------ 10 2) A singleybeet flower bud... ..2<.-2352255.2- =< eee eee det 3. A ‘single beetdlower.....-2-22) 252-2: s1)6_ 2-42 e eee 12 4. A single beet flower. and a cluster of buds. ..-..-.-.----.----2----- 13 5. ‘Section of ajbeet flower - -- . 2.522. 5-oe5 3 ee eee 13 65Polleniprainseen soso os ee ee ee Ree = 14 8 B. P. I.—132. V. P. P. I.—127. TIE DEVELOPMENT OR SINGLE-GERM BEET. SEED. INTRODUCTION. Owing to the importance that the beet-sugar industry has attained in the United States, and to the possibilities of the extension of sugar- beet growing and beet-sugar production in this country, it is desir- able that every effort be made to improve to the fullest extent the quality of the beets and to cheapen in every way possible the cultural processes involved in sugar-beet growing, so that the largest returns per acre may be obtained at a minimum cost. The first part of this proposition—the improvement of the quality of the beet—depends to a large extent upon the proper selection of beets for seed production, upon improved methods of cultivation, and upon the proper relation of the plant to soil and climate. The second part of the proposition— the cheapening of the cultural processes relating to sugar beets—may be accomplished either by skill acquired by practice in performing the various hand operations so that a greater amount of work of a given kind may be done in a definite time, or by the employment of labor- saving machinery, or by so changing the beet or the seed that certain operations are no longer necessary. The Department of Agriculture has in view the accomplishment of the improvements above outlined, and it is believed that the production of single-germ beet seeds on a commercial scale will do much toward reducing the cost of sugar-beet production, and will possibly improve the quality of the beets in one or more directions. It is the purpose of this preliminary report to show to those interested in the subject the progress that has been made in the development of a single-germ beet seed during the two seasons that the work has been under way. Mr. Truman G. Palmer, secretary of the Beet Sugar Manufac- turers’ Association, in a contribution to the annual report on the progress of the beet-sugar industry in the United States“ discusses the advantages and disadvantages that would result from the use a@See Progress of the Beet-Sugar Industry in the United States in 1902.—Report No. 74, United States Department of Agriculture, pp. 141-152. 9 10 DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. of single-germ beet seeds, and while the obstacles in the way of employing single-germ seeds on a commercial scale are of sufficient importance to demand consideration, there is no reason to suppose that these obstacles can not be overcome, as Mr. Palmer has suggested. At any rate, the only satisfactory way to determine the practicability of the single-germ seed for beet production is to produce such seed in sufficient quantity so that it can be tested on a commercial scale in com- parison with multiple-seed balls under the same conditions of soil and climate. SINGLE AND MULTIPLE GERM BEET SEED. The term ‘‘ seed ball,” as applied to beet seeds, implies a combination of seeds into a mass having a more or less rounded appearance (PI. I, A); hence, the term ‘* ball” can not properly be applied to the single-germ beet seed (Pl. 1, B). Each germ arises froma single floret, and when the flowers are in clusters of two or more (fig. 1) a multi- ple-germ seed arises; where- as, if the flower stands by itself on the stem (fig. 2) asin- gle-germseed results. Iftwo- or more single flowers stand very close together but do not arise from the same point as in the case of flower clus- ters, each will produce a sin- gle-germ seed (Pl. 11). Even LB ea | if the flowers are so close to- | . asi | gether that the seeds slightly Pe, adhere in the process of de- velopment, they are easily separated and readily distinguished as single-germ seeds (PI. III, flower stalk on right hand, end of second branch at left). On the other hand, the component parts of a multiple-germ seed ball adhere so firmly that they can not be separated by any known process without great danger of injuring the germs. It appears, therefore, that the arrangement and distribution of the flowers on the seed stalk determine whether the seeds are to be single-germ seeds or whether they are to be parts of multiple-seed balls. One can determine in practically all cases, even before the flowers are open, whether they will produce single- germ seeds or whether they will be parts of a multiple-seed ball. Fig. 1.—Clusters of closed and partly open beet flowers. SINGLE AND MULTIPLE GERM BEET SEED. a lea A typical single-germ beet seed is a five-pointed star possessing a somewhat flattened appearance (PI. I, B). Asa rule, these are easily distinguished from the multiple-germ seed balls, as shown in Plate I, A. Frequently the points of the star are broken off, when a more careful examination is necessary to determine whether the seed in question contains one or more germs. A close examination of a num- ber of these seeds and a comparison of them with multiple seeds will soon make the selection of single-germ seeds comparatively easy. There is a false single-germ seed against which it is necessary to guard in making selection of the single-germ seeds. This false single- germ seed arises usually from what would have been a double-germ seed (Pl. VIII, fig. 2) had not one of the seeds failed to develop. A more or less close examination will invariably enable one to determine which is the false and which is the true single-germ seed. The careless observer often makes the mistake of supposing that the small seeds are all single germs and that all multiple seed-balls are large. Some seedsmen have made the asser- tion that 60 per cent of the seeds produced by beets have single germs and that these seeds are sifted out and discarded from the commercial seed. The writers obtained a sack of the siftings from a quantity of com- mercial beet seed, as they had been in- formed that these siftings were com- posed of nearly allsingle-germ seeds. A careful examination of this seed was made and the different sizes were separated by means of sieves having 6,8, 10, 12, and 14 meshes per inch. (See Pl. 1V, Bto G.) The results are tabulated for convenience to show the percentage of singles that were caught in each sieve, while in Plate IV the percentage of single- germ seed is roughly indicated by the number of singles at the end of the second row ineach set. (See Table I, p. 12.) A study of this table shows how erroneous is the common impression with reference to the number of single-germ seeds that are present in commercial seed. Many of the single-germ seeds are larger than many of the multiple- germ seeds, as shown by Plate IV, D, compared with singles shown in groups A, B, and C. In practically all commercial seeds there are a few single-germ seeds, but an examination of a large quantity of commercial seed and a study of many seed beets in the field show that the number of singles produced by the ordinary beet-seed plant is very small. (See Table ILI, p. 22.) Fic. 2—A single beet flower bud. 12 DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. TABLE I.—Percentage of single-germ seeds from siftings. | Number of meshes per inch. 6 8 10 12 14 | } } : a | Percentace OLsInPle Perma. ssc et 520 cee ol | nite lo Ane aaa eee 31 -8. 8.1) “828 | 8.5 | 7.6 , The singles that remained in sieves of 6 and 8 meshes to the inch were of normal size and well filled; those that remained in the sieve of 10 meshes were small but well filled; those left in the 12 and 14 mesh sieves were to a great extent not filled at all, while others were simply immature flowers, and, taken all together, they constituted but the small percentage of 7.34— considerably less than 8 per cent. While we have no way of determining what bulk of the cleaned seed these siftings repre- sent, study of seeds obtained from ordi- nary beet plants leads to the conclusion that they do not represent more than one twenty- fifth, or 4 per cent, of Fie. 3.—A single beet flower. A, sepal; B, anther; C, pistil. the original ‘bulk. If this be true, and on an average three seeds from the siftings are equal in weight and bulk to one commercial seed, the following conclusions can be reached: Percentage of singles in siftings 7.34--8} (25=-3) -..---. 2-22 2s2--52 46 eee 0.88 Percentage of singles in commercial.seed:. «=< -.-.. 222. -----*-=255 += eee . 96 Average percentage of singles in ordinary seed.....-...--.------------- 1. 84 This is somewhat lower than the percentage of singles on the plants selected from the field of ordinary seed beets. (See the second column of Table III, p. 22.) It must be remembered that the 2.77 per cent given in Table III is the average of singles on the ten best plants and not the average of all the plants in the field. THE BEET FLOWER. The beet flower consists of three sets of organs arranged in three whorls (fig. 3). The outer set is composed of five green parts, called sepals (fig. 83, A), whichare attached to and form a part of the seed coat. In the early stages of the flower, i. e., before it opens, these five sepals inclose and protect the other parts of the flower (fig. 4). ee ee eee THE BEET FLOWER. 13 These sepals are not united with each other along the edges except near the base, so that when the flower opens they form a five-pointed star (fig. 3). It is these five sepals which form the five points of the star when the seed is ripe (Pl. VIII, fig. 4). These parts, as well as the remainder of the seed coats, turn brown upon the ripening of the seeds. The second set of or- gans consists of five stamens, one opposite each sepal (fig. 3, B). Each stamen consists of a fine stalk, called a filament (fig. 5, D), and on the free end of each filament is a sack, called an anther (fig. 3, B, and fig. 5, B). The anthers contain the pollen grains, a few of which much enlarged are shown in figure 6. There are thousands of pollen grains produced in each anther, and as there are five anthers in each flower the pollen grains produced by each flower are almost innu- merable, and when we consider that each plant produces thousands of flowers we can readily understand how it is that the air in and around a field of seed beets at flowering time is filled with these grains. The third set of flower parts is in the center of the flower, and is called the pistil or pistils (fig. 3, C, and fig. 5, C). In the beet flower the pistil is composed of three parts, as shown in figure 3, C. Just at the time the flowers are ready to open completely, the pollen grains be- come ripe, i. e., they reach a stage of development when under proper conditions of warmth and moisture they will produce what are called pollen tubes. At this stage of the development of the pollen grains the anthers burst, allowing the grains to escape. At the same time the three-parted pistil becomes sticky and some of the pollen grains, carried either by the wind or by some other agency, such’as insects, fall upon the pistil and remain attached. This transfer of pollen from the anthers to the pistil is the process Fic. 4.—A single beet flower and a cluster of buds. Fic. 5.—Section of a beet flower. A, sepal; B, anther; C, pistil; D, filament; E, seed germ. 14 DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. known as pollination. Under the favorable conditions already men- tioned pollen tubes are produced and grow down into the lower part of the pistil, where the contents of a pollen tube unite with the con- tents of the lower part of the pistil to form the germ which is des- tined to produce the new plant (fig. 5, E). This union of the contents of the pollen tube and of the lower part of the pistil is called fertilization. This brief description of the flower parts and their function will, it is hoped, serve to make clear the terms pollination and fertiliza- tion, without some knowledge of which the methods employed in our Fic. 6.—Pollen grains. x 750. flower selection and treatment would be meaningless. It should PP clearly understood that it is through the union of the contents, pollen tube with the contents of the lower part of a pistil that the: gérm which is to produce the new plant is formed. The pollen grain ‘thus utilized may originate in the same flower which it fertilizes, or it may originate in one flower and be transferred by some agency to the pistil of another flower. In the former case we speak of this process as close-pollination or close-fertilization, as the case may be, while in the latter case we speak of it as cross-pollination or cross-fertilization. ou GERMINATION AND VITALITY. | THE FIRST SEED SELECTION. As soon as the work of producing single-germ beet seed was taken up, the various methods by which the desired results might be reached were considered and the writers arrived at the conclusion that the most satisfactory results could be attained by the production of a plant that should bear only single-germ seeds rather than by any process which should have for its aim the separation of the multiple-germ balls into the several seeds of which they are composed. Accordingly, samples of about 4 pounds each of eight of the leading varieties of commer- cial sugar-beet seeds were obtained, and all the single-germ seeds were carefully separated from the multiple-germ seeds in these samples. The single and multiple germ seeds were counted and the percentage of singles computed, whereupon it was found that the ~number of single-germ seeds consisted of a little less than 1 per cent (0.96) of the entire number of seeds in the 32 pounds examined. This calculation does not determine the percentage of single-germ seeds produced by beets of different varieties, but serves to show the per- centage of single-germ seeds that are present in our ordinary commer- cial seed of the first grade. Subsequent selections and calculations along the same line served to confirm the results given above. The first single-germ seeds selected were used for two purposes: (1) For comparison in regard to germination and vitality with multiple-germ seeds, and (2) for the production of seed beets in the greenhouse, with the hope of gaining one season toward the solution. of the problem of single-germ seed production. GERMINATION AND VITALITY. A comparison of the germination and vitality of single-germ seeds as compared with multiple-germ seeds is best brought out by means of Table II, which shows a distinct difference in favor of the single germ seeds. TaBLeE II.—Comparison of germination. | Num- | | Num-| ber of bl re i H oq |berof|germs| Date of | Number of seedlings produced each 24 ee Gee Kind of seeds used. | seeds | in |planting.| hours after planting for 10 days. es a See 0k | used. | seeds ; line = een eads used. ings. | Ratton — ; is : ras al. | 1903. | a Single-germ seeds..| 400| 400] Mar. 26|0/0)/ 61/32] 73|94| 76/31/10) 7 329 824 Multiple-germ penis 100 400 |....do...| 0 0/0] 5| 9] 27 | 39 | 70 | 37 | 12 199 | 493 The seedlings from the multiple-germ seeds were thinned as carefully as possible, but the difference in growth was distinctly in favor of the plants produced from the single-germ seeds, and this difference held good during the growth of the plants. Further experiments of this kind confirmed the results shown in the table, viz, that the single- 19464—No, 73—05 9 16 DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. germ seeds sprout in a shorter time than the seeds in the multiple balls; that the percentage of germination is higher, and that the plants produced from the single-germ seeds possess greater vitality than those produced from multiple-seed balls. The single and multiple germ seeds used in these comparative experiments were taken from the same lot of commercial seeds. GREENHOUSE EXPERIMENTS. Several hundred plants from single-germ seeds were started in the greenhouse in December, 1903, with the hope of obtaining a crop of seed the following summer. The plants made a luxuriant growth and, when they had attained a weight of from 1 to 2 pounds, water was withheld and the beets were left to ripen. After two weeks of ripen- ing, nearly all the beets were taken up and siloed. At intervals of several weeks some of the siloed beets were replanted, but the results were uniformly negative, so far as the production of seed stalks is concerned. Etherizing and other methods of inducing the plants to produce seed stalks were resorted to, but likewise with negative results. It was therefore necessary to depend upon field planting for the first crop of seed beets.” SEED BEETS IN 1908. In the spring of 1903, about four thousand single-germ seeds were selected from commercial seed of different varieties and planted on the Arlington Experimental Farm of the Department of Agriculture. Previous to planting, the seeds were photographed in natural size (Pl. I, B), and each seed was given a number which corresponded to the number given the plant after it came up. The rows in which the seeds were planted were 20 inches apart and the seeds were dropped and covered by hand at intervals of about 10 inches in the row. Conditions for germination were favorable and fully 90 per cent of the seeds germinated. Beets grown for another purpose in the same field from multiple-germ seeds were planted with a hill dropper. The stand in both cases was about the same, but the additional labor necessary to hand-thin the seedlings from the multiple-germ seeds was in marked contrast to the rows planted with the single-germ seeds, where no hand-thinning was required. In actual practice it is not proposed to plant the single-germ seeds at intervals of 8 or 10 inches, but rather 2 or 3 inked apart, so that those not desired can be cut out with a hoe, and the planting “The term ‘‘mother beet,’’ commonly applied to beets used for seed production, implies that the beet flowers borne on the seed stalks possess only female organs, while, as a matter fact, each flower bears both the male and the female organs, as shown in figure 3, page 12. It is therefore suggested that in the place of the expres- sion ‘‘mother beet’’ the more accurate and simple term ‘‘seed beet’’ be used. BEET SEED IN 1903. Ve will be done by the aid of a planter and not by hand. In the experi- mental plat it was desired to give every beet the best possible chance to develop without destroying any of the plants. Unfortu- nately for the experiment, a part of the ground where the single- germ seeds were planted had been previously scalped, i. e., the sod had been removed and with it practically all the fertile soil. The natural result was that the seeds planted on this spot merely ger- minated and the seedlings died from starvation. As this poor strip of ground extended across one end of the rows only, most of the plants from each variety used came to maturity. At the close of the season about one thousand beets grown from the single-germ seeds were selected and siloed for the next season’s seed production. BEET SEED IN 19038. Since the production of sugar-beet seed had not been previously undertaken on the Arlington Farm, it was considered advisable to plant a few seed beets in the spring of 1903, in order to be better pre- pared to deal with the first crop of seed beets from single-germ seeds during the season of inflorescence in 1904. The two principal objects in growing the trial lot of seed beets were (1) to determine whether or not beet seed could be grown in this locality, and (2) to give an opportunity for studying the arrangement of the single and multiple flowers and their distribution on the flower stalks. Accordingly a number of seed beets were obtained from the New York Experiment Station at Geneva, through the kindness of Pro- fessor Churchill. These beets were received at Washington in good condition and were planted on the Arlington Farm. Practically all of them developed seed stalks, flowers were produced in great abun- dance, the patch swarmed with insects during the flowering season, and the weather seemed to be all that could be desired for the proper pollination and fertilization of the flowers; but when the seed was ripe it was found upon close examination that less than 5 per cent of the hulls contained germs. Plate V shows two types of the seed stalks produced. For some reason the seeds had failed to fill, and it was considered inadvisable to undertake an experiment that depended for its success upon seed production in a locality where the probabili- ties were that only a very small percentage of the seeds would fill, even under the most favorable conditions. However, the flowers that were produced upon these plants enabled us to study their arrangement and to consider the methods best suited to the accomplishment of seed selection. The first of these plants to bloom (PI. V, plant on right hand) showed flowers thirty-one days after planting, and produced nearly all two- seeded balls, the exceptions being a few single-germ seeds which were 18 DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. formed at the intersection of the spikes (PI. II), and near the tips of the spikelets. In fact, this arrangement prevailed in all the plants, as fol- lows: On all spikes that bore two-seeded balls there were found at the bases of most of the spikelets a two-seeded ball on one side at the inter- section and a single-germ seed on the other side (PI. [1), and later in the season when these spikelets were farther advanced numerous single- germ seeds formed throughout the limb, while in a few instances the tips were thickly studded with singles for several inches. But these flowers seldom produced seeds, as they developed too late in the sea- son. The spikes that bore multiples of 4 or 5 seeded balls seldom produced singles even at the bases of the spikelets, but the spikelets invariably produced balls of fewer seeds than were found on the main spike. If the spikelets again divided, double-seeded balls and single- germ seeds were found at the bases and sometimes at the tips of these secondary spikelets. CHANGE OF LOCATION OF EXPERIMENTS. As soon as it was found that the production of sugar-beet seed in the vicinity of the District of Columbia was very uncertain it became essential to select a suitable location for the continuation of the work. At this time it became necessary for one of the writers to visit a large number of the sugar-beet sections in connection with some other beet work, and while in Utah he learned that sugar-beet seed had been grown by the Utah Sugar Company at Lehi for nine consecutive years without even a partial failure, and that each succeeding year the area had been increased with good results. This company very cordially invited the Department of Agriculture to conduct its single-germ beet- seed work and such other sugar-beet experiments as it might see fit to make on one of its farms located near the outlet of Lake Utah. The soil there is a deep rich loam and is irrigated from warm springs which supply an abundance of water. The conditions thus offered for the growth of sugar beets and for the development of sugar-beet seed seemed to be all that could be desired, and the invitation to locate the experiments at this point was gladly accepted. The results obtained indicate that no mistake was made in the selection of this location for the continuation of the sugar-beet work. PROGRESS OF THE WORK IN 1904. PLANTING AND GROWTH OF THE SEED BEETS. In April, 1904, several hundred seed beets were shipped to Lehi and carefully planted under the supervision of the Utah Sugar Company’s experienced agriculturist, Hon. George Austin. Only two of the plants that were set out failed to live and less than 1 per cent failed to produce seed stalks. The beets were planted in rows 3 feet apart and I — ss Sl leer PROGRESS OF THE WORK IN 1904. 19 the space between the plants was 3 feet. The seed stalks were numer- ous, strong, and well supplied with flowers that eventually developed well-filled seeds. Early in June the writers were notified, in accord- ance with a previous arrangement, that the flowers were nearly ready to open. Accordingly, they left at once for Lehi, where the flowers were found in the best possible condition for the work. ARRANGEMENT OF SINGLE FLOWERS. The writers had previously learned that the single and multiple flowers were distributed over the seed stalks with more or less regu- larity (PI. III). Asarule the single flowers destined to produce single- germ seeds were located at the joints, i. e., at the points on the stem where the branching takes place. That there is a great difference in seed stalks with reference to the number of branches produced is shown in Plate V, which illustrates some of the types of séed stalks found in fields of commercial seed. It is evident that the seed stalks shown in the plant on the right-hand side of this plate are much more frequently branched than are those shown in the plant on the left-hand side, and consequently have more points at which single-germ seeds would natu- rally form. However, if single-germ seeds were produced only at the bases of the branches the total number would be small compared with the number of seed balls produced on the ordinary seed stalks. Not infrequently on the commercial beet-seed stalks single flowers are found, and later single-germ seeds extending out on the branches, even to the tips. This arrangement of the single-germ seeds along the sides of the seed stalks was found to be still more common on the seed stalks produced by beets grown from single-germ seeds (PI. III). This is an encouraging indication of the possibility of a plant pro- ducing single-germ seeds on all the branches throughout their entire length, in which case we would have a plant producing only single- germ seeds and at the same time bearing seed in commercial quantity. METHODS OF POLLINATION. It is entirely possible for single flowers to be cross-fertilized with pollen from flower clusters in the natural process of fertilization. This would give to the plant produced from the single-germ seed a tendency to produce flower clusters and consequently multiple-germ seeds. In order to avoid the danger of contaminating the single flowers which were selected for seed production with the pollen of multiple-germ seeds all multiple flowers were carefully trimmed away before they were open and before the single flowers which were left on the stalks had opened. Plate VI, figure 1, shows one of the selected plants after the multiple flowers were removed. In order to prevent the single flowers from receiving the pollen that might be floating in the air from other plants, they were covered 20) DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. ° with paper bags, as shown in Plate VI, figure 2. If it was desired to cross-fertilize the single flowers they were carefully opened by means of a needle or scalpel, the anthers removed before the pollen was ripe, and they were then covered with the paper bags. It was necessary to uncover the flowers from time to time to see when the pistil was ready to receive the pollen. To protect the fiowers at such times against stray pollen that might be floating in the air the operator covered himself and the plant that he was pollinating with a cloth tent. This tent was supported by an iron rod fastened to the back of the operator. Plate VII, figure 1, shows one of the tents as it is being placed in position and Plate VII, figure 2, shows the tent in position. When the pistil was in condition’ to receive the pollen it was pollinated by means of a camel’s-hair brush and the paper bag was again placed over the pollinated flower. This operation was carried on under the cloth tent. If close-fertilization was desired, each flower to be pollinated was covered with a paper bag and the anthers were not removed, since it was desired that the pistil should receive the pollen from the same flower. The same precautions were taken in excluding other pollen as in the preceding case. Another method, which, for want of a better term, may be called ‘*bunch pollination,” consisted in covering the single flowers with paper bags, inclosing several flowers in the same bag and not remoy- ing any of the anthers. When the pollen became ripe it was set free from the anthers but could not escape from the bag. An occasional shaking of these flower stalks caused the pollen to lodge upon the pistils, and thus the flowers were pollinated. It was certain by this process that the flowers, which were in all cases covered with the bags before any of them opened, were pollinated with pollen from single flowers only and from the same plant upon which the seed was to be produced, but it was not possible to determine whether a flower had been pollinated with its own pollen or with that from another flower on the same stalk. However, the process is much more rapid than either the cross-pollination or self-pollination previously described. By utilizing these various methods of pollination, about 15,000 single flowers, produced by 50 of the plants that possessed the highest number of single flowers, were treated. It was impossible to cut away the multiple flowers on any plant without removing some of the single flowers; hence, the 15,000 flowers treated do not represent the total number of single flowers on these plants. After the flowers were treated and covered with the paper bags, the plants were protected from the wind, so that the paper bags would not be blown off, by covering the entire plant with a cloth bag made for this purpose. These bags were supported by four strong stakes driven into the ground until they were firm. The number of flowers PROGRESS OF THE WORK IN 1904. | handled was. limited by the progress they made in opening; i. e., as soon as the flowers opened so that there was danger of pollination taking place before they were covered with the paper bags, it was necessary to abandon the work. The period that elapsed from the time the buds were large enough to work until the flowers had opened so that further work was impossible was about three weeks—from June 15 to July 4. It was now necessary simply to go over these 50 plants from time to time and remove the superfluous growth that was forced from the nodes as a consequence of the excessive trimming due to removing the multiple flowers and the branches that bore them. As soon as the seeds had set, the paper bags were removed, but the plants were still protected by the cloth bags, which remained over the plants until the seed ripened. GATHERING THE SEED. Early in August the seed was ready to be gathered, and that from each of the 50 plants was kept separate and a record made of the plant from which it was obtained. The seeds were also kept separate with reference to the method of pollination. Of the 15,000 single flowers treated, about 10,000 set their seed and reached maturity. These will be carefully planted by hand at the proper time for the production of the second crop of seed beets, from which the writers hope to obtain their second crop of seeds. These single-germ seeds are larger than similar seeds that were selected for the first planting, as shown in Plate VIII, figure 4. Plate VIiI shows the comparative sizes of multiple seed balls (fig. 1), double seed balls (fig. 2), and single seeds from the same plant (figs. 3 and 4). The larger growth of the seeds shown in figure 4 is probably due in some measure to the trim- ming that the branch that bore these seeds received, thus throwing more of the growth and vigor of this branch into the seed. PERCENTAGE OF SINGLE-GERM SEEDS. As already indicated, 50 of the plants that possessed the highest number of singles were selected for the special pollination work. Owing tothe method of treatment already described, it was impossible to determine the percentage of single flowers on the 50 plants that were treated. Asa consequence, it is impossible to compare accurately the number of single-germ seeds produced by these 50 plants grown from single-germ seeds with the number of singles produced by plants grown from commercial seed. However, after selecting the 50 plants for this work, 20 of the plants remaining that showed the high- est percentage of singles were picked out and all the seeds from each plant were carefully saved and kept separate. From a field of 17 acres of beet seed, in which the seed beets were produced from ordinary commercial seed, 10 plants that showed the highest yield of 99 DEVELOPMENT OF SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED. single-germ seed were also selected for comparison. The seed from each of these plants was kept separate and all the seed of each plant was carefully saved. These results are embodied in the following table, together with the results previously mentioned in regard to the percentage of singles in commercial seed and in siftings: TaBLeE III.—Comparison of percentages of single and multiple germ seeds from selected plants, from siftings, and from commercial seed. ; | From seed | From field From com- beets grown | of ordinary) .tO™ mercial | ee beet seed. | S!tMES- | beet seed. 0. 25 0/018 Ole. 22a ae eee . 212 All fall Soe eee) ees ao = ee Bi SOLS. [eee wc ft cececeen eee . 145 = OB A tek cceeenae eee ceeee 122 020i itstt Ss. ee Ee eee see .114 (OMG le ot cc bee Seo teeter . 105 SORT Ml fs See ee ea ee 098 11 1 ly eee, ee he . 092 ~OLD lo oe. eben sees eee 082 SOOM IS ee SEX Rees Sees Ay..0. 143 0. 027 0. 0734 0. 0096 It will be seen from this table that the best plant—i. e., the one pos- sessing the highest number of single-germ seeds that could be found in a field of 17 acres grown from commercial seed—bore 4.7 per cent of single-germ seed, or a little less than one-twentieth, of all the seeds produced by the plant, and the average for the ten selected plants was less than one thirty-fifth of all the seed produced by the plants.“ On the other hand, the number of single-germ seeds produced by the next best plant after 50 of the best ones had been selected—1. e., from the fifty-first plant—in point of number of singles was 25 per cent, or one-fourth of all the seed produced by the plant, and the average for the ten plants, ranging from the fifty-first to the sixtieth best, was a little less than one-seventh of the seed produced by the 10 plants. It is true that out of the total number of plants grown from single- -germ seeds and used in this selection work a large number of them produced in point of numbers, so far as could be determined by casual observation, approximately the same quantity of single-germ seeds that were produced by beets grown from ordinary multiple-germ seed. It must be remembered, however, that all the seeds with which the first planting was made were selected from commercial seed, so that nothing is known in regard to the plants or the manner of the pollination of the flowers that produced the seeds. It would not be surprising if a large number of the single-germ seeds found in commercial seed were produced from flowers which were pollinated and fertilized by pollen from flower clusters instead of from single flowers. at should be noted that this proportion represents selected plants and does not show the percentage of single-zerm seeds grown on ordinary plants taken at random, which would be somewhat less than one thirty-fifth. CONCLUSION. 23 CONCLUSION. It is the purpose of those having this work in charge to continue their experiments along the same line during the coming season. The writers expect to produce this year a crop of seed beets from their selected single germ seed and to silo these beets in the autumn for next year’s seed production. Meantime the experiments of last year will be repeated. In addition to this repetition, serving as a comparison of the results already obtained, it will give this season a crop of seed similar to the seed saved last year. The importance of this precaution appears when it is remembered that it takes two years to produce a crop of seed, and that any accident to the present supply of seed would cause a delay of two years unless a quantity of seed beets ready to produce more seed was on hand. For this reason it is planned to repeat each year the experiments of the preceding season. As soon as a sufficient quantity of single-germ seed has been pro- duced, the writers hope to conduct comparative experiments with sin- gle and multiple germ seeds in different localities to determine the influence of soil and climate upon beet production from single-germ seed and to test the practicability of using single germ beet seed on a commercial scale. Further reports, showing the progress of the work, which must necessarily extend over a considerable period, will be pub- lished from time to time. Gali es SPO DESCRIPTION OF PLATES. Piate I. A.—Typical multiple-germ beet seeds, showing some of the variations in shape and size of commercial sugar-beet seed balls. Natural size. B.—Single- germ beet seeds selected from commercial seed, showing some of the variations in shape and size. Natural size. Puate II. Upper part of flower stalk from beet plant, showing method of branching, and also size and arrangement of flowers, both single and in clusters. Natural size. Puare III. Flower stalks from which the flower clusters have been removed, leaving only the single flowers. The branch at the right is the same as that shown in Plate II. Some of the flowers on the branch are already open; hence too late to bag for hand pollination. The branch at the left has all the flowers still closed, and is ready to bag. Some of the single flowers stand close together, as shown at the top of branch at the left, so that in the cut they appear like doubles. Natural size. Puate IV. Different grades or sizes of sugar-beet seed obtained by taking commercial seed as shown in A and by separating the so-called siftings into the grades B, C, D, E, F, and G, by means of sieves having 6, 8, 10, 12, and 14 meshes per inch, respectively. /’ shows the material too coarse to pass through the sieve having 14 meshes per inch, and G shows the material that passed through the sieve. Band Care good grades of small seed. D contains a large amount of seed not filled. EH and F’ contain only a few seeds that are filled, and numerous immature florets. G is composed mostly of broken florets, leaves, and stems. An attempt is made in each case to represent the percentage of singles: This can be done only approximately. The percentage in A is nearly 1; in B, 3; in C, 8+, in D, 8+,andin F, 8—; so that for 25 seeds the percentage of single seeds is only approximately correct. : Piate V. Two types of beet-seed stalks. The one at the right is much more branched than the one at the left and possesses many more single-germ seeds. Puate VI. Fig. 1.—Flower stalks with multiple flowers removed, leaving only the singles ready to be bagged for hand pollination. Fig. 2.—Single flowers covered with paper bags to protect them from foreign pollen. Puate VII. Fig. 1. Cloth tent being adjusted to cover the operator and the plant upon which he is to work. Fig. 2.—Tent in position, covering the operator and plant in order to protect the flowers from foreign pollen. PuatE VIII. Various forms of sugar-beet seed. Fig. 1.—Multiple beet-seed balls obtained from a selected plant grown from single-germ seed. Natural size. Fig. 2.—Double beet-seed balls from the same plant. Natural size. Fig. 3.— Single-germ beet seed from a branch of the same plant, not trimmed and not hand pollinated. Natural size. Fig. 4.—Single-germ beet seed from a branch of the same plant that was trimmed and hand pollinated. The larger size may be due to the trimming away of the multiples, or to the hand pollination, or to both. Natural size. 26 O Bul. 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE Il. UPPER PART OF FLOWER STALK FROM BEET PLANT. Natural size. Bul. 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE III. Upper PARTS OF FLOWER STALKS, WITH ONLY SINGLE FLOWERS REMAINING. Natural size. Bul. 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. - PLATE IV. SF BASS VS SIGS H HRs rPPSeus eu ev SRvEPISERAGBHAAA Se aFrvsgeer as 4 oOFteGRasew © BEB a wmese YR SD wow F 2 ~ 4 VP Fe kcF Fm Bw dt a > @ : A.—COMMERCIAL BEET SEEDs. B,C, D, E, F, G.—SIFTINGS. Natural size. ne ‘SMIVLS G33S-L33q 4O S3dA] OML Bul. 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE V. PLATE VI. Bul. 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. Fla. 1.—FLOWER STALKS WITH MULTIPLE FLOWERS REMOVED. Fic. 2.—FLOWER STALKS POSSESSING ONLY SINGLE FLOWERS, COVERED WITH PAPER BAGS. ‘“NOILISOd NI LNA J HLOIOD DNIOVId—'}] ‘SI ‘aaisnray AlWYsd0¥’d LNAL HLO1DO—'S? ‘DI Bul 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE Vil. Bul. 73, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture : PLATE VIII Fic. 1.—MULTIPLE-GERM BEET-SEED BALLS. —_— ss 2 © YY & Fic. 2.—DousBLeE BEET-SEED BALLS. Fig. 3.—SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED, NATURALLY POLLINATED. ————_—— tk YY K€ Fic. 4.—SINGLE-GERM BEET SEED, HAND POLLINATED. VARIOUS FORMS OF SUGAR-BEET SEED. Natural size Bul. 74, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE lI. FiG. 1.—THE CANE CACTUS OF SOUTHEASTERN COLORADO, SINGED WITH BRUSH. Fig. 2.—THE PRICKLY PEAR OF TEXAS, SINGED WITH A TORCH. OLD AND NEW WAYS OF SINGEING CACTI. Ds, UE EAREMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY—BULLETIN NO. 74. B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau. THE PRICKLY PEAR AND OTHER CACTI AS FOOD FOR SPOCK. DAVID GRIFFITHS, ASSISTANT AGROSTOLOGIST IN CHARGE OF RANGE INVESTIGATIONS. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. IssuED Marcr 8, 1905. WASHINGTON : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1905. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. T. GALLOWAY, Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS, AxusBert F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in Absence of Chief. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK V. CoviLLe, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. SprnuMAN, Agrostologist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. G. B. BracKxerr, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A. J. Pirrers, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. Corsett, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND GROUNDS. E. M. Byrnes, Superintendent. J. E. Rockwe tu, Editor. JAMES E. Jones, Chief Clerk. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. SCIENTIFIC STAFF. W. J. Sprtiman, Agrostologist. A. S. Hrrencock, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Alfalfa and Clover Investigations. C. V. Pieer, Systematic Agrostologist in Charge of Herbarium. Davip GriFFItTHs, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Range Investigations. C. R. BA, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Work on Arlington Farm. S. M. Tracy, Special Agent in Charge of Gulf Coast Investigations. D. A. Bropig, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Cooperative Work. P. L. Ricker, Assistant in Herbariwm. J. M. WestGate, Assistant in Sand-Binding Work. Byron Hunter, Assistant in Charge of Pacific Coast Investigations. R. A. OAKLEY, Assistant in Domestication of Wild Grasses. C. W. Warsurton, Assistant in Fodder Plant and Millet Investigations. M. A. Crossy, Assistant in Southern Forage Plant Investigations. J.S. Corron, Assistant in Range Investigations. Lesuie F. Pau, Assistant in Investigations at Arlington Farm. Harotp T. Nietsen, Assistant in Alfalfa and Clover Investigations, AGnes Cuask, Agrostological Artist, 2 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, Bureau OF PuLant INDUSTRY, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, Washington, D. C., December 14, 1904. Str: I have the honor to transmit herewith, and to recommend for publication as Bulletin No. 74 of the series of this Bureau, the accom- panying manuscript entitled **The Prickly Pear and Other Cacti as Food for Stock.” This paper was prepared by Dr. David Griffiths, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Range Investigations, and has been submitted by the Agrostologist with a view to its publication. The five half-tone plates are necessary to a complete understanding of the text of this bulletin. Respectfully, B. T. GaLioway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. JAMES WILson, Secretary of Agriculture. Pipe Pate E. For several years past letters have been coming to this Office regard- ing the forage value of different species of cactus. Some two years ago a number of letters were received in which the writers claimed high feeding value for this class of plants when properly handled. The fact that much land which must be classed as desert is covered with a considerable growth of cactus plants, and the certainty that if these could be shown to have forage value the fact would render use- ful enormous stretches of lands which are now even worse than useless seemed to justify investigating the subject. Our first efforts were to collect the experience of those who had used prickly pear and other cacti for feed. The amount of informa- tion secured in this manner was astonishingly large, and being on a subject which had hitherto received practically no attention from investigators in this country, much of it was of a nature to create some surprise. The information thus gleaned is here presented as a basis for further work, which is now under way. While the opinions of those who have had experience in feeding cactus are not always justi- fied, they are nevertheless suggestive and are presented in the follow- ing pages because of the value of some of these suggestions. In view of the large amount of information collected by Doctor Griffiths, it is somewhat remarkable that investigators have not heretofore recog- nized the possibilities evidently existing in the cacti as forage plants. It is shown that this use of them is very old and is quite general over a large extent of territory in this country. In this connection it may be remarked that were it not for the spines on this class of plants they would probably have been exterminated long ago, and there is some doubt whether there would be any use for spineless forms in the future. It is practically certain that under no circumstances does the prickly pear possess as much forage value as some enthusiastic feeders claim for it, but the subject is certainly worthy of the investigations that have been undertaken. The principal lines of investigation now in progress are: Chemical composition of the most useful forms, methods of planting, yield, the frequency with which cacti may be harvested, varieties and their distribution, methods of preparation and feeding, and the value of these plants compared with other forage plants. 5 6 PREFACE. We have been able to find only very meager accounts of any previous investigations in this field. A little has been done in Australia and in India. The results of these investigations are not in accord with the experience of stockmen in this country. In reporting on feeding trials in India, the experimenter says, *‘ The result of our extended and thorough trial proves conclusively that prickly pear has hardly any value as a cattle feed.” In the experiments referred to, the cactus was roasted in order to remove the spines. The experience of Amer- ican feeders indicates that the unfavorable results in these experiments may be due to the method of preparation of the material. They may also, of course, be due to differences in the species used, but the fact that practically all forms of cactus found in this country make very good famine feed would point to a different conclusion. The cattle on experiment in these investigations in India at no time consumed over 25 pounds of cactus per day, while numerous instances are known where cattle in this country have eaten 100 pounds or more per day. It would seem that when fed with a limited amount of cotton-seed meal, properly prepared cactus is readily eaten in large quantities and that it has considerable feed value. Prickly pear has undoubtedly saved many herds in famine years and thus prevented the wiping out of the ranchers’ capital—often the result of years of patient labor. Other publications will be issued as the investigations now in prog- ress are completed. These investigations are being conducted by Dr. David Griffiths, of this Office, under the direction of the Agrostologist. In this work we are cooperating extensively with the New Mexico Experiment Station and with a large number of stockmen in the Souta- west. W. J. SPILLMAN, Agrostologist in Charge. OFFICE OF GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS, ~ Washington, D. C., December 5, 1904. CONC EN TS. SRS EESE SS Eo ee ee as ete EA ae See) 2 ee Geographical distribution of economic cacti in the United States.....-.-.---- “eos DE YE eOI Tbe 2 ete OR is Se ee ee Se ee LESS UE ESS ye OSS ye ae ei RL OE) gag os eo ah Rete ede olet e N 9 eg ai Chopping by epee rs Se he Ply gt 2 ae Removal of the ae of the joints. ..---- ce ee ee eee ESS ee 2 Ol is UMN” ss 6eos SS BE eee eee 5 en TDS eg ee ee LoL Whi astos2 36a eee. Spee aes eaten Sk Sis a es bo VTL EES un 3 1 ae 2 hee ee EI SR Ce ee Beeeairyeranonsancluding pear -.......:-=-----------------------+-- Soaeeeeieeine and maintaining cattle. -_.....::.:----.------------------ Se bs p log TERA. see bie aie ese ek sie elas Ls kL oa eT aT nee Sf, a le rrr Pamieeetmonnor working animalss- 22. 22S. ocse55 2h ese ccc sce ete eee SST Lia Sa SS Bee Se EE RR ees tS nb Eee Shit Ses elke se noes emmmeieeiiang their Cestraction - 2...) 22-2 226- <2 4-/--20-------seseseee8 Species of cactus which are of forage value....--...---.-------------.-------- Seem Mme antatiOns Ol Pear 2 2-_.2-5-.5-2eo55--2-2-2- 5st eee eee sees oe a EE ee oe 2 nnn ter NATVGstiNe. ©. 52-22-22. o2e-s—e-—e0 352. s---+2--s-25-5-0 Petemeronommcsspects Of be cactt.:- 2.5 5-5-.-55--2a25---=---++--+--2---- Some conditions obtaining in the prickly-pear region ......----------------- eenaiaten OF cactus. feeding. ..-..........-...---------.-----.-----s a FL GES oS I a fi Priare I. Old and new ways of singeing cacti. Fig. 1.—The cane cactus of southeastern Colorado, singed with brush. Fig. 2.—The prickly pear of Texas, singed with a:torch’-:22222_05- 225220 Frontispiece. — II. The prickly pear and a pear machine. Fig. 1.—One of the com- mon prickly pears of Texas in full fruit. Fig. 2.—A type of : pear cutter as set up and operated by Mr. J. C. Glass......---- 48 III. Another type of pear cutter. Fig. 1.—Front view, showing knives. Fig. 2.—Rear view, with casing removed, showing boxes behind the knives. -22-2-+.2:.!.2f21. 1222 eee 48 IV. Prickly pears in California and Texas. Fig. 1.—Nopal de Castilla, cultivated in southern California. Fig. 2.—A pear thicket on the’ Glass ranch, Eagle Pass; Tex... 2. --22-2-<22225-5 48 VY. The Tapuna pear. Fig. 1.—A single plant of the Tapuna pear, near Alonzo, Mexico. Fig. 2.—Fruit of the Tapuna pear in one of the market places at San Luis Potosi, Mexico ...-..--.-------- 48 TEXT FIGURE. Fie. 1.—A pear fork: 22252. 2i22.5622i tes. 22 SS eet oe eee 15 DEC US RA ae PLATES. bi 8 B. P. L.—133. ’ G. F. P. 1.—108. THE PRICKLY PEAR AND OTHER CACTI AS FOOD FOR STOCK. INTRODUCTION. In the arid and semiarid regions of the United States the rancher is periodically confronted with a condition of drought which endangers the well-being, if not the actual existence, of his flocks and herds. His pastures are usually taxed to their utmost capacity during average years, and when a season of famine occurs he suffers tremendous losses by death of animals. Under these conditions he is obliged to sell when neither his stock nor the market prices are favorable to his interests. Under such circumstances it is sometimes advisable to buy hay or grain, but the prices of these feeds where freight rates are high are often prohibitive. It is very seldom that a rancher can afford to feed hay at $10 per ton to stockers, even if it can be secured conveniently. The case is much more aggravated when the haul to the feeding grounds is long, necessitating a considerable expenditure of money for hauling the same expensive feed. This latter expense may often be obviated by driving the stock to a region in close proximity to the feed; in other words, to the feeding ground. This common practice in the West is a very important factor in the stock business. Stockers are shipped from the southwest to the Pacific coast, Montana, and Canada to take advantage of feed in those localities when it is unob- tainable in the southern breeding grounds. The practice, while com- mon, if not universal, is expensive, because of the long distance to feed. Short pasture and the settling up of the intervening regions render driving impracticable, although formerly this could be more easily done. The large holder usually has a knowledge of the con- ditions which prevail in other sections of the country, and his superior experience gives him a decided advantage over the small rancher, who has less means and usually less knowledge of the conditions of the country at large at his command. The rancher of moderate means is therefore confronted, during years of famine, with the alternative of feeding expensive feed or selling at ruinous prices in order to save his stock from starvation. 16170—No. 74—05——2 10 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. It is to meet the requirements for an emergency ration for these seasons of short feed and to call attention to the varied uses of the cacti that this bulletin is published; and it is hoped that it will answer, in a preliminary way, many questions which are asked of the Depart- ment of Agriculture each year regarding cacti. The various species of cactus which occur in the arid and semiarid portions of the country are well adapted to the purpose of feeding when properly prepared, and furnish a feed which, although low in nutritive value, is inexpensive and will tide the stock over a period of shortage. This bulletin is based upon personal observations and the experience of ranchers, and was instigated by the numerous inquiries and pressing demands which have been apparent for the past few months. This publication is a preliminary one, giving a general exposition of the subject. It will be followed later by several technical treatises, which are now in process of preparation, dealing with carefully planned experiments upon the different phases of the subject. Here techni- calities are avoided, and the aim in writing has been to include such information as has been secured by field observations and inquiry among ranchers, dairymen, teamsters, and others having experience in the premises. -The paper is therefore intended to be popular, sug- gestive, and preliminary to more technical publications which are to follow. HISTORY. It is impossible to tell where or when the feeding of pear began in Texas, but it is certain that the practice was common several years before the civil war. There are people now living who can remember distinctly its use during the droughts of 1857 and 1859. From this time until long after the war there were very extensive freight trans- portations carried on between Brownsville, Indianola, San Antonio, Eagle Pass, etc. Teaming was especially heavy in this region during the civil war, when Brownsville and Matamoras, Mexico, became bustling, flourishing cities, built up by the teaming trade, which brought the products, especially cotton, of the Confederate States to this point for export—at times the only safe outlet for the products of the South. By far the greatest amount of freighting was done with oxen. At that time corn was not produced in any appreciable quan- tities, and any other grain was prohibitive in price. Upon their long hauls the cattle got no feed but that produced by the country through which they passed. This was meager in localities and often poor everywhere. It is said that the teamster considered himself for- tunate when there was pear to be had, and there was plenty of it on many of the roads. The teamsters at this time scorched the pear by burning brush, and chopped or slashed it with ax, spade, or GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION. 11 machete. This, together with such dry grass and browse as the region afforded, was all the feed that the cattle obtained. It is quite probable that the Americans learned the use of prickly pear from the Spanish people, who appear to have learned its value and practiced feeding it long before it was employed for that purpose in this country. GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF ECONOMIC CACTI IN THE UNITED STATES. Roughly speaking, we may designate the northern boundary of the cactus area in this country as follows: From the Texas—Louisiana line westward on the thirty-third degree of north latitude to the Texas-New Mexico border; thence, northward to the thirty-ninth degree of north latitude; thence, westward along this parallel. In describing the boundary in this manner it is, to be understood that only avery small fraction of the area of the United States south of this line has pear or other cacti in sufficient quantity to be of economic impor- tance in a state of nature. Indeed, the areas of economic cactus in this country are very circumscribed, although they are scattered over a considerable territory. Outside of this area there are only one or two situations where the cacti are at all prominent, and they never grow large enough to be of any particular value. The same is true of much of the territory included in the general region designated above, but some of this ter- ritory is covered with growths of various species of these spiny plants that render it difficult for cattle to travel through them, and such growths are scattered here and there over the entire region. The cactus region par excellence, and the only region where any great amount of feeding has been done in this country, may be described as that portion of Texas situated south of the thirtieth par- allel of north latitude. In this region the species of prickly pear are sufficiently abundant and the grasses so scarce during portions of the year that the stock industry becomes almost dependent upon the pear for its existence. It is estimated by many ranchers that one-half less stock would have to be handled by them were it not for prickly pear. In the general cactus region outside of southern Texas, cactus from an economic point of view occurs in limited areas only. Arizona, New Mexico, and southern California, while often spoken of as great cactus regions, have only comparatively small areas where any of the species grow in sufficient abundance to render them of any commercial importance in a condition of nature. These States have many botani- val species of great interest, but in many cases the number of indi- viduals is small, or, if numerous, they are too diminutive to be economically prepared for stock feeding. But even so, there are many areas scattered all over these regions 12 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. where some of the various species occur in great profusion, giving a reserve food supply which under intelligent use can be made immensely valuable, even if the plants will not respond readily when planted. The experience of a few ranchers in the vicinity of Magdalena, N. Mex., the Pinal Mountains and Colorado River Valley of Arizona, and in southeastern Colorado testifies to the value of the various spe- cies of cactus as emergency rations in the general region south of the thirty-ninth degree of north latitude and west of eastern Texas. METHODS OF FEEDING. In Australia, so far as the literature of the subject indicates, steam- ing is the principal method of utilizing the prickly pear, which has been introduced and widely disseminated in that country. In this country various methods have been developed independently in the several cactus regions, and apparently, at least, without knowledge of the practices in vogue in other sections. The greatest progress in this line, however, is exhibited in the vicinity of San Antonio, Tex. SINGEING THE SPINES. The most prevalent practice in southeastern Colorado consists in singeing the spines over a brush fire. (PI. I, fig. 1.) This operation is practicable where there is considerable brush or wood conveniently situated, but it has many disadvantages. The plants are collected and hauled to some convenient place, where a fire is built. A brisk fire will remove the spines from one side of the joints almost instantly. It is then necessary to turn the plants over and burn them again on the other side. Some careful feeders often leave the plant on the fire until much of the outside has turned black from the heat, in order to insure the removal of the short as well as the long spines. Others exercise less care, and simply allow the flames to pass over the plant, burning off only the distal half or more of the long spines and leaving practically all of the short ones for the cattle to contend with. It often happens that the fuel used is greasewood (Sarcobatus. vermé- culatus) or shad scale (Atriplex canescens), the young shoots of which are of greater nutritive value than the pear itself. On the arroyos and washes dead cottonwood timber is used, while in many localities juniper furnishes the fuel. This is the most primitive method of feeding and one which has been practiced in Texas since before the civil war, and is still very extensively employed not only in Texas but also in old Mexico, where singeing the thorns with brush is about the only method employed in feeding prickly pear and other species of cacti. METHODS OF FEEDING. 138 “SINGEING WITH A TORCH. The use of a gasoline torch for removing the spines of the prickly pear (and it is applicable to other species of cacti) originated in Texas. (Pl. I, fig. 2.) This is a common practice in vogue upon the range, and is to be recommended as economical in both the utility of the feed and the labor of preparing it. The process consists in passing a hot- blast flame over the surface of the plant, which can be very quickly done at small expense. The spines themselves are dry and inflamma- ble. In many species one-half or two-thirds of them will burn off by touching a match to them at the lower part of the trunk. The ease with which they are removed depends upon the condition of the atmos- phere, the age of the joints, and the number of the spines. A large number of spines is very often an advantage when singeing is to be practiced, because the spines burn better when they are abun- dant. The instrument used for this purpose is a modified plumber’s torch. Any other convenient torch which gives a good flame can be employed, the efficiency depending upon the lightness of the machine and the ease with which the innermost parts of the cactus plants can be reached by the flame. In southern Texas two excellent torches, described elsewhere, are commonly used in singeing the prickly pear. In Arizona one or two ranchers consulted have used an ordinary kerosene torch with mod- erate success in handling the tree cacti of that region. With the use of these machines there is no labor involved in the feeding, except that of removing the spines by the passage of the blast flame over the surface of the joints. The cattle follow the operator closely, and graze all the joints which have been singed. STEAMING. So far as known, Mr. J. M. John, of Hoehne, Colo., is the only rancher who has practiced steaming cactus for cattle in this country. Mr. John discovered by accident and without any knowledge of Australian practices that the spines became innocuous when moistened for some time. He happened to use the plants in the construction of a dam, which soon washed out. Upon repairing the dam it was dis- covered that the spines of those plants which had been kept wet were perfectly harmless. This suggested that hot water or steam would accomplish the purpose in a much shorter time. Acting upon this suggestion he fitted up a tank and boiler, which happened to be on hand, for the purpose of steaming the cactus. The tank employed Was an open one holding two loads, or, approximately, 6,000 pounds of cactus. In order to prevent the loss of heat as much as possible, corn chop, which was to be fed with the cactus, was poured upon the top of the loaded vat. This mixture was steamed for about ten hours, 14 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. allowed to stand one night, and fed in the morning, with good results during one or two winters. It should be stated that all of the liquid was lost. This was a pure experiment, adapted to local conditions and material convenient for the operations. The form of tank, the length of time, and the consequent expense of keeping up steam, could be greatly improved upon. CHOPPING BY MACHINERY. In southern Texas there bave been some rapid advances made during the last twenty years in the matter of pear-handling machinery. By use of the machines now in vogue pear and other cacti may be chopped into such small pieces that the spines are rendered innocuous by the abrasion. The two machines manufactured for this purpose and described later are both set so as to cut the pear into 1-inch to s-inch pieces. Owing to the succulent nature, the whole thing is practically macerated in the operation. It is the practice to set these machines up in the pastures convenient to pear and water. The pear is cut down, hauled to the machines in wagons or carts, chopped, reloaded, and hauled out again to be fed in troughs constructed for that purpose. A further discussion of this topic will necessarily occur in connec- tion with a description of the machines and their operation. OTHER CHOPPING DEVICES. Many feeders in Texas hire cheap labor to chop the prickly pear with machetes or spades. A small quantity of the pear is placed in a trough or a pile is built upon the ground. A machete or spade is then employed to slash it into small pieces, when it can be more read- ily eaten by the cattle. This is rather a poor way of feeding, for the spines are only imperfectly gotten rid of, and the cattle consequently get their mouths so full of them that after a time they are unable to eat at all. The practice does get rid of some of the spines, however, and stock are able to eat the pear much better when prepared in this way than in the natural state. REMOVAL OF THE EDGE OF THE JOINTS. All pastors (herders) carry machetes as a part of their equipment in all prickly-pear regions of Texas and Old Mexico. With this most useful Mexican instrument they very dextrously lop off the edge of the pear joint for the purpose of giving the sheep a chance to get into the thickets or bunches of pear to better advantage. As a usual thing the greatest number of spines occur on the edges of the joints, the more effectually protecting them. The pastors simply cut off an inch or two of this spiny portion and the animals are then able to METHODS OF FEEDING. 15 nibble at the cut surface without serious injury. This practice has probably done more toward the creation of impenetrable thickets than any other, for a large number of the pieces which are cut off strike | root and grow. HANDLING THE PLANTS. The species of cactus which is fed in southeastern Colorado is one of the so-called tree cacti. The spines are very numerous upon this species, rendering it difficult to handle, so an ordinary fork is used to collect and handle it over the fire. Some feeders employ an ax in cutting the tree down, but the majority of them use a fork for that purpose also. A comparatively small pressure of the fork against a large limb is sufficient either to break it off or cause it to split at the crotch, when it can be loaded directly on the wagon which is driven along for this purpose. The limbs break off very readily when they are frosty. If collected in cool, crisp mornings, therefore, chopping is not necessary, for a simple pressure of the fork will break off a large limb. An average load upon a hay frame will weigh 2,000 to 3,000 pounds. This the collector can gather and throw upon the wagon with no particular attention to the arrangement of the plants, as with Fig. 1.—A pear fork. aload of hay. The practice in vogue requires a great deal of handling. The plants are first loaded on the wagon, thrown off in heaps, forked over at least twice in the singeing, and then thrown out to the cattle to feed upon. This makes not less than four handlings. The feed is comparatively easy to handle, however, a large branch, such as is usually obtained, weighing as much or more than an average forkful of hay. In southern Texas the handling does not differ very materially from that described for southern Colorado, except in unimportant details. Here, on account of the peculiar influence of the Mexican labor employed, the methods are often very primitive. Instead of a fork, a sharpened or forked stick is often used in gathering and hauling the pear of this region. In feeding to the pear choppers a stick is invariably employed, on account of the danger to the knives of the machine when an iron fork is used. In some cases a specially constructed fork (fig. 1) is used by the freighters. This instrument has a handle much like an ordinary pitchfork; the tine, however, is single, short, stout, and sharply curved, with a stout buttress or projecting arm at the base to prevent the soft joints through which the instrument is thrust from sliding 16 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOOK. upon the handle when raised above the operator in the act of pitching upon the wagon. None of these was seen upon the ranges, but such forks were commonly used by the wood choppers and freighters. The vast majority of the Mexicans used a forked stick, and this is the only method of handling which was observed in old Mexico, where pear feeding is very extensively practiced. PEAR MACHINERY. So far as the writer is aware, all pear machines that have been invented—and there are four of them—have emanated from the country tributary to San Antonio, Tex. At present there are four machines in common use, two choppers and two torches, as described below. ORIGIN OF PEAR MACHINERY. Dr. W. S. Carruthers, a retired army surgeon, is said to have originated the idea of pear-cutting machinery. Doctor Carruthers submitted a sketch with notes to a foundryman at San Antonio, Tex., who put the idea into mechanical execution about 1886 or 1887. The first machine was constructed of wood. It consisted essentially of a vertically mounted revolving wheel, with an iron band shrunken upon it in much the same way as the tire of a wagon wheel. Knives for cutting the pear were fastened to the surface of this wheel. It was not essentially different in principle from the machines of more modern construction. Although many mechanical improvements on the original machine have been made, it is admitted that the honor of the invention belongs to Doctor Carruthers, who not only designed the original, but was the first to operate a pear-cutting machine. Mr. T. R. Keck, of Cotoula, Tex., who was associated with Doctor Carruthers during his experimentation with his first machine, reports that the first machine used was made by himself out of boards and two old hay knives. This machine was used one winter ona very small scale as an experiment in testing the efficiency of pear and cotton-seed meal for fattening cattle. The following winter about 5,000 head of ‘attle were fed upon cotton-seed meal and machine-cut pear. Mr. Keck reports that the first homemade machine was used in 1885, as nearly as he can remember. Since the invention of the pear choppers, some feeders have used some of the standard fodder cutters with moderate success. It is difficult to feed pear to these machines, however, for they are not run at a high enough rate of speed to get rid of the spines. They are not suitable for handling pear. PEAR MACHINERY. 17 PEAR CUTTERS. The machine shown in Plate II, figure 2, consists essentially of a solid cast-iron wheel, 4 feet in diameter, with two knives arranged at a narrow angle with the radius on one of its faces. Behind each knife, hollowed out of the face of the solid casting, there is a pocket extend- ing the length of the radius. The front. face of this wheel is plain, save for these pockets, which receive the chopped pear and carry it out of the machine. These are 14 inches deep, 22 inches long, and 9 inches wide. The back of the wheel is made irregular by the projec- tion of the knife pockets, radia! thickenings, and a perimeter 2 inches wide, for strengthening the casting. The knives are bolted on to the face of the wheel over the pockets, and are one-half inch in thickness, with a bevel toward the wheel. In revolving, the knives pass a shear plate which is adjustable and bolted into the frame. The wheel is supported vertically on a horizontal shaft running in boxes supported on a wooden frame. The wheel is operated by a pair of gears with a ratio of 55 to 1, the shaft of which is squared to receive the knuckle of the horsepower ground rod. The main shaft also has sprockets for the operation of the carrier chain. To it also may be attached a pulley for the adaptation of steam power. When the machine is set up, a short chute is bolted at an acute angle with the face of the vertical wheel, in such a position that it terminates in the same horizontal plane as the axis of the wheel. The pear is forked into the chute, fed against the face of the wheel with its revolving knives, and is cut and mashed into small pieces. The chopped mate- rial is carried down in the pockets and dropped into a carrier, operated upon the same principle as the common straw stacker, which carries the chop off into whatever receptacle is provided for it. This is usually the ordinary wagon box, for the chop is hauled directly from the machine to the feeding ground. The machine as operated by Mr. J. C. Glass, of Eagle Pass, Tex., has a few labor-saving devices attached to the regular construction as shipped from the factory. Upon the cutting side and opposite the horsepower a large platform about 34 feet high is constructed to reach up to and partially surround the wheel. This is large enough to hold one day’s feed of uncut pear, which is thrown on to it from wagons. From this platform the pear is fed into the chute, which is situated just above it. Under the elevated carrier is constructed a triangular box of about the same capacity as a double wagon box. On the lower end of this is a trap gate which can be sprung so as to allow the chop to slide into the wagon with no handling. The cost of the machine, together with the additional construction, is about $125. 16170—No. 74—05 2 vo 18 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. The machine has never been worked by Mr. Glass to its full capac- ity, but an estimate can be made of its efficiency from the operations during the drought of 1902. At that time an average of seven or eight men was employed, and they cut pear for 1,500 head of cattle. Ten men could be employed to better advantage, and it is estimated that this number could, with pear conveniently at hand, cut a full ration for 2,000 head of cattle. This means that the machine would be operated ten hours a day, and that four horses would be neces- sary to furnish the power. The machine is calculated to be run by two horses, but four operate it to much better advantage, especially if heavy, old pear is used and a large amount of material is to be cut. It was the practice here to run the machine only about six hours a day, the entire crew being employed in cutting and feeding and in gathering pear from the field. The cutting occupied the forenoon and a part of the afternoon, while the gathering required only a por- tion of the afternoon of each day. By employing men enough both to run the machine and gather the pear, thereby operating the machine ten hours a day, there is little doubt that ten men could feed 2,000 cattle a full ration. Seven men constitute the operating crew, and three can supply them with pear if the haul is not too great. _ The machine shown in Plate III, figures 1 and 2, is constructed throughout of iron. It has a 36-inch revolving wheel, in which three adjustable knives are set at a narrow angle with the radius of the wheel. Behind each knife are set cast-iron pieces, which, bolted upon the wheel, make a box 235 inches deep opening upon the periphery. The entire wheel is cased in, except the delivery opening, through which the chopped pear is thrown out of the machine. The knives cut against a shear plate, essentially as in the machine first mentioned, and a feed hopper or chute is built of boards, as described for that cutter. No carrier is used with this machine, for the centrifugal force of the revolving wheel throws the cut material 30 or 40 feet. A back stop 10 feet high is usually built to stop the chop, where it can be shoveled up handily. If the cutter is run with an engine and fed steadily,. the centrifugal force delivers the chop into a wagon, but with a horse power and unsteady feeding the motion is not uniform enough for this, and the chop must be shoveled into the wagon. The wheel makes about 225 revolutions a minute when operated by four strong animals. It is claimed that it will chop 20,000 pounds of pear an hour. Mr. T. A. Coleman, of Encinal, Tex., operates this cutter with an engine, and all of his hauling is done in the common Mexican ox cart. A cover is constructed of lumber to fit each cart. This is put im place and fastened down, when the cart is backed up to the machine in such 2 position that the chop is delivered into the rear end, which is left ar PEAR MACHINERY. 19 open, by the centrifugal farce of the revolving wheel. In this way the carts are not only ‘thoroughly but uniformly filled. ; While the pear is passing through the machine the spines become thoroughly broken up, and, being lighter than the pulpy material, are largely winnowed out when the chop passes out of the machine. Ranchers report that this is very noticeable when the machine is in operation, the stream of broken spines and lighter material being quite effectually separated a few feet from the machine. With this, as with the other machine, it is necessary to build a plat- form and a feed chute from which the pear is fed with sticks, as pre- viously described. The chute is in the form of a flat trough, set at an angle of 45 degrees from the face of the wheel, its base being coincident with the horizontal diameter. The pear to be chopped is in this way carried into the machine by its own weight for the most part, but, owing to its straggling method of growth, its passage into the Behance must be facilitated by the use of crude forks. The machine differs from that shown in Plate IT, figure 2, in being con- structed of iron throughout, in being smaller and more compact, in having the boxes behind the knives removable, and in utilizing the centrifugal force of the wheel in discharging the chop. Both machines are reported to be very efficient. There is but little about them to wear out, and they are reported to last indefinitely. PEAR BURNERS. Pear burners were first manufactured in 1898. As now used they are essentially a modification of the plumber’s torch. The two pear burners upon the market are very similar in construc- tion and are both efficient machines, according to the best evidence that it has been possible to obtain. ‘They consist essentially of a strong, well-riveted, metal tank, which in actual use is supported upon the ‘shoulders of the operator by a strap; a long delivery pipe, and a burner for generating and consuming gas from gasoline. The two machines differ only in minor mechanical contrivances and in the form of the burner. It has been found by experience that it is absolutely essential that the tank be strongly built in order to prevent accident. Several of the first burners used were too light in construction and caused seri- ous accidents. It is said that one or two men were killed by the explo- sion of the tanks and the burning of the gasoline. The distinguishing features of one of the pear burners on the market are the turning joints of the delivery pipe and the simple coiled-pipe burner, which is covered with a sheet-iron cylinder to prevent escape of heat, to give direction to the flame, and to protect the burner in windy weather. The other style of burner differs from the one just described mainly 20 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. in the burner, which is somewhat more complicated. The generated gas in this machine passes through a chamber filled with a bundle of fine brass wires before being ignited. It also has some safety arrange- ments for insuring the heating of the oil and consequent generation of gas, which are claimed to have merit. Both machines require gasoline for their operation, and are handled to best advantage with a good quality of oil and in weather free from wind. Practically no labor is necessary with the burners other than that of passing the blast flame from the torch over the surface of the joints momentarily. Indeed, it is not usually necessary to do this with over two-thirds of the plant, for there is commonly enough dead herbage at the base, and growing up through the pear plants, to assist in burn- ing off at least one-half of the spines. Besides, the spines are com- monly less numerous upon the old stems, and cattle experience but little difficulty in eating the remainder after the outer two to four joints have been freed of them. The process of singeing the joints with one of these machines is therefore not a laborious or expensive one. Indeed itis by far the cheapest method yet devised for utilizing the prickly pear. It has, however, one or two disadvantages which are discussed later. Cattle brought up in pear pastures do not have to be taught to eat pear. They take to the feed very naturally. After a day or two of feeding the sound of the pear burners, or the sight of smoke when pear is burned with brush, brings the whole herd to the spot immedi- ately, and they follow the operator closely all day long, grazing the pear to the ground—old woody stems and all—if the supply that the operator can furnish is short. PEAR FOR MILK PRODUCTION. It is universally recognized throughout the pear region of south- western Texas that the plant has a decided tendency to increase the flow of milk. In spite of the fact that the average ranch feeder claims that pear is of little or no value in the summer, there are hundreds of people who feed more or less definite quantities of this plant from one year’s end to another. It is always used as a supplementary ration. Pear alone has not been fed to a great extent, for it is recognized that it is properly a supplementary ration to a more concentrated feed. Mr. John Bowles, near Eagle Pass, has fed pear, with hay and bran, to a milch cow for the past three years and would not think of discon- tinuing the practice. Some dairymen in the small towns where pear is accessible feed it regularly, and nearly all of the Mexican families who keep a cow in town depend upon this as their mainstay. One example of very successful feeding, where somewhat definite data were obtainable, came under the observation of the writer and ea. ~ PEAR FOR MILK PRODUCTION. 21 might be cited here. Mr. Albert Ingle, of Eagle Pass, Tex., keeps one Jersey cow to supply milk and butter for family use. The cow has the run of the commons about town, but the pasturage is very short the greater part 01 the time. In addition to what she can pick up in this way she is fed 3 quarts of bran, 1 quart of cotton-seed meal, and all the singed and chopped pear she will eat. Mr. Ingle was feed- ing when his place was visited. The quantity chopped that morning, he stated, was an average one, and weighed 35 pounds, which amount was fed twice each day. The cow at the time was raising a calf and fur- nishing milk for the family, and was in good milking condition. This shows that the amount of pear fed was large. The ration each day was 6 quarts of bran, 2 quarts of cotton-seed meal, 70 pounds of chopped pear, and what the animal was able to pick up on very short range. This ration is kept up during the year, except when the mesquite beans are abundant, when no pear is fed. The experience of Mr. Alexander Sinclair appears to be exhaustive and intelligent. He does not claim for pear any great feeding value, but he uses it entirely, he says, for the succulence. So faras feed is con- cerned, even roughage of some other kind could be fed cheaper, but as a succulence for milk production there is but little that can be secured during the winter. Attempting, as he does, to maintain an equal milk and butter production during the entire year, green feed is essential for winter use. This is furnished by the prickly pear, which is fed ° during that portion of the year when there is no green feed. During a portion of the summer, succulence is secured from the native grasses. When these dry up green sorghum is fed, and during the remainder of the year prickly pear. In spite of the fact that the range feeders taboo the pear after it begins to grow, Mr. Sinclair has fed it well into May with good results. The ration of a cow during the winter is about as follows: Cotton- seed meal, 3 pounds; brewers’ grains, 9 pounds; pear, 100 pounds. Besides the above, the cows have the run of brushy pastures and are able to pick up much in the form of dry grass and browse. The quantity of pear fed is only an estimate, but is thought to be very close to the amount which an average cow gets. Even with this apparently large amount of pear the animals never get all they want of it. With this feeding the milk production is greater in the winter than in the summer when the cattle are on good grass. This, however, is not considered to be due to any peculiar advantage of the pear over the native grass, but rather to the unfavorable temperature and the annoy- ance of insect pests in summer. Originally it was the custom to chop the pear with a pear cutter, but during the past winter it was hauled a distance of six miles, unloaded in long rows in the feeding lots, and singed with a pear burner, 22 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. Mr. Thomas Duggar, of Hoehne, Colo., has fed the common tree cactus of that region to milk cows with good suecess. The informa- tion secured from Mr. Duggar, while not so definite as that which one is able to obtain from the dairymen around San Antonio, Tex., where the feeding is better established and not so much of an experiment, nevertheless indicates that the cane cactus of this region is probably as good feed for milk production as prickly pear. Cactus, singed with brush, has been fed with a good quality of hay for two or three winters with what is considered good results. Doubtless some con- centrated feed stuff, such as cotton-seed products, or corn chop, would add very materially to the quality of the ration for milk production. SOME DAIRY RATIONS INCLUDING PEAR. The practice of feeding dairy cows upon a partial ration of pear is very common—indeed, general—in the entire region of the lower Rio Grande, and as far north as San Antonio, Tex. The necessity for feed- ing this plant depends upon the condition of the seasons. When the winter rains are abundant and green feed is plentiful no pear to speak of is fed; but during a dry winter it is resorted to as the most economi- cal method of supplying the succulence so essential to the maintenance of a good flow of milk. The amount fed depends largely upon the quan- tity of pear available and the labor at hand for handling it. In some cases which have come under the writer’s direct observation the pear has been hauled six miles to feed to dairy cattle, and it is as much prized by many dairymen as any other part of their feedstuffs. Mr. J. W. Statcher feeds 100 dairy cows regularly for three or four months during the winter. The feeding begins when the leaves fall off the brush in the autumn, and continues until they appear again in the spring. The ration for a cow is about as follows: Cotton-seed meal, 2 pounds; cotton-seed hulls, 8 pounds; bran of wheat or rice, 1 gallon; singed pear, 40 pounds; the run of brush pasture. Mr. J. G. Hagenson’s practice does not differ materially from that of Mr. Statcher. Having no pear, however, he buys it at 25 cents per load, a load consisting of about 2,000 pounds. His cattle get a ration approximately as follows: Bran, 9 pounds; cotton-seed hulls, 10 pounds; singed pear, 30 to 40 pounds; the run of dry-brush pasture. In order to secure a better idea of the practices in vogue in feeding pear in the vicinity of San Antonio than time for personal inquiry would warrant, a circular letter was addressed to several dairymen. The following questions and answers in connection with the above dis- cussion give a good idea of the practices which obtain and the estimate placed upon the prickly pear of the region as a succulence for milk production. Answers to the questions proposed were furnished by a a SOME DAIRY RATIONS INCLUDING PEAR. 23 several dairymen. The following are considered typical, and sre reproduced here practically in full: (1) Do you feed prickly pear to your dairy herd? How many years has this practice been followed? Answers.—(a) During the winter months only. (4) I do in winter; five years. (ec) Yes; for fourteen years. (d) Yes; have fed off and on for a number of years. (e) Yes; during the winter time; for about twelve years. (jf) I have fed prickly pear to my dairy cows for nine years. (2) How long did you feed during the past winter? Answers.—(a) About fourteen weeks. (b) All winter. (c) All winter. (d) Did not feed pear last winter, because other feeds were very cheap. (¢) Noneatall. (/) Did not feed during the past winter, on account of having moved to a place where it was inconvenient to get it. (3) How do you prepare prickly pear for feeding? Answers.—(a) Make brush fire and burn thorns off. () I use a pear burner. (c) Singe the thorns off and cutit up. (d) I run the pear through a pear cutter and mix with cotton-seed meal and hulls. (e) Burn the thorns off; then chop in small pieces. (f/f) I first burn off the thorns with a dry brush fire, and then eut into small pieces with a large carving knife. (4) How much pear do you feed a cow each day? If you do not know the exact number of pounds, estimate it as closely as possible. How many loads per day do you feed to how many cows? Answers.—(a) I feed about two-thirds of a common water bucket full to each cow in the morning. (+) I give the cows as much as they can eat onceaday. (c¢) About 10 or 15 pounds per cow. (d) I feed 13 bushels to a cow each day. (e) One load of about 3,000 pounds lasts 16 cows about three days. (/) I give each cow about 6 gallons of pear cut up into pieces about 23 inches square. (5) What other feeds do you give the cows with pear? How much of each kind of feed per cow? : Answers.—(a) I feed cotton-seed meal and bran. (/) Bran and cotton-seed meal. (c) One quart of cotton-seed meal, 1 peck of cotton-seed hulls, and all the cane they want. (d) One quart of cotton seed, 1 quart of cotton-seed meal, and 20 pounds of hulls per day. (e) One and one-half quarts of cotton-seed meal, 8 quarts of wheat bran, 20 pounds of cotton-seed hulls. (jf) I give my cows 10 pounds per day of a mixture of cotton seed and wheat bran, in addition to the 6 gallons of prickly pear. (6) Do your cows have the run of any pasture while you feed pear? Answers.—(a) Yes. (b) Yes. (c) Yes. (d) No. (e) Very little. (/) Yes. (7) Do you consider that pear influences the flavor, odor, or quality of the milk in any way? Answers.—(a) It does if fed more than two-thirds of a common water bucket full to each cow in the morning, or in any other way. Feeding at night affects the odor of the milk slightly and gives butter a palecolor. (b) It increases the quantity of milk 40 per cent. (c) It does not affect the flavor or color, but it may reduce the weight or richness of it. It increases the quantity. (d) No; Ido not think it influences the flavor, odor, or quality of the milk at all when fed as I have mentioned. (¢) When too much pear is fed, and not enough solid feed, the milk has a peculiar odor, is very poor in quality, and blue in color. (/) Prickly pear does not injure the flavor of the milk. It increases the flow. Cattle are very fond of it. (8) Do you have pear in your pastures, or do you buy it? If you buy, how much do you pay per load? 24 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR STOCK. Answers.—(a) Ihave itin my pastures. (hb) I have pearin my pastures. (c) Yes. (d) I buy it at 25 cents per load and haul it myself. (e) I buy my pear. It costs me 25 cents per load of 3,000 pounds. I haul it myself. (f) I have pear in my pastures. (9) What is your estimate of the value of pear for milk production? Answers.—(a) I consider pear very valuable as a feed, and it is a good milk pro- ducer. It is very healthful to be fed with cotton-seed meal, ete. () [No answer. ] (c) It is far ahead of any kind of hay or forage, and mixed with meal or bran nothing can beat it. (d) Is a good milk and butter producer. (e) A very good feed when you have no roughage. (f/f) It does not pay to buy pear unless hay is scarce and dear. When sorghum hay is only $7.50 per ton, as it is now, hay is cheaper than pear at 25 cents per load when you have to haul and burn it. (10) After a crop of pear has been cut, how many years will it take for another crop to grow on the same land? Answers.—(a) About two; but this will depend a good deal on the season. Pear burners are discarded by some, for the reason that they destroy the plant. (6b) The pear begins to grow the following year. (c) Three years. (d) It takes from three to five years to make good-sized pear. (¢) I donot know, but think about two years. (f) About two years. It is very difficult to formulate a definite opinion regarding the effect of pear upon the quality of milk. There appears, however, to be avery well-established opinion that it produces blue milk if not fed with concentrated feeds. There seems to be a great diversity of opin- ion regarding the flavor of milk from pear-fed cows. Many maintain stoutly that it produces a slightly bitter taste, which is less noticeable when a good ration of corn or cotton-seed meal is added, while others defy tests that will detect in any way pear milk from any other except by its poorer quality in cases where the amount of pear fed is large and the entire ration is of low nutritive value. Personally the writer has been unable to verify any of these opinions. PEAR FOR FATTENING AND MAINTAINING CATTLE. Since the early days when teaming was much more extensively prac- ticed than at the present time, the bulk of the pear feeding in southern Texas has been done either to maintain stock or to prepare them for the market. While feeding cactus to dairy cows and work oxen is common all over the pear region, the amount fed for these purposes is insignificant compared with that used for maintenance and fattening. By far the greatest amount is fed as an emergency ration, to keep cat- tle alive during a severe and prolonged drought. For this purpose its value can not well be overestimated, for, as has been aptly said by many ranchers consulted during the past year, pear often means the difference between live and dead cattle. A drought of from four to seven months, as sometimes occurs, in a country which has no sod to speak of and where a large portion of the grazing is furnished by —— se sS”hCUCt*~t‘“—S PEAR FOR MAINTAINING CATTLE. 25 annual plants of short duration, is fraught with serious consequences to the stock industry. A rancher works faithfully a fourth of his life- time to get his herd up to the desired standard of numbers and quality when a drought strikes him and he is obliged to sacrifice possibly his entire herd. He naturally waits for the weather to change from week to week, until his animals get into such a condition that he dares not move them, and they are then in too low a condition physically to be disposed of at anything like what they are worth, to say nothing about what they have cost him. In such a plight he loses everything, or sells out at a figure which practically means an entire loss, when it is almost certain that if he could keep his animals alive for a month or two there would be feed again and he would be out of danger. It is this uncertainty of the seasons which has often made the grazing of native pasture both hazardous and expensive in the Southwest. The rancher with small means is often caught with his cattle so poor that ’ he ean not think of moving them to better pastures, even if he has the means and can find the feed. He waits day after day, hoping for rains which do not come, until his stock begins to die from starvation. Then it is too late to remove them to new pastures, for experience teaches that working or driving starving animals is invariably pro- ductive of tremendous losses. It is in an emergency of this kind that the prickly pear and other forms of cactus become a boon to the rancher. It is owing to the existence of the prickly pear that the success of the rancher in south- ern Texas is largely due. ahhom POPULAR POSTULATES OF CACTUS FEEDING. 45 nopals (joints) are of more value than when a maintenance, or fatten- ing, ration is desired. Pear has been fed in Texas since the early Spanish occupation. Pear is better feed from the time that frost strikes it in the fall until it begins to grow in the spring than in other seasons. Cattle and working oxen will eat a large ration of pear, properly prepared, when there is an abundance of the best of green grass for them to eat. Pear has a decided value in toning up the system of cattle that have lived on dry grass for several months. Two-year olds especially are benefited by a partial ration of it for a short time. All cattle, sheep, and goats soon become accustomed to eating pear. The sound of the pear machine or the sight of smoke in the pastures where stock are fed attracts the entire herd immediately. The different species and varieties of pear, while of value, differ in their feeding qualities. The development of pear feeding will increase the utility of concen- trated feed stuffs, such as cotton-seed products. The greatest promise for pear is in the line of milk production. The value of the succulence for the winter months will probably pay for the propagation of small acreages for this purpose. Burning with a pear burner tends to kill out the pear if close pas- turing is practiced afterwards. It is a mistake to harvest pear too closely unless it is desired to thin it out. Pear makes sufficient growth in average seasons so that it may be harvested every five years. When fed a full roughage ration of pear, cattle scour more or less all of the time. There are four machines on the market for preparing pear for the use of stock—two burners and two choppers. One man with a pear burner can feed 400 cattle in a brush pasture. The gasoline consumed will range from 6 to LO gallons per day. Ten men with a pear chopper can feed from 1,500 to 2,000 cattle under the same conditions. . Inquiry at hide establishments and stock markets fails to reveal any serious injury done by the spines to commercial cattle products, although the spines work into the flesh considerably. Cattle fed on pear chopped with a machete, and not burned, often get their mouths so full of spines after a time that they are unable to eat at all. The crushing action of the chopping machine renders the spines innocuous. Chopped pear sours very quickly, and must, therefore, be fed very soon after being chopped. 46 THE PRICKLY PEAR AS FOOD FOR’ STOCK. Pear cut and piled up moderately will keep in good condition for a month or more, if not left in the sun. There is no object in preparing ensilage from pear, even if it can be successfully done. The pear has a large number of enemies, consisting mainly of insects and fungi. Rats and rabbits are also injurious in some seasons. The pear has two characteristics which render it especially valuable for pastures: (1) It can withstand long periods of drought without injury. It has limitations, however, in drought resistance. It has been severely injured during some droughts within the memory of the present generation. (2) It is protected by spines, so that it can not be materially injured by overgrazing without artificial preparation. A thornless pear, in a pasture grazed the entire year, would soon be exterminated. Pear is not particularly difficult to keep in subjection, nor is it spreading of its own accord to any alarming extent. However, to prepare a pear thicket for cultivation is expensive, for all of the pear must be hauled out of the field. It can not be burned like brush. There are many areas in extreme southwestern Texas where pear is so thick as to interfere with the growth of grass. The feeding here should be done with the view of thinning the pear rather than destroying it. The destruction of the pear in southwestern Texas would be a severe calamity to the stock industry. The practice of preparing pear with a machete by cutting off the edges of the joints tends to form pear thickets, which is often dis- advantageous. In practice, pear is very seldom fed alone. Even during the severest drought cattle are able to pick up some old grass and geta little browse from the abundance of brush that exists throughout the pear region. It is seldom that the Texas rancher feeds it without some cotton-seed meal, although the cactus of southwestern Colorado has usually been fed alone. Cacti have many uses besides that of forage. Prickly pear, including several species in southwestern Texas, the cane cactus of southeastern Colorado and New Mexico, and the cholla and related species in one or two localities in Arizona, are the only species of cactus that have been fed to any extent in this country. 47 DESCRIPTION OF PLATES. Piate I. Frontispiece. Old and new ways of singeing cacti. Fig. 1.—The cane cactus of southeastern Colorado, singed with brush. April, 1904. Fig. 2.—The prickly pear of Texas, singed with a torch. This is a typical illustration of the method largely employed throughout southern Texas of destroying the evil effect of the spines by singeing with a blast flame from a gasoline torch especially pre- pared for this purpose. Sinclair ranch, near San Antonio, Tex., May, 1904. Puate II. The prickly pear and a pear machine. Fig. 1.—One of the common prickly pears of Texas in full fruit. This plant is bearing rather abnormally this year. Glass ranch, near Eagle Pass, Tex., May, 1904. Fig. 2.—A type of pear cutter as set up and operated by Mr. J. C. Glass two years ago. Machine as seen from the horsepower platform. May, 1904. Puiare III. Another type of pear cutter. Fig. 1.—Front view, showing knives, together with a sheet-iron shield which acts as a back stop for the pear, which is fed against the face of the revolving wheel. June, 1904. Fig. 2.—Rear view, with casing removed, showing the boxes behind the knives into which the chopped pear passes and is carried out of the machine. The delivery opening of one of these is shown on the left. June, 1904. Pirate IV. Fig. 1.—Nopal de Castilla, cultivated in southern California. Such a scene as this is common in the vicinity of the old missions and larger haciendas throughout northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. This planta- tion is doubtless upward of 30 years of age, and some of the plants are 20 to 25 feet high. Fig. 2.—A pear thicket on the Glass ranch, Eagle Pass, Tex. This is typical of large areas in this part of Texas. May, 1904. Piate V. The Tapuna pear. Fig. 1.—A single plant of the Tapuna pear near Alonzo, Mexico. The fruits of this species are highly prized as an article of diet, and are about the first that appear in the markets of San Luis Potosi. The spines are not numerous and the joints are very thick and succulent. Alonzo, Mexico, June, 1904. Fig. 2.—Fruit of the Tapuna pear in one of the market places at San Luis Potosi, Mexico. June, 1904. 48 _O Bul. 74, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE Il. Fic. 1.—ONE OF THE COMMON PRICKLY PEARS OF TEXAS IN FULL FRUIT. Fig. 2.—A TyP£ OF PEAR CuTTER, AS SET UP AND OPERATED By J. C. GLASS. THE PRICKLY PEAR AND A PEAR MACHINE. 7 "7 iy ~~ ere ree re . a ad oa TT COE ed SY ¢ : E ; 1 5 ) ; } i ‘ ‘ * 7 : 4 r — . ; j = aia? oP ~~ - j : ee , —T . _ wi r / Wiel; d is ad a q ‘ . ms - y BRT > ‘ . _ a © . : H : 7 4 7 " ie a * = : ; ‘i 7 ‘ | ; y ed ' . ‘4 ; =n y a Pe | a o +¢ Je _ pee ~ 3 . en oT 2 ? ‘ - = niet e : : es a = me i. « " . ithe a 7 r ‘ a” ° - j * ee ee er n 'r ts ; rhe : Pi J ‘ ; 7 mS a a Thx ‘ i. ? ay. a - A hes > jhe ae § } : et oie Wee » “ mm = ‘ be iw Z i ‘ PLATE III. Bul. 74, Bureau of Piant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. Fic. 1.—FRONT View, SHOWING KNIVES. ANOTHER TYPE OF Fic. 2.—REAR VIEW, WITH CASING REMOVED, SHOWING BOXES BEHIND THE KNIVES. PEAR CUTTER. Bul. 74, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE IV Fic. 1.—NOPAL DE CASTILLA, CULTIVATED IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIG. 2.—A PEAR THICKET ON THE GLASS RANCH, EAGLE PASS, TEX. PRICKLY PEARS IN CALIFORNIA AND TEXAS. Bul. 74, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE V. Fic. 1.—A SINGLE PLANT OF TAPUNA PEAR, NEAR ALONZO, MEXICO. Fic. 2.—FRUIT OF THE TAPUNA PEAR IN ONE OF THE MARKET PLACES AT SAN LUIS Potosi, Mexico. THE TAPUNA PEAR. ‘ : + aA ‘ . oy. . ’ { Pa . m ig vi , Ny 7. - 258. 4 wy . \ oor. ace * LJ Bul. 75, Bureau of Plant Indusiry, U. S. Dept. of Agricu!ture. PLATE |. Fia. 2.—SAME PLOT SHOWN IN FIGURE 1, TWO YEARS LATER. RANGE IMPROVEMENT BY RESEEDING. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY—BULLETIN NO, 75. B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON, BY ra COTTON. ASSISTANT IN RANGE INVESTIGATIONS, IN CooPERATION WITH THE WASHINGTON STATE EXPERIMENT STATION. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS Issuep May 23, 1905. WASHINGTON : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1905. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. IT. GALLOWAY, Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. ALBERT EF. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in Absence of Chief. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK V. Covi~_LE, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. Spr~ryMAN, Agrostologist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. G. B. Brackertr, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A. J. Prerers, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. Corsetr, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND GROUNDS. BE. M. Byrnes, Superintendent. J. EB. RocKWELL, Editor. JAMES E. JONES, Chief Clerk. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS: SCIENTIFIC STAFF. W. J. SprLuMAN, Agrostologist. A. S. Hircucock, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Alfalfa and Clover In- vestigations. C. V. Preer, Systematic Agrostologist in Charge of Herbariwn. Davip GrirrirHs, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Range Investigations. Cc. R. Baty, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Work on Arlington Farm. S. M. Tracy, Special Agent in Charge of Gulf Coast Investigations. D. A. Broprr, Assistant Agrostologist in Charge of Cooperative Work. P. L. Ricker, Assistant in Herbarium. J. M. WesTGATE, Assistant in Sand-Binding Work. Byron Hunter, Assistant in Charge of Pacific Coast Investigations. R. A. OAKLEY, Assistant in Domestication of Wild Grasses. C. W. Warsurton, Assistant in Fodder Plant and Millet Investigations. M. A. Crospy, Assistant in Southern Forage Plant Investigations. J. S. Corron. Assistant in Range Investigations. LEsuiz F. Pauty, Assistant in Investigations at Arlington Farm. Haroutp T. NIELSEN, Assistant in Alfalfa and Clover Investigations. AGNES CHASE, Agrostological Artist. 2 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. U. S. DeparTMENT oF AGRICULTURE, Bureau or Prant Inpustry, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, Washington, D. C., February 24, 1905. Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith the manuscript of a paper on Range Management in the State of Washington, which em- bodies a report upon investigations conducted in cooperation with the Washington State Experiment Station. This paper is a valuable contribution to our knowledge of improve- ment of range lands, and I respectfully recommend that it be issued as Bulletin No. 75 of the Bureau series. The accompanying illustrations are necessary to a complete under- standing of the text. Respectfully, B. T. Gattoway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. James WItson,. Secretary of Agriculture. PREPACE. In the spring of 1901 cooperative arrangements were entered into between the United States Department of Agriculture and the Agri- cultural Experiment Station of the State of Washington for the conduct of investigations on range lands in that State. These inves- tigations were inaugurated by the writer, who at that time was agri- culturist of the Washington State Experiment Station, acting both for the station and for the Department of Agriculture, under the direction of the then Agrostologist, and the details of the work planned were carried out by Mr. J. S. Cotton, under the direction of the writer. This cooperative arrangement continued until the end of December, 1903. Since June 1, 1904, the work has been continued by the United States Department of Agriculture under the direction of the writer, the details ef the work being again carried out by Mr. Cotton. In 1901 experiments were undertaken on Rattlesnake Mountain, .at a point 16 miles north of Prosser, Wash., with a view to determin- ing what grasses could be established on the range by seeding by different methods. In October, 1902, similar experiments were inaugurated at the Wenatchee Mountain Station on the high range of mountains separating the Kittitas Valley from the Columbia Valley to the north. In addition to the seeding experiments above mentioned, Mr. Cot- ton has spent much time in studying the methods used for managing stock upon the range throughout central Washington, and the accom- panying bulletin gives the results of the seeding experiments and of Mr. Cotton’s studies on range management. Some of the work has demonstrated that certain grasses can be established in favorable localities in a manner which is entirely practicable, while Mr. Cotton’s conclusions regarding methods of range management can not fail to be of great interest to stockmen in that section. W. J. SPILLMAN, : Agqrostologist. Orrice oF Grass AND ForaGe PLAnt INVESTIGATIONS, Washington, D. C., February 24, 1905. 0 Introduction ----. ..-- Range improvements Winter pastures - Semiarid lands__- CONTENTS. WME AAINO ALCAS < 5.02 5 22 Pe ee Skee laces Protection of pastures PREM MIMMIMOeTIASUUTCS e299) 200 6 2 Se 2 2s ee ate Using pastures before Improvement of stock ground is settled in the spring____--_._--------- ss fn eeaeses and forace plants _-......-....--22.-----.--.-- U oe Se Description of plates - Peis ok ele NS: -age. PLATE I. Range improvement by reseeding. Fig. 1.—Mountain meadow i where timothy was seeded in the autumn of 1902. Fig. 2.—Same plot shown in figure 1 two years later, showing stand of timothy SReE LL eM ee ee oe Frontispiece. Il. Types of permanent range land not adapted to othcr uses. Fig. 1.—Typical scab land. Fig. 2.—A mountain meadow-_-____-_- 28 Ill. Bunch wheat-grass pastures. Fig. 1.—-Pasture that has been overgrazed until nothing but June grass is left. Fig. 2.—A bunch wheat-grass pasture that has been properly handled ___. 28 22586—No. 75—05 mM——2 9 B. P. I.—153. G. F. P. I.—110. RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. INTRODUCTION. Owing to the greatly lowered carrying capacity of ranges in the State of Washington, investigations were begun in the spring of 1901 to determine, if possible, what steps must be taken to preserve these ranges and what methods should be used to bring the badly aver- grazed areas back to their original state of productivity. These investigations were carried on cooperatively between the Bureau of Plant Industry of the United States Department of Agriculture and the Washington Agricultural Experiment Station from that time until January 1, 1904, when the experiment station withdrew. Since that time these investigations have been carried on independently by the Bureau of Plant Industry. In the early nineties the ranges were very much overgrazed, and owing to the overcrowded conditions were deteriorating very rapidly. In 1896 the Northern Pacific Railway Company, in order to alleviate these conditions, which by that time had become very serious, insti- tuted a system of leasing the railroad land, or odd sections, of the grazing areas to the stockmen. The motive in leasing this land was to prevent the destruction of the native forage plants of the grazing areas, which meant the removal of the stockmen from that region and a consequent loss of traffic to the railway company. The first lease of this kind was issued on July 1, 1896. Between that date and June 13, 1903, over 300 leases, embracing about 1,500,000 acres of land, were issued, and at the present time the greater part of these ranges is under the control of private individuals. While this system was bitterly opposed by some of the stockmen, it really proved to be of great benefit to the State at large, as it enabled those people who had homes in the grazing country to secure control of the railroad lands about them by means of a lease, and thus protect themselves from the ravages of nomadic stock. The more progressive stockmen immediately availed themselves of this oppor- tunity. The nomadic stockmen—to protect themselves from each other and to prevent being forced out of the country—also leased grazing lands sufficient for their needs. Had it not been for the large 11 12 RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. numbers of range horses that were allowed to run at will throughout the entire year, and thus continue their depredations, this system would undoubtedly have proved very satisfactory. Shortly after this leasing system had been inaugurated a heavy immigration to central Washington took place. This immigration, together with the discovery which had been made shortly before, that large areas of land previously supposed to be of value for grazing purposes only would grow wheat, caused a rapid settling up of this region. As a result, large areas of bunch-grass land were home- steaded and purchased, until at the present time nearly all the land that is smooth enough for cultivation is used in growing wheat, or is being prepared for that purpose. This rapid settling up of the bunch-grass land has forced the stockmen into the coulée and hill lands, too rough for cultivation, and into the true arid regions and the mountains. In the arid regions the range is also gradually growing less, a condition which will continue, as irrigation, owing to the incentive given it by Federal legislation, will be vastly extended in the near future. The progressive stockmen, in order to keep pace with the rapid development of the country for farming purposes, which has resulted in the crowding of their stock into much smaller confines, have pur- chased railroad lands, and wherever possible they have also leased the State lands that are unfit for cultivation and have fenced them for grazing purposes. Many of the original purchasers of the range lands are now in a prosperous condition. Others, who have acquired their lands within the past two or three years, are finding themselves seriously handicapped owing to the badly depleted condition of these ranges. Although they have much more to contend with than those who purchased before the depletion of the ranges was so great they will with persistent effort and judicious management eventually be successful. Those who have been too slow to realize the changed conditions have found themselves without range land, and for the most part these men have been compelled to go out of stock raising as a business. At the present time there is very little free range land except in the high mountain areas, where the grazing season does not last more than five months, and in the Okanogan country. In the Okanogan country, owing to the present laws, it is impos- sible to secure tracts of land larger than 160 acres. Upon so small an area no one can make a living, and settlers are therefore dependent in part upon the outside range. Fortunately for them the natural conditions have in the past protected the country from being made a wilderness by overgrazing. The winters are long and the snowfall is quite heavy, thus necessitating winter feeding. For this reason the range horses, which have been a very great factor in the destrue- tion of the ranges to the south, are not found to any great extent in RANGE IMPROVEMENTS. 138 this region. The strong opposition of the cattlemen, together with the long feeding season, has also prevented sheep from gaining an entrance to any appreciable extent. Again, the cattlemen them- selves have been limited in the number of cattle they could run on a range by the quantity of hay for winter feeding they could raise on their irrigated ranches in the river and creek valleys. The Okanogan ranges will last for a number of years, but as the country is gradually settled up these grazing lands will eventually suffer the same fate as all other grazing lands in the State, unless some system can.be devised for their protection. The area of free range in the mountains is also rapidly decreasing. The creation of two large forest reserves in the Cascades—the Wash- ington Forest Reserve in the northern part and the Mount Rainier Forest Reserve in the southern part—has greatly reduced the free mountain range. While, of course, stock is not entirely prohibited from these areas, the number allowed on them is far less than was accustomed to graze there before the reserves were created. This restriction has naturally resulted in a very crowded condition of the stock in the summer pastures outside of the reserves, and at the rate at which the grass was being taken a couple of years ago it looked as though these areas would soon be as badly devastated as the lower ‘range lands. However, within the last three years the timber com- panies have been buying up large tracts, part of which they are leasing to cattlemen for five-year periods, while no stock is allowed on the remainder. At the same time, in the more accessible areas, where the grazing season is long enough to make it profitable to do so, the stockmen have been purchasing large tracts of this summer range. These purchases on the part of the timbermen and the stockmen living in the near vicinity have resulted in almost entirely shutting out nomadic stock from their summer range. RANGE IMPROVEMENTS. The purchasing of the range lands of the State is greatly simplify- ing the problem of range improvement. The instant that the stock- man has fenced his land he is in a position to protect it from all outside interference, and can control the number of stock allowed on it. Instead of following the old system of grabbing all that he can before some one else gets it, he will trv to use his grazing land so that it will yield him the highest results from year to year. WINTER PASTURES. Tn the true arid region, where sagebrush (.lrtemisia tridentata) 1s the prevailing vegetation, fencing and protecting the land from over- grazing during that season of the year when the native forage plants 14. RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. are going to seed will in all probability be the only satisfactory method of restoration. This will not be at all difficult, for, owing to ihe scarcity of water and to the too great heat, the cattle and sheep are taken to the higher altitudes during the summer months. In this way the native vegetation will have a chance to make a good growth and go to seed each season without interference from the stock. Through this method the pasture will not only yield a crop of seed on which future improvements will be based, but the plants which have been grazed to a point very near that of extermination will be given a chance to regain their former vigor. At the present time nearly “alt the perennial grasses have peor destroyed. There are, however, enough of these remaining (having been protected by growing in clumps of sagebrush where stock could not reach them) to furnish a crop of seed, if given a chance, although this crop may be very light for the first year or two. In addition to these there are numerous annual grasses and weeds that make excel- lent feed which, if given an opportunity, will in time become quite abundant. There are also numerous perennial shrubs, such as white sage (Hurotia lanata), bitter brush (Purshia tridentata), hop sage (Grayia spinosa), and greasewood (Sarcobatus vermiculatus)—each having its characteristic locality—which yield a considerable amount of browse, and which will furnish seed for new plants. The only time of year when special care will need to be exercised in the grazing of these pastures will be in the spring months, when the young plants begin to grow. If the land be too heavily grazed at that period the young plants will be entirely killed out. This trouble can, however, be easily remedied by dividing the grazing area into two or three pastures, and by grazing off that portion of the land which is to be allowed to restore itself during the winter and exclud- ing the stock during the time the young plants are getting a start. The next year another field can be given a like chance, and so on, alternately. In this manner it would be only a few years—-probably not more than seven or eight—before the so-called desert areas would be restored to their original carrying capacity before overgrazing took place. Meantime the stockman would have full use of his land, and would be able gradually to increase the number of stock grazing on it, provided he judiciously confined the aggregate of his stock to the limit of the carrying capacity of his range. As an example of this, the writer has on several occasions observed with interest an area a few miles west of Sunnyside. In the early part of 1900 this land belonged to the open range. It was fenced during that season, and has since that time been used to some extent asa pasture. While this field has not been handled in an ideal man- ner, nevertheless the native perennial grasses, such as sand-grass or needle grass (Stipa comata), Indian millet (4riocoma cuspidata) , and SEMIARID LANDS. 15 woolly wheat-grass (Agropyron subvillosum), have become consider- ably more abundant each season. By the season of 1904 these grasses had become'so abundant that it seems fair to conclude that if given an opportunity they will in the course of another three or four years make a very good stand. Another very strong proof of what can be done in the semiarid region is shown in that part of the open-range lands lying above the Washington Irrigation Company’s canal, directly north of Prosser. Although fully as many sheep as ever graze on this land during the winter season, the range is actually improving. This is due to the fact that the range horses have become much less numerous, having been sold to settlers or shipped out of the State. In this way the vegetation has been given an opportunity to reseed itself, and it has also had a chance to make some growth during the summer while the sheep and cattle were in the mountains. In the sandy, sagebrush area lying some 15 to 25 miles south of the Great Northern Railway, in Douglass County—commonly known as “the desert *—there are several thousand acres of range land where there is still excellent feed. This consists mainly of needle grass (Stipa comata), Indian millet (Lriocoma cuspidata), and sunflowers (Balsamorrhiza careyana), while bitter brush (Purshia_ triden- tata) and various species of Eriogonum and Phlox furnish a large quantity of browse. The reason the vegetation in this area remains good while that about it has been very nearly destroyed is due to the great scarcity of water, which renders it almost inaccessible to stock during the hot weather. At the present time horses are the only kind of stock that can graze in this region during the summer months, and even they can only penetrate some 10 or 12 miles at the most, being compelled to go to water every day or two. By reason of this the vegetation has a chance to reach its full growth and to go to seed during the summer season. During the winter months, when stock can go for several days at a time without water, this vegetation is all eaten off, but this comes at a time of year when comparatively little damage is done. SEMTARID LANDS. The semiarid or true bunch-grass lands can also by judicious man- agement on the part of the owners be brought back to their original state of productiveness. The best method for improving these areas will'be to fence them and protect them from all nomadic stock, and give the native grasses a chance to restore themselves. The two most important of the native grasses are bunch wheat- grass (Agropyron spicatum), which grows on the hillsides and plateau lands, and giant rye-grass (Z7lymus condensatus), which grows on the bottom lands and on the more or less alkaline situations. 16 RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. At the present time there are large areas (see Pl. III, fig. 1) where all of the native grasses, except June grass (Poa sandbergii), have been destroyed. The latter—owing to the fact that it is not relished by stock after it begins to head out—is still quite abundant and fur- nishes a large amount of spring grazing. Wherever these plants are destroyed sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata) and rabbit brush or “vellow sagebrush” (Chrysothamnus nauseosus, C. viscidifiorus), and other weeds that are not relished by stock have taken their places. There is considerable difference of opinion among the stockmen as to whether or not the native grasses, especially bunch-grass, will restore themselves if given an opportunity. Some claim that these grasses will come back if given a chance, while others maintain the contrary opinion. Both are in a measure correct. The truth of this matter depends largely upon how long these grasses have been too closely grazed. If they have been kept grazed down to a point where they have had no opportunity to go to seed for a number of years, and until the roots, unable to withstand the strain put upon them, have died out, they will, of course, not come back. If, on the other hand, as is for the most part true, the roots have not been absolutely killed out or there is still some seed left in the ground, these grasses will eventually restore themselves, although this process may be extremely slow. During the seasons of 1901, 1902, and 1903 experiments were car- ried on in the Rattlesnake Mountains, where the annual precipitation is approximately 13 inches, to determine what grasses and forage plants would be of value for use in the restoration of the range. These experiments proved that bunch-grass could be successfully grown on cultivated ground. They also showed that alfalfa could be profitably raised in that locality and that hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) might prove of value in range improvement. In this work no forage plant was found that would give any better yield than the bunch wheat-grass or the other native grasses. Even if such a plant could be found it is doubtful whether it would stand the actual hard- ship that the bunch wheat-grass or giant rye-grass will endure, or would have the high feeding value of the two plants mentioned. Where the range is in a very bad state of depletion, and where the native grasses have been nearly exterminated, it. is belheved that the process of restoration can be greatly hastened by gathering seed of bunch-grass and scattering it in those areas where it formerly grew. While experiments to prove this point have not been carried out, it is very probable that in favorable seasons reseeding would be very successful if the seed were harrowed in or, if more convenient, thor- oughly stamped in by herding a bunch of sheep over the area seeded. Not only will reseeding hasten this process of restoration, but it will give the bunch wheat-grass a start over the weeds that are at the ’ MOUNTAIN GRAZING AREAS. 17 present time taking its place in those areas where overgrazing is going on. Experiments to determine this point will be made during 1905. The same thing can be done with the giant rye-grass. At the present time the seed of these grasses can not be purchased, but usually it would not be difficult to gather it. This can be done by heading the grasses with a sickle and putting the heads in a sack, or, if a large quantity is desired, there is no reason why the bunch-grass could not be gathered with a header and thrashed out with a flail. A thrashing machine could be nsed instead of a flail if the wind were shut off. The giant rye-grass could easily’ be gathered by using a self-binder. . In the foothills region lying between the semiarid grazing lands and the mountain meadows there are large areas of scab land (land where the soil is very thin and gravelly and full of stones), especially on the hilltops (see Pl. I, fig. 1). In these regions the grasses have been almost completely destroyed, and the prevailing vegetation now consists of scab-land sagebrush (Artemisia rigida), mountain sage- brush (A. arbuscula), bitter brush (Purshia tridentata), and vari- ous species of Eriogonum, all of which furnish considerable browse. Under proper management the grasses here will eventually restore themselves, but the process will take a long time, in some instances probably ten to fifteen years. ‘The restoration may be hastened by scattering bunch wheat-grass seed, but it is, perhaps, a question whether the process of restoration will not cost more than the original value of the land. MOUNTAIN GRAZING AREAS. The mountain grazing areas, or summer pastures, are at the present time very important factors in the range problem of the State. With the large quantities of hay that can be raised in the irrigated valleys for winter feeding, the number of range stock that the State can sup- port is—except in the Okanogan country, where the quantity of hay raised is limited—directly dependent upon the number of stock that these summer pastures will carry. Fortunately, the restoration of the mountain grazing areas will not be at all difficult. Here the annual precipitation is ample to support an abundant vegetation, which, if given an opportunity, will soon grow up again. While in many of the mountain areas the vegetation has been badly cleaned out by sheep, the most serious damage has been caused by stock tramping on the land too early in the season, which has resulted in the ground becoming badly packed. In the true mountain meadows (see PI]. II, fig. 2), where mountain clover (7'rifo- lium longipes), mountain timothy (Phleuwm alpinum), and various sedges and rushes comprise the vegetation, there is still an abundance 18 RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. of feed, but the carrying capacity of these places has been greatly reduced by the continual tramping of stock and consequent packing of the ground. On the hillsides surrounding these meadows, where, the soil is much lighter, the herbage has in many places been killed. This, if protected and given an opportunity, will quickly return. The worst feature in this restoration process is that many weeds which have been brought in by the sheep, of absolutely no value for grazing purposes—not even the sheep will eat them—are given an equal chance with the good forage plants. In many places, some of them covering large areas, the process of restoration can be very greatly hastened by reseeding. Not only can these areas be brought back to their original carrying capacity by reseeding, but it is the firm belief of the writer that in many instances their carrying capacity can actually be made much greater than ever (see Pl. I, figs. 1 and 2). This is especially true of the mountain meadows. In the majority of cases the reseeding can be done at a very small cost, varying from 75 cents to $2 per acre, depending on the kind of grass seed used and the number of pounds per acre. Even these figures can probably be lowered if the seed is bought in considerable quantity. In the mountain meadows that are not too swampy, especially in those areas where mountain clover grows abundantly, timothy can be used to excellent advantage. For the outskirts of these meadows, where the soil is a little too dry for timothy to make its best growth, tall fescue (Festuca elatior), brome-grass (Bromus inermis), and probably orchard grass can be recommended. On the gravelly hill- sides mountain brome-grass (Bromus marginatus), a native grass, ‘an be grown to good advantage. So far as known, there is no seed of this latter grass on the market. However, if there should be suf- ficient demand for it, arrangements could be made for securing it. The above conclusions have been reached after two years of experi- mentation and of study of the mountain conditions. In the autumn of 1902 Messrs. W. H. Babcock and E. F. Benson offered the Office of Grass and Forage Plant Investigations the use of a section of land, which they agreed to fence, in their mountain pasture on the Wenatchee Mountains, about midway between Ellens- burg and Wenatchee. This offer was gladly accepted, and experi- ments to determine what grasses could be used in the improvement of these mountain areas were immediately begun. The land selected is on top of the Wenatchee ridge, and is at an altitude of a little more than 5,000 feet. The conditions on this section are typical of true mountain range, varying from fertile mountain meadows and open parks to old timber burns and scab-land areas. The following grasses and forage plants were seeded the same autumn: Timothy, Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis), redtop, MOUNTAIN GRAZING AREAS. 19 white clover, and mountain brome-grass (Bromus marginatus). These were seeded in plots of approximately 5 acres each. On halt of each of these plots the seed was broadcasted without further preparation. On the remaining half the seed was harrowed in with a spring-toothed harrow. In addition to these, small plots of Cana- dian rye-grass (Z’lymus canadensis) and wild wheat (Hlymus triti- coides) were seeded. In the spring of 1903 the first five plots were duplicated and the following grasses and forage plants were added: Brome-grass (Bromus inermis), perennial rye-grass (Lolium perenne), Italian rye-grass (Lolium italicum), orchard grass, Canadian bluegrass (Poa compressa), tall fescue (Festuca elatior), sheep’s fescue (Fes- tuca ovina). hard fescue (Festuca duriuscula), cheat (Bromus seca- linus), alsike clover, and red clover. All of these, excepting orchard grass, Italian rye-grass, sheep’s fescue, and mountain brome-grass, were duplicated in the fall. In the autumn of 1904 some of these grasses, together with six different kinds of vetches and some native grasses, were seeded on plowed ground. Reports of these 1904 experiments will be published when completed. In the above experiments the following grasses have given totally negative results, the seed failing to germinate: Canadian rye-grass, wild wheat (Zlymus triticoides), Kentucky bluegrass, white clover, and hard fescue (Festuca duriuscula). In the following cases the seed has germinated fairly well, but the plants have not made satis- factory growth: Canadian bluegrass, perennial rye-grass, Italian rye-grass, red clover, and alsike clover. It may be that another year the alsike clover will do better. So far the writer has been unable to determine whether the failure of this plant has been due to lack of nitrogen bacteria or to unfavorable conditions in the soil. Another year’s work will probably demonstrate the cause of the failure of this plant. Redtop and cheat (Bromus secalinus) have both made a_ fair growth, but can hardly be recommended at this altitude (5,000 feet). Of the entire list of grasses tested, the following, in the order in which they are named, have proved themselves adapted to mountain range conditions: Timothy (see Pl. I, figs. 1 and 2), mountain brome-grass (Bromus marginatus), tall fescue, and brome-grass. It is probable that orchard grass will also prove of value in such areas. While these experiments have demonstrated that the range can be greatly improved by reseeding, they have also shown that, if it is pos- sible to do so, the seed should be harrowed in. On those areas where the soil is loose, or where pine-grass (Cu/lamagrostis suksdorfit) grows, a spring-toothed harrow will be found the most satisfactory. On those areas where the sedges and mountain clover abound, far 20 RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. better results will be obtained, if the cost is not too great, by using a disk harrow. In many cases it is quite possible that a bunch of sheep would be fully as efficient, although this can not be recommended with assurance, as it has never been tried. The timothy seeded on the plots without harrowing, in the autumn of 1902, germinated fairly well, but the difference between the harrowed and unharrowed parts of the plot was very great—great enough, in fact, to well repay the cost of harrowing. The same thing held true on the plots of redtop and mountain brome-grass. In the work of the spring of 1903 nearly all the seed not harrowed in failed to germinate, while wherever the seed was harrowed in a fair stand was obtained. This latter experiment, and a study of the soil conditions, would show it to be a waste of effort to seed in the spring without covering, as the top of the ground dries off before the seeds can get moisture enough to enable them to germinate and grow. Mr. Benson, one of the owners of the range, thinks that the experi- ments have shown conclusively that it is a waste of seed to sow it without harrowing. This is undoubtedly true of spring seeding, and probably also of fall seeding ‘with many of the grasses. However, it is possible to sow timothy and mountain brome-grass and to secure a fair stand without covering, but, as stated above, the extra cost of harrowing will be well repaid. The use of the harrow is also strongly urged for other reasons. It is very noticeable that wherever the harrow has been used the native grasses and forage plants have germinated much more profusely, and in small spots where there happened to be seed scattered from a few individual plants the stand has been greatly thickened. This is especially true of one of the forms of Bromus marginatus, which grows native on that section, of mountain needle grass (Stipa occt- dentalis), and of the wild pea (Vicia americana). In this connection, fall seeding instead of spring seeding is ree- ommended. The reason for this is that the snow usually comes early in the autumn and goes away late in the spring. As a consequence. the ground seldom freezes deep, and when the snow melts in the spring it has a tendency to bury the seed sown late in the fall. On the other hand, if the seed is sown in the spring the top of the ground becomes so dry within four or five days after the snow has disap- peared that the seed will have no opportunity to germinate unless the season should prove to be an unusually rainy one. PROTECTION OF PASTURES. So far emphasis has been put on the fact that fencing is the main secret of range improvement. Yet fencing is absolutely of no value unless the stockman will treat his pasture with just as much care as he would his wheat field. Fencing is merely a means to an end. PROTECTION OF PASTURES. 91 ~ Many of the stockmen, especially cattlemen, seem to think that when they have excluded the outside stock, sheep in particular, from their land, it will carry whatever stock they may have, and they are dis- appointed if it does not. While it is true that some kinds of stock do more damage to a given range than others, the injury is caused not so much by the kind as it is by the number of stock and the methods used in handling it. Just because the stockman has fenced his range and excluded all outside stock he must not lose sight of the fact that he has not in the least changed the carrying capacity of his range. To illustrate this point, the writer, during the season of 1904, had an opportunity to study a number of pastures that had been newly fenced. One of these pastures, owned by a stock company, was pur- chased in the summer of 1903 and fenced during the spring of 1904. This pasture was in a region where there is a great deal of scab land, which meant that the carrying capacity was naturally very dow, and in a locality where the vegetation had previously been nearly de- stroyed by numerous bands of sheep. The owners, having eliminated the sheep and all other stock, did not estimate its carrying capacity, but turned all of their cattle into the pasture without further atten- tion. In the autumn, when they came to gather in their stock, they found that every bit of feed, including all the browse the cattle could get, was gone, and that the stock were in very poor shape, some of them being in a half-starved condition. These men by overgrazing their pasture lost heavily, as they will have to feed a great deal of hay to bring their cattle back to the condition they were in when turned into the pasture. Not only did they lose heavily on the cattle, but they also did the range a very serious injury, for, instead of supporting more stock another year, its carrying capacity has been greatly lessened. Another range adjoining the one just mentioned has also suffered heavily from overstocking. In this case the owners, at the time they turned their cattle in, believed that their range would actually im- prove with what stock they had on it. However, they miscaleu- lated, and not only will it take considerable hay to bring the majority of their stock back to good condition, but it will also be some time before the damage done to their range can be made good. While these two pastures were the only ones observed that were so over- grazed that the stock were really poorer when taken out than when put in, several other pastures were noticed in which the carrying capacity will be lower another year than it was during the past season, owing to the fact that the native vegetation has been too closely grazed. The first step that the stockman should take after his pasture is fenced is to make a careful estimate of the number of stock it will 22 RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. carry, being very sure not to overestimate, which he is almost certain to do. In making this estimate he must not base it on the maxi- mum number of stock, i. e.. all the stock that the pasture will carry and bring through in good condition without reference to the condi- tion in which the pasture is left at the end of the season, but an opti- mum number. An optimum number of stock is that number which the pasture will carry and bring through in good condition at the end of the season, and still be left in condition to carry the same stock another year, and so on indefinitely. This means that the stock- man must make a careful study of his range, and be ready to revise his estimates whenever he sees that it is necessary to do so. By far the safest plan will be to pasture somewhat under the optimum num- ber, and thus be prepared for a mistake in the estimate or for an unusually dry year. In case the range is badly deteriorated when the stockman first gets control, it will be absolutely necessary that it be pastured considerably under the optimum number if he wishes his range to improve. While this may perhaps be a severe strain on him for the first year or two, it is nevertheless the only solution. In many instances he may be able to take advantage of the outside range while his pastures are improving. Plate ITI, figures 1 and 2, shows very plainly the difference between maximum and optimum grazing. The pasture shown in figure 1 is very badly depleted and very little vegetation remains except June grass (Poa sandbergii) and weeds. This pasture, instead of being given a chance to revive, has been grazed to its highest carrying capacity each year, with the result that it is gradually deteriorating. The pasture shown in figure 2 belongs to the neighboring range. Its owner, instead of trying to get all out of his range that he possibly can from year to year, has, by using an optimum number of stock, given it a chance to improve. At the present time the carrying capacity of his range is at least double that of the pasture shown in heure 1. Mr. Joseph Burtt Davy, in his report on the stock ranges in Cali- fornia, where the same range conditions have been passed through as are going on in Washington, says: Success on one range, as compared with failure on an adjoining one, is not due to any difference in location or other range conditions, nor to any difference in the grasses or other plants composing the pasture; the natural conditions generally are, or have been, identical with those of adjacent and less productive ranges. The secret lies in good management, and good management primarily consists in carrying the optimum number of stock and allowing plenty of grass to go to seed—to go to waste, as the majority of stockmen would eall it. Mr. J. H. Clarke and Colonel Harding, both successful stock ranchers on a large scale, are agreed in declaring that over thirty years of experience proves that this surplus grass, instead of being wasted, is equivalent to so much capital invested in the range, and is the cause of the prosperity of the few as ALTERNATION OF PASTURES. 25 compared with the failure or poverty of the many. Such men do not stock nearly up to the maximum. Owning their own ranges, and therefore not baying to pay exorbitant interest on the capital invested, they are content with the profits obtainable from the optimum number of stock. As a result of this, they not only maintain a uniform carrying capacity without deterioration, but gain in other ways. Their wool is always cleaner and commands a half cent a pound more than that of their neighbors, and both their mutton sheep and their lambs command a higher price. “ We aim,” writes Mr. Clarke, ‘to keep no more stock than the range will easily support. Better a superabundance of feed than a searcity.” @ ALTERNATION OF PASTURES. In many parts of the State of Washington the ranges would be greatly benefited if the owner instead of having one large pasture would subdivide it into a number of small ones, so that once in three or four years each pasture would have a chance to rest and reseed itself. This would rot mean that the owner would be deprived of the feed from that field, but simply that he would let the field lie idle for a couple of months during the time of going to seed, and use the dry feed later in the season. It would probably be necessary to protect this field from heavy grazing long enough in the following spring to give the young plants a chance to become so well established that the stock would not pull them up. This method has been tried with very good success in Texas, and has been found to be of great value in range restoration. Mr. J. G. Smith, formerly of the Office of Grass and Forage Plant Investiga- tions of the Department of Agriculture, who made a careful investi- gation of the stock ranges of that State, makes the following statement : A rest of two or three months during the growing season in early spring would enable the early grasses to ripen and shed their seeds, thus perpetuating the early species. After the seed had fallen, the cattle could be turned on the grass for two or three months and again transferred to a fresh pasture. In the same way autumn and winter pastures can be secured. Several stockmen who have employed this method on a large scale for a number of years say that their ranges are continually improving, in marked contrast to the deterioration that had occurred through bad treatment of neighboring properties where the old methods were practiced. It is also Claimed that pasture land thus treated will carry more head of cattle through the year and bring them out in better condition than where the herd has access at all seasons of the year to all por- tions of the range. Later experiments to prove this point were carried on by the Office of Grass and Forage Plant Investigations at Abilene, Tex., and the results have shown conclusively that alternation of pastures is one « Bul. 12, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. 8S. Dept. of Agriculture, p. 48. » Bul. 16, Division of Agrostology, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, p. 22. 94 RANGE MANAGEMENT IN THE STATE OF WASHINGTON. of the important steps in the improvement of the ranges of that State.* In eastern Washington some of the more successful stockmen use this method to the extent of dividing their holdings into winter and summer pastures. Undoubtedly much of their success, as compared with the failure of others, can be very largely attributed to that fact. USING PASTURES BEFORE GROUND IS SETTLED IN THE SPRING. One of the most serious damages to the range is caused by turning the stock upon it too early in the season. ia 5 } ett fie yolnia CONTENTS. Ee ee ee ae Difference in toxicity of copper sulphate in laboratory and field conditions - - - een copper sulphate upon fish -.......---.--.-...-------------+------- Conditions determining the proper quantity of copper sulphate for eradicating Appearance of resistant forms of algze in reservoirs previously treated.....--- Odor and taste due to large numbers of alge killed.........2--.--------.---- Reports from various cities and towns upon the effect of treatment-.-....-..--- Se eeeee ESRI aD IY Chere oe eee Ue Saa see cwesce a= cclseSeen ee EOL ROTTCTITTAL OHIO eens Naseem tenes oe ee i cote cea eee nce Doe MUERTE. 22 shh SEES i Si Pa FS ee ee eS SI SS a ee ae ea a ee ere Dore Eo SPE. INis Nc ei A ey oe *------- SO A Ane EATEN Roce: fe ee ee ep erarenae DIE Nise hp eg tts Pony oS EE, aS Lak aia wid a Sakic ecocd SS) £0 R TE. 5 Salen - cies eae ee ee 8 | SS see Si ec ee Oe eee TS ppl lege ial ch So lea al a7 EEE IRS NY BR ea ee CE ER SE ee ae RINE WEDS ETTIN WIG Kis = 92 8 oe = See a cb eid sles sence cee = LT SERED SER eS (6 a Se ee memmopees, N.Y ...-.....----- Ce Be Ee eee ee I Seen a eye eins w= pn sw we nse haee EER Re ener Ie OS ee ss eS PALADIN Nes 2 ee pee ae ae = ae 2’ = oe oe a wen a Bi oS ee ee eee a ga aR Reis eahe BO ps ke i er A os OS ee Necessity for determining the polluting organism ..........----------------- Troublesome forms and their identification. ..............------------------ The Sedgwick-Raifter method of quantitative determination. ..-.-..-.----- PIPERILEL VSO? GIGS. os a emi ssn sooo nen ene wn ns es Method of applying copper sulphate ...........-...-------------------+----- Sterilization of bacteria-polluted water by means of copper sulphate. -----.-- Sterilization of the water supplies at Columbus, Ohio, and Albuquerque, bo bh bo bo bo orb b& Ww bo bo oon oO c bo bo bo bb bo bo eo ge bo oo © Co & Oo & Nw = ow &w woo or ew © 8 CONTENTS. Page. Sterilization of water by means of metallic copper......--.--.----.------ eae 40 Copper in the disposal of sewage -..-.---- Be ri ee ecae ~~ - 43. Copper supplementing the use of filters .....:..-.--..2sce2secccscwenrosase _ 48 Copper treatment and filtration at Anderson, Ind........-...----.---------- 44 Objections to the use of copper... -5.- /-22- 22... = 2b neeee see 48 Opinions of toxicologists upon the effect of copper ..-....----.-------------- 48 Medicinal use ‘ofcopper. 25. 2.552.452. 56- Van 5 lec ee seas se = = ee 515 Conelusion 2.222 see ete og Hs ge oo be ee oes Dew geen se 55 SURREAL 22 seca c se eeue2 <4 -- hoot eens sees seen specie es eine ee er 55 % 4 B. P. I.—154. V. P. P. I —182. COPPER AS AN ALGICIDE AND DISINFECTANT IN | WATER SUPPLIEs. © INTRODUCTION. At the time of publication of the results of the experimental use of copper sulphate as an algicide and disinfectant in polluted water,¢ defi- nite recommendations concerning the proposed method of treatment were avoided. This was done both to check those who through igno- rance or excess of zeal might be led to unnecessary or extravagant applications of the treatment and to gain the additional information of a season’s experience by maintaining supervision over treated sup- plies. The work can no longer be considered in an experimental stage, however, and the present need is not an exposition or explana- tion of the method but a discussion of actual experience, which, by setting forth the conditions presented, the difficulties encountered, and the success attained, may serve asa guide to the water engineer and to those who find it necessary to use copper in dealing with contami- nated supplies. An attempt is therefore made to arrange and cor- relate the results of laboratory work and practical applications of the method, with a view to facilitating the comprehension of the various ideas involved in the abundant results that the work has yielded. Moreover, it is apparent that the prejudice against using copper in drinking water is still great in many quarters, and some pains have been taken to ascertain whether there exist sufficient grounds for this hostility. DIFFERENCE IN TOXICITY OF COPPER SULPHATE IN LABORA- TORY AND FIELD CONDITIONS. The treating of various reservoirs has brought to light an interest- ing fact. The concentration necessary to kill alge in the laboratory is from five to twenty times as great as that necessary to destroy the same species in its natural habitat. The reason for this is difficult to dem- onstrate. It is not due to difference of light and temperature, nor to the greater proportion of the treated water to the mass of alge so often found in reservoirs. The most probable explanation is that «Bulletin 64, Bureau of Plant Industry. 20108—No. 76—06——2 9 10 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. under normal conditions the rapid growth of the organism is favored, with a consequent maintenance of the highest degree of sensitiveness to adverse conditions. When alge are brought into the laboratory, the cltange in environment and the injury from handling allows only | the more resistant individuals to persist, and the forms developing from these are, therefore, harder to destroy than are those of the same species growing in nature. In view of this fact the quantities of copper sulphate which are required to destroy the different polluting forms are mych less than those formerly considered necessary. Many of the concentrations in the following revised table have been obtained by actual use in reser- voirs under natural conditions. The remainder have been determined by analogy, and only on theoretical grounds can they be presumed to be correct. It will be seen that there is absolutely no possibility of correlating the effects of copper upon related forms with the idea of formulating a rule for general use. Even species of the same genus often show a greater variation in their susceptibility to copper than is found in widely separated genera, and the necessity of knowing the specific form caus- ing the difficulty becomes more and more evident as experience with the effect of copper upon algze is accumulated. Number of parts of water to one part of copper sulphate in dilutions recommended for destroying different forms of alge. [Water of average hardness, and at a temperature of about 15° C. (59° F).J@ Aphanizomenon......-.---- 5, 000, 000 | Microcystis ............-.-- 1, 000, 000 Anabaena circinalis......---. 10,000, 000. | Navicula-.: 2. =-2:---) eee 15, 000, 000 Anabaena flos-aquae .------- 10, 000, 000} Nitella_-....2 --=_- =. 22S ee Asterionellae 2a: Stee ae $: 000,000" |) Oscillatoria =.= <= 52a >see 5, 000, 000 Bedeiatoa 232, oo oe eee 100, 000 | Palmelia -- +... - S322 Ee 500, 000 Glattophora SIeSst op eee ee 1, 000, 000' | Pandoriza, -~ /:2¢ > S222ee See 100, 000 Chlamydomonas -..--.------ 1,,000, 000 | Peridinium.-_--25-_. see 450, 000 Clathrocystipa.s = = i235 -70--.'- 8, 000, 000 | Raphidium~_.-..--2 22-2222 300, 000 Closter Sseee nee 6, 000, 000 | Scenedesmus ....-...--..--. 1, 000, 000 Coelosphaerium .....------- 3,000,000" | Spirogyra .~ .<. /-<-<5 spas 20, 000, 000 Glenpdinium, . =) 2455-2. 2,000, 000 |, Wolvex 2s... 2. -2-2-2-eaee 4, 000, 000 Hydrodictyon. 725 2 10, 000, 000*| Zyznema. - =>. 22- 2s ose 2, 000, 000 Mallomonas®!-o.-4--cR o-=- 500, 000 | SALT WATER FORMS. Cladophora 2:2 oc.S eee 2-6 = 5, 000, 000'|" Diva fi Pent Te ee 5, 000, 000 Enteromorpiaye. sae se see =a 10, 000, 000 «See page 12. EFFECT OF COPPER SULPHATE UPON FISH. 11 ‘EFFECT OF COPPER SULPHATE UPON FISH. The effect of copper sulphate upon different species of fish demands more attention than was formerly supposed. The treating of a small trout pond in Massachusetts resulted disastrously to about 40 per cent of the 8-inch trout with which the pond was stocked, and emphasized the fact that all game fish are not equally resistant to the effect of copper. A series of investigations” has shown that the brook trout is more sensitive than any other fish yet tested. In some cases 1 part of copper sulphate to 7,000,000 parts of water is the maximum strength that can be endured by trout under 5 inches in length. Larger ones, asa rule, will endure buta slightly stronger solution, though the treat- ment of one reservoir was reported in which a solution of 1 to 1,000,000 was used without injury to trout or other fishes. Here, however, the immunity was probably due to the rapid precipitation of the copper by organic matter or alkalis’ and not to the resistant condition of the fish. Reference to the reports of reservoirs treated, notably those of Butte, Mont.,° Cambridge, N. J.,2 and Hanover, N. H.,° shows that fish are uninjured at concentrations ordinarily used and their presence is no obstacle to successful treatment. Below are given the maximum amounts of copper sulphate which, judging from a very limited number of experiments, should be used in water containing fish of certain species. It is hoped that work planned in connection with the Bureau of Fisheries will make possible a fuller report upon this phase of the subject. ‘ Number of parts of water to one part of copper sulphate in dilutions which will not injure Jish of certain species. Uli... 2) 7,000, 000 | Catfish -..........---------- 2,500, 000 oo 2, OOO, O00;|, SuGkers <<< 20 2-~. - 2-5-5. 3, 000, 000 LU pea 750, 000 PGR PASEE eo cons cia ges 500, 000 DU oe fn ON VRE ce nS owe Se 3, 000, 000 Experiments of the United States Commission of Fish and Fish- eries’ show that 1 part of copper sulphate to 582,000 parts of water will kill quinnat salmon in a few hours; this suggests that this fish is @ At Coldspring Harbor, N. Y., through the courtesy of the Bureau of Fisheries and the New York Forest, Fish, and Game Commission. bIn water containing carbonates, if the amount of dissolved carbon dioxid is very low, the basic carbonate of copper formed may be considered insoluble; if, however, the water should contain a fair amount of carbon dioxid it would bring the copper carbonate at least partially into solution. In general, it will be safe to treat a lake with a concentration beyond that which the fish in it could endure in pure water, and the concentration may increase with the quantity of organic matter present. ¢Page 15. dPage 17. €Page 20. J Report of the Commission of Fish and Fisheries, Part XX VII, p. 118, 1901. 12 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. - very sensitive, probably being killed at concentrations between those fatal for trout and those fatal for carp. CONDITIONS DETERMINING THE PROPER QUANTITY OF COPPER SULPHATE FOR ERADICATING ALG. The importance of knowing the temperature of the contaminated water is second only to the necessity of knowing the organism present. With increase in temperature the toxicity of a given dilution increases, and vice versa. Assuming that 15° C. (59° F.) is the average temper- ature of reservoirs during the seasons when treatment is demanded, the quantity of copper should be increased or decreased approximately 2.5 per cent for each degree below or above 15° C. It is probable that the influence of temperature could be better expressed by geometrical than by arithmetical progression, but the accurate determination of this point can be made only after experiments have been recorded in various localities under different conditions for a number of years. Similar scales should be arranged for the organic content and the temporary hardness of the water. With the limited data at hand it is impracticable to determine these figures, but an increase of 2 per cent in the quantity of copper for each part per 100,000 of organic matter and an increase of 0.5 to 5 per cent in the proportion of copper for each part per 100,000 of temporary hardness will possibly be found correct. The proper variation in the increase due to hardness will depend upon the amount of dissolved carbon dioxid; if very small, 5 per cent increase is desirable; if large, 0.5 per cent is sufficient. APPEARANCE OF RESISTANT FORMS OF ALGZ IN RESERVOIRS PREVIOUSLY TREATED. Since adding copper to a reservoir destroys only the polluting organisms then present in the water, it is possible that other forms, the resting spores of which are buried in the mud, may develop after treatment and occasion a second pollution. There is thus the proba- bility that some reservoirs will be cleansed of Anabaena or Oscilla- toria or some such polluting species only to allow a subsequent devel- opment of forms more or less resistant to copper, such as some of | the desmids. It is improbable that these organisms, or any of the algw, in fact, could develop rapidly enough to be the cause of serious complaint and still remain resistant to such concentrations of copper as could be safely used. At the worst the presence of these forms is certainly to be preferred to that of organisms producing odor and taste, and fortunately experience has shown that the latter succumb so readily to the copper treatment that their destruction has offered no great difficulty. REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 13 ODOR AND TASTE DUE TO LARGE NUMBERS OF ALGZ KILLED. A certain proportion of the alge killed by copper treatment floats to the surface and disintegrates there, but the greater part apparently sinks to the bottom, and it may sometimes be necessary to flush out this lower stratum of water and decaying organic matter. In case large masses accumulate upon the surface, as may occur in a reservoir very badly infested with Anabaena, it is desirable to skim off as much of this mass as possible. By this means the water can be rendered fit for use in the minimum length of time, although such procedure would be required ouly in a reservoir in which the polluting alge had developed until the water was in very bad condition, and this should never be allowed to happen. The algologist of a water company should watch for the appearance of polluting forms, and advise treat- ment as soon as signs of increase are unmistakable. The only undesirable effect of treating a water supply which is con- taminated with an alga producing odor and taste is that during the first few days after treatment the odor and taste may increase. Ina municipal supply in which the service mains are fed from the bottom of the reservoir this increase may be very marked and occasion additional complaint among the consumers. The trouble is, of course, caused by the simultaneous disintegration of large numbers of alge and the consequent liberation of comparatively large quantities of the volatile oils to which the odor and taste are due. REPORTS FROM VARIOUS CITIES AND TOWNS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. The copper method has been used throughout the year during dif- ferent seasons and under varying conditions, and the work has fully demonstrated the value of this metal for destroying the contaminating alow in reservoirs of drinking water, as well as in park lakes, fish ponds, and similar small bodies of water which must be kept in good condition. The first reservoir so treated was that of the Winchester Water Company, at Winchester, Ky. The organism polluting the water was Anabaena circinalis, and its destruction, as described in a previous publication,“ seems to have been most thorough. But one treatment was made last year, and no complaint of the quality of the water has arisen since the summer of 1903. Experience only can determine how often a reservoir will need treatment, but the results at Winchester and with other large bodies of water in which none of the blue-green alge, formerly so abundant, have appeared since the original treatment over a year ago, and this in spite of a season unusually favorable for their development, suggest that applications made at long intervals will suffice to prevent a recurrence of the contamination. 4 Bulletin No. 64, Bureau of Plant iadactey: p:. 27. 14 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. In Massachusetts some abandoned reservoirs and ponds unfit for supplying water for drinking purposes have been treated, but as this work was done in cooperation with the State board of health, which has decided that further experiments are necessary to determine the final condition of the copper used in treating before advising the gen- eral use of this method, it seems best to defer publication of whatever results have been obtained until the board of health is in a position to make a definite statement. Probably the most convenient form in which to group the year’s results is an alphabetical list of some of the cities and towns in which such work has been done, and a résumé of the cases when necessary. It is impossible for various reasons to include in this list of all of the places where copper sulphate has been successfully used for the destruction of alge. BALTIMORE, MD. Late in June Mr. Alfred M. Quick, engineer of the water depart- ment of Baltimore, reported some trouble due to alge. The following extract from his letter shows the character of the pollution: For some time past this department has been in receipt of a great many complaints from consumers of the bad condition of the water. Ice makers were most interested, as it is necessary that water used in making ice should be perfectly clear. They complained that the bad condition generally occurred after long spells of rainy weather, and generally at the change of season—from spring to summer; also that it seemed to be practically impossible to eliminate discoloration. (June 25, 1904.) Lakes Clifton and Montebello were visited on June 28 and were found to be badly infested with Anabaena circinalis; the organisms were unusually perfect spirals, and, estimated roughly, would count about 10,000 to 50,000 per cubic centimeter. On account of the pres- sure of municipal affairs treatment was not made until July 29, after which Mr. Quick wrote as follows: I have completed the experiment of treating the water in Lake Clifton with copper sulphate to eliminate the alge, and I am glad to say that the result has been an unqualified success. Before the lake was treated it had a cloudy, greenish color. Immediately after treatment it had a steely, bluish color, and when the lake was turned into service again, one hundred and twenty hours after the application of the sulphate, it had a clear white color. Notwithstanding the small amount of sulphate used in proportion to the volume of water treated, all of the particular algse which cause discoloration and odor, which I believe are the cyanophycez, were eliminated in forty-eight hours, and practically all of the various other kinds of algee were eliminated in one hundred and twenty hours. As for any deleterious effect from the use of the sulphate, the city chemist reported to me that an analysis of 500 c.c. of the water one hundred and twenty hours after treatment showed no traces of copper. (August 9, 1904.) Later Lake Montebello was treated, and reports of the results in both reservoirs were sent to this laboratory, together with a tabu- ° REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 15 lated count” of the organisms before and after treatment. These sheets showed only a moderate reduction of alge and a total num- ber of organisms per cubic centimeter before treatment so small that it could never have been responsible for the complaints of the con- sumers, nor could these few organisms have produced the changes in color noted in Mr. Quick’s letter. No Anabaena filaments were listed, though it is known that they were present in great abundance a month or so earlier when the exammation was made by the Labora- tory of Plant Physiology, and there is nothing in the conditions obtaining in the reservoirs before treatment that would explain their absence. It seems probable, therefore, that the samples examined by the city bacteriologist had been agitated sufficiently to break up the delicate Anabaena, or that on account of standing too long before examination this alga had disintegrated. The discrepancies between the tabular reports and the correspondence with this laboratory as they appear in the account of this work are undoubtedly due to this fact. The same explanation seems the most plausible one to apply to the fol- following letter from Mr. Quick, dated September 10, 1904, as the number and character of organisms mentioned by him were too small to produce any deleterious effect. I am hardly in a position to state just what form of microscopical vegetable organ- ism gives us the most trouble, but I have no doubt that the table will enable you to form some idea as to this. These organisms are not now giving us any trouble, but from the result of examinations made of samples of water taken a few days ago from Clifton and Montebello (which show the organisms now present to be about the same number or more than before treatment), it is likely that we shall have the same cause for complaint again in the near future. BOND HILL, CINCINNATI, OHIO. The following letter regarding the use of copper in a pond contain- ing fish speaks for itself. The alge, however, disappeared. After weighing out a half ounce of copper sulphate, the quantity looked so small I added a little to it and dragged it through the water on a poles Sunday morning (July 24) is when I treated it. Yesterday the water looked very bad, and the fish that have disappeared from sight all the summer were swimming on top and seemed in distress. (July 26, 1904. ) BUTTE, MONT. The following extracts from letters and the report of Mr. Eugene Carroll, superintendent of the Butte Water Company, give details of the treatment made during the summer of 1904. This company has a.large reservoir containing about 180,000,000 gallons, that was completed in 1896. Notwithstandingthe fact that we were particularly careful in cleaning the bottom and remoying the soil, we have had continual trouble every year from the Anabaena. « Published in the Engineering News, 52 : 283. 16 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. The pest begins to show about the middle of June, and about the Ist of July the water is unfit for use on account of the odor and taste. It remains in a condition unfit for domestic use until about December, when the freezing weather purifies the water and we are able to use it during the winter. (June 3, 1904.) It has been our custom for the past three years to cut this reservoir out entirely from our water supply from the time of the appearance of the taste and smell until — the water purifies in the winter, so we can cut it out for any length of time necessary for the experiment. Our reservoir is full of native trout, and while I do not care particularly about the fish, yet a solution strong enough to iif the fish might give us more trouble with the dead fish than we would have with the Anabaena. As to the expense, that is a very small item to us, as we have spent nearly a million dollars in bringing in another water supply, largely on account of the spoiling of the water in our main reservoir. (June 14, 1904.) (Report after treatment.) The Basin Creek Reservoir has two forks, one extending about three-fourths of a mile in a southerly direction and the other about one-half mile ina southwesterly direction. Distribution of the copper sulphate was started at 2p. m. on July 7, using three boats. One boat distributed in the southern fork, another in the southwestern fork, and the third boat in the main body of the reser- voir in front of the dam. The quantity used was 1 pound of copper sulphate to each million gallons of water, thus requiring 180 pounds of sulphate. One boat distrib- uted 40 pounds in one hour in the short arm; the second boat distributed 60 pounds in one hour and ten minutes in the main body of the reservoir around the dam, and the third boat distributed 80 pounds in the long arm of the reservoir in one hour and fifty minutes. In each boat two men were used, one to row and one to hold the gunny sack containing the sulphate over the stern of the boat. There was a heavy wind blowing downstream, which made it extremely difficult | to row, but the boats were kept in continual motion from the time the copper sulphate was dropped into the water until it had entirely dissolved. During the first ten minutes of the distribution of the sulphate nothing peculiar could be noticed in the water, but after fifteen minutes fine light-green threads began to float in it, growing steadily in number and extension until in about thirty-five minutes after starting there had formed a yellowish-green scum over the entire sur- face of the reservoir. The phenomenon was similar to the formation of a very flocculent precipitate. ¥ In about two hours the scum assumed a dark-green color, the borders turning slightly brown. At that time a sample of the water was taken and carefully exam- ined and small traces of copper were shown by the experiment. Samples of the scum were also examined and found to contain 11} per cent of metallic copper, show- ing that a large amount of the copper was taken up by the Anabaena and other organisms, and thereby removed from the water. During the first twenty-four hours the water in the reservoir exhaled a more pro- nounced and disagreeable grassy odor than before treatment. Its color at the end of the first twenty-four hours was a decidedly dirty green, with comparatively very little seum floating on the surface, and upon testing 1,000 c. c. of the water for copper at this time, a very faint reaction was obtained. The sulphates in the water were slightly higher and the odor was considerably less At the end of the second and third days very Biot changes were notioel in the color and taste of the top water, but it Was greatly improved in taste, color, and smell below 20 feet in depth. ‘ At the end of the fourth day a continued improvement was noticed in the taste, color, and odor, and at the end of the fifth day there was a very decided change for the better in color—the water assuming a natural color and only a slight odor and taste being noticeable on the surface. At 20 feet below the surface at the end of the fifth day, the water was tasteless and odorless, and of a bright natural color. Very REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. Le slight changes for the better were noticed on the seventh, eighth, and ninth days, and on the tenth day the water apparently had assumed its normal condition. Microscopical examinations of the water, however, during this period, as shown in the appended tables, revealed the fact that there were a few spores of the Anabaena left in the water and that the Asterionella had begun to increase again. Owing to these conditions, it was deemed advisable to give the reservoir a second treatment with the copper sulphate, and on the morning of July 19, twelve days after the first treatment, a second treatment was given in exactly the same manner and with the same quantity as the first treatment. After the second treatment, very little change was noticed in the water on the surface of the reservoir, and: hardly any scum formed. Twenty-four hours after the second treatment, the water showed a very decided improvement in color, with absolutely no taste or odor. On the third day after the second treatment, as shown by the analyses in the tables, the water was in an absolutely normal condition and entirely free of the vegetable organisms which had given us so much trouble in the past. During the process of these treatments, the reservoir was entirely cut out from the city supply and no flow through it was permitted, the overflow being closed and the water allowed to rise slowly. With the exception of occasionally opening the overflow to remove the scum which had blown down against the dam and an occasional opening of the blow-off pipe, there was no current running through the _ reservoir during the period. On Sunday, July 24, the water in the reservoir being absolutely pure for the first time in ten years during the month of July, it was turned on to the city mains. The cost of the treatment of the reservoir, exclusive of the superintendent and bacteriologist, who directed the operations, was as follows: 360 pounds copper sulphate, at 93 cents per pound.......----.-.--.-..-.----- $34. 20 puaeacer tour hours each, at 30 cents per hour--.---.-..-.-----2..2...-.- 7.30 RC MRerner ee eiey Seyi. Stns ee te Ae ben anne < ole declax 41.50 Equivalent to 23 cents per million gallons. This expense would be cut down were another treatment made, as only one man to a boat is really necessary. Late in the summer Asterionella again began to appear in consider- able numbers. The increase, however, has not been sufficient to demand further treatment this year. I will continue to keep a close record of the condition of the water in this reser- voir, and think very likely it will be advisable to give it a treatment early next summer. There is no taste or odor whatever to the water, and we have had no trouble with that supply since the treatment. (December 1, 1904.) CAMBRIDGE,’ N. Y. It was impossible to obtain a sample of the organisms causing the trouble at Cambridge, N. Y., but from the description it seems most probable that it was Anabaena. The following letter from Mr. C. T. Hawley, secretary’and treasurer of the Cambridge Water Company, sufficiently explains the situation: The village of Cambridge is supplied with water from two reservoirs, which were built in 1886. One, the ‘‘ Lower”’ reservoir, is supplied from springs, and the other, 20108—No. 76—06——3 18 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. or ‘‘Upper”’ reservoir, is supplied from a small stream and by water pumped from the ‘‘Lower’”’ reservoir. In the ‘‘Lower’’ reservoir there has always been a con-— siderable growth of algze, but there has never been any taste or odor imparted to- the water until last fall. Prior to that the alge has appeared to ‘“‘ripen,”’ float to_ the surface, and blow ashore, where it would be raked up and removed. Last year it sank to the bottom, and soon after the ‘‘fishy’’ odor became very offensive. The reservoir was then emptied, cleaned thoroughly, and refilled. In a short time, however, the taste and odor again became noticeable, and there was more or less trouble until June 9 last, when, having procured one of the bulletins issued by the Department of Agriculture, we used the copper sulphate. The effect was evident in — twenty minutes to a half an hour in a decided change in color and appearance of the alge growth. In twenty-four hours the taste and odor had disappeared and the algee looked dead, having lost its green color. Ina few days the alge had entirely — disappeared, and there has been no trouble since, though there is a slight growth just beginning to show in detached patches within a few days. The reservoir con- — tains about 1,250,000 gallons and we used 10 pounds of sulphate of copper. This did not affect the native trout which are in the reservoir. No water was pumped from the reservoir for several days after the sulphate was used, but the outlet gate was closed and the flow from the springs raised the level of the water in the res- ervoir and reduced the strength of the dose; nevertheless when the water in the reservoir was emptied into the channel which conveys the overflow to the Batten- kill, it cleaned out a heavy growth of algz from that channel for its full length, about half a mile. If the present growth continues, we shall try the sulphate again this fall, using, however, a less quantity of it, as it is evident from the cleaning of the channel that a lighter dose does the work. As there was a slight growth in the ‘‘ Upper’”’ reservoir, we gave that a dose about the last of June, using 20 pounds of sulphate of copper for 4,000,000 of gallons of water. The same effects were noticed as in the ‘‘Lower’’ reservoir, and there has been no growth of algee since. The use of the copper sulphate has certainly been most successful in our case. Not only has the water company been saved the considerable cost of repeated cleaning of the reservoirs, but the residents of our village have been sayed the annoyance of having at times to use a most unsatisfactory water supply. (Sep- tember 22, 1904.) n ELMIRA, N. Y. The following is an extract from an article“ entitled ‘* The Copper Sulphate Treatment for Algze at Elmira, N. Y.,” by James M. Caird, consulting engineer: The reservoir was constructed during the year 1870, by building a dam across a natural site. At the time of construction the timber and surface soil were removed from the parts to be flooded. The reservoir has a drainage area of about 4} square ~ miles, covers 38 acres, and has a capacity, when full, of 113,000,000 gallons. The supply is derived from springs and a small stream called Hoffman Creek. At various times the water in this reservoir has been a source of trouble owing to its strong ‘‘fishy’’ odor and taste, due to a growth of Anabaena and Asterionella. At times, before the construction of the filter plant, it was necessary on account of the odor and taste to drain and clean the reservoir, the last cleaning being done during the summer of 1889. The growth has been so abundant that even in the winter, when it was necessary at times to use this supply, lime had to be added before filtration in order to remove the ‘‘ fishy ”’ taste. aThe Engineering News. 52: 34. REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 19 The temperature of the water at the time of treatment was 64° F. In all 1,000 pounds of copper sulphate were used in treating the 90,000,000 gallons. This was equal to 14 parts of copper sulphate per 1,000,000 parts of water, or 14 pounds for every 120,048 gallons of water. The reservoir was treated June 25, and none of the water was used until June 27, thirty-six hours after treatment. A sample of one liter, taken on June 27 and evaporated to 100 c. c., failed to give the copper reaction when tested with potassium ferro-cyanide. The Anabaena disappeared thirty-six hours after treatment, while the Asterionella disappeared eighty-four hours after treatment. In looking over the preceding table it is seen that there was a reduction in bacteria of 86.7 per cent in thirty-six hours; 91.8 per cent in eighty-four hours, and 94.3 per cent in one hundred and eight hours. Beiore treatment five samples of 1 c. c. each were examined for B. coli communis. Two gave positive results. Thirty-six hours after treatment this bacillus could not be found. In operating the filters it was found that after the treatment the period between washings had been increased three hours, and the wash water was reduced from 2.3 to 1.9 per cent. The effect of the copper-sulphate treatment on the different animal life was as follows: Numerous “‘ pollywogs”’ killed, but no frogs; numerous small (less than 2 inches long) black bass and two large ones (8 inches long) killed; about ten large “‘bullheads’’ were killed, but no small ones; numerous small (less than 2 inches long) ‘‘sunfish’’ were killed, but no large ones. The wind brought the dead fish to the corners of the reservoir, and it was very little trouble to remove them. No dead fish were seen twenty-four hours after com- pletion of the treatment. FIELDHOME, N. Y. The following extracts from letters of Mr. C. DeP. Field, owner of the estate, summarize the results obtained at Fieldhome, N. Y. The reservoir is filled by a spring that was for years our sole supply for water, and which was satisfactory. The reservoir is of concrete, about 43 feet deep, surrounded by trees which do not exclude the sunlight. It has no top, and may derive some of its supply from the rain. The cattle have drunk the water from the overflow without apparent ill effects, but the coloration of the water is unfortunate, and apparently there are alge init. (July 8, 1904.) After treatment.—Day by day we could see the end of a stick inserted in the reservoir, alittle deeper. (July 23, 1904.) The reservoir has cleared sufficiently for the bottom to be seen in places and the stones on the plank put in to walk down for bathingare all visible. (July 28, 1904. ) GLENCOVE, LONG ISLAND, N. Y. A pond in the vicinity of Glencove, Long Island, was overgrown with small organisms, chiefly Volvox globator and Phacus microcystis. These are resistant organisms, especially the Phacus, but as is shown in the following extract froma letter from Mr. R. A. Shaw, the owner of the pond, the treatment seemed promising, though it was impos- sible to get definite results. I duly carried out your instructions and added the further quantity of sulphate of copper tomy pond. I think there has been some improvement, but am unable to 20 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. tell how much, because the water, as a general rule, begins to clear as the tempera’ are becomes cooler. Under such conditions it will probably be necessary to treat several times during the warm season. (September 28, 1904.) GREENWICH, CONN. 4 During the latter part of July Prof. F. 5. Hollis, of the Yale Medical School, acting under advice from the Laboratory of Plant Physiolog ‘ of the Department of Agriculture, treated the two reservoirs supp ing Greenwich, Conn. The following is an extract from a letter received from Professor Hollis, dated August 11, 1904: Algze, especially Anabaena, which were abundant in Putnam reservoir, were com-_ pletely removed, and a large growth of filaments encased in jelly and attached to waterworks, which was probably a developing stage of some form, almost completely ; disappeared within a week after treatment. At the upper end of the reservoir there. has appeared since the treatment a considerable growth of infusoria. Bacteria increased from ten to twenty times after treatment. In Rockwood reservoir at the — dam the total organisms, 384, with Chlamydomonas 93, decreased in four days after treatment to 91 with Chlamydomonas 6. On August 9 organisms had increased — to 194 with Chlamydomonas 53 and the complaint as to water is continued as all evidence of the sharp odor of Chlamydomonas is not removed by their method of — mechanical filtration. Temperature of Rockwood, 23.6° C.; of Putnam 25° C. On account of the slight increase of the pollution mentioned in the — last sentence of Professor Hollis’s letter, a second treatment was — advised, the solution used to-be of the same strength as the former — one. Presumably this was satisfactorily effective, as there has been no further complaint. 7 HANOVER, N. H. In the case of the water supply at Hanover, N. H., it was impossible ~ to obtain samples of the organism before treatment was made, and it seems that any one of several species might have been responsible for the pollution, though for geographical reasons it seems probable that 4 the form in question is Uroglena. The following extract from the Eighteenth Report of the board of health of the State of New Hamp- shire, volume 18 (1903-4), pages 159-161, shows the results obtained: On account of the gradual sloping of the banks of the reservoir and the presence of — many fish, a 1 to 4,000,000 solution was used. * * * It was estimated that there — were about 100,000,000 gallons of water in the reservoir at the time. The copper sulphate was weighed out into 25-pound lots. One lot was placed in a gunny sack, which was held open by an iron spreader, the sack fastened at the top, and then — attached to the stern of a rowboat. The boat was rowed back and forth across the reservoir, commencing where the water was deepest and ending along the edges — where the water was shallow. This process was repeated along lines 25 to 30 feet © apart until the whole area had been covered. The copper dissolved very quickly, the water being warm, which necessitated rowing rapidly while the sack was full and slowing up as the copper in the sack diminished. Another small body of water was treated in the same way, except in this case a 1 REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 21 to 1,000,000 solution was used. No bacteriological examination had been made previous to the application to this smaller body of water. The application was made to this water as an experiment in reference to the effect upon the fish. This body of water was quite shallow at the edges and about 8 feet deep in the center. The application was made in both cases on the same day between 10 a. m. and3p.m. The day was very warm, no wind, and a heavy thunder shower took place just as the work was finished. (July 19, 1904.) The edges of the reservoir were inspected next morning, and no dead fish were found, no odor was noticed, and many very small fish were seen swimming about. On the edges of the smaller body of water 86 small dead fish were picked up, the largest of these measuring 1} inches in length. The appearance of these dead fish was very striking. Their abdomens were very much distended and many of them had buried their heads in the mud, and in all cases their eyes looked ‘‘ popped out”’ from their sockets. No fish were seen which seemed to be injured. Quantities of fish about 2 inches long, and from that size up to 1 foot long, were seen swimming about in the water apparently in a perfect state of health. Both bodies of water were inspected each morning for four days; no more dead fish were found, and nothing remarkable was seen. There was no perceptible change in the appearance of the water. Samples were taken from the reservoir and from taps in town and examined for micro-organisms, with the following results: June, 1904, 1,800 micro-organisms, other than algze, per cubic centimeter. July 16, 1904, 2,600 micro-organisms, other than alge, per cubic centimeter. The above was tap water. Algze not included in this table: Date. Reservoir. Tap. Date. Reservoir. Tap. August ........ ‘a 500 |} July 22........ (¢) (¢) September..... (4) 986 || July 23........ (c) (ce) aNo examination. bLarge numbers. ce None. adFew. Last examination for algze was in August, when only a few grew on media. The first day after the application the taste and odor had perceptibly diminished, and on the second day had disappeared altogether. The color also practically dis- appeared, and only a slight color reaction could be detected by delicate color tests. Chemical examination showed no trace of copper in the reseryoir water. A sample was not examined from the small pond. No one in town except those immediately concerned in the work knew that anything was being done, but in two days aiter the treatment two different persons remarked upon the improvement and within a week no less than 11 individuals spoke of it. It is not generally known at this time that anything has been done to the water. Up to date there has been no bad taste, no color, and no odor when cold. At times I think I can detect a very slight odor on close observation when the water is warm. Conelusion.—That the odor and taste were due to microscopic organisms. The color to a great extent was also due to micro-organisms. That the application of copper sulphate in the strength of 1 part to 4,000,000 of water is sufficient to destroy these organisms without injury to fish. That 1 part of copper sulphate to 1,000,000 parts of water as found in the ordinary reservoirs and ponds will, in addition to destroying micro-organisms, destroy the small fish. The probabilities are that if the water was of an equal depth in all parts of our reservoirs and ponds 1 part of copper sulphate to 1,000,000 parts of water would not ye COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. kill the fish, but as the edges are shallow and the bottom irregular, it is impossible — to get an equal distribution of the solution until after the smaller fish succumb. There can be no fixed general rule; each case must be treated as conditions require. HANOVER, PA. The three reservoirs of this system were badly infested with Ana- baena. Treatment was made the latter part of August on the first reservoir and several days later upon the other two. The surface of the water cleared within a short time, but the lower layers containing the decaying alge were improving but slowly. The following extract from a letter from Mr. Charles R. Delaney, chemist of the Consumers’ Water Company, shows the final results: The results of the last test show such great improvement that Mr. Brough has been advised to let the bottom water run off until the odor shows only faintly and then to turn the water into the mains. (September, 1904. ) IVORYDALE, OHIO. The small reservoir of the Proctor & Gamble Company at Ivorydale, Ohio, was badly infested with alge. The following is extracted from a letter dated September 22, 1904, from that firm: We are glad to be able to report the complete success of the treatment of our reser- voir with copper sulphate. We treated the water as you directed, using approximately one part copper sul- phate to a million of water. At this time there were several large floating masses of algse, and the water had a peculiar odor and taste. We treated the water Saturday afternoon, August 13, and allowed it to remain practically quiescent for several days. Monday morning we found the masses had turned brown in color and frothy, but still floating in the large masses. These masses, however, subsequently disappeared, and since then there has been no sign of the growth except in an old skiff to which the treated water did not penetrate. Here the mass is still green. JOHNSON CREEK, WIS. The Geo. C. Mansfield Company reports as follows with reference to the use of copper in two ponds at Johnson Creek, Wis.: We used three applications of the solution recommended, and used same in each of our two ponds. The applications were made three days apart and as per your instructions. We had intended to make one more application, but cold weather came on and the ponds froze over; however, from close observation of the results from the three applications, we think it very beneficial. The green moss had about all disappeared or turned scorched or brown color, and evidently was destroyed. We believe late in the fall to be a splendid time to make these applications, as most of the fish are in deep water and do not come in contact with the solution. We did not discover that a single fish was destroyed. (December 5, 1904.) MIDDLETOWN, N. Y. The following article, entitled ‘‘The Copper Sulphate Treatment for Alge at Middletown, N. Y.,” by James M. Caird, appeared in the Engineering News for January 12, 1905, pages 33-34. / REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 23 The city of Middletown, N. Y., obtains its water supply from three impounding reservoirs (Monhagen, Highland, and Shawangunk) which,are located some distance from the city. The water is filtered before being delivered to the consumers. The filter plant has a capacity of 4,000,000 gallons per day, consists of 4 gravity and 4 pressure filters, each set of 2,000,000 gallons capacity per day. The water from Monhagen reservoir is used in the lower parts of the city and is passed through the gravity filters, while the elevated section uses the water from Highland reservoir after passing through the pressure filters. The water from Shawangunk reservoir discharges into Monhagen reservoir. In recent years during warm weather considerable trouble has been experienced by alge growths, not only by the odor which they produced but also by the rapid “‘clogging”’ of the filters. At times the filters would require washing at intervals of four to five hours. From a sanitary standpoint the quality of these waters is good, the drainage area being owned or controlled by the water department. Monhagen reservoir.—The Monhagen reservoir, which was constructed in 1867, was the first to be treated with the copper sulphate, the reason being that the greater part of the city’s supply is obtained from this source. This reservoir has a drainage area of 300 acres, surface area of 68 acres, and a capacity of 296,000,000 gallons. When treated, this reservoir contained 250,000,000 gallons. The copper sulphate was applied at the rate of 1 part to 3,333,000 parts of water. Portions of this reservoir were covered with a heavy grogvth of Potamegeton (pond weed). Three days after the treatment this weed began to come to the surface, and was raked off. Upon investigation it appeared to have rotted at the root. The con- ditions in this reservoir permitted a very uniform application of the copper sulphate. No fish were killed, although they were present in large numbers. The examination of this water, before and after the treatment, revealed the follow- ing organisms: | Fourteen Before. | days | after. | Diatomaceae: SIRI es oro ocean cians Sanit maraicte © wie aac aeeie Avie mina diss SSecieec.cees » a ae ee Sn eye neds Says Se tee aa oe Seem re vou Swewen déeae 4 1 Chlorophyceae: EF oe oo Winia f ode Soe a an See oe wae ne eee ie kaw esas taccccnecns a eee sos ; PEST A Been Onan eae ara en are a ee B:s| Seco Cyanophyceae: ra eMrr NP hae re SRA, Ob ek See Aa Pde rade at Saeee oad ceca edeeds i Boeeecceee BUEPSENE.....---- +... Be ee ers Pon als a ere es at Se i. Solna sa sna biel Ip leasecasbes Schizomycetes: ° J. ST 2 Ee eA Se re SO ee ne eee Oe ee eee Pa ares Sy ERI a sor 8 ae is oh ae aa OMe cates cen bee cbacesevces pA EE ere A Miscellaneous: on REP SS Se ee 2 ee eee = ee 1) ae ere Fins 2. OSS Sa See ee ee OS So eee ere Ah tog bo ete CU 0 Te Ae i SI a RS os eee A Re 43 # RE CEs 22 0 a. ictanais clare a sae a asa salen e dase eee ese tm sere nr aececaseese 420 450 The odor from this water before treatment was noticeable at a considerable distance from the reservoir. Shawangunk reservoir.—This reservoir was constructed in 1902 and has a drainage area of 4223 acres, a surface area of 101 acres, and a capacity of 434,000,000 gallons. There is a large quantity of decaying wood in this reservoir, as the stumps were not removed before the land was flooded. No growth of Potamegeton was shown. It was very difficult to treat this reservoir in places, owing to the stumps. In going around the stumps the copper sulphate was applied a little stronger than in other parts of the reservoir. The consequence was the death of a few fish. 24 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. : The organisms found in the water before and after treatment were as follows: Before Ten oom Diatomaceae—Nitzschia.-.:- SER ee ssc ees IB PANEL Se. deep gee 8 13 Chlorophyceae: Wis Raia eted Jorecoe Sane. 289201066 Joan i Socseernne ec daaceSaneoesoashe Sse oso Ure 10 is IPYOLOCOGGUS . a: setae. sem seams eee nemesis oe b's cides hess oniaiane optettne cle eric ee te Z Cynanophyceae: OSC aria) sees teense aes eee (Gono cnbeshs Bs stbAc sedate im 2cd2 sadbcordo ase fc 14 eee eoeeee ATIG DEEMED Sesae eee eee shies cao ee sista dia: efal= ot fain omicle bre araceiene eee aes Seco 12 \ = oe ? Schizomycetes—Leptothrix .........../ SEE cra snd a Soe bin Saat oe eCelo ineeniee aeee poe | 9 2 AMO CWN ATO) C555 oS nash Se sada: yest ps Heo scoss bo sedeGs nese sensasendcos sol" 53 oq Bacteria per ec Ses. Faetie,- Ree ee ae Pada ese ee Ss ote ad Shiaset Meee ele cetatae strane pele 300 260 Highland reservoir.—This reservoir was completed in 1891, has a drainage area of | 341 acres, a suriace area of 110 acres, and a capacity of 560,000,000 gallons. When treated, the reservoir contained 495,000,000 gallons. The copper sulphate was applied at an average rate of 1 part to 2,292,000 parts of water. There are a large number of ‘‘coves’’ around this reservoir, which necessitated a stronger treatment, resulting in the killing of a few fish. I should estimate the strength of the copper sulphate in these localities at about 1 part to 1,250,000 of water. As in Monhagen, this reservoir contained a growth of Potamegeton, which broke off after treatment and came to the surface, where it was raked off. The organisms found before and after treatment follow: | Six days Before. |” iter. | Distomaceae—Nitzschias.t3 oss f. 25s Se este eee. a eee ee eee ae eee 7 | 1 Chlorophycesie—Protococeus Sac 2 yeG reese. Seek ee ae eh yee ee ele eae 34 | 3 Cyanophycese—Ostillaniayes =. co 5.uoke epee coe sos cbeecceuctioce cane hee ee ee eee Silas. fase Schizomycetes—heptothrix st 25. sscec cc ec une Cn lee ae oe cece ace ee eee eee 5 | x Rotifer: / IMICTOCOGO: 22.5). cscccuiece Does ele siewic caladt wcwe come actin eee ae eer eee eee 10) |2.eraceee NOtholeawe’ 26s cc Ss eck aicmes soe cas emnincialc « secicembeices sees SebOer ASCO R Aan ja Ree BV ULL AS pees ee orate es orc rete ae sree olan v eee a cicNepeiee ee TEEN Tee ooie on eee |---+--cnss PoteliperiGyG yee s-cee ese ccilssa ce ens Sores mae etn sob ee mee mene Some e EEE ey 5 Bacteria per Che. tecee reese ae asceeonece seat are seis coe cece Tennent eee ae eee 400 | 360 The temperature of these waters at the time of treatment was about 68° F. The © greatest trouble with the waters commenced about the middle of August. The cop- per sulphate was applied the first part of September, since which time the waters have given no trouble. The destruction of the alge in waters which are to be filtered by the mechanical process results in a great saving in the cost of operation. That is, after treatment less coagulant is required to free the water from the suspended matter, the period between the washings of the beds is longer and there is a reduction in the percentage of wash - water. The freeing of the reservoirs of the growth of Potamegeton was also very desira- ble beecause after its death, which occurs during cold weather, it decomposes and imparts a very distinct yellowish-brown color to the water. The beneficial results were noticeable twenty-four hours after the application of the copper sulphate to these waters. * * * The total amount of water treated was 1,095,000,000 gallons. The cost of this treatment was as follows: Copper sulphate, freitht'and cartage’. J. 2226 weeded oe le ee $186. 06 Cartagerot: boaters. docs ecu bed | ce ee ea 5. 00 Labor, eighty-three hours, at 15 cents per hour..............------------- 12. 45 Ota oa Bebe sae aye oe ee Rl rr 208: bias Exclusive of examinations and supervision, this was at the rate of 183 cents per Z 1,000,000 gallons of water treated. REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 25 MILLERSBURG, PA. Treatment in the case of the reservoir at Millersburg, Pa., was undertaken by the Millersburg Home Water Company and this le bora- tory has no record of the organism causing the trouble. The follow- ing extracts from reports of T. F. Bradenbaugh, president of the water company, show the condition of the reservoir: July 31, 1904.—9 a. m., copper sulphate placed in the reservoir, 2 pounds per mil- lion; 7 p. m., slight change in the color of the water. August 1.—7 a. m., color changed considerably; 7 p. m., water clearing. August 2.—7 a. m., color changed to blue-green and much clearer; 7 p. m., water clearer, bottom of reservoir dimly seen. August 4.—6 p. m., objects on bottom of the reservoir plainly seen. Small white particles seem to be suspended in the water; these are rapidly settling, leaving the water clear as crystal. November 12.—Aiter having sent you sample of water, and before receiving your letter dated August 16, the water in our reservoir became so bad both in color and odor that we gave it a second treatment, using the same quantity and method as in treatment No. 1. The water again cleared and odor disappeared, but not to so marked a degree as after the first treatment. (Several fish died during this treatment.) The effect of treatment No. 2 lasted about three weeks, when the conditions again became so bad that we treated it a third time, with about the same results as No. 2. After this treatment we changed our pumping system, so that instead of pumping into the reservoir we pumped direct into the pipe lines, allowing the surplus to back up into the reservoir. From that time we have had no trouble, but the water in the reservoir still retained its greenish color until cold weather came; now it is changing and is nearly as clear as crystal again. It seems that deep-well water, if allowed to lie in a shallow basin or reservoir under a hot sun, will develop these troubles with great rapidity. By tracing down the source of contamination and thoroughly sterilizing that, as well as treating the reservoir, there seems every probability that this polluting form could be eradicated. MONCTON, NEW BRUNSWICK. The report upon the conditions and effect of treatment at Moncton is of especial interest on account of being the only one dealing with an icebound reservoir. The following extracts from letters from Mr. J. Edington, city engineer, and from the Daily Times, of Moncton, show the method of treating and the results obtained: Our trouble is almost entirely confined to the winter months, when the reservoir is frozen over. It varies more or less according to the length and severity of the _ winters, but the past two have been particularly bad. In 1903 and 1904 the reservoir was frozen over on the 20th of November, and on the 17th of January the odor and taste commenced. This continued until the 7th of March, when the spring rains and freshets brought relief. The conditions this winter are very much the same. Openings have been kept in the ice, but with zero weather they are not much good, as the ice forms as soon as holes are made. The reservoir has a capacity of 200,000,000 gallons and is 30 feet deep at the gate house, and it is noticeable that the top layer of 5 feet is comparatively free from taste and odor, while at 10 or 15 feet the trouble is bad. 20108—No. 76—06——4 26 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. If the copper sulphate treatment has to be done in the winter, could it be effect- ively applied when the ice is from 2 to 3 feet thick? (February 13, 1905.) The daily consumption of water is 1,250,000 gallons in twenty-four hours. How would it do to place, say, one-fourth of a pound in gate house every six hours, or a lesser quantity oftener, so that the proportion would be 1 pound per million gallons? Of course there is no current in gate house, as the water remains at same head as in reservoir. (February 24, 1905.) The experiment was commenced at noon on the 8th instant by suspending two bags of copper sulphate, each containing 2 ounces, on a level with inlet pipes in gate house. The daily consumption of water is estimated at 1,250,000 gallons, but the quantity of copper sulphate was based on 1,000,000 gallons, the idea being to apply 4 ounces every two hours, thus giving 1 pound per million gallons. It was found that the crystals dissolved too quick, and the quantities were changed to 2 ounces every three hours. A large opening, 100 feet by 40 feet, is cut in the ice adjacent to gate house and immediately over intake pipes. This has also been treated every second day by the application of 1 ounce forenoon and afternoon, this quantity being put in a small bag attached to a long pole and trailed up and down through the water until dis- solved, the object in view being to get as even a distribution as possible of 1 pound of copper sulphate per million gallons every twenty-four hours. The result has been a great improvement in the water not only in the taste and odor, but in its color. (March 14, 1905.) The experiment was tried several days ago, and immediately an improvement was noticeable in the water. Yesterday the improvement was so marked that it was a matter of comment among the citizens. The improvement, however, was attributed to the melting snow, but as a matter of fact there has been no new water from this source up to the present time. * * * Engineer Edington is satisfied that a soln- tion of the trouble with the water in the winter season has been found. (The Daily Times, Moncton, New Brunswick, March 14, 1905. ) NEW YORK, N. Y. The following extract is taken from a paper read before the American Chemical Society * by Mr. Daniel D. Jackson, chemist in charge of the Mount Prospect Laboratory in Brooklyn: The department of water supply and the department of parks of New York City have both had waters treated by the author during the summer with decided sue- cess, and in each case only one treatment extending for a period of one hour was necessary. NEWTOWN, PA. The reservoir at Newtown, Pa., is a small one, with a summer tem- perature close to 60° F. The number of Scenedesmus caudatus per . cubic centimeter was sufficient to give a decided green color to the water, and a scum or film would form during quiet weather. As the organism is a resistant one, two treatments were made about one week apart. @Science, 20: 805. See also The Engineering Record, October 29, 1904. REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. ya Mr. T. J. Kenderdine, of the Newtown Water Company, gives an account of the work in the Intelligencer, from which the following is quoted: The Newtown Artesian Water Company was put in operation sixteen years ago, and was a case of ground water pumped into an open basin. The water was analyzed as chemically pure, and in the absence of knowledge of alga the managers were sur- prised to find a discolorization in it the coming summer, with a taste as it increased that brought complaint from the consumers. To relieve this the water was let out, when a green sediment was found coating the bottom and sides of the basin. This was removed by a thorough flushing and scrubbing with stiff brooms, when it was thought the trouble was over. This was not the case, and for the past sixteen years there has been a repetition of this attempt to remedy the evil, which was found to be a vegetable growth in the water developed by the sun or to exposure in an open basin. The only way after it appeared in April was to empty the reservoir weekly, after running the water down to a depth of twoand a half to three feet, and refill it; then, at the end of each month or six weeks, have a general scrubbing and brushing of the sedimented water to a prepared depression, where it was pumped or carried over the rim of the basin in buckets. The only other remedy for riddance of the pest was to roof over the whole surface, to erect a brick cistern in the center of sufficient size for household needs, and with an outlet for the main body of water in case of fire, the inlet from the pumping station coming up through the center, and roof that in, and thereby save the prohibitory expense of covering the whole reservoir, or to pump night and day into the street mains to give the consumers fresh water, and leave a stagnant pool in the basin, or throw away the work spent on erecting the basin and erect astandpipe. All these were thought of by those interested, but the cost and uncertainty of results deterred action, and the alga trouble seemed as if it would stretch out indefinitely into the future, with its cost of riddance and drain on the coal pile to replace the lost water from wells from 150 to 200 feet deep to a storage basin 60 feet above their surfaces. The remedy, however, without the expenses these would involve was not far off. The second application was made September 24, when it was found a marked change had taken place for the better in the character of the water. The greenness was going and so was the fishy taste. Nine days later an examination of the reservoir was made, when it was shown that the water was absolutely clear and that there was no need of further treatment. It is now three months since the water has been let out or the reservoir cleaned, and the effect of the small amount of copper used is marvelous. The water in the basin is as clear as a lake, and comes from the household faucet as if piped from a spring. The days of letting out alga-infected water and its replacement, as well as the monthly cleaning, which was looked for as surely as the new moon in the warmer seasons, are now of the past, and, as a matter of course, the hours for pumping lessened, as well as the drain on the coal pile, and, better than all, there was no longer any complaints coming from the consumers. In dollars and cents the cost of the new mode was not over $1, while the old way would have been $60 in the time since the last cleaning of the reservoir. OBERLIN, OHIO. George N. Carruthers, Springdale Farm, reports as follows: You may recall my visit at your headquarters last spring, and your call at my farm to inspect my water-lily and lotus pond, and your recommendation for the destruction of alge. Your remedy was entirely successful. (October 24, 1904. ) 28 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. PASSAIC, N. J. It is evident that the source of contamination at Passaic, N. J., has not been eradicated, and it seems that with the location and treatment. of this source the water could be kept in good condition. The lake is a small one, owned by a land improvement company. Mr. Frank Hughes, agent for the company, writes: We have treated the lake twice this summer, and the last time we also applied the copper sulphate to the little pond above. There has been a slight return of the alge, but so far it has not been enough to require another treatment. After the second treatment last sammer there was no return of the alge until about the middle of June this present summer. (September 19, 1904.) PORT DEPOSIT, MD. Early in May the water in the small reservoir supplying the Jacob Tome Institute at Port Deposit, Md., was in rather bad condition, due chiefly to the presence of Chlamydomonas. Treatment was made May 6, 1904, and on September 26 President A. W. Harris wrote as follows: The improvement in the taste and odor of the reservoir water was extremely marked. The water is now in a very satisfactory condition. RHINEBECK, N. Y. George N. Miller reported as follows on September 27, 1904, with reference to the success obtained in using copper in the lake on his estate at Rhinebeck, N. Y.: On August 3 I added 10 pounds of copper sulphate to my lake, and on August 5 there were hardly any signs of alge left. About September 1 I treated again, as the alge had reappeared, especially in the lower part of the lake. This time it was only fairly successful. It seemed to kill off about half of the alge. A second application three days afterwards seemed to have but little effect. 1 should say that to kill com- pletely needed a much stronger solution. The amount I used certainly did no harm to cattle, sheep, etc., and did not kill any fish. The alga causing the trouble is a rather resistant filamentous form, but one which should be easily eradicated by treating as soon as the warm season begins to cause rapid development, and probably again late in the summer. ; SCARBORO, N. Y. The following is a report of the treatment of a pond on the estate of James Speyer. I dissolved 100 pounds of copper in the pond. Now there is not a bit of water-net to be seen. (July 25, 1904.) : The quantity I roughly estimate at about one-half the quantity which you advised, but that solution did its work effectively and the alge began to discolor in about twenty-four hours, and after thirty-six hours entirely disappeared, sinking to the bottom. REPORTS UPON THE EFFECT OF TREATMENT. 29 a It is, however, only just for me to add that with the continuation of the hot weather the pond developed a rather disagreeable odor, and I also found several dead eels in the pond. Whether this odor is due to some fish which died on account of the copper sulphate or to the decaying of the plants which had sunk to the bottom I cannot tell, but in former years when the water supply was about the same as this _ year I did not notice the smell. (September 20, 1904.) If the alga was allowed to develop until it was forming large masses it is to be expected that during its decay, subsequent to treatment, it would give off a very decidedly disagreeable odor. SPRINGFIELD, ILL. Arthur Hay, secretary-engineer of the Pleasure Driveway and Park District, of Springfield, Ill., wrote, under date of September 21, 1904, regarding the use of copper in a park lake, as follows: The custodian reports that he has used 2 pounds of copper sulphate in a pond containing about 2,000,000 gallons of water thickly planted with water lilies and stocked with fish. The surface of the water was covered with a ‘‘ brownish scum”’ {probably Spirogyra]. A few hours after the application of the sulphate the scum disintegrated into a curdy precipitate which remained entangled about the stems of the water lilies. After waiting several days for this to disappear, and observing no change, he drew off the water, and after cleaning the pond refilled it with fresh water. He has not noticed any growth of the scum since. Neither the water lilies nor the fish were affected by the use of the sulphate. In another pond, with no water lilies, but bor- dered with cat-tails and aquatic grasses, there was no scum, but a heavy growth of a “‘stringy green moss.’’ He applied copper sulphate here in the strength at first of 1 pound to 1,000,000 gallons of water, and later considerably stronger, but noticed no effect either on the moss or the cat-tails. WALTHAM, MASS. Bertram Brewer, city engineer, reported trouble due to alge in the watering tubs in his pasture. Mr. Brewer wrote as follows on Sep- tember 24, 1904: Soon after I received your directions I filled the tubs with copper sulphate solution and Jet it stand in one tub forty-eight hours, in the other about a week. The result was that I have not had to repeat the dose oftener than once in three weeks. I found that a caréful washing in the copper solution also prevented the growth of mosquitoes in my tubs, and that made it doubly desirable. This is of interest on account of again bringing up the matter of the destruction of mosquito larve in pure water by copper sulphate. WATER MILL, LONG ISLAND, N. Y. The following letter, dated December 28, 1904, from Dr. Thomas T. Gaunt, New York City, is self-explanatory: My place in the country is located at Water Mill, in the township of Southampton, in Long Island. 1 purchased it in April, 1902, and was largely influenced in select- ing this piece of land by the beauty of a pond which bounds it on the east. This 30 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. little body of water covers about 2 acres, is fed by numerous springs, and discharges © into Mecox Bay, the southern boundary of the land. When I bought the place the pond was filled with clear water. About the middle of the following June alge began to show, and in August the surface was almost entirely covered by the growth. The odor was offensive, and myriads of small insects hovered over the masses of alge much of the time. I consulted two engineers interested in the storage of water, and they told me nothing could be done. The condition was so objectionable that I planned to plant a thick hedge of willows along the bank to shut off the view of the pond from the house. * * * J examined the pond on June 15 and found large masses of algze covering an area several hundred feet in length and from 20 to 40 feet in width. No microscopical examination was made of the growth, but I was informed that it seemed to be largely composed of filaments of Spirogyra and other Contervee. On June 18 the treatment was begun. * * * In one week the growth had sunk and the pond was filled with clear water. I examined the pond on September 15 and found it still clear. From time to time during the summer small masses of algee appeared along the banks, but they were only apparent on close inspection. ; The use of the sulphate of copper converted an offensive insect-breeding pond into a body of beautifully clear water. The pond was full of fish, but the copper did not seem to harm them. WELLSBORO, PA. Anton Hardt, Wellsboro Water Company, wrote on August 16, 1904: May 261 distributed 15 pounds of sulphate of copper as directed by you. The alge turned brown in three days and disappeared entirely inside of two weeks. There is no perceptible odor from the water at present. WINCHESTER, KY. William Wheeler, consulting engineer, Boston, Mass., wrote on Sep-. tember 14, 1904, as follows: Among the many sources of water supply with which I have had relations as engineer and manager, under both municipal and private ownership, none has approached that for Winchester, Ky., in the intensity of the development of alge therein or in offensiveness of the results arising therefrom. The works were constructed in 1890, the source of supply being the impounded waters of a creek in the Blue Grass region, in which the flow varies from a violent torrent in times of heaviest rainfall to sometimes no appreciable flow whatever dur- ing one to three or four months of the driest summers. The odor first appeared in a noticeable degree during the hot summer months two or three years aiter the works were constructed, and gradually increased from year to year—mitigated to some extent by means of filtration and ration, yet neverthe- less attaining to such a degree of offensiveness two years ago as to make its use for any purpose almost intolerable. In April, 1903, I applied to Mr. Albert F. Woods, Pathologist and Physiologist of the Bureau of Plant Industry, to enlist the services of Doctor Moore in treating the Winchester reservoir by the copper sulphate process, and the results have been briefly set out in Bulletin No. 24 of the Bureau. The treatment has once been renewed this season, and the water has thereby been kept entirely inoffensive to the senses of taste, smell, and sight, and made satisfac- tory to the owners of the works and the community which they serve. The economic value of the treatment appears to be measured by what it would have cost to procure and maintain an entirely new and independent supply, the only NECESSITY FOR DETERMINING POLLUTING ORGANISM. ol practical source of which is the Kentucky River, at a distance of nearly 10 miles from the town and over 500 feet below it in elevation. The cost of installing and operat- ing the additional works that would be required would be about twice as great as the cost of building and operating the present supply works. Charles F. Attersall, superintendent of the Wincnester waterworks, under date of October 8, 1904, said: The treatment of the reservoir was made on July 19, 1904, with a solution of 1 to 4,000,000 copper sulphate. The treatment was considered necessary owing to the appearance of Anabaena and a perceptible increase in odor. The solution was dis- tributed through the reservoir in practically the same way as applied last year. The result of this treatment has been entirely satisfactory, and we have had no occasion to repeat it. The water has been in excellent condition all the year, with the excep- tion of a very slight odor at the time the solution was applied. We have had no complaints from the consumers, which is the first time since the completion of the plant in 1891. WINNEBAGO CITY, MINN. The use of copper in this instance was for the purpose of removing the odor caused by the decay of Lemna and sedge that grew and decayed rapidly in the cooling pond of the Winnebago Flour Mills Company The amount applied was far in excess of what would be practicable if fish were present, and illustrates merely an incidental use of copper sulphate. S. W. Tredway, of the above company, wrote on September 17, 1904, as follows: We have applied sulphate of copper twice, putting same in a bag at a time when our pond was still and dragging it all around. Weused 3 pounds of copper with each treatment. We have not been running hot water into the pond for some three or four weeks because of the fact that our condenser gave out, and we are now instal- ling a new one, and consequently there has been no current through the pond during all this time. The copper has completely removed the odor arising from the pond, and there is no question but that the growth has been checked, and from appearances we should think that the weeds are commencing to die off. We probably will not be in a posi- tion to say definitely just what the results are before next spring. We are going to make an effort in the early spring to prevent a new growth entirely. NECESSITY FOR DETERMINING THE POLLUTING ORGANISM. Before the quantity of copper required in a particular reservoir can possibly be determined it is absolutely necessary to ascertain the exact character of the organism causing the trouble. This makes a micro- scopical examination of the first importance. Also, the earlier in its development the presence of the polluting form is revealed, the more effective will be the treatment. If examinations are made at short intervals throughout the year, the first appearance of the troublesome alge can be noted, and by treating promptly at the first sign of their decided increase it is possible to destroy them before the consumer is caused any annoyance. This makes a considerable difference in the expense of treatment also, as it may require fifteen to twenty times as ou COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. much copper to clean a reservoir after the bad taste and odor are evident as it would if the application had been made before the organism had established itself. In all cases the use of copper is advocated as a preventive rather than as a cure, and the treatment can not be intelligently applied unless the microscopical examinations are thorough and frequent at the time of year the trouble is to be expected. TROUBLESOME FORMS AND THEIR IDENTIFICATION. The bad odors and tastes due to the presence of alge may be due either to a definite secretion from the plant or to its decomposition. In most water supplies the difficulty is first evident before the alge have begun to die, and, although the objectionable conditions may be augmented by subsequent decay, there are comparatively few alga- infested reservoirs in which the disagreeable effect is not originally produced by the living alge. The effects directly produced by these plants have been so variously described that it is difficult to arrange any classification which will enable one to identify the organism by the odor or taste produced. In general, however, it may be said that the diatoms cause what has been termed an ‘‘aromatic” odor, although if in great quantity it isapt to be nauseating and fishy. Uroglena, which in this country usually appears during the winter months, is the form causing the most characteristic fishy taste and odor. Volvox is reported to have a similar effect. There are also certain forms closely related to both Uroglena and Volvox which at times may produce a flavor suggestive of fish. During the summer by far the greatest difficulty in water supplies infested with alge is due to the blue-greens, or Schizophyceae. The odor first noticeable has been described as grassy or moldy, but this usually changes as decay sets in to a pronounced ‘‘ pig-pen” odor, which can frequently be detected for a considerable distance from the reservoir. Many of the larger grass-green algee, such as Cladophora, Conferva, Spirogyra, Hydrodictyon, ete., cause trouble by being present in such quantities as tc produce a distinct vegetable odor when they begin to disintegrate. As many of the alg occurring in water supplies are very minute, it is often necessary to resort to special methods to collect samples for identification. In some instances it is sufficient merely to allow a jar of the water in question to remain undisturbed for a few hours, when the alge will have settled to the bottom, and it will be possible with the aid of a pipette or a small glass tube to remove a sample of this deposit to the glass slide for examination. If the organisms are motile, or if it is desired to estimate their number per cubic centi- meter, the method described as the Sedgwick-Rafter method is the best for this purpose. The numerous requests for a means of deter- TROUBLESOME FORMS AND THEIR IDENTIFICATION. 33 mining quantitatively the alge in water warrants the following exten- sive quotation: THE SEDGWICK-RAFTER METHOD OF QUANTITATIVE DETERMINATION. @ The Sedgwick-Rafter method consists of the following processes: The filtration of a measured quantity of the sample through a layer of sand upon which the organ- isms are detained, the separation of the organisms from the sand by washing with a small measured quantity of filtered or distilled water and by decanting, the micro- scopical examination of a portion of the decanted fluid, the enumeration of the organisms found therein, and the calculation from this of the number of organisms in the sample of waterexamined. The essential parts of the apparatus are the filter, the decantation tubes, the cell, and the microscope with an ocular micrometer. The filter.—The sand may be supported upon a plug of rolled wire gauze at the bottom of an ordinary glass funnel 7 or 8 inches in diameter, but the cylindrical fun- © nel * * * is preferable. The inside diameter of this funnel at the top is 2 inches, the distance from the top to the beginning of the slope is 9 inches, the length of the slope is about 3 inches, the length of the tube of small bore is 23 inches, and its inside diameter is one-half inch. The capacity of the funnel is 500 c. c. The sup- port for the sand consists of a perforated rubber stopper pressed tightly into the stem of the funnel and capped with a circle of fine silk bolting cloth. The circles of . bolting cloth may be cut out with a wad cutter. Their diameter should be a little less than that of the small end of the rubber stopper. When moist, the cloth readily adheres to the stopper. The sand resting upon the platform thus prepared should have a depth of at least three-fourths of an inch. The quality of the sand is impor- tant. Ordinary sand is unsatisfactory unless very thoroughly washed. Pure ground quartz is preferable. Its whiteness is.a decided advantage. The necessary degree of fineness of the sand depends somewhat upon the character of the water to be fil- tered. A sand which will pass through a sieve having 60 meshes to an inch, but which will be retained by a sieve having 120 meshes, will be found satisfactory for most samples. Such a sand is described as a 60-120 sand. When very minute organisms are present a finer sand must be used, say, a 60-140 sand. The sand used for many years by the author had the following composition: Size of Percentage sand grains. | by weight. 40- 60 20 60- 80 20 80-100 38 100-120 18 120-140 4 Soete aman . ae eto en ecie ee ee Pandorina Tl. Colontesiaf 32 cells: 22222182 oe ee Cee Eudorina. III. Colonies of very many cells forming a large sphere..-.----. Volvoz. B. Pleurococcaceae. (A) Cells neither possessing gelatinous sheath nor embedded in jelly. (a) Cells single. I. Cells sickle-shaped.or lonate. h.ce scree 33 joe a be Jae ee Raphidium. (b) Cells arranged in a plane. I. Colonies arising through division in one direction.....- Scenedesmus. D. Hydrodictyaceae. (A) Colonies hollow within. (a) Géelseylindrieal, long: 2:2 5.2425 atesos sass sae eee Hydrodictyon EK. Ulvaceae (marine). (A) Thallus membranaceous, plate. Consists of two layers of cells. -----. Ulva. (B) Thallus membranaceous, tube forming. Cells in older part slightly or not at all arranged,in definite order, 27.2. -. ---- se. --= 24 {phanizomenon. @@ Heterocysts and terminal spores contiguous. Cylindrospermum. (6) Homocysteae: +- Filaments simple, with an evident sheath.......----J vyngbya. +t Filaments simple, sheath wanting or very slight, plants possess- ing a characteristic movement......------------ Oscillatoria. 38 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. METHOD OF APPLYING COPPER SULPHATE. Before introducing the copper sulphate it is necessary to determine accurately the volume of water to be treated. This is imperative in the case of municipal supplies and large reservoirs, as an error in the the estimation might cause considerable inconvenience. Many cases will arise, however, in which a rough computation will be much more convenient and Brae practicable. The method considered most practicable in inbeotaene copper sul- phate into a water supply has been outlined in a previous publication,” from which we quote: Place the required number of pounds of copper sulphate in a coarse bag—gunny sack or some equally loose mesh—and attaching this to the stern of a rowboat near the sur- face of the water, row slowly back and forth over the reservoir, on each trip keeping the boat within 10 to 20 feet of the previous path. In this manner about 100 pounds of copper sulphate can be distributed in one hour. By increasing the number of boats and, in the case of very deep reservoirs, hanging two or three bags to each boat, .the treatment of even a Jarge reservoir may be accomplished in from four to six hours. Itis necessary, of course, to reduce as much as possible the time required for applying the copper, so that for immense supplies with a capacity of several billion gallons it would probably be desirable to use a launch, carrying long projecting spars to which could be attached bags each containing several hundred pounds of copper sulphate. The substitution of wire netting for the gunny-sack bag allows a more rapid solution of the sulphate, and the time required for the intro- duction of the salt may thus be considerably reduced. The temperature has such great influence on the effect of copper upon polluting forms that it is best to select as warm a day for treat- ing as circumstances will permit. STERILIZATION OF BACTERIA-POLLUTED WATER BY MEANS OF COPPER SULPHATE. Treatment with copper sulphate is an effective and practicable means of sterilizing water polluted with certain pathogenic bacteria, and as an emergency method is applicable to both household and municipal conditions. It should prove particularly useful in very large water supplies accidentally or suddenly contaminated with typhoid bacilli and not provided with any adequate means of purification. Under such circumstances the case becomes not one of pure water versus water containing copper sulphate, but of sterile water contain- ing an amount of copper not dangerous to health versus water and typhoid bacilli. The method formerly suggested’ for treating a res- ervoir would undoubtedly be advisable in special cases of unusually great contamination when the water contained an abnormal amount of 4 Bulletin No. 64, Bureau of Plant Industry, p. 25. bTbid., p. 33. STERILIZATION OF WATER SUPPLIES. 89 organic matter, but in general an epidemic could be controlled and quickly eradicated by a solution much weaker than the 1 to 100,000 listed as necessary for complete sterilization within twelve hours. One to 2,000,000 is sufficient in most cases, and even less than this quantity of copper is of decided benefit in certain kinds of water. STERILIZATION OF THE WATER SUPPLIES AT COLUMBUS, OHIO, AND ALBUQUERQUE, N. MEX. For many years Columbus, Ohio, has had a high typhoid rate, and the last few years have been a period of almost continuous epidemic. After some correspondence with this laboratory, Dr. McKendree Smith, health officer of the city, decided that copper sulphate offered a means of dealing with these exceptionally dangerous conditions. He accordingly treated the water supply and has recently made the following significant report: The Scioto River furnishes the main source ci water supply to the city of Colum- bus, Ohio. Under ordinary conditions it is constantly menaced by innumerable sources of pollution. The limestone quarries, situated on both sides of the stream and extending 2 miles along the banks, employ over 300 men, many of whom are housed with their families in small buildings about the quarries on the extreme edge of the river’s banks. A dozen or fifteen small houses, in which large Italian families live, are located in and about the old State quarries, which are also within a few feet of the river bank. A number of villages nestle dangerously near theriver. The girls’ industrial home (an institution caring for about 800) discharges its sewage directly into the river about 18 miles above the intake. Many small tributaries carry their share of pollution into the stream. These constitute the ordi- nary and always present dangers to the city’s water supply. Recently, however, other grave dangers were added. During the past eight or ten months about 200 men, living in tents and temporary huts, employed in constructing a storage dam, clearing the river banks of trees and undergrowth, and in building the C., U. and W. traction line, by their presence and the manner in which they were compelled to live, increased to no inconsiderable degree the already too great dangers. To successfully police such a water supply is impossible, and as a temporary expe- . dient, pending the completion of the purification plant, I resorted to the use of cop- per sulphate to keep the water supply free from disease-producing micro-organisms. My aim at first was to treat polluted tributaries and stagnant pools, which would drain into the river at the first rainfall, so as to render them harmless. The still water in deep pools, which upon analysis showed pollution, was also treated and at intervals, when the water in that part of the stream from which the city’s supply was taken showed pollution, the treatment was applied directly to the water at the intake. At no time as the water enters the intake was it subjected to a treatment stronger than 1 part in 1,500,000. By carefully testing and treating the water of polluted tributaries and stagnant pools, it was seldem necessary to treat the river directly. Previously to the treatment of the water with copper sulphate only upon rare occasions was the water free from colon bacilli, but after the treatment was begun, from the 19th day of August to the 30th day of December, daily tests showed that the water was free of colon bacilli. During the heavy rainfall in the latter part of December, samples were taken from the hydrant tap at regular intervals of two hours both day and night. Notwithstanding the months of dry weather which pre- 40 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. ceded the rainfall, the colon bacilli were present for a period not longer than sixteen hours. The treatment, which was begun and continued without the knowledge of the city authorities, was ordered stopped on January 5, 1905, after the daily papers published glaring accounts of the dangers attendant upon such treatment. To allay the fears — of the: people, five employees of the health department took daily for thirty days | three-tenths of a grain of copper sulphate without any signs of discomfort or — symptoms whatever. . During the month of August there were npanaedl to the health office 52 cases of typhoid fever; September, 16 cases; October, 16 cases; November, 8 cases; Decem- ber, 17 cases, only 4 of which used city water; January, 1905, 91 cases; February, 376 cases. In January, 1905, not until the 14th was a single case reported that could be attributed to the use of the city water. On that day 3 were reported; on the 16th, 3; on the 18th, 3; on the 20th, 1; on the 21st, 3; on the 23d, 3; on the 24th, 14. From this date on the cases have averaged over 10 each day. No copper sulphate has been used since January 5, 1905. The following tabulation of the data contained in the above report will perhaps show the results of the work more clearly: Statement of typhoid cases reported in Columbus, Ohio, showing relation to use and nonuse of copper in the water supply. Typhoid Month. cases re- ported. No CORBEE 1b E025 0 Lyla Se et a OES Se Bl Lele Ay seer a Wh SA JUNC 2c eee ee 24 Ba ok SNe Ce ee eee bes asso nsdedss es ceeite st cah- sepeert: «feck sees July). 4. ee eee 33 ponder Used jatteralOt hese certs osc ee cee cease Senate ee eee eee August s<2- 2 acme 52 COPPET USE eo Ase ames wie iain ale = web aiae bie otters Mee ESSE rare. toe aioe September.......- 16 DOS ee sie ccaeswas eee ek + eee ciodtlace ua Se dagae See aaa oe eee October. 25 2--e0 16 1D) OF Sree iat oe eee tate ccna ia natn sia a stare oie encanto eae ee November :...---- 8 DGS 2k Fe hide eee hee ssties sicceecs sel ee SQL eA eae. Se December <.3..232 a4 Copperidiscontinue digtter OUD oe ose. one cen emcee arent nee JaANUaLy 2-22 oanew “al No ‘copper ised 2325. se asen woe sct los Ua s owospebe acces canes ee eaten dae Oee February. 2. -sgs25 376 DO eae crepe ames tec inieinia Seo tesa apn seas cinitee ae ee nee ee To Marcel 27-2a-5 279 a17 cases were reported, but only 4 were users of city water. In connection with the results obtained at Columbus should be — mentioned the treatment of the water supply at Albuquerque, N. Mex. This was reported upon by John Weinzirl, city chemist, as follows: I desire to inform you that we used your copper sulphate treatment in the reser- voir of our city water supply this summer with good results. This reservoir was full of algze, and the water-supply company could not clearit beforecertain improyve- ments in their plant were installed. The flavor of the water was rank; but two treatments made a great improvement, though the water was rendered cloudy by the partly decomposed organisms. We applied the treatment late in July and in August. During October we had a small epidemic of typhoid, perhaps 50 cases; the water supply was again treated with copper sulphate, and within three weeks the epidemic ended. I might add that during the first treatment the bacterial content of the water fell to one-fourth the original number. STERILIZATION OF WATER BY MEANS OF METALLIC COPPER. The effect of metallic copper upon Bacillus typhi in water is of considerable importance. For small amounts of water it has been found convenient and desirable in many cases to guard against bacterial STERILIZATION BY MEANS OF METALLIC COPPER. 41 contamination by employing copper tanks, and where frequent boiling can not be resorted to the use of copper may be regarded as the only possible safeguard. In some cases this may not be absolute, for our experiments upon water from various places and the experiments of other investigators show that the chemical constitution of the water under consideration is of the greatest importance. Water that con- tains a very large amount of matter in suspension is perhaps the most difficult to sterilize. Under these conditions twenty-four to forty-eight hours at room temperature would probably be necessary for complete sterilization through the agency of metallic copper tanks; on the other hand, metallic copper in water containing a large amount of organic acid, or free acid of any sort, would destroy all typhoid bacilli in two or three hours at the most. Complete sterilization is a standard to which even the best filters seldom attain, and under the-.most unfavorable conditions the reduction in the number of bacteria in water exposed to the action of metallic copper for twelve hours will be approximately as great as in a filtered water. The copper must be kept clean, not, as is popularly supposed, to protect the consumer from copper poisoning, but because it is possible for the metal to become so coated with foreign substances that there is no longer any contact of copper and water, and hence no antiseptic action. An interesting corroborative fact is the antiseptic property of cop- per coins. Lately considerable work has been done on this problem by the department of health of the city of New York,@ and, as was to be expected, it was found that copper and nickel coins smeared with cultures of pathogenic bacteria, such as Bacillus diphtheriae, were com- pletely sterile ina few hours, and that the same was true to a less degree of silver coins. In a recent article, Dr. Henry Kraemer reviews the applicability of the germicidal power of copper to drinking water, and his results with the Philadelphia water show that standing four hours in the presence of copper foil completely destroyed both Bacillus typhi and Bacillus coli. Doctor Kraemer’s conclusions are quoted below: ” In filtration processes it is generally understood that both typhoid and colon organisms are the first to be eliminated, and without waiting to make a systematic study of the organisms which persist as well as those which are killed in the copper treatment of water, I thought it well to test the method by using water containing these organisms alone. As results depend in some measure upon the method used, I will try to outline my method before giving my results. 1. Water under three different conditions was employed: («) Distilled water which was prepared from tap water by first treating it with potassium permanganate and then distilling it two or three times by means of apparatus constructed entirely of @ Report of Dr. Wm. H. Park, March 1, 1904. >Henry Kraemer. The Efficiency of Copper Foil in Destroying Typhoid and Colon Bacilli in Water. American Medicine, February 18, 1905, Vol. IX, No. 7, p. 275. 42 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. glass; (6) filtered tap water, prepared by means of a Berkefeld filter attached to a copper spigot; (c) tap water, collected after being allowed to run through a copper spigot for five minutes. All of these were sterilized in an autoclave at 110° for thirty minutes. 2. The cultures of typhoid and colon which were used were pure cultures developed in bouillon for eighteen hours to twenty-four hours. I may say that every single experiment which we haveconducted * * * shows that copper foil is exceeding toxic to colon and typhoid bacilli, particularly the latter. It will be seen by consulting the tables that in the filtered ee to which no cop- per foil had been added, the typhoid organisms did not grow and multiply as was the case with the tap water and distilled water, although there was a larger number of organisms to begin with. This also applies in a measure to the colon bacilli, with which there is a very marked inhibiting action in those growing in the filtered water. ; At first I was inclined to attribute this diminution in the number of the organisms to minute traces of copper in the flasks, but subsequent experiments showed that this was not the case. I am, therefore, inclined to attribute these rather anomalous results to the presence of extremely small quantities of copper dissolved by the water in its necessarily slow passage through the copper spigot to which the filter was attached. This is a phase of the problem to which I am devoting my attention at present, as it certainly opens up an interesting side of this subject. Even granting the efficiency of the boiling of water for domestic purposes, I believe that the copper-treated water is more natural and more healthful, inasmuch as the various inorganic constituents, particularly the salts of calcium and magnesium, are in a more soluble and assimilable condition, being furthermore less concentrated, at the same time the natural gases of the water being retained. From the experiments thus far conducted the following conclusions may be drawn: 1. The intestinal bacteria, like colon and typhoid, are completely destroyed by Eeeue clean copper foil in the water containing them. . The effects of colloidal copper and copper sulphate in the purification of drinking Ww He are in a quantitative sense much like those of filtration, only the organisms are completely destroyed. 3. Pending the introduction of the copper treatment of water on a large scale the householder may avail himself of a method for the purification of drinking water by the use of strips of copper foil about 33 inches square to each quart of water, this being allowed to stand over night, or from six to eight hours, at the ordinary tem- perature, and then the water drawn off or the copper foil removed. Doctor Pennington, of Philadelphia, has reported” results of the board of health laboratory, showing complete sterilization of infected tap water within fifteen minutes by means of copper foil. Rideal and Baines’ have carried on some experiments concerning the germicidal effect of copper. Evidently they added too much of the culture to be tested to the treated water. The high concentra- tions required according to their tables to produce complete sterility can be explained only by the presence of considerable amounts of albuminoid matter, and under these circumstances the condition is comparable to sterilizing sewage rather than sterilizing drinking water. a At a meeting of the Washington ieaeme of Sciences, January, 1905. oS. Rideal and E. Baines. The Suggested Use of Copper Drinking Vessels as a Prophylactic against Waterborne Typhoid. Journal of the Sanitary Institute, XXV, 1904. COPPER SUPPLEMENTING THE USE OF FILTERS. 43 Their experiments with metallic copper, though too few to be them- selves at all conclusive, are entirely in accord with the results of the Laboratory of Plant Physiology as formerly published. COPPER IN THE DISPOSAL OF SEWAGE. In connection with the sterilization of water by means of copper the possibility of using this metal in the sanitary disposal of sewage should be mentioned. This is well described by Rideal,“ from whom we quote: The soluble salts of copper have a distinctly poisonous action on bacteria. They coagulate albumen and combine with most of the organic acids present to form non- putrescible salts. They absorb sulphureted hydrogen, ammonia, and compound ammonias, and therefore combine with ‘‘ptomaines.’”’ In fact, copper salts rank next to mercury in power as antiseptics. * * * * * * * Kroncke ? contended that, for sewage treatment, compounds having a great affinity for sulphur should yield the best results. He has experimented with cuprous chlo- ride as being a salt which fulfills this condition, is readily prepared, very easily remoyed from solutions, and becomes much less poisonous when oxidized. He used the following method for the purification of water: Cuprous chlorid amounting to one twenty-thousandth of the liquid to be treated, and ferrous sulphate (as far as possi- ble free from ferric) to the extent of one fifty-thousandth, are mixed with the water. After six hours one one hundred-thousandth part of lime is added, and agitated for one hour. After settling for one anda half hours, and filtration through sand, the water, which originally contained 40,000 to 50,000 organisms per cubic centimeter, was found to be completely sterilized, clear, almost colorless, and free from iron and copper. The sand filter can be used a long time without cleansing. Schumburg ¢ reports that a water treated with cuprous chlorid solution and then with lime was free from germs after six hours. COPPER SUPPLEMENTING THE USE OF FILTERS. It appears from the examination of a considerable number of filters in this country that the officials in charge of municipal waterworks are not justified in assuming that filtration is the absolute guarantee against a disease-laden water that it is popularly supposed to be. The number of unavoidable accidents which are known to occur in properly managed filters, to say nothing of the willful and some- times criminal methods resorted to in order to bring the supply of water up to the daily demand, are factors which are not generally considered by the public. The mere fact that filters are installed seems to warrant neglect of the source of the water, and as a mistake or an accident usually can not be detected by the public until the death rate increases markedly, filtration as administered in a consid- erable number of cases has resulted in a condition more dangerous @Rideal. Disinfection and the Preservation of Food, New York, 1903; pp. 156, 157. bJour. fiir Gasbeleucht, XXXVI, 513. eChem. Centr., 1900, II, 203. 44 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. than if no filter existed. The sooner that it becomes generally known that any sort of filtration is a most delicate process, depending upon skilled manipulation for maximum efficiency, the better it will be both for filtration and the consumer of water. That it is not an unheard of practice to force considerably larger quantities of water through a sand filter than it can possibly free from disease germs (even resort- ing to spading over the sand to hasten the flow) ought to be understood by all those using such water. The direct pumping of polluted river water into the filtered water for the purpose of making up the daily supply has been resorted to, and the occurrence of breaks in storage basins, conduits, etc., has more than once afforded opportunities for the dangerous contamination of the filtered water. At the present time the only known method of immediately render- ing a contaminated water supply safe and keeping it so until the source of pollution is removed seems to be the use of copper. This treatment is not designed to supplant efficient filtration, however, and should never be expected to take its place. The use of copper for removing a temporary contamination is necessarily a remedy and should be used as such. As much care is demanded of the sanitary engineer or biologist in determining the necessity for treatment and the proper quantity to be used as is demanded of a doctor in determining the dose for a sick person. A pure water should not be treated, just as a well person should not take medicine. The existing methods of sewage disposal and water purification are particularly unfortunate. To deliberately contaminate a water and then try to purify it seems ridiculous, yet this is precisely what is now being done in a number of communities. The ultimate solution of the problem of water supply must depend upon proper sewage disposal as well as the proper care and policing of the watersheds and wells. Until this revolution of methods shall have taken place, the makeshifts—filtration, and treating with copper—are the only remedies applicable on a large scale. COPPER TREATMENT AND FILTRATION AT ANDERSON, IND. By the invitation of Mr. C. Arthur Brown, sanitary engineer of the American Steel and Wire Company, acting at the time as the repre- sentative of the Jewel Filtration Company, and through the courtesy of the officials of Anderson, Ind., the Laboratory of Plant Physiology was enabled to undertake a series of experiments upon the effect of copper treatment of water in connection with mechanical filtration. The filter plant had been recently completed, and these experiments were carried on at the time of the preliminary testing of the efficiency of the filters.* The water supply at Anderson, Ind., offered excep- a ‘atBeofestoe Burrage, eater it sanitary science at Purdue University, was retained by the city of Anderson as its representative, as well as Dr. S. C. Norris, city chemist and bacteriologist. Mr. Brown acted as the representative of the filtration company. TREATMENT AND FILTRATION AT ANDERSON, IND. 45 tional opportunities for demonstrating the efficiency of copper in removing intestinal bacteria. The water is drawn from the White River, into which the city of Muncie empties its entire sewage. There are no falls or rapids in the 25 miles separating these two cities, and during the entire four weeks of the test conducted on the use of copper in connection with filtration the river was icebound, making a closed conduit for the diluted sewage from Muncie and the smaller towns still farther up the river. The water was very high in albuminoid and free ammonia, and exceptionally high in chlorin, due to the salt water from the gas field above Muncie. The turbidity was very low and the color slight. Fortunately for the thorough testing of the value of copper, the filters, owing to some structural defects, were unable to effect a high percentage reduction of bacteria at this time. The number of bacteria in the river ranged from 13,000 to 155,000 per cubic centimeter at irregular intervals during the four weeks’ test, usually remaining above 50,000. The number of bacteria in the filtered water varied between 15,000 and 400 per cubic centi- meter, usually remaining above 3,000. For ten days, February 2-11, 1905, alum was used as a coagulant, but for water of this character it seemed impossible to get a preper coagu- lation with 1, 2, or 3 grains of alum per gallon, either with or without the addition of lime. acil/us coli was always present in the river water and usually in the filtered water, and was identified by gas forma- tion, reduction of neutral red, proportion of carbon dioxid, growth on milk, potato, gelatin, litmus agar, and formation of indol. On February 11, instead of aluminum sulphate, iron sulphate containing 1 per cent of copper sulphate was introduced in quantities of 13 grains per gallon of water.“ Lime was added, 2 grains per gallon. The treat- ment was continued four days, and during that time only once was there any indication of the presence of £4. cold in fermentation tubes inocu- lated with 1 c.c. samples of filtered water, and this occurred immedi- ately after a leak developed in the air pipe of the washing system that allowed unfiltered water to pass into the pipes. On the 15th of Febru- ary, the amount of iron sulphate containing 1 per cent of copper sul- phate was raised to 43 grains per gallon. This quantity was found to be too great, and at midnight the amount of the coagulant was reduced to 24 grains.” The valve controlling the iron solution caught on this change and for nearly an hour no iron or copper was applied to the raw water. This allowed polluted water to reach the clear well, and at the next washing the filters were again contaminated, and samples from two of them developed typical Bacillus coli. The following five days @0.015 grain copper sulphate per gallon—approximately 1 part of copper sulphate to 4,000,000 parts of water. » 0.0225 grain copper sulphate per gallon—approximately 1 part of copper sulphate to 2,500,000 parts of water. 46 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. B. coli developed but once, and this was immediately following the reappearance of the leak in the air pipe. Iron sulphate containing one-half per cent copper sulphate was now applied at the rate of 1.5 grains” per gallon; Baczllus coli was elimi- nated during the two days that this mixture was used. Iron sulphate containing only one-fourth per cert copper sulphate’ was substituted during one day. This amount was insufficient to eradicate completely the B. coli, and two of the filter samples contained this organism. Pure iron sulphate was then used at the rate of 3 grains per gallon, and Bacillus coli developed from samples of each filter. Iron sulphate containing 1 per cent copper sulphate was substituted for the greater part of the pure iron salt, and in the following samples no B. cold developed in the filtered water. ; From the preceding experiments there seems to be no doubt that the filtering of polluted water of this character through the layer of coagulum of iron and copper which forms on the filter bed brings the bacteria borne in the water into contact with the precipitated copper for a sufficient length of time to destroy Bacillus coli, and as Bacillus typhi is still more sensitive to the action of copper it too must neces- sarily be removed from the filtered water. The last samples of the test have been omitted from previous dis- cussion, as the point illustrated by them is of an entirely separate character. Shortly before these samples were taken, ten gallons of a bouillon culture of Bacillus prodigiosus were introduced into the feed pipe of the filters, and the following and last samples all showed Bacillus coli present. This emphasizes the fact brought out in a for- mer bulletin’ that the toxicity of copper sulphate is greatly reduced if the amount of organic and albuminoid matter is greatly increased. A proper comprehension of the constitution of a water is therefore necessary for successfully treating to remove bacteria, just as it is desirable for treating to remove alge. It should be reiterated that the results of investigators with refer- ence to the germicidal action of copper in bouillon, milk, or solid media are not comparable to results upon the toxic action of copper in water of ordinary purity. Nor can results obtained with unknown organisms, nor results obtained with Bacillus anthracis, Bacillus tetanus, and such spore-forming resistant bacteria be compared with results obtained with Bacillus typhi and Microspira comma. One of the objections to the use of copper sulphate in water sup- plies has been that there was a chance of appreciable amounts of «0.0075 grain copper sulphate per gallon—approximately 1 part of copper sulphate to 8,000,000 parts of water. »0.00375 grain copper sulphate per gallon—approximately 1 part of copper sulphate to 15,000,000 parts of water. ¢ Bulletin No. 64, Bureau of Plant Industry, p. 29. TREATMENT AND FILTRATION AT ANDERSON, IND. 47 copper reaching the consumer. Considering the harmlessness of copper, this is a theoretical rather than a practical objection, and is answered in the present instance. The copper is all precipitated and the insoluble coagulum of iron and copper is caught upon the filters. Table showing the presence or absence of Bacillus coli per cubic centimeter in samples from various sources at Anderson, Ind. - | e/a Pee) laces See | Chemicals applied (in grains per gallon) and time of s ls 2 S sampling. = = e | a alt : TSN leg Ie ain UE 1) ee ecg We Aljale le |e la! & 1 grain alum: | ; a.M..) + a5 a5 te + + + CONDO Uni Zt So Se ee p.m.. + i: yee 2 bs Pee a.m.. : + == + + - 4. SPOWEIBEY 3 ---= ~~ --- == w= --2-nwen ns eennceenness 1: ce) 1 EP Eg RT eae Poet eas ee oe aemuusealum: Webruary 4, a& M....-.....2...-.-.-.------- + | + — =— ae — + 3 grains alum: Che U iL ch, Tia ee ee + + = _ ~ -- — Fhep 1 ee se = as as i = 0 EE eC ae ie “rie || US UGA dR ea ee et ip a.m...) + — ~ — ~ ~ February 6....---.+.-++-+-++2seeeeee seer sree ie iiea|, as e a ae i. ay = - a.m...) + == 35 + aie =F t February OF 25 SEES SOE SO ae ie hee a _ = _ — / a a.m...) + + = = = = 35 February 8-...----..------++--++-+++++2+- 2225+ ie meet oe a: = — = Bre ee Ries PMNS OIIN 2 2 2s. 5 SS wt cla decmces oi ccesasecce +) + — + + — {| — 2 grains alum: | LSE TE = a — _ -- ~ = | es | CS URIS LD Tra. A ee rr 4. + — + +} + + 1i grains alum, 2 grains lime: B Ne ERED RIE SS? os oon aos ae cae eesaeccec-tececse -- — — + + | + Pee E Ss Sate oi ; February penn cease ee ae es en) tee lor AAO : ye a iron sulphate, 0.00375 grain copper sulphate, 1 grain | ime: a.m. + | — _ =) sede - - ~nacaiactd Ae Ps ode du SIs oc dade Succ tb wes p.m. emer |! [mere 7 3 grains iron sulphate, 1 grain lime: a el ee i me pit ee Binal |e re ote . . -_~ T | a a Dw 9 3 grains iron sulphate, 0.03 grain coppersulphate: Febru- | | | ol. ll 936 ae ree ee eee + “ ae : — |eseeee aThe presence of Bacillus coli in filter No. 3 on February 12 and 16 is due to a leak which deyel- oped in the air wash pipe, allowing unfiltered water to pass into the pipes. +The amount of iron sulphate was raised to 4} grains at 6 p. m. on February 15, but this was too much for the filters to accommodate, and at midnight the amount was reduced to 2} grains; at this time the valve stuck and for some time no iron or copper was introduced into the water. This allowed contaminated water to pass the filters, and at the next washing the contaminated water from the clear well again contaminated the filters, and near enough the time of sampling to show Bacillus coli in t yo of the samples. 48 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. OBJECTIONS TO THE USE OF COPPER SULPHATE. During the past year several articles have appeared, some of a more or less alarmist nature, containing adverse criticism of the copper sul- phate method of treating reservoirs. In some instances the efficiency of the method is questioned; in others, objection has apparently orig- inated in the prejudice which obtains in some quarters, due to the supposed ill effects upon the human system of the absorption of small quantities of copper. In view of the year’s experience in practical applications of the treatment, nothing need be said further in behalf of its efficiency. The existence of conditions which might make treatment with cop- per undesirable is not overlooked, but, so far as is known, these are peculiar to certain localities and of a nature which presents difficulty from the engineering rather than the hygienic standpoint. The appearance of. resistant forms after the, removal of the pollut- ing organism by means of dilute solutions of copper sulphate has been mentioned by engineers as possibly producing a worse condition than that previously existing in the water. Certainly such an objection would have been worthy of careful consideration had it been raised before an opportunity had occurred to test the efficiency of copper sulphate as an algicide. Experience with all water supplies treated, however, proves that such a difficulty is not to be feared and that the destruction of the alge is so rapid as to prevent the evolution of simi- larly contaminating forms resistant to copper. The case which has been under observation for the longest time is that at Ben, Va., where, in January, 1902, cress beds were treated for the eradication of Spirogyra. Conditions were such as to be unusually fayorable for the development of the alge, and certainly if a form resistant to copper could be produced under natural conditions it would have appeared here. After the first treatment was made | several subsequent applications of copper im diminishing quantities * were resorted to, but the alge, instead of being more difficult to eradicate, were easier and easier to kill, and in a recent letter Mr. Moomaw, proprietor of the cress beds, states that the algee have been completely destroyed and no other form has appeared. OPINIONS OF TOXICOLOGISTS UPON THE EFFECT OF COPPER SULPHATE. In a few instances objection has been made to the use of copper sul- phate, even in the minute quantities shown to be efficient for the pur- pose of sterilizing water. Some authors have held that anything which would destroy algz and bacteria would likewise kill man,“ while others have maintained that nothing is known of the effect of the « Medical Bulletin, October, 1904. OPINIONS OF TOXICOLOGISTS. 49 infinitesimal dose which might be administered.* The opinions of eminent toxicologists seem fully to answer both the violent objections and the conservative doubts as to the possible injurious effect upon the human system of copper thus used. The literature relating to the harmlessness of copper is so volumi- nous as to make it impossible even to refer to most of it, but a few of the more recent articles upon the subject are quoted in order that the authorities who may desire to improve the character of the water supply under their control may have the benefit of the experiments of those who have investigated the effect of this metal upon man and other animals. Dr. Henry Kraemer, in an article in the American Journal of Phar- macy, December, 1904, wrote as follows: The toxic influence of even very minute quantities of colloidal copper and of copper sulphate on certain micro-organisms having been pretty well established, the only other question of importance that arises in connection with their use for the purification of water supplies containing pathogenic organisms and alge is the one as to their effects on man. Inasmuch as this phase of the question is dependent upon physicians and pharmacologists for its elucidation, the editor of this journal has asked several members of the medical profession to discuss it. It is to the credit of the medical profession that while some of those asked to con- tribute to this discussion have more or less positive convictions on the subject, others have been frank to say that their observations and experience in this line of investigation have not been sufficient to warrant them in giving an opinion at this time. One pharmacologist writes: ‘‘As I understand the purification method, the quantities of copper remaining in solution are so extremely small that they would scarcely be harmful.’’ Another eminent pharmacologist writes that when he was consulted by a city official to give an opinion as to whether 1 part of copper in 1,000,000 parts of water would be harmful, he replied that, ‘‘Assuming for purposes of argument that the copper remains in solution and is not deposited or rendered insoluble, this small quantity could not be harmful to our citizens, even if they drank such water fora few days, since our ordinary food, as bread, meat, ete., all contain from 2 to 3 parts in the million. Some tissues, like the liver, contain as high as 30 parts in the million.”’ Up to the time of going to press replies were also received from Doctor Hare, pro- fessor of materia medica and therapeutics in the Jefferson Medical College, and from Doctor Holland, dean and professor of medical chemistry and toxicology in Jefferson Medical College. Their replies are as follows: My Dear Proressor Kraemer: In reply to your note let me state that small doses of copper exercise, so far as is known, a stimulant effect upon nutritional processes. I do not think that we have any information in regard to the infinitesimal quantities which are present in water when treated by the copper method, but it is incredible that they could exercise any deleterious influence. Certainly the improbable dele- terious influence of infinitesimal quantities of copper when compared to the certain evil influence of micro-organisms amounts to nothing. Very truly yours, y x. H. A. Hare. PHILADELPHIA, November 14, 1904. a@American Medicine, November 12, 1904. 50 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. Mr. Henry KRAEMER, Editor of American Journal of Pharmacy. Dear Sir: In this paper on purification of water by copper I think that Doctor Moore shows conclusively that water supplies can be freed of pathogenic bacteria and algze promptly, cheaply, and efficiently by that means. The question remaining to be answered is, Can this purification be done with entire safety to those drinking the water? Until comparatively recent times it has been thought that the slow introduction ot minute doses of copper was injurious to the tissues by causing such pathological changes as are known to be due to certain other metallic poisons, such as lead, arsenic, and mercury. But Bernatzic has proven that to produce toxic phenomena with cop- per salts it must be given freely and intentionally, and even then the subject spon- taneously recovers when the administration ceases. When a student of medicine I was made aware of the harmlessness of :copper sulphate in small doses. Quinine was very expensive then, and in the dispensary practice of a malarious region some cheaper substitute was needed. Hundreds of cases were treated with a combi- nation of the sulphates of cinchonine, iron, and copper. About one-eighth of a grain of sulphate of copper was given several times daily in this routine prescription for a tonic and antiperiodic. I do not remember that any untoward symptoms developed, though they were not unexpected, as the books then taught that copper salts were irritants. So they are, but only in doses much larger than one-eighth of a grain. We saw no cumulative effects. Lehmann and his pupils found that a man could take 1 to 2 grains of cop- per as sulphate and acetate daily in peas and beans divided into two meals without effect. The highest sanitary authorities appointed to investigate this matter have reported that ‘‘copper in the amounts found in canned goods is not capable of injury to health.”’ ; Metallic copper is not a poison. Surgeons have used copper wire for suturing wounds without noticing local irritation; children swallow copper pennies daily without injury to the digestive tract. As copper is present in almost all our food it is not surprising to learn that each of us takes daily about one milligram of copper, and that it is found regularly in our tissues. I see no reason to fear copper it the amounts never exceed the small proportion stated by Doctor Moore as entirely ade- quate for the purification of water supplies. J. W. Houuanp. PHILADELPHIA, November 15, 1904. Dr. A. R. Cushney, in his Treatise on Pharmacology and Thera- peutics,” writes: Small quantities of copper may be taken for indefinite periods without any symp- toms being induced, so that so far as man is concerned the general action of copper is unknown. * * * On the other hand, copper is a deadly poison to several of the lower plants. Thus, traces of copper added to the water in which they live, destroy some of the simpler algz, and Naegeli asserts that 1 part of copper in 1,000,000,000 parts of water is sufficient to kill these plants. * * * Locke found that the traces of copper contained in water distilled in copper vessels were sufficient to destroy Tubifex (one of the annelid worms) and tadpoles, while Bucholtz states that the development of bacteria is stopped by a solution of copper sulphate under 1 per cent in strength. Copper thus seems to have a very powerful poisonous action on certain living forms and to be harmless to others, and the subject deserves further investigation. It is possible that it may prove to act prejudicially to some human parasites, and it is certainly less dangerous to man than many other remedies used as parasiticides and disinfectants. « Pharmacology and Therapeutics, New York, 1899, p. 159. MEDICINAL USE OF COPPER. 51 Dr. R. A. Witthaus“ has published a similar opinion: The opinion, formerly universal among toxicologists, that all the compounds of cop- per are poisonous has been much modified by later researches. Certain of the copper compounds, such as sulphate, having a tendency to combine with protein and other animal substances, produce symptoms of irritation by their direct local action when brought in contact with the gastric or intestinal mucous membrane. One of the characteristic symptoms of such irritation is the vomiting of a greenish matter, which develops a blue color upon the addition of NH,HO. Cases are not wanting in which severe illness, and even death, has followed the use of food which has been in contact with imperfectly tinned copper vessels. Cases in which nervous and other symptoms referable to a truly poisonous action have occurred. As, however, it has also been shown that nonirritant, pure copper com- pounds may be taken in considerable doses with impunity, it appears at least prob- able that the poisonous action attributed to copper is due to other substances. The tin and solder used in the manufacture of copper utensils contain lead, and in some cases of so-called copper poisoning the symptoms have been such as are as consistent with lead poisoning as with copper poisoning. Copper is also notoriously liable to contamination with arsenic, and it is by no means improbable that compounds of that element are the active poisonous agents in some cases of supposed copper intox- ication. Nor is it improbable that articles of food allowed to remain exposed to air in copper vessels should undergo those peculiar changes which result in the formation of poisonous substances, such as the sausage or cheese poisons, or the ptomaines. MEDICINAL USE OF COPPER. The probable medical value of copper in treating typhoid and related diseases was suggested in the former bulletin. Salts of this metal have been used for many years in treating dysentery, and in one instance at least diphtheria has been treated with copper sulphate with remarkable success. The use of copper in treating typhoid fever was reported upon by Dr. Lucien F. Salomon, of New Orleans.’ We quote from recent letters from Doctor Salomon, as follows: Two years ago I published the results of my experience claiming to cure typhoid fever with the arsenite of copper. Subsequent experience in its use confirms the claim then made. ‘I use the word ‘‘cure’’ because within seventy-two hours after beginning its administration in a given case, what was a severe case of typhoid becomes converted into a simple benign fever, and the patient recovers in ten or twelve days. (May 10, 1904.) I have clinical records of a number of cases treated with arsenite of copper since the publication of my article, all of which show the same good result. (June 11, 1904. ) As has been shown in Bulletin No. 64 of the Bureau of Plant Indus- try, the toxic effect of copper upon cholera germs is even greater than upon typhoid bacilli. The following account of some practical experience with the effect of copper upon cholera bears out this laboratory’s experiments, and «The Medical Students’ Manual of Chemistry, New York, 1902, p. 207. >The published article appeared in the New Orleans Medical and Surgical Journal for June, 1902. 52 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. there are numerous instances in this country where the beneficial effect of some form of copper upon cholera epidemics has been observed: Dr. Arthur de Noé Walker, in a pamphlet entitled ‘‘The Prophy- lactic Power of Copper in Epidemic Cholera” (London, 18837), wrote as follows: ° When the following facts receive the attention they deserve Asiatic cholera will cease to destroy mankind. In the year 1849, and again in 1851, Tuscany was ravaged by a severe epidemic of Asiatic cholera, and for the sixth time I had every opportunity of observing and studying this, perhaps, the most fatal disease of modern times. While noting down some of the observations published by Professor Betti on both epidemics, the follow- ing paragraphs were particularly remarked and transcribed: I believe I ought not to conclude the history of the epidemic of Asiatic cholera that afflicted the city of Prato and the adjacent country without saying a few words about a particular industry car- ried on in the vicinity of that city, and state the effects of the same on the workmen. It is well known that in the valley of the Bisenzio, distant only 4 miles from Prato, and precisely at a place called La Briglia, are the furnaces where the copper ore excavated from Mount Romboli issmelted. With the object of bringing to light the influence that process might have on the dis- ease, I deemed it opportune to institute certain special investigations, and having interested the government authorities on the subject, the following intelligence was obtained: The workmen engaged at the smelting furnaces at La Briglia, in the valley of the Bisenzio, when the epidemic broke out in Prato and in the adjacent country, were 58, which number, added to the individuals composing their respective families living within a radius of about 3 miles from the furnaces, made up a total of 150 souls. Among all those individuals, not only no case of real Asiatic cholera, but not even a sporadic case, nor a case of cholerine, occurred. I was, moreover, assured that not one of them was affected by even the slight gastric and intestinal disturbance so common in those living in localities attacked by the deadly malady, although they— the workmen and their families—live in damp situations along the Bisenzian torrent. Their diet is that of all ordinary laborers. The value of this fact was, in my estimation, at once doubled by another, noted by Professor Betti. He states that the disease attacked, and in every instance proyed fatal, to many living in the valley of the Bisenzio and in the neighborhood of the smelters’ families, but that those so attacked and succumbed had, direetly or indi- rectly, nothing whatever to do with the furnaces nor with any of ‘the workmen employed in smelting the ore. I must here note, on evidence I have myself collected, that one workman, thor- oughly inquinated and haying his person and garments dusted over by a prophylac- tic agent, consequent, e. g., on a sufficiently long attendance at a smelting furnace, becomes an efficient means or vehicle whereby all the members of his household may become protected by that same agent. This was assumed the moment the professor’s observations were read. Thus, conversely, an accoucheur, or a monthly nurse that has.attended a case of puerperal fever, fatal or not, is liable to affect scores of other women. Some contagia frequently are, as is well known, conveyed by one healthy individual to many others; and it was simply inferred that if contagious matter can thus pass from one person to many, it was not at least unlikely thata prophylactic agent might likewise pass from one member to others of the same family. Observations I need not here detail have proved to me that the assumption enter- tained when Betti’s observation was read is now no longer an hypothesis. ? Workmen engaged at smelting furnaces, or otherwise employed in working the metal, become thoroughly impregnated with the ore, which adheres all over the «Written twenty years previously. Published with a few additions in 1883. > ‘On the Effects of Copper upon the System.’’ Proceedings of the Clinical Soci- ety of London. Vol. 3. MEDICINAL USE OF COPPER. 53 common integument. An appreciable quantity may be easily obtained by burning some of the hair of men constantly engaged in smelting the ore. Aiter reading Professor Betti’s observations every available means and opportunity was sought with the object of ascertaining whether the same immunity could be verified at other establishments where copper was worked in any sort of way. The result proved that not one person habitually engaged in working copper had been attacked by cholera, not even among those whose work simply consisted in polishing the metal. The indefatigable Frenchman, Burq, has published a valuable work on the pre- ventive and curative action of copper in epidemic cholera, in which he honestly and courageously quotes Hahnemann, proving that he followed in the steps of that extraordinary genius. But Burq, while still a medical student attending lectures, spared no expense, no pains, no trouble, in order to prove this most important fact. He allowed nothing to deter or to discourage him—not even the insults of the Academy of Science and Medicine nor the slights of some physicians holding impor- tant appointments under the French Government. *‘One day,”’ he says, ‘“‘some private business led me to visit an important copper foundry in the Rue des Gravilliers. In the course of a casual conversation with one - of the workmen I learned that they, as well as all the inhabitants of the establishment, numbering about 200, had, in 1832, and again in 1849, been exempt from cholera. The fact of such complete immunity, although it might have been due to a mere fortuitous exception, greatly surprised me, and I asked myself if metals might not have other properties especially antagonistic to cholera besides those I had discovered. Nevertheless, I soon began to lose sight of the fact, when a similar observation, with a sort of pertinacious tenacity, again presented itself to my notice, and notably in connection with other copper foundries situated in the same street, where from 400 to 500 workmen and others occupying the premises had, one and all, been absolutely free from the disease. This strange and all-important immunity could not, I reflected, be due to the healthiness of the district or to the exceptionally healthy state of the houses, all of which, without exception, were as poor as those generally selected for foundries of any kind. Neither could it be ascribed, as I have said, to the good hygienic condition of the inhabitants generally nor to the exceptionally low mortality of the neighboring habitations. It became, therefore, impossible for us to look upon this complete immunity simply as a coincidence, and from that moment I allowed myself no rest nor respite until I had proven without a shadow ofa doubt this peculiar property of copper—a property I had hitherto based on a mere supposition. In order to obtain this important result, as I said in 1853, I gave myself up and devoted myself to pursue a vast inquiry, of which the following are the chiet results: “In Paris, I personally visited 400 workshops, and other places where metals are worked; from the most modest, where four, five, or ten workmen are employed, to extensive establishments, where the workmen may be counted by hundreds, as may be done at Messrs. Cail & Cave’s establishment. I also visited the iron founderies in the suburbs of Saint Marceau and Saint Jacques, and the type foundry in the Rue Vangirard, the manufactories of Messrs. Lagoutte, Calla, Gouin, and Farcot. At Chapelle and Saint Ouen, the founderies of Messrs. Cail & Co.; at Chaillot and Grenelle; and the manufactory of castors in copper in the suburbs of Saint Antoine; and, finally, all the workers in bronze at Marais. I then put myself in communication with the presidents, treasurers, and secretaries of workmen’s unions, and likewise questioned the workmen themselves at their homes or lodgings. Con- temporaneously, I wrote to the proprietors, directors, and physicians of our chief manufactories, forges, wire makers, and metal beaters. To the mayors and magis- trates of towns where, as at l’Aigle and Villedieu, the inhabitants are almost all occupied in working metals, requesting them to give me information regarding the 54 COPPER IN WATER SUPPLIES. course and progress the epidemic had taken and made in their respective localities. Not satisfied with having obtained accurate information regarding a vast number of persons, I communicated with the English, Swedish, and Russian ambassadors, with Professors Huss, of Stockholm; Montferrand, of St. Petersburg (director of the Siberian mines belonging to Prince Demidoff), who afforded me information respect- ing no less than 46,500 miners of both sexes. Finally, I obtained information from the chief and most extensive metallurgic establishments in Europe, the cutlers of Sheffield, the copper refiners in the principality of Wales; the boiler makers oi Birmingham; the minesat Phalen of Linkepening, in Sweden; at Stolberg, at Silecia, and many others. And it was after a correspondence and inquiries of every kind, carried on for a period of five months, concerning a population of 200,000 souls, that we believed we had the right to address the Academy of Medicine and Sciences, in a memoir, concluding as follows: ‘I. Complete immunity from cholera of the immense majority of all workmen whose calling necessitates their being habitually in contact with copper dust. ‘TI. Copper and its alloys, brass and bronze, permanently applied to large sur- faces of the common integument, are a most precious preventive, which ought in no wise to be neglected and can cause no inconvenience. If these means leave some- thing to be desired as a prophylactic, it will probably be found expedient to reduce the metal to an impalpable powder and to ingest a few pinches. “JIT. In the treatment of cholera, copper, opportunely administered, whether in copper filing alone or in any other form which experience shall determine, affords the greatest probability of proving in the hands of the physician a powerful means of cure.”’ Doctor Clapton @ describes the ‘‘habitual lassitude and giddiness’’ of some of the laborers engaged in copper works, and more violent symptoms in two cases. From nis description all the laborers were evidently saturated with salts of the metal, yet disagreeable effects, even under such conditions, are undoubtedly rare. To quote more directly: “‘On the whole, I may say that the workmen are a healthy set of men. They do not suffer from any definite diseases, as do the workers in lead, arsenic, and mercury. ‘One very remarkable circumstance (of which I was first informed last year by Benham and Froude, Chandos street) was mentioned at each of the works, yiz, the absolute freedom of the workmen from cholera or even choleraic diarrhea. During each of the great cholera outbreaks there were terrible ravages in one or other of their neighborhoods, but not one of these men was in the slightest degree affected. “At all events, the immunity of this class of men from cholera is a remarkable and positive fact. I have fora long time made many inquiries in this matter, and can not as yet learn that a single case has occurred amongst them. “It seems to me, therefore, that in seasons of cholera some form of taking it in small quantities as a prophylactic might be devised with the utmost benefit—perhaps the sulphate of copper; it is not in any way injurious, even if it should do no good. Doctor Elliotson related the case of a patient who had taken sulphate of copper daily for three years, for a particular complaint, without its having produced any constitutional effect. ‘How is it that the effect of copper, even when inhaled for years, is comparatively so slight, and does not lead on to any special diseases? Probably, as I think, because the system can tolerate an excess of what is a natural constituent, however minute in quantity, infinitely better than it can the introduction of what is entirely foreign, such as lead, arsenic, and mercury; and in my opinion it has been clearly shown that copper is a natural constituent.’’ @ Edward Clapton, Clinical Society of London, Transactions, 3:7 (1870). SUMMARY. 55. CONCLUSION. Experience has demonstrated the practical value of copper sulphate as an agent for the purification of contaminated water, and it is believed that most of the important conditions likely to obtain have been encountered and successfully dealt with. Unsuspected features may arise, however, and more complete information on the influence of the chemical constitution and temperature of the water and on the recurrence of polluting organisms is very much to be desired. It is therefore urged that water engineers, sanitary engineers, and others who may be interested keep accurate records of treatments made and report any unusual cases that may present themselves. SUMMARY. During the summer of 1904 over 50 reservoirs were successfully treated for the removal of alge. From these results and from further experiments in the laboratory and elsewhere the following facts have been developed: Much less copper is required to eradicate alge from reservoirs than would be necessary to destroy alge under laboratory conditions. The effect of this metal upon fish is of considerable importance and requires more study. The physical and chemical constitution of a water are factors to be considered in determining the quantity of copper sulphate to use ina water supply. The elimination of polluting forms sometimes makes possible the development of other species, but so far these species have never been the cause of complaint. Asa result of the sudden destruction of great numbers of polluting alow fora few days immediately after treatment of a water supply there is sometimes an increase in odor and taste. The use of copper is an eflicient emergency method for sterilizing water contaminated with the bacillus of typhoid fever. Metallic copper offers a convenient and efficient means of sterilizing small amounts of water. Copper may be useful in the proper disposal of sewage. Copper is of great value as a supplement to filtration in case of accident or mismanagement. Under certain conditions copper may be used to great advantage in connection with filtration. There is no authentic record of fatal copper poisoning, and many of the best authorities do not consider copper a true poison; they hold that it is a natural constituent of the body, and in minute quantities has no effect upon man. The suggested medicinal use of copper in cholera, typhoid, and related diseases seems important. O Posy os oiao ; srt sane! ef fartton xe Sai pris Hae aren rAMs 5 a i Pciee7,' Lieve hates wien. (ib HOLE cig ee # aved. Cait GEA tal anil oo Matteo rhb $2 eis Nae Ateitiad since race!) i dpe 394i Suv Tins eer PV | . ‘ 4a SITES TELA ES rit TO ee ts! ThCTRY) oy ‘hin rion oe y . f ‘ at g 7 ee DMP iter DET MLE ONS “fie] DCe. tO OBEGS ‘te aF (pg a : AS . is eile jl Me t)e CU otT? ; , Ce se bopht Ji} Mi Tok idtog ik : 140% 7 suet it i) ai +44 "ort ted bevel es s ar sind; ta} PT sa Ti Vie a : errors pit ledt 24a lege | a + fe 4 A is ~ Pe : ii Wil Pea oe PLATE I. , Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of A Bul AVOCADO TREE, FREEHOLD, COSTA RICA. Peo, PEP Ake MeN Or AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY—BULLETIN NO. 77. B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau. THE AVOCADO, A SALAD FRUIT FROM THE TROPICS. BY G. N. COLLINS, ASSISTANT BOTANIST IN INVESTIGATIONS IN TrRopicaL AGRICULTURE. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. IssuED JuLy 5, 1905. WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1905. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. TT. - GALLOWAY, Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. - AxBeErt F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in Absence of Chief. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK V. CoviL_E, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. Sprtuman, Agrostologist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. G. B. Brackett, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A. J. Prerers, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. Corsert, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND. GROUNDS. E. M. Byrnes, Superintendent. J. E. RocKkwe tu, Editor. James E. Jones, Chief Clerk. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. SCIENTIFIC STAFF. FREDERICK V. CoviLue, Botanist. O. F. Coox, Botanist in Charge of Investigations in Tropical Agriculture. Ropney H. True, Physiologist, Drug and Medicinal Plant Investigations. Lyster H. Dewey, Botanist in Charge of Investigations of Fiber Plants. EpGar Brown, Botanist in Charge of Seed Laboratory. Car S. Scorretp, Botanist in Charge of Grain Grade Investigations. - G. N. Cotiins, Assistant Botanist, Tropical Agriculture. A. C. Crawrorp, Pharmacologist, Poisonous Plant Investigations. WiriraM E. Sarrorp, Assistant Curator, Tropical Agriculture. F. H. Hitiman, Assistant Botanist, Seed Herbarium. J. W. T. Duvet, Assistant, Seed Laboratory. W. F. Wieat, Assistant, Geographic Botany. W. O. RicutTMann, Pharmacognostical Expert. Avice HENKEL, Assistant, Drug and Medicinal Plant Investigations. W. W. SrockBerGeER, Expert, Drug and Medicinal Plant Investigations. 2 PETER OP TRANSMITTAL U. S. DeparTMENT or AGRICULTURE, Bureau or Prant Inpustry, OFrrice OF THE CHIEF, Washington, DP). C., December 3, 1904. Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith the manuscript of a technical paper entitled “The Avocado, a Salad Fruit from the Tropics,” and to recommend its publication as Bulletin No. 77 of the series of this Bureau. This paper was prepared by Mr. G. N. Collins, Assistant Botanist in Investigations in Tropical Agricul- ture, and has been submitted by the Botanist with a view to publi- cation. The eight half-tone illustrations are considered necessary to a com- plete understanding of the text of this bulletin. Respectfully, B. T. GaLtLoway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. James WILson, Secretary of Agriculture. 3 Bose ter by, The avocado is a tree native in Central and South America, where it has been cultivated by the aborigines since very ancient times. The large and usually pear-shaped fruit is not used as a fruit in the popular sense of that word, but as a salad. It is highly prized by those familiar with it in the American Tropics, and as its nature comes to be more widely understood in the United’ States its popu- larity increases. There is now a regular demand for it in our large cities. The long journey which the avocado must make between pro- ducer and northern consumer renders important the question of shipping qualities. But one type is known in Porto Rico, and this will not withstand shipment to New York except in cold storage. While accompanying Mr. O. F. Cook, of this Department, on expeditions to Mexico, Central America, and the West Indies for the study of coffee, rubber, and other tropical cultures, Mr. Collins has found that the varieties of the avocado are much more numerous and diverse than was hitherto supposed. In developing the culture of avocados it is important that these varieties be canvassed to secure the best types. Of particular interest are the remarkably thick- skinned avocados of Guatemala, which thus far appear to have escaped notice. These varieties promise to withstand shipment much better than anv of the thin-skinned forms now cultivated, and their introduction into Porto Rico will, it is hoped, aid materially in estab- jishing a profitable industry in that island. Mr. Collins’s report contains much information, acquired under his exceptionally favorable opportunities for observing the avocado, which will be useful to those interested in the culture, transportation, and marketing of this salad fruit. Freperick V. CoviLir, Potanist. Orrice or Boranicat INvesTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS, Washington, D. C., September 30, 1904. ™ v CONTENTS. 22) TITER GT oS ake oe SS SS ee Oe en nn ee mem wd History _.... 2. __-=....- S232 Nes oath SS ee ee eee aera TESS gs AE Sn 2 2 aa eee ea re ee (SU LULE T(E. DEG EES Sa Re ee 77 LE LCSUHTEE AIDED Sc ta Ene Rs gee eR or ee A NE Dee SE gee a aE ELT TST ET TON Peres et ed cre Sl ee a ee i Ere PE re gS Se Ee Se see et oo ES eee a a DS we a ae cs ESE Cm SRA SS. ots 2) pt Sees ees Ts eet Foe le 2 Tiees Culture. ....... eet a te ee Re Se PEL aPIOM NY SHCO.. 62 252 se Sle ee Lf. 1) as OEE (5 2. TES. TAR GY OPIEEA n (oy oa ee ee ie So ey Se eames cee Se EMERTIE Ta seperate ee RE ee eee cnc 28 MPREIDEN OSEAN ICN ho lee Sort ne eee. rd OU BED TERIWIY Qc 2 RD 2 Spee oe 9 yo SREECEIENT TET IME CARON mers ee eee ee ee ey nh LS ae ee Se MRIEMLE ETT Pe oe ern pees fe eee ee oA eae The avocado in Florida_____ ____ The avocado in California en. LS ee oe ee eee cee SE a se! ee are mane tO pick... .--. ASE SE Spies ho Packing and shipping Cold storage 25523—No. T7T—05 M H CO rR “tO oS Cl W WH WW W W WW W DW W W W W co © © -t vo ie} oO CONLEN IS. Marketing: 2 20022 eee See oes. 2o2-5, dacs ee Market season) "4 5 6 at02 eS oo eee Methods:of eating 292-2 22. a2 ites ce eh ns ee eee Hood value’ 2... 22 = eset ees oe ek 2 eee SESERSES ILLUS TRAPS PLATE I, Avocado tree,-Freehold, Costa Rica-_-_._______.-._----__- Frontispiece. i. Avocado ‘trait. Porto: Rico... 2-222. eo eee 52 III. Leaf and fruit of avocado, Tapachula, Mexico __________________ 52 IV. Avocado fruit, ‘‘ thick-skinned oval,’’ Guatemala City, Guate- mala”: 22220 ce. ose. setetes. eo eee 52 V. Avocado fruit, * thick- skinned round,” Guatemala City, 4 Guate- moalay 52 Vee 2a: no cssceh gee et eee ee ee 52 ‘Vis -Avocadoitroatia Cuba. =... 4.522 eae 2.8.2 52 VIL... Avocado fruityCuba--. =... 2...) 22 sees ee eee by VII. Hardy avocado, or *‘ Yas,’’ San José, Costa Rica. 8 2. 52 B. P. I.—157. B. I. E.—55 THE AVOCADO, A SALAD FRUIT FROM THE TROPICS. INTRODUCTION. As our contact with the Tropics be¢omes more and more intimate, and transportation facilities are improved, the number of fresh food products received from tropical countries is rapidly increasing. Among the most promising of such articles is the avocado, still little known, but rapidly increasing in favor. The avocado, though technically a fruit and usually referred to as such, is from the culinary standpoint no more a fruit than the cucum- ber. It is more accurately described by the term “salad fruit,” and may be said to stand alone as the only fruit that when ripe is eaten almost exclusively as a salad. The nearest approach to this is perhaps the olive, which is eaten more as a relish. This unexpected role no doubt accounts to a large extent for the dislike or indifference often professed by persons tasting the avocado for the first time. As in the case of the olive, where the novice usually describes the fruit as an insipid pickle, the appearance of the avocado leads one to expect a sweet or acid fruit, and the more or less unconscious disappointment usually leads the experimenter to pronounce the avocado tasteless and oily. One writer describes it as having a “* taste not much like that of our pears [the avocado is often called ‘ alligator pear ’|, and in first trying to eat the fruit one may pronounce it a poor pear but a good kind of pumpkin,” and adds the charitable suggestion that “ cooking or preserving may bring out the hidden virtues.” Few persons who live for any length of time in countries where avocados are to be. had fail to acquire a taste for this delicious salad fruit. It is the rule, however, that the taste for an entirely new article ef diet has to be cultivated, and a food which was unknown to our fathers and which we meet for the first time after our tastes have been formed is seldom accepted at the first trial. In most cases it is only after repeated attempts, prompted usually by the assurances of the initiated, that a fondness for thé strange article begins to grow. The human taste is, however, fairly uniform, and a liking for any food 9 10 THE AVOCADO. that is popular in its native country is usually acquired by the stranger if his first attempts do not create a prejudice so strong as to prevent further experiments. As examples of foods that when first tried outside of their native country were by most people either disliked or considered insipid but which have since become firmly established may be mentioned olives, bananas, artichokes, chocolate, tomatoes, curries, and peppers. With avocados the taste is usually acquired after two or three attempts, and many profess a fondness for the fruit at the first trial. That the taste when once acquired amounts almost to a craving is attested by prices paid for the fruit in the northern markets, where 15 cents each is about the lowest fignre at which they can be bought, and good fruit usually sells as high as 30 cents, though 50 or 60 cents is not an uncommon price. The avocado may thus be said to have taken the first steps along the lines by which most foreign fruits have been successfully introduced. An early impetus was received when the fruit was served on the tables of the rich and fashionable, its intrinsic merit being aided, without doubt, by the desire to inaugurate a novelty at once rare and expensive. The tendency to imitate this use assisted in increasing the demand until the fashionable hotels were able to score a point by adding the fruit to their menus. From this stage to that of introduc- tion into the markets and fruit stores, where the general public will make its acquaintance, is, perhaps, the slowest and most crucial step in the history of a successful new product, and one that the avocade is at present undergoing. ORIGIN AND HISTORY. EARLY ACCOUNTS. What appears to be the earliest reference to the avocado is found in Oviedo’s report to Charles V of Spain, in the year 1526,* a translation of which follows: On the mainland are certain trees that are called pear trees (perales). They are not pear trees like those of Spain, but are held in no less esteem; rather does this fruit have many advantages over the pears of that country. These are certain large trees, with long narrow leayes similar to the laurel, but larger and more green. This tree produces certain pears, many of which weigh more than a pound, and some less; but usually a pound, a little more or less, and the color and shape is that of true pears, and the skin is somewhat thicker, but softer, and in the middle it holds a seed-like a peeled chestnut; but it is very bitter, as was said farther back of the mammee, except that here it is of one piece and in the mammee of three, but it is similarly bitter and of the same form; and over this seed is a delicate membrane, and between it and the primary aSumario de la Natural Historia de las Indias. (Biblioteca de Autores HEs- pafoles, Historiadores Primitivos de Indias, Madrid, 1852. 1: 502. ORIGIN AND HISTORY. aba skin is that which is eaten, which is something of a liquid or paste that is very similar to butter and a very good food and of good flavor, and such that those that can have them guard and appreciate them; and they are wild trees in the manner that all those that have been spoken of, for the chief gardener is God, and the Indians apply no work whatever to these trees. With cheese these pears taste very well, and they are gathered early, before they are ripe, and stored; and after they are collected they mature and become in perfect condi- tion to be eaten; but after they are ready to be eaten they spoil if they are left and allowed to pass that time. A more complete discussion appears in the same author’s History of the Indies, written some time after his original report, where he adds that some years after his report to Charles V “TI saw many of these pear trees in the province of Nicaragua, placed by hand in the lands and yards or gardens of the Indians and cultivated by them. And some of these trees are as large as walnut trees, but the pears are smaller than those of Cueva.” The locality referred to in his first account is the northern part of Colombia, near the Isthmus of Pan- ama. The fruit described would seem to resemble some of the poorer varieties common in southern Mexico, or the Costa Rican fruit known as “yas,” referred to Persea frigida Linden. (See Pl. VIII.) The fruit must have been of good size and the seed very large, for without knowing the size of the “ vinous pears of Spain,” to which the fruit is compared, the weight is said to be about a pound, while the flesh is said to be the thickness of a goose quill. Cieza de Leon” refers to the avocado as one of the native fruits eaten by the Spaniards of Panama (p. 16), and as one of the foods of the natives of Arma and Cali, Colombia (pp. 72-99). It would seem that the fruit was of considerable importance, as it is one of the very few kinds of which particular mention is made. The fruit described is said to have the pulp about the thickness of a finger. Hernandez° describes the avocado in Mexico under the Aztec name “ahuacaquahuitl.” There is also a long description of both the fruit and the tree in Ulloa’s Voyage to South America (1736). The first authentic reference thus far found to the avocado in the West Indies is made by Hughes.? COMMON NAMES. The various common names of the avocado form a curious and undignified jumble. None seems to be available that is not either misleading in its application or difficult to pronounce. The most common designation among English-speaking people is a Oviedo, 1851, Historia General y Natural de las Indias, 1: 353. >The Travels of Pedro de Cieza de Leon [1532-1550], Hakluyt Society, 186-4. e¢ Hernandez, F., 1651, Rerum Medic. Nov. Hisp. Thes., 89. @ Hughes, W., 1672, The American Physitian, 40. 12 THE AVOCADO. “ alligator pear,” and, although it is very difficult and for many rea- sons undesirable to change a popular name, it seems best while this fruit is still little known to endeavor to secure a less misleading desig- nation. The name “ avocado ” is almost as widely used as “ alligator pear,” and, while not altogether unobjectionable, its adoption will avoid the confusion of this salad fruit with varieties of the common pear. The use of the name “alligator pear” not only retards the true appreciation of this very distinct article of diet, but will eventu- ally cause annoying complications in statistical classifications of the products of regions where both this and true pears are grown. The word “ pear” is sometimes appended to “avocado,” and the name is then no less objectionable than the other form. “ Palta” is applied to the avocado in Chile, Peru, and Ecuador, and is said by Garcilasso de la Vega“ to have been applied by the Incas, who brought this fruit from the province of that name to the warm valley of Cuzco, although it seems not improbable that the province may have received its name from the tree, according to the common custom of primitive people. The name “ ahuacaquahuitl,” given by Hernandez, signifies “ like the oak tree,” and is variously spelled by other writers. The words “aguacate” and “avocado” are probably Spanish spellings of attempts to pronounce the Aztec name. To an Andalu- sian the sound of the word would naturally suggest the spelling ‘“aguacate,” while a Castiiian would be more likely to adopt the other form. The French name “avocat” is probably a modification of the Spanish, or perhaps an independent approximation of the native name. The tendency to transform a new name into a word already existing in the language is shown in the spelling “ abogado ” in the Spanish and “ avocat ” in the French, both words meaning lawyer. Tussac ” gives “ aoucate ” as the Carib name and derives the French “avocat” from that form. Jumelle and Pickering also give modifi- cations of this word as Carib. It seems impossible that the Carib and Aztec names should be so similar, and it is more lkely that the Carib’s attempt to pronounce the Spanish designation was erro- neously recorded as a native name. The form of the fruit obviously suggests the term “pear,” and “ perales,” or pear trees, was the name under which they were first recorded by Oviedo in 1526, that author, however, stating that they were pears in form and in nothing else. 99 aQGarcilasso de la Vega, Ynea, 1605, Royal Commentaries of the Yncas, Hak- luyt, ed., 2: 335. bTussac, F. R. de, 1824, Flore des Antilles, 3: 15. COMMON NAMES. 13 The name “alligator” is entirely without warrant, and no one has as yet suggested even a fanciful application to any of the char- acteristics of the fruit or tree. It has been suggested that the term is a further corruption of the Spanish “ aguacate,” and this must be admitted as possible. The Sopeyrencs of the word “ alligator ” pre- fixed to the names of plants, such as ‘ ‘ alligator pepper ” for Amomum melegueta Rosc., suggests that the word may formerly have been used to signify false or worthless, and if this were true its application to this pear-shaped fruit would be very natural.¢ The application of other English names, such as “ subaltern’s butter,” “ midshipman’s butter,” “ vegetable marrow,” etc., is obvious. Below is a partial list of the names and spellings that have been applied by different writers: Popular names of the avocado. Name Country. Language. Authority. RMUHCHED Ee a= 35-222 23...- 183 Alls ee eee ee neglish-.s2 ee. sss Orton, p. 5. a DURE: oot alee Spanishe ess Ce: Beudeatiio.—..... -...---- PO aS an eae ae eee one Ramirez, p. 3. wh) Hie. a ae De ae eee Spanisne sess ee Velasquez Dict. Ahoacaquahuitl --....---- IMGRICO 2 22 S355 a ee ane ee tate eso Ramirez, p. 3. Jit? eee Ose ee eee: YAU AV) Ole ges ss Sie ee Jumelle, p. 179. Ahuacahuitl _._.....-....- {Sey eee Sees 1 aie 6 (Ope ee ee Cee Markham, in Cieza de Leon ‘ p. 16. WAINIB@ ANG 42322 )22- 25. =--2- Vaesneeasvann ns seses|sos—2 GO seesersseee stk. Sagot, p. 196. Ahuacaquahuitl --__-_-.-- M@xiCOe22--222-2-|=-2=— dove aes eee -- Hernandez, es 89. PUMGAGCRIO—o---. -_--- LES) al) Sean see Spanish _- Velasco, I, p. 63 Albecato pear -_....-.-.--; Jamaica--__--~-.-- English -_. Sloane, te p. 133. 00 Es 700 Tey ES ee ee eBEA: (eae 2 Lob. 5. 5A ee Carib-.- -| Jumelle, p. 179. Aouacate _-.-.__.-- Antilles ____. Le doi Tussac, p. 15. 2 UEb D 25. en eee English Knox, p. 222. Avigato _- | Barbados --- Seats ohn 2 Hughes, G., p. 130. Avoca -- MU TUES eens | Se ee een. Lequat, I, >. 201. 2 7G. {Se a eee Spanish and English - 2: a Siete es en | Se as ee | Gobttianheesssssee-- Semler, IT, p. 454. Avocado pear-- BI aa West In-} Hinglish 222.2 ..23.-..- Bois, Rev. Hort 1900, p. 546 ies Sl ee ere _| Jumelle, p. 179. Avocato- ---- ps P. Brown, p. 214. Avogato pear - Dampier, p. 203. Butter pear __ ! Cupanda -_--- Tabasco, Mexico_) Ramirez, p. 21. Cupandra_- MexiGol-— eee Do. to South America _- | Amador, in Oviedo, p. 353. Custard apple West Africa ____- ummesneeape tae se! Ss | be. 8 | Parkinson, p. 1514. Mantequilla silvestre MEXICO S28 585 @sjeozri s)he ae | Semler, IV, p 264. Midshipman’s butter.____|__...._.........___. ing lish sees... | Smith, ecu of Botany. a agin ~o | ee eee Ibpanktpee tl | Chambrey, p. 586 J Seas Wucatan) 2222.2 Nisty eee ere So Ramirez, p. 138 Rees S| 1542): 1 ee ee Se eT 5 | Cieza de Leon, } p. 73. Patta-- PErnanouwwlexico: |e 0.55. enue es 8: Lunan, p. 38. Peral de abogado.........|__.................. | Spanish seoeee | Jacquin, p. 38. i Colombia) 30.2 ieee: ‘lope Ve Oviedo, p. 353. Ll. i eee ae Lunan, p. 38. Shell pear -__... Jamaica ________- Ror ie Se Hughes, W.., p. 40. Spanish pear ____. 12 UG SEA TE = eae (0) Do. SeEMETICES WSTEU UOT 8 =| 5. cle eo [OSes ee ee Marayat. Tonalahuate _____- | Morelos, Mexico.|__...._____- -.+....-----| Ramirez, p. 70. Meet ble MATTOW -__.-..|_.2:-.-. ---.2-2-c25- | English -_............] Smith, Treasury of Botany @ Other instances of the use of this word that admit of this interpretation are alligator apple (Anona palustris L.) and alligator tetraspes). The word “ alligator” is Lagarto, meaning “ the lizard.” The expression “ alligator tears ” dile tears ” can also be interpreted in the same way, crocodile (Osteolaemus said to be derived from the Spanish ZI or “ croco- 14 THE AVOCADO. NOT NATIVE IN THE WEST INDIES. Many general works on tropical agriculture refer to the avocado as a native of the West Indies. There seems, however, to be no posi- tive warrant for this, while there are many indications to the contrary. De Candolle ¢ states that it has been found wild in this region, but the authority cited ® says simply “American Tropics,” and his records of the different varieties occurring in the West Indies evidently refer to cultivated forms. A wild species of Persea, P. sylvestris, is reported from Cuba, but this is quite distinct from the avocado, and is called by the Cubans “ aguacate silvestre.” The statement “in insula S. Dominici” occurs in Bauhin’s description of the avocado.* Acosta is cited, however, and this author gives no reference to the fruit in that locality. The avocado was certainly not common nor was it cultivated in the West Indies before the time of Columbus, for of the early writers con- sulted none makes mention of it as native in that locality, although ref- erences to it in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru are frequent. It is sig- nificant that Oviedo entitles his discussion “ De los perales salvajes de la Tierra-Firma,” or “ Wild pear trees of the mainland,” and does not mention their occurrence on the islands, as he does in the case of so many other plants. This part of his history was apparently written while in Santo Domingo, and his knowledge of that island is so cir- cumstantial as to make it very improbable that he could have remained ignorant of its existence there, and while less conversant with the remainder of the West Indies he makes mention of many compar- atively obscure plants as existing in “ other islands; ” all of which seems to indicate that the avocado was unknown in the Spanish set- tlements of the West Indies in the early part of the sixteenth century. Hughes,? Dampier,’ and Hans Sloane’ refer to the avocado as planted in Jamaica by the Spaniards. Brown ? definitely states that the tree was introduced into Jamaica, and Jacquin” says the same of the West Indies as a whole. Tussac ‘ also affirms that the avocado is not a native of the West Indies, although he gives a Carib name for the plant. ; f Sloane, Hans, 1725, Natural His- tory of Jamaica, 2: 133. 9 Brown, P., 1789, History of Jamai- «De Candolle, 1885, Origin of Culti- vated Plants, 292. b Meissner, 1864, in De Candolle, Prodromus, 15:1: 53. ¢ Bauhin, Caspar, 1623, Theatri Bo- tanici, 439. d@Hughes, W., 1672, The American Physitian, 41. € Dampier, William, 1703, A New Voyage Around the World, 1: 202. ea, 214. h Jacquin, J. N., 1764, Observ. Bo- tanie, 1: 38. i Tussac, F. R. de, 1824, Flore des Antilles, 3: 15. DESCRIPTION. 15 DISTRIBUTION. The avocado has, since the time of Columbus, spread from its home in America entirely around the Tropics. That such an important food plant was confined to the American continent until the post- Columbian contact with the Old World, while numerous other plants, such as the yam, taro, and sweet potato, had already spread to parts of the Old World, was probably due to the fact that the avocado will not easily survive long voyages, while most of the tropical root crops have much greater vitality. The fruit spread but slowly before the last century, but in recent times its culture has rapidly increased, and it is now cultivated in most of the countries that are suited to its growth. It has been cul- tivated in India since about 1860, and has reached the islands of Mad- agascar, Reunion, Madeira, the Canaries, Samoa, and Tahiti. In Natal and Australia it is just gaining a foothold. Its cultivation is increasing in Algiers. In 1882 it was reported as growing in southern France along the shores of the Mediterranean. Some of the trees had flowered, but apparently none had fruited at that time. In southern Spain, however, the tree fruits, and is cultivated to a limited extent. E. Roul® gives the range of this species as 36° from the equator. He states, however, that certain varieties, such as “ dulce,” are not found outside the Tropics. The avocado seems to have commanded very little attention in the West Indies. No mention is made of this fruit in Morris’s account of the British West Indies, and the index to the bulletins of the botanical department of Jamaica does not contain a single reference toit. In Porto Rico the fruit is abundant and popular, although not so important a staple as in tropical Mexico, where quantities of even the most inferior fruit are consumed by the natives, who consider it an important ingredient of that indispensable Spanish dish, soup. There are now orchards of avocados in southern Florida and Cali- fornia, and a slightly hardier variety would greatly extend the cul- ture of this fruit in these regions. Cuban fruit is shipped to the northern markets, and the conditions in that island are probably similar to those existing in Porto Rico. In the tropical parts of Mexico, Central America, and South Amer- ica the fruit is very common, and its different forms and races are innumerable. DESCRIPTION. The avocado tree is 20 to 60 feet high, varying in habit from tall and rather strict to short and spreading. In favorable situations the 2 Sagot, P., Manuel Pratique des Cultures Tropicales, 198, 1893. 25523—-No. 77—05 M 3 16 THE AVOCADO. top is very dense. The leaves are 20 to 40 cm. long and 7 to 25 em. wide, acuminate at the apex, varying from acute to truncate at base, petiole 2 to 8 cm. long. The upper surface is smooth, with depressed veins; the lower surface is glaucous, with the raised veins slightly pubescent. Different forms, all referred’ to the one species, vary so greatly in the form and size of the leaves that close relationship would hardly be suspected... Climatic differences may possibly account for some of this variation, the large, broad-leaved forms being usually found near the coast. Young trees have also, as a rule, much larger leaves. ; The flowers are perfect and are borne on loose axillary racemes near the ends of the branches, usually at the base of the year’s growth. The corolla is wanting, the calyx 6-parted. The lobes are all of equal length, green in color, and pubescent. The stamens are 9, in three series; the anthers 4-celled, opening by valves hinged distally. The two outer series have the openings introrsely directed; the inner series has the two distal valves introrsely, the basal pair extrorsely, directed. Each stamen of the inner series bears near its base two large glands. Inside the stamens are three staminoidia. Occasionally 4-parted flowers are to be found, in which case they are 4-parted throughout. The ovary is 1-celled, the style simple. The fruit in some varieties is long and slender; in others, nearly globular, varying from 3 to 15 cm. (1 to 6 inches) in diameter. The outside covering in some forms is soft and pliable, often less than one- half millimeter in thickness, while in others it is hard and granular, in some of the Central American forms reaching 3 mm. in thickness. The fleshy part of the fruit between the skin and the seed -varies greatly in thickness, but is always butyraceous in consistency, though in some cases much firmer than in others. In the better varieties the fibrovascular system that enters the fruit from the stem is discernible only in the thin flesh at the very base of the fruit and at the base of the seed, which is toward the apical end of the fruit. The seed thus appears to receive its nourishment directly from the pulp by absorp- {ion or ceases to receive nourishment before the fruit is fully formed. In the coarser forms the bundles can be traced from the stem through- out the pulp to the point where they enter the seed, and in some cases they are so prominent that the quality of the fruit is seriously impaired. The tree is usually described as evergreen. In some localities, however, the leaves are dropped just before flowering, leaving the tree naked for a short time. This is the case in Alta Vera Paz, Guatemala, where a type with narrow leaves and very thick-skinned fruit prevails. Whether this deciduous character is peculiar to the variety or the result of climatic conditions could not be determined. BOTANICAL AFFINITIES. 17 The seed is single, inverted, exalbuminous, spherical, or pointed, provided with two more or less distinct coats, one or both of which may adhere very closely to the cotyledons, though usually separable at the base of the seed; or they may adhere to the flesh of the fruit and separate from the cotyledons. This latter condition is observed more commonly in specimens not fully matured. The surface of the outer coverings may be coarsely reticulated or granular. The seed coats are frequently produced into a point beyond the apex of the cotyledons. The cotyledons are nearly hemispherical in form, white or light green in color. The surface of some forms is smooth; in others rugose. The plumule is well developed before the fruit ripens and is located from 10 to 15 mm. from base of seed. Concerning the seedling, Holm? has pointed out that no hypocotyl develops. He also calls attention to the curious fact that the first four leaves are opposite and by showing a differentiation into petiole and blade more closely resemble the mature leaf than-do the following five or six leaves, which are almost scalelike. BOTANICAL AFFINITIES. The genus Persea, to which the avocado belongs, is a member of the family Lauracee. Among the other more important economic members of the family are cinnamon (Cinnamomum cinnamomum (L.) Cockerell), camphor (Cinnamomum camphora (1.) Nees), and sassafras (Sassafras sassafras (.) Karst.). With the exception of cinnamon, they are used chiefly in medicine. The avocado is the only member of the family cultivated for its edible fruit. Mez, in his monograph of the family,” describes forty-seven species of Persea, and states that the genus is confined to the American con- tinent, with the exception of one species in the Canary Islands. On the contrary, F. Pax ® restricts the genus to ten species, only one of which, P. persea (l.) Cockerell (P. gratissima of Pax), belongs in America. No intimation is given as to the disposition of the other American species. This latter author divides the genus into two sections—KEupersea, with the one species ?. persea, and Alseodaphne, with nine Old World species, five of which are imper- fectly known. It is almost impossible to come to any satisfactory conclusion in regard to the systematic relationships of the various forms of avocados, for the present classification of this group is based almost a Bot. Gaz., July, 1899, p. 60. b Mez, Carolus, 1889, Lauracez American, Jahrb., K6nigl.-bot. Gart., 5: 135. e Pngler and Prantl, Die Natiirlichen Pflanzenfamilien, 1889, 3:2: 114-115. 18 THE AVOCADO. entirely on floral and foliage characters, and in most cases it is impossible to secure flowers or leaves from the individual trees which produced the different fruits. This is especially the case with fruits collected in the markets, but even where the fruit is collected from the trees no flowers will be present at the time the fruit is mature, and complete material can only be secured by residents or by repeated visits to the same locality at different seasons. On the other hand, out of the forty-seven species described by Mez twenty-six have the fruit unknown, and in the two varieties distin- guished from the typical P. pevsea no mention is made of the fruit. . The diagnostic characters of the species as shown in this author’s key to species are: Anthers of the three outer series fertile, 4-locellate; ovary pilose; perianth- lobes equal or subequal; filaments two and one-half to three times as long as the anthers ; staminodes twice as long as the stipe. With regard to leaf characters, it is difficult to draw definite con- clusions, as the characters of the leaves vary greatly at different stages of the tree’s development. VARIETIES. The botanical descriptions of varieties of the avocado are in nearly every case too meager and too general in their terms to be recog- nized and are in every case based on floral and leaf characters, no mention being made of the fruit. Meissner ¢ describes four varieties, as follows: oy Var. vulgaris. Leaves medium sized, mostly 3 to 4 inches long, 13 inches broad, oval or obovate; flowers short pediceled. West Indies, Central and South America. Var. oblonga. Leaves long, equally attenuate at both ends, often acute, 4+ to 9 inches long, i4 to 2 inches wide, short pediceled. West Indies, Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Mascarene Islands, Java. Var. macrophylla. Leaves larger, 6 to 9 inches long, 3 to 43 inches broad, obovate or obovate-oblong, acutely acuminate, short pediciled. Eastern Peru, British Guiana, Central America, Mexico. Var. schiedeana. Leaves ample, 9 inches and over in length, 3 to 43 inches broad, obovate and oblong, acute or obtuse, young leaves with a thick yellow tomentum, veins and veinules rather accentuated underneath, panicles terminal, bases with long persistent imbricate bracts, pedicels rather long. Misantla, Mexico. Mez? recognizes two varieties as differing from the normal type, one of which is the schiedeana described above and which is apparently confined to Mexico; the other, drimyfolia, also confined to a Meissner, in De Candolle, Prodromus, 15: 1:53. bv Mez, Carolus, 1889, Lauraceze American, Jahrb., Kénigl.-bot. Gart., 5: 147. VARIETIES. 19 Mexico, was formerly considered a distinct species. A translation of his description of the latter variety is as follows: Variety drimyfolia. Differs from the normal form in being smoother; leaves oblong lanceolate, narrowly acute at base, apex acute or somewhat acute, below glaucous. A delicious fruit tree, cultivated in tropical regions, and from thence imported into Europe. In Portugal and Sicily it winters if protected, and sometimes pro- duces mature fruit. Embryo (according to Schomburgk) often with 38 cotyle- dons, and frequently germinating on the tree. According to Krug, the fruits of this tree come true to seed, and it is not necessary to graft. This description applies best to the hard-skinned types of Guate- mala, the peculiarities of the fruit of which seem never to have found their way into literature, and it is probable that the similarity is con- ‘fined merely to the dimensions of the leaves. The marked differences in the fruits of the avocados from different localities are recognizable in the earliest descriptions. Hernandez’s description of a black fruit the size and shape of an egg or fig corre- sponds well with many of the small black forms grown in Mexico at the present time and, so far as known, not occurring elsewhere. On the other hand, all the early writers on the West Indies describe a much larger fruit with much thicker flesh. The distinction between the thick-skinned and thin-skinned forms of the avocados was made as early as 1590 by Acosta,* who wrote: The Palta is a great tree, and carries a faire leafe, which hath a fruite like to great peares: within it hath a great stone, and all the rest is soft meate, so as when they are full ripe, they :re, as it were, butter, and have a delicate taste. In Peru the Paltas are great, and have a very hard skale, which may be taken off whole. The fruite is most usual in Mexico, having a thinne skinne, which may be peeled like an apple: they hold it for a holesome meate, and, as I have said, it declines a little from heat. It is worthy of note that the earliest account of the avocado in the West Indies, by Hughes,’ describes a hard-skinned type, yet so far as known this type does not exist in the West Indies at the present time. The description referred to follows: This is a reasonable high and well-spread Tree, whose leaves are smooth, and of a pale green colour: the Fruit is of the fashion of a Fig, but very smooth on the outside, and as big in bulk as a Slipper-Pear; of a brown colour, having a stone in the middle as big as an Apricock, but round, hard and smooth; the outer paring or rinde is, as it were, a kinde of a shell, almost like an Acorn-shell, but not altogether so tough; yet the middle substance (I mean between the stone and the paring, or outer crusty rinde) is very soft and tender, almost as soft as the pulp of a Pippin not over-roasted. It groweth in divers places in Jamaica; and the truth is, I never saw it else- where: but it is possible it may be in other Islands adjacent, which are not much different in Latitude. a History of the Indies, Hakluyt Society ed., 1: 250. >» Hughes, W., 1672, The American Physitian, 40-42. 20 THE AVOCADO. I never heard it called by any other name then the Spanish Pear, or by some the Shell-Pear; and I suppose it is so called only by the English (knowing no other name for it) because it was there planted by Spaniards before our Coun- trymen had any being there; or else because it hath a kinde of shell or crusty out-side. I think it to be one of the most rare and most pleasant Fruits in that Island: it nourisheth and strengtheneth the body, corroborating the vital spirits, and procuring lust exceedingly: the Pulp being taken out and macerated in some convenient thing, and eaten with a little Vinegar and Pepper, or several other ways, is very delicious meat. GEOGRAPHICAL TYPES. In nearly all parts of the American Tropics there is great variety in the forms of the avocado, vet comparatively few have received dis- tinctive names, and only a very few have found their way into literature. In the Revue Horticole, 1900, page 546, D. Bois deseribes nine Mexican varieties as follows: Dulce largo, green, in form of a gourd, with a long neck; seed large. De tecosautla, dark green, with ovoid seed. Pagua, large, spherical, purple in color, with a large seed. Morado de Chalco, pear-shaped, purplish. Dulce, large, green, oblong, with whitish, ovoid seed. Pagua redonda, round, green, with a very large reddish seed. Verde de San Angel, light purplish, pear-shaped. } Morado de San Angel, light purple; seed ovoid. Verde chico, small, green, with an elliptical seed. These same varieties appear in slightly different form in Sagot’s Manuel Pratique des Cultures Tropicales, page 157. Sagra“ mentions four forms from Cuba, as follows: Violet, almost round. } Thick green, round, with yellowish flesh of a spongy consistency. Long yellow, similar to a large péar. Long green. There is little to be gained in attempting to identify these forms, as none of the characteristics of economic importance are mentioned, and from observations made in Mexico it appears probable that these forms merge into one another with many imperceptible gradations. The author has had the opportunity of studying avocados in Porto Rico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Mexico; and from the fruit that has come under observation the avocados of Mexico, while diverse in form and color, seem to be much more closely related to each other than to those of any other of the above-mentioned countries. As much of the fruit was obtained in markets, it was often im- possible to determine the character of the tree on which any particu- a@Sagra, Ramon de la, Historia Fisica Politica y Natural de la Isla de Cuba, 11: 186, 1863. GEOGRAPHICAL TYPES. o1 lar fruit was borne, and in no ease could floral and fruit characters be compared. Aside from yield, vigor, and hardiness, however, the more important characteristics of a variety, from a commercial standpoint, can be determined from the fruit alone. In a general way each of the countries visited exhibited distinct types of avocados, although in nearly every case aberrant forms occur which frequently seem to be associated with the types of other coun- tries. In many such cases the resemblance is probably a similarity in formal characters rather than a true relationship. In making the following descriptions, several new characters have been used, such as the nature of the skin, whether it is hard or soft, thick or thin, and the character of the seed coats, beheving that these are of more importance than the form and color by which the culti- vated varieties have usually been distinguished. Until more complete botanical studies have been made it seems advisable in describing the different forms to take them up by coun- tries. The names applied to the different forms are merely to facili- tate reference. It seems a curious fact that although the avocado has a great variety of names in different countries the different forms in any particular locality rarely receive distinctive appellations. Thus in Porto Rico, where mangoes that to the casual observer appear identical are carefully distinguished and provided with particular names, the many varied forms of avocados are all called “ aguacate ” without further distinction. In Mexico also, where the variety is still greater, no names for the different forms could be elicited from those selling the fruits in the markets, although the qualities of the different forms were keenly appreciated and willingly pointed out. As might be expected, there are several countries that claim to produce the finest avocados, among which may be mentioned Co- lombia, Hawaii, Peru, and Brazil. According to travelers familiar with the Pacific coast of tropical America, the largest and finest avocados come from the vicinity of Tamaco, in Colombia. These are said to be much larger than those of the Central American coast and of equally fine flavor. In Brazil the finest fruits are said to come from the islands of Marajo, at the mouth of the Amazon. As with most fruits, the largest and fairest are not always the best flavored. The delicate nutty flavor of some of the small thin-fleshed kinds of Guatemala is seldom equaled in the large thick-fleshed varieties. GUATEMALA. The avocados of Guatemala form a very distinct group. They are at once the most marked and, from a commercial standpoint, the most promising type for introduction into our tropical possessions. 22 THE AVOCADO. The most peculiar characteristic of the Guatemalan avocados is the unusual texture of the skin. Unlike the Mexican and West Indian types, which are those usually found in our northern markets, the Guatemalan fruit is covered with a skin so thick and unyielding that it suggests the shell of a nut. If pressed inward with the finger, instead of bending or tearing, the skin breaks with a granular fracture. To judge from Acosta’s account, the avocados of Peru have a skin similar to those in Guatemala, though, curiously enough, in Costa Rica, midway between these two countries, not a single hard-skinned form was observed. In all the Guatemalan varieties the seed coats adhere closely to each other and to the cotyledons over nearly the entire surface. In this respect they resemble the Mexican and differ from the Cuban and Porto Rican forms, which have the seed coats distinct from each other, the outer coat usually adhering to the flesh. The flesh of the Guatemalan forms frequently contains objectionable fibers, but in many cases it is entirely fiberless. In every case the line of division between the flesh and the skin is distinct, and the flesh can be scooped out with a spoon and the skin scraped, agreeing in this regard with the Cuban forms and differing from those of Mexico and Porto Rico, where there is no marked line between the flesh and the skin, and where, if care be not taken in using the spoon, portions of the skin are taken up with the flesh. Fruit of this type is borne on the tall, spreading trees common in Guatemala. The leaves are narrower and longer than in the West Indian type, about 23 cm. (including the petiole, which is about 2.5 em.) by 7.5 em. wide, acuminate at the apex, tapering at the base. Leaves smooth above, with depressed veins; below, the veins are prominent, with numerous fine hairs, and the surface is glaucous, with scattered fine hairs. Although in a general way belonging to one type, the avocados of Guatemala that came under the writer’s observation can be sepa- rated into three forms capable of more or less definite delimitation. Thick-skinned round (Pl. V).—This is the most common type in the eastern part of Guatemala. There is great diversity in size and quality among the specimens included under this form, and some of those found at Guatemala City appear to be distinct, but they are not easily separated by formal characters. Form nearly spherical; color varying from dark green to dark brown or nearly black ; skin hard and unyielding, breaking rather than tearing, never less than 2 mm. in thickness, granular in texture; flesh distinctly differentiated from the skin, often separated from it when fully ripe; seed as broad as or broader than long, rounded at the apex. The two seed coats are so united as to be indistinguishable, and when fully ripe adhere closely to the seed, except at a small area near the base. When the green fruit is opened the seed coats often leave the seed and adhere to the flesh. GEOGRAPHICAL TYPES. 25 The better specimens of this and the following form are probably the most promising for introduction into Pecto" Rico, owing to the thick skin, good keeping qualities, and fine flavor. In the warm and extremely moist climate of Alta Vera Paz, specimens of this form were in perfect condition two weeks after picking. Specimens sent by mail from Ccban to Washington, while overripe on arrival, showed no outward evidence of decay, and were still 1 in condition to withstand rough handling. Thich-skinned oval (P\. 1V).—This description was drawn up to cover two specimens purchased at different times in the market of Guatemala City. Form oval or oblong; surface roughened with knobs; skin thick and unyield- ing, breaking rather than tearing, granular in texture; flesh distinctly differen- tiated from the skin; seed longer than broad, rounded at the apex, covered when ripe with a mealy substance; coats adhering closely to the seed and separating from the flesh when ripe. Soft-skinned Guatemalan.—F ruit pyriform ; surface slightly rough- ened, shining, skin thick, soft, and yielding, tearing rather than breaking, distinct from the flesh; flesh free from fibers, firm, not darker near the skin. Seed almost spherical, with the outer coat pro- duced into an acute point; seed coats closely united to each other and to the cotyledons except at the base and apex. This form can hardly be considered a true Guatemalan type, as it lacks the characteristic hard skin. It resembles the Cuban type in many particulars, but differs from it in having the seed coats ad- hering closely to the cotyledons over the greater part of the surface and in having the outer seed coat needed beyond the apex of the cotyledons. It more nearly resembles the Costa Rican type. In Guatemala there are at least two other species of Persea that vield edible fruit. These are known among the Indians of Alta Vera Paz by the names * coyo” and. “ coyocte.” Both are generally considered very inferior fruits, though some prefer the “ coyo” to the avocado. In Alta Vera Paz the “ coyo” and the avocado flower at about the same time, but the fruit of the “ coyo” ripens at least a month earlier, a fact which may lend interest to the species in efforts to extend the season. In the highlands of central Guatemala the avocado is found in regions that are occasionally subjected to temperatures below freez- ing. The fruit is of good size and quality, and the thorough explora- tion of this region offers interesting possibilities in the securing of more hardy forms. PORTO RICO. The avocados of Porto Rico (Pl. II), although showing great diversity of form, are apparently very closely related, indicating 25523—No. 77—05 mM——4 24 THE AVOCADO. possibly that they are the result of a single introduction. Compare with the types of the mainland thus far studied, their affinities seem to lie with Mexican avocados. From these they are distinguished chiefly by the character of the seed, the Porto Rican type having the — two seed coats distinct, the outer usually adhering to the flesh, the inner more or less closely attached to the cotyledons. In this respect — this type also differs from all the continental forms thus far observed. — From the avocados of Costa Rica it is further distinguished by the texture of the skin, which is much thinner and softer than the Costa Rican type. In this latter regard it is still further separated from the Guatemalan avocados with their hard, almost brittle skins. From — the Cuban type it is separated by the thinner skin and the fact that — the flesh and skin are not sharply differentiated. Form oval or pyriform, with or without a prolonged neck; color green, usually light; surface shining and almost smooth; skin thin and soft, tearing rather than breaking; fiesh not differentiated from the skin: seed spherical, oval, or slightly pointed; the two seed coats entirely distinct, the outer usually clinging to the flesh and the inner to the cotyledons. One specimen from San José, Costa Rica, seems to correspond | closely with the Porto Rican forms, the only difference being a slightly thicker and more distinctly differentiated skin. MEXICO. The Mexican varieties show the greatest diversity of form, and also a considerable range of color. With the exception, however, of three special forms to be mentioned later, they seem to intergrade and form a connected series. They are at least much more closely related to each other than they are to those found in other countries. Although many of the Mexican avocados were of really excellent flavor, none were seen that appeared particularly desirable for intro- duction. The following is a general description covering the more character- istic features of the Mexican type: Form spherical, oval, oblong, or pyriform; color varying from green to almost - black; surface shining and almost smooth; skin thin and soft, tearing rather than breaking; flesh not differentiated from the skin; seed spherical, oval, or jointed ; the two seed coats closely united and usually attached to the seed over the greater part of its surface. Tapachula (Pl). I11).—This sort was first observed at Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico, where a single tree was found growing in the park. The same or a very similar variety was afterwards found in Costa Rica. . Form of fruit obovate or slightly pyriform; color bright green; surface shin- ing and with slightly raised points white at the top; skin thin and leathery; flesh but imperfectly differentiated from the skin; seed nearly round. The tree GEOGRAPHICAL TYPES. 2h rather short and spreading. The leaves broadly acuminate, almost transverse at base, the broadest part of the blade usually in the proximal portion. This is apparently one of the most desirable of the thin-skinned sorts. Fully matured fruit was seen neither in Mexico nor in Costa Rica; consequently the character of the seed coats could not be deter- mined. The Costa Rican specimens, while closely resembling the Mexican tree in the shape of the leaves and habit, as well as in the form and peculiar markings of the fruit, differ in having ovate seeds, while in the Mexican specimen the seeds are nearly round. Long neck.—Of the two samples included in this description one is from Tapachula; the other was purchased’ in the Washington mar- ket and was probably from Cuba. The resemblance is doubtless confined to formal characters. Form elongated, with a very long curved neck; color green; surface shining and somewhat wrinkled; skin soft, tearing rather than breaking; flesh distinctly differentiated from the skin; seed decidedly longer than broad, rounded at the apex ; seed cavity extending into the neck beyond the apex of the seed; the two seed coats entirely distinct. The flavor and texture of this form are very good, but it will probably not prove to be a good shipper. Clingstone—-This most aberrant form was found only once in the City of Mexico. It is so very different from the ordinary avocados that it would seem that it must belong to a distinct species. Nothing was learned, however, concerning the nature of the tree, and the natives classed it with the other “ aguacates.” Form elongated; color light green; skin soft and pliable, the surface some- what shrunken and wrinkled; flesh granular in texture and almost tasteless, adhering closely to the seed; seed narrow and pointed; the two coats, if they exist, can not be separated. The oddity of this form is its only recommendation. COSTA RICA. The avocados of Costa Rica show a greater diversity of color than those of any other country visited by the writer, ranging as they do from almost white to black through various shades of green, red, and purple. There is also a great variety of shapes. Still, with the exception of the “ yas” (Pl. VIIT),’ they form a very connected series a@1In the Tropenpflanzer for September, 1903, C. Werckle refers this fruit to Persea frigida Linden, a name of doubtful validity. It is excluded from Mez’s Lauraceze American and placed among the species whose descriptions were un- known. The statement by Werckle that this species extends beyond the frost line makes it of possible importance for hybridizing, should it be desired to extend the culture of this fruit into subtropical regions. 26 THE AVOCADO. : “- and are easily distinguished from those of other countries. As a_ group they may be characterized as follows: a Fruit spherical, pyriform, or gourd-shaped; color green, red, purple, or nearly black ; skin rather thick, soft, distinct from the flesh. Seed spherical or with only the outer seed coat produced into a point; seed coats closely united to each © other and to the cotyledons over almost the entire surface. In the market at San José, Costa Rica, one specimen was found — that could not be distinguished from the common Porto Rican type | except that the skin was somewhat thicker than any observed in Porto Rico. A few samples of a form not elsewhere seen were also found in the same market. These were slender necked, with the seed cavity extending into the neck, the seed was oblong, the skin very thin and not distinet from the flesh, which was slightly darker near the skin. These specimens had a very fine flavor and would be desirable for local consumption; the thin skin, however, would probably prevent their being successfully shipped. Of the ordinary type none was seen that had marked desirable qualities. CUBA. The avocados of Cuba are closely related to those of Porto Rico, the principal differences being the thicker skin of the Cuban fruit and the fact that in the Cuban forms the skin is quite distinct from the flesh, which is not darker near the skin. The thicker skin may explain why Cuban fruit reaches New York in better condition than that of Porto Rico. Fruit pyriform or nearly spherical; surface smooth and shining; skin thick, soft, and yielding, tearing instead of breaking, distinct from the flesh; flesh free from fibers, firm, not darker near the skin. Seed nearly spherical or pointed; seed coats entirely distinct from each other and from the cotyledons. Flavor poor. Specimens on which this description was based were found in the Washington market and were said to have come from Cuba via New York. The flavor was very insipid, which may have resulted from the fruits having been picked when immature, or to overripeness. HAWAII. A series of specimens shipped from Honolulu to New York shows a soft-skinned fruit, in general like the avocados of Costa Rica, but much larger. Form oval, oblong, or pyriform; color green or purple; nearly smooth, shining; skin soft, of varying thickness; flesh distinctly differentiated from the skin; seed longer than broad, variously shaped; the two seed coats usually united and adhering to. the cotyledons, except at the base and apex. CULTURE. at A peculiarity not observed elsewhere is that-of maturing several fruits in a cluster. In most countries all the fruits of a cluster, except one, drop when very small. CULTURE. The avocado was in all probability planted and more or less cared for by the natives of America before the advent of the Spaniards, for although Oviedo in his first account of the fruit in the northern part of Colombia says that the Indians apply no work to these trees, he later adds that “in the province of Nicaragua they are placed by hand in the gardens of the Indians and cultivated by them.” Their culture, however, must have been of the crudest sort, limited probably to the mere planting of the seeds, perhaps of the more desirable kinds, near their houses and affording the young plants some slight protec- tion. Nothing that corresponds to culture in the modern sense was applied to the avocado until the fruit was taken hold of by the planters of Florida. PROPAGATION BY SEED. The avocado tree is propagated almost entirely by means of seed, the uniformity of the fruit in many localities indicating that certain forms, at least, come true. Like most tropical fruits, the seed of the avocado, if dried, will not retain its vitality for any length of time, and should be planted as soon as possible after it is removed from the fruit. If carefully packed so as to conserve the moisture, the seeds can, however, be kept alive long enough to permit of their being sent to any part of the world. A very successful method of accomplishing this is to pack them in slightly moistened charcoal placed in a closed receptacle, such as a wooden or tin box. It is recommended that the avocado be planted where it is to remain, as the long taproot makes it difficult to transplant. If transplanted when small this will, however, be no great obstacle. The spacing will depend largely on the variety and the location, but should be from 15 to 30 feet. ASEXUAL PROPAGATION. The avocado is ordinarily considered a refractory subject for graft- ing or budding. Grafting is, indeed, seldom practiced, but the prac- ticability of budding is now fully demonstrated. Rolfs* gives an account of the methods practiced in Florida, where the matter has @The Avocado in Florida, Bul. 61, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 28 THE AVOCADO. received the most attention. The chief difficulty there is in causing the buds to start after they have taken. It may be that this difficulty is on account of unfavorable climatic conditions, for at the Hope Gardens, in Jamaica, Mr. T. J. Harris, under the direction of Hon. William Fawcett, has budded the avocado in large numbers with the loss of hardly a bud. The operation is successfully performed, not only by experienced hands, but students who are budding for the first time are quite as successful with the avocado as with the orange or other plants which are usually considered easy to bud. Mr. Harris’s method is practically the same as that recommended by Rolfs. The only difference that could seem of any importance is that the bud is simply tied with raffia instead of being wrapped with waxed cloth. Mr. George W. Oliver, of the United States Department of Agri- culture, states that the avocado is by no means a difficult plant to bud. A healthy stock is considered by him the prime essential, and this is not often secured in the greenhouses of the North. If the method of patch-budding with old wood that has been found successful with the mango can be used with the avocado it would greatly facilitate the introduction of desirable varieties. SOIL. Like a great many tropical plants, the avocado is less exacting in regard to soil than it is with respect to climatic and other conditions. The drainage and the amount of protection that the soil receives from the heat of the sun are probably the most important factors. Trees can be seen growing in a great variety of soils, but always in local- ities with good drainage. On the other hand, they are seidom, 1f ever, found in perfectly open places, with the bare ground around the roots exposed to the sun. The heavy clay soil common in Porto Rice seems well adapted to their culture, provided the trees are placed on ground sufliciently sloping to secure good drainage. The avocado is at present absent from the low, flat lands of the island, and it is extremely doubtful whether it would succeed in such localities. CLIMATE. The avocado in its native state is a strictly tropical plant, and none of the varieties thus far recorded is able to stand any but the lightest frosts. Although requiring tropical conditions, it thrives best in a somewhat more moderate climate than the mango, and it will seldom be seen in the extremely hot localities where the mango often lux- uriates. This may, however, be due to a lack of sufficient moisture, as well as to the high temperature. On the other hand, the avoeado will be found growing at much higher altitudes, and here again it is ‘ CULTURE. 29 not plain whether the reduced temperature or the increased moisture is the determining element. To be successfully grown, the tree must be planted in protected situations if the locality is at aJl subject to high winds; for the wood is not strong enough to withstand any severe strain, while the large fruit would, of course, be beaten off by any high wind occurring when it was reaching maturity. In Guam, according to Mr. W. E. Safford, although repeatedly introduced, the avocado has never succeeded, owing to the hurricanes, which invariably kill the trees that otherwise do well. The injury in this case is due to the excessive rainfall as well as to the high wind, a wet situation being fatal to this plant. CULTIVATION. The avocado is seldom regularly cultivated, so that little can be said of it in this connection except in the way of conjecture. The best fruit now produced is probably from trees that receive little or no care. . This may, however, be due to the fact that the countries where such fruit is grown possess superior varieties or that the nat- ural conditions are more favorable, and should not be taken as indi- cating that the fruit can not be improved by cultivation. In Porto Rico the trees in their wild state are such prolific bearers that there seems little to be desired in this direction. The avocado would probably receive little or no benefit from hav- ing the ground about its roots stirred, as it is almost impossible to do this and prevent washing from the severe rains, and it is much better to secure protection from some low-growing plant that will not ex- haust the soil. Leguminous piants would doubtless be the most satis- factory, and in Porto Rico there are several that could be so utilized. Some useful plant belonging to this group might serve as a catch crop and at the same time afford the necessary protection to the soil. In France it has been recommended that grafted plants be grown on fruit walls, in the same manner as citrus trees. IMPROVEMENT. If experiments in improving avocados through breeding have been tried the results seem never to ‘have been published. Individual growers must have done inore or less selecting, and accounts of their results would doubtless be of considerable value to breeders. The points to be kept in mind in any attempt to improve the avocado are: (1) Shipping qualities, (2) uniformity, (3) extension of season, (4) seed reduction, (5) texture, (6) flavor, (7) yield, (8) size, (9) resistance to cold. 30 THE AVOCADO. SHIPPING QUALITi£S. To the growing of avocados in other than subtropical regions there is perhaps no obstacle so great as the difficulty of placing the fruit on the northern markets in good condition. To overcome this, more can be expected from the introduction of new varieties and improved methods of packing and shipping than from any changes brought about by cultural means. Any advance, however, that can be made in the keeping and shipping qualities will be of the greatest impor- tance. Under the head of varieties are discussed the thick-skinned forms grown in Guatemala, and their introduction into Porto Rico bids fair to be a distinct advance. The improvement of the existing forms in this respect by hybridization and selection is, as with all other characteristics, an untried field. The chief drawback is, of course, the length of time that must elapse before the young plants reach fruiting age. The tree can, however, be grown with little care: and with the experiments carefully outlined, so that the desired results may be kept in view, the trouble and expense would not be great, and in tine some really valuable results might be expected. UNIFORMITY. With the avocado, as with other fruits, a regular market can only be expected when there is a regular supply of a uniform product. In Porto Rico the fruit varies in form from almost spherical to those that have a long, curved neck. The extremes probably represent distinct wild strains, but the fruit seems to come true to seed to only a limited extent, and anything like perfect uniformity can only be expected with asexually propagated plants. Rolis* shows that the varieties in Florida do not come true to seed. EXTENSION OF SEASON. Extension of season is an important desideratum, especially in the direction of later fruiting forms, the desirability of which is consid- | ered farther on. Advance in this direction is likely to be made by the introduction of new varieties and, perhaps, by extending the eul- tivation of the trees to regions of more continuous moisture where the season of flowering can be to some éxtent controlled. The tree four- ishes in many localities where it fails to bear fruit, and, as with the mango, this sterility is usually found in localities of almost continu- ous humidity. Under such conditions an artificial check, such as | a Rolfs, P. H., Bul. 61, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. 8. Dept. of Agriculture, 1904. CULTURE. 31 root pruning, has been found to induce flowering and the setting of fruit. This can easily be overdone, however, in which case the trees will bear one large crop and then die. Some of the most prolific trees are those grown in rather small depressions of porous rock in southern Florida, where the plants are, in a manner, root-bound, while the porous nature of the rock affords good drainage. There are a number of ways in which the growth may be checked and the yield increased. The baring of the roots to the sun would appear a very satisfactory method. A custom of hack- ing the trees to make them bear is practiced by the Indians of Mexico. In any case where the fruiting is induced by artificial means the season will be more or less under control. SEED REDUCTION. In most forms of avocado the seed forms a considerable proportion of the bulk of the fruit, and its reduction is to be desired. As pointed out by Rolfs, it is important that the seed should fill the cavity, as otherwise the movement of the seed during shipment damages the pulp. Modern discoveries in evolution and plant breeding make it evident that the character of seedlessness in a fruit, though rarely secured, may be sought in either of two ways: (1) If the plant is normally open fertilized, self-fertilization and selection for a number of gen- erations will in many cases produce sterility, and consequently seed- lessness. (2) By artificially pollinating the flowers with pollen from a variety or species so far removed that the fertilization is im- perfect, the exocarp or other parts of the fruit that are entirely the product of the female parent may develop, while the seed, which is the result of the union of the male and female elements, remains small or is aborted entirely. As the avocado is open fertilized, the first method mentioned is perhaps more simple, but will take more time, and this is, of course, a great disadvantage with fruits that are so long in coming to bearing. The second method necessitates sufficient skill to effect hybridiza- tion, and this of the most difficult kind, but has the. advantage of securing much quicker returns. The element of time is of so much importance that, if possible, all methods should be tried simultaneously. Rolfs* states that a seedless avocado has been discovered in Florida, but does not say whether the fruit is otherwise desirable or not. 4 Bul. 61, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. 8. Dept. of Agriculture, 1904. 204 THE AVOCADO. TEXTURE. The fine, creamy texture of the avocado plays an important part in winning admirers of this fruit. If free from fiber, the texture is usually not unlike that of very soft cheese. Lack of uniformity is the greatest danger, for if the flesh is uniform and free from fiber it leaves little to be desired. The manner in which the fruit is ripened probably has more to do with the uniformity and nature of the texture than does the variety. Poorly formed fruit, or fruit that has been picked too green, will often have the flesh soft’ and dis- colored in some places, usually near the skin, while the remainder is hard and unripe. Careless packing, so that the fruit is subjected to pressure at some point, will also bring about this undesirable condition. For shipping, the fruit must, of course, be picked green, and to insure uniformity in ripening it must be packed with the greatest care. FLAVOR. So far as observed, the most delicious and highly flavored avocados are some of the small, thick-skinned, and thin-fleshed forms of southern Mexico and Central America. The advantage, however, is slight, there being much more uniformity in the flavor of the different forms of the avocado than in most fruits. A really poor or disagreeable flavor has never been noted, except, perhaps, in cases where the fruit ripened unevenly, and then it is usually due to the part eaten being either green or overripe. Improvement in this character might slowly be brought about by selection, or perhaps by crossing with some of the small and more highly flavored forms. YIELD. Avocados have been subjected te careful cultivation for such a short time that little is known concerning the conditions that influ- ence yield. As with most tropical plants, climate has probably a greater influence than soil, and judging from the fact that in nature the trees frequently drop their leaves before the fruit matures, it may be expected that a rather decided alternation of wet and dry seasons is an essential. In Hawaii it appears that several fruits in the same cluster mature. This has never been observed in Central America or the West Indies, where large numbers of the fruits set, but all but one of each cluster drop while still young. If commercial fertilizers are applied, it would seem that the proper time is immediately after the young fruits have set. DISEASES. 33 SIZE. The largest avocados that have come to our immediate notice are those in Porto Rico. (Pl. IL.) © Travelers in Colombia, however, report much larger fruit, and both Hawaii and Florida probably produce fruit as large or larger than any in Porto Rico. Large size in the avocado is not such a prime essential as with many fruits. Even a medium-sized fruit is usually large enough for two people, and large samples might with a certain class of buyers be less desir- able. Of course, this should not be taken to mean that a tree that bears large fruit is less desirable than one that bears small fruit, but only that it might not be well to go to much trouble or expense to secure varieties that excel only in size. With improved cultivation the size of the fruit will doubtless be increased to some extent with- out the introduction of new forms. RESISTANCE TO COLD. An avocado able to withstand slight frosts would place the industry in Florida and California on a much more secure footing. Forms having this quality are likely to be found in the highlands of Central America and Mexico. A form from Monterey that withstands light frosts has already been introduced into California and Florida. With this form the blossoming season is so early that in California the cold weather frequently destroys the crop. The importance of more hardy forms is apparent from the statement of certain Cali- fornia growers that if relieved of the danger and loss from frosts the avocado would be the most profitable fruit to grow, there being a ready market and good prices. DISEASES. The only diseases of the avocado thus far reported are those men- tioned by Rolfs* as occurring in Florida. Similar diseases doubt- less exist in other localities and will be reported as soon as the cul- ture receives the same attention that has been given it in Florida. Trees of the round thick-skinned form growing in Guatemala were found to have their leaves badly infested with galls and also were eaten by a caterpillar. Apparently the same galls were here found growing on the wild relative of the avocado—the “ coyo.” D. L. Van Dine? figures an avocado leaf infested with mealy bug. So far as known the flesh of the fruit is never troubled with insect 4 Bul. 61, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, 1904. b Insecticides for Use in Hawaii, Bul. 3, Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station, 1903. 34 THE AVOCADO. pests, a remarkable fact if true, for the flesh would seem to form an ideal medium for their depredations. The seeds of some of the smallest forms in the City of Mexico were found infested with the larve of an insect, and at Tapachula, Mexico, the cotyledons frequently showed large, black excrescences, the nature of which could not be determined. Neither of these troubles ap- peared to injure the fresh fruit, but if the fruit was kept for any length of time they might become sources of decay. In Jamaica a fungous disease that affects coffee trees is said to be definitely associated with the roots of dying avocado trees. It is described in the following extract :* A coffee planter suffered serious losses from the sudden dying out of trees on certain fields. As guano had been employed as a fertilizer on these lands some years before, the planter attributed the mischief to the fertilizer. On visiting the cultivation, I found that the damage was caused by a root fungus and that there was a definite connection between the roots of dying or Gead avocado pear trees and the affected coffee. Microscopic examination confirmed this view. I have examined similar samples from other parts of the island which confirm the view that the pear should not be grown on any lands intended for subsequent cultivation. THE AVOCADO IN PORTO RICO. With the possible exception of the pineapple, the avocado is per- haps the only fruit which Porto Rico is at present producing of sufficiently high quality to enable it to compete successfully with the fruits furnished by the more highly developed tropical regions. The quantity is also sufficient, although the season is at present short, to warrant the opening of a trade with the United States. First among the difficulties is the fact, already noted, that the public is at present little acquainted with this rather unusual form of fruit. There is, however, already demand enough to show that it is likely to suit the American taste. Again, the fruit reaches our public in such small quantities that few have a chance to test it. That Porto Rico does not participate in the small consignments that are now received in the United States is largely owing to the difficulty in shipping the fruit so that it will reach its destination in a marketable condition. With the varieties now in Porto Rico it seems doubtful whether this can be done except by shipment in cold storage. There are numerous other difficulties with the present con- ditions which would have to be taken into account before success can be assured. The trees, though numerous in the aggregate, are so scattered—there being no plantations—that it is difficult to secure anything like uniformity in the shipments. The natives allow the aH. H. Cousins, June 23, 1904, Supplement to Jamaica Gazette, 194. sg A SE a THE AVOCADO IN FLORIDA. S15) fruit to become nearly ripe before it is gathered, in which condition it will probably not ship well even in cold storage. The fruit is not earefully gathered, but is knocked off the trees, a method which com- pletely destroys the keeping qualities of the varieties now growing in Porto Rico. The shortness of the season is another obstacle in the way of mak- ing the shipping profitable. This can probably be lengthened to a considerable extent by the introduction of new varieties and the proper selection of the localities where the fruit is grown. Ship- ments made from Porto Rico would, however, fare much better if they could be supplemented by shipments from other countries in which the fruit ripens at a different season. Porto Rico, Mexico, Central America, Hawaii, Florida, and California can probably supply the United States with avocados throughout the entire year. By placing the fruit in cold storage it would doubtless reach New York in a salable condition. This would be, however, a continuous expense, even if it were found that the fruit was uninjured, and a variety that will ship at ordinary temperatures would have decided advantages. That such varieties exist is demonstrated by the success- ful shipment of Cuban fruit. It is furthermore believed that the thick-skinned varieties of Guatemala will prove even better keepers than those of Cuba. In establishing the industry in Porto Rico the first step is, conse- quently, the introduction of better shipping varieties. THE AVOCADO IN HAWAII. Very fine avocados are grown in the Hawaiian Islands, particu- larly on Oahu, in the vicinity of Honolulu. The chief difficulty here is the danger from high winds, confining the industry to sheltered localities. Prices in Hawaii are high in comparison with most regions where the fruit is grown, and San Francisco affords a ready market, On page 40 is a short account of an experimental shipment in cold storage, showing that by this means the fruit can be shipped not only to San Francisco, but to points as distant as New York. THE AVOCADO IN FLORIDA. The culture and propagation of the avocado have recently received greater attention in Florida than in any other locality. A special bulletin on the subject by Mr. P. H. Rolfs, pathologist in charge of the Subtropical Laboratory at Miami,“ gives the status of the culture in that region, together with directions for cultivation, asexual methods of propagation, descriptions of forms, ete. 4 Bul. 61, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. 8S. Dept. of Agriculture, 1904. 36 THE AVOCADO. In spite of the fact that nearly all of the avocados north of the southern end of Merritts Island were killed to the ground by the freeze of 1894-95, showing the avocado to be no more hardy than the mango, planters have been by no means discouraged. Orchards of consider- able size exist and the asexual propagation of the better forms is being ‘apidly pushed. There seem, however, to be but two, or possibly three, well-marked types in Florida, and the chances of securing desir- able varieties for asexual propagation might be greatly increased by the introduction of some of the better forms from Central and South America. In Florida the shipping quality of the fruit is not of such prime importance as in Porto Rico, and consequently the choice of varieties should differ in the two localities. THE AVOCADO IN CALIFORNIA. The growing of avocados in California is at present restricted to the very limited frost-free areas. In many localities where the frosts are very light they would do little or no damage did they not occur at the time of blossoming, thus destroying the crop. A slightly later flowering variety would avoid this and considerably extend the range of culture. There is a good local market for avocados in California, prices being fully as high and the fruit as popular in San Francisco as in the eastern cities. BEARING AGE AND LIFE OF TREE. In favorable localities avocado trees will come into bearing about the fourth year from the seed. In more temperate regions, like southern Europe, it requires six or seven years. Budded or grafted trees should come into bearing somewhat earlier. If the tree makes a good growth, the yield should continue to increase until the tenth or twelfth year. The next point to be considered is the probable life of the tree. Ramon de la Sagra gives this as about 80 years. This is probably not a high estimate, for very old trees are common in most tropical countries. In the opinion of Mr. Henry Davis“ trees are still grow- ing in the northern part of Peru which antedate the advent of the Spanish settlers. Some of these trees are fully three feet in diameter. Neither do old trees appear to become less productive. YIELD. = The yield of an avocado tree when in full bearing is quoted as rang ing from 50 to 500 fruits. In Hawaii the yield is said to be from 50 to 250 fruits, being larger in alternate years. There is an actual @ Hawaiian Forester and Agriculturist, 2: 66, 1905. HARVESTING. 37 record of a tree in California that yielded 500 fruits in its eighteenth year. In Porto Rico, while none were actually counted, the average yield of a full-grown tree would surely seem to be above 100. Rolfs states that the yield is usually overestimated owing to the fact that trees with few or no fruits are overlooked. An orchard of 110 trees of bearing age, near Buenavista, Fla., was found in 1903 to yield an average of only 10 fruits per tree. The most prolific tree bore 385 fruits. HARVESTING. TIME TO PICK. The degree of maturity which the fruit should attain before it is picked depends, of course, on the length of time it must be kept. There is, however, no evidence that the quality is improved by fully ripening on the trees, and in countries where the fruit is gathered for local consumption it is customary to pick and store it several days before eating. In most varieties when the fruit is fully ripe the seed does not entirely fill the central cavity, but whether it should reach this stage before picking has not been definitely determined. This failure of the seed to fill the cavity is probably due to a slight shrinking of the flesh, the result, possibly, of evaporation after the fruit has ceased to receive nourishment from the tree. The beginning of this process would seem to indicate the maturity of the fruit. In the absence of definite information it seems probable that the best results will be obtained with fruit picked when fully grown, but before it has begun to ripen. Dybowski* recommends that the red varieties be picked as soon as they begin to color and the green ones when the color begins to become lighter. Many of the green varieties, however, do not change color appreciably on ripening. METHOD OF GATHERING. The picking of the fruit, although a matter of prime importance, is one that has been given no consideration. In Florida, where the avocado has received the most careful attention, the trees seldom reach a height at which it is impracticable to use stepladders, but in ihe Tropics, if the trees are at all luxuriant, they place most of the fruit entirely beyond this method of access. In these countries the fruit is usually knocked from the trees with long poles or the tree is climbed and the fruit shaken to the ground, which, of course, ruins its keeping qualities and causes it to ripen unevenly. a Traité Pratique des Cultures Tropicales, 451, 1902. 38 THE AVOCADO. ~ Until some satisfactory method is devised for gathering the fruit without bruising and with the stems attached, the shipping qualities of the fruit from tall trees are likely to prove unsatisfactory. The wood of the avocado tree is so brittle as to make the use of ladders impracticable, and this, together with the fact that the fruit ~ is borne far out on the ends of the branches, also makes it impossible to gather the fruit by climbing the trees. It would seem that the most feasible method of gathering avocados would be the using of some form of mechanical fruit picker, mounted on a slender pole. Numerous styles of this implement are to be found on the market, but perhaps none will answer the purpose with- out alteration. The fruit picker that seems best adapted is one that has a cloth tube along the side of the pole into the upper end of which the fruit drops and down which it slides into a basket attached to the waist of the operator. Most of the pickers of this type, however, have merely claws to pull the fruit from the trees, and it may be necessary to combine this cloth tube with one of the long pruning instruments that are on the market, that the fruit may be cut and not pulled from the trees. Fruit pickers so constructed as to pick the fruit by cutting the stem are on the market, but these for the most part catch the fruit in a little basket or bag at the end of the pole and necessitate the lower- ing of the picker from the tree after two or three fruits are picked, whereas the arrangement first described need not be lowered. ; C. Riviere® calls attention to the fact that the avocados common on the south side of the Mediterranean and in Madeira and the Canary Islands are very short stemmed or sessile, whereas the American forms, so far as known, all have comparatively long stems, though varying greatly in this regard. The writer also calls attention to ihe fact that the long-stemmed forms are more desirable, it being difficult to pick those that are nearly sessile without pulling the fruit from the stem and thus injuring the keeping qualities of the fruit. PACKING AND SHIPPING. The lack of good shipping qualities in the avocado is probably the most serious obstacle to the rapid development of the industry in the West Indies and is certainly the chief reason why Porto Rico does not participate in the small shipments that are now made to New York. That it is possible without cold storage to ship avocados from Cuba, while all experiments with the Porto Rican fruit have proved failures, makes it evident that a study of the causes of this a Journal d’Agriculture Tropicale, 222, July, 1904. PACKING AND SHIPPING. 39. difference is of prime importance.. It is believed that the better keeping and shipping qualities of the Cuban avocados are due to the characteristics of the fruit rather than to differences in gathering - or packing. Indeed, this might be inferred from the appearance of the fruit, that of Cuba having a thicker and harder skin than the Porto Rican forms. The introduction of the thick-skinned varieties from Guatemala should give Porto Rico a decided advantage, for it is believed that the Guatemalan forms will prove even better shippers than those of Cuba. Though avocados are successfully shipped from Cuba, Florida, Mexico, and other places to northern cities, and many different styles of packing are employed, little can be learned from these experiments as to the best method, since no account is taken of the variety of the fruit, which is undoubtedly a more important factor than the method of packing. That avocados from Cuba, wrapped in newspaper and packed in large crates, have come through in better shape than those from Porto Rico, wrapped in tissue paper and packed in crates only one layer deep, does not necessarily indicate that the former method of packing was superior, but it may mean that the Cuban fruit was such a good shipper that it kept in spite of the inferior method of packing. From a comparison of the different methods of packing that are practiced, taking into consideration as far as possible the nature of the fruit, it seems, however, that the avocado, hke most tropical fruits, keeps best when packed in such a manner as to be protected from jars or any undue pressure and in such a way that the fruit is well ventilated. Another important consideration with the thin- skinned forms is that they be packed so that the individual fruits do not come in contact with each other, for, even with the greatest care, bruised fruits will frequently be included. These will rapidly decay, and if not isolated will induce decay in those with which they come in contact. This danger is much less with the thick-skinned forms. These conditions are very satisfactorily met by packing the fruits in fine excelsior or some similar substance in rather open cases that are not so large as to prevent those on the inside from being ven- tilated. If the fruits be wrapped, it should be with some porous paper, but where they are separated from each other this precaution would seem unnecessary or even detrimental. The amount of ventilation the fruit should receive undoubtedly depends on the variety and still more directly on the temperature, fruit in cold storage requiring little or no ventilation. The best results in the shipments to New York of avocados from Cuba have been obtained with the fruit wrapped in newspaper and 40 THE AVOCADO. packed in open crates but one layer deep. Tissue paper was tried, but it was said not to offer sufficient support and did not prove as - satisfactory as the newspaper. Florida growers report that they experience no difficulty in packing their fruit so that it reaches the northern market in good condition. The more careful shippers, however, pack the wrapped fruit in excelsior. The few experiments that have been tried in shipping Porto Rican avocados, other than in cold storage, have, so far as can be learned, resulted in every case in almost complete failure. Little could be learned as to the methods of packing that were employed. In one case, however, the fruit after being wrapped in tissue paper was again wrapped in oiled paper. In this instance the fruit was prac- tically all rotten when it reached New York. It seems more than probable that the fruit would have shipped better without the oiled paper, as this packing would very effectually prevent all ventilation, a necessity at all ordinary temperatures. A very important consid- eration in the keeping qualities of fruit, brought to the writer’s attention by Mr. William A. Taylor, of the Department of Agricul- ture, is the climatic conditions that prevail at the time the fruit is packed. Fruit packed in a dry climate has been found to keep much better than the same fruit packed when the atmosphere is moist. This is doubtless true of the avocado and may explain the successful shipment from southern Mexico to New York of varieties that appear to differ but slightly from those of Porto Rico. . COLD STORAGE. In cooperation with Mr. William A. Taylor, pomologist in charge of field investigations, and Mr. Jared G. Smith, director of the Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station, an experiment was tried of shipping avocados in cold storage from Hawaii to New York City. Five crates of avocados were packed and shipped in cold storage from Honolulu about September 25, reaching San Francisco on October 4. From San Francisco they were expressed to Lodi, Cal., and during this transfer they were exposed to air temperatures for from six to eight hours. At Lodi they were again placed in iced cars and sent directly to New York City, where they arrived on October 20, The fruit was consigned to Messrs. Lane and Son, who forwarded samples to Washington. It will thus be seen that the fruit was thirty days in transit. Although the majority of the samples were found to have suffered from the long trip, some of the lots were in good condition, thus demonstrating that, with a knowledge of how to handle the fruit, even the more delicate forms can be successfully MARKETING. 41 shipped in cold storage, provided the fruit is not more than three or four weeks in transit. That this experimental shipment was hardly a fair test is shown by the statements of Mr. J. E. Higgins, who superintended the ship- ping of the fruit at Honolulu. Ina letter to Mr. Taylor he says: Most of the pears were by no means representative. The pear season was about over when we learned from you that there was an opportunity to make the experimental shipment. The fruits were inferior in size, only those marked F 18 being first-class specimens in this respect. It being the end of the season, the fruits, though. hard, were of course quite fully matured. The fruit was picked several days before the sailing of the steamer and was held in cold storage until it could be received at the ship. Shipments of avocados, made at air temperatures, are frequently placed in cold storage as soon as they reach New York. This process is resorted to in the effort to hold the fruit for the fall trade, and, even though the loss be heavy, the increased price still makes it a profitable procedure. There is a very uncertain element involved in this, for with fruit that appears uniform when placed in cold storage some comes out in perfectly sound condition, while the remainder will be completely decayed. This lack of uniformity in the keeping qual- ties is probably due to the different degrees of maturity at which the fruit is picked and to the conditions to which it has been subjected in transit, it being very difficult to detect such differences from the out- ward appearance of the fruit. As to the best temperature, amount of ventilation, method of pack- ing, etc., little is known. Dybowski® states that shipments have been made in cold storage from the Antilles to France, and that a tempera- ture of 2° C. (35.5° F.) was found the most satisfactory. He recom- mends that the fruit be wrapped in paper and packed im excelsior. Shipments made in this way are said to reach fr rance in good condition. MARKETING. The market for avocados is at present a limited one, the fruit being still somewhat of a novelty. It is, however, steadily increasing and from present indications will keep pace with the supply. The fruit is already fashionable, and if uniformity in the supply both as regards quantity and quality could be secured and the prices some- what reduced, as could well be the case were large quantities of the fruit handled, its popularity would rapidly increase. Lack of classification is perhaps the greatest hindrance to the development of a regular market. Fruits more widely different than “ Ben Davis” and “ Northern Spy” apples are all classed as avocados without further distinction. This lack of classification is accom- a Traité Pratique des Cultures Tropicales, 450, 1902. 42 _THE AVOCADO. panied with a corresponding lack of uniformity and must seriously hinder the growth of the trade. Not only may two shipments of avocados be totally unlike, but the individual shipments often con- {ain distinct forms of a widely different character. Plates VI and VII show two samples from the same box. These fruits, so distinct in form, were no less different in flavor, and both were very inferior. The size and external appearance, as well as the price (35 cents apiece), would lead one to expect that he was purchasing fair speci- mens of the fruit, but if an opinion was formed from such specimens - as these it could hardly be other than that the fruit was insipid and in no way worth the price asked. In sections where the fruit is unknown a demand is more rapidly created by inducing hotels, clubs, etc.. to include this article in their menus than by merely exhibiting the fruit in the markets, for while many might be led to purchase samples of this strange fruit if seen in the market, they would frequently be ignorant of its use as a salad, in which case they would probably pronounce it insipid and might be deterred from further trials. On the contrary, anyone tast- ing for the first time the prepared salad would usually be pleased and would be likely to investigate the source of the new dish. In Washington this fruit has sufficient admirers to warrant the fre- quent insertion of a notice in the papers, by dealers, to the effect that a shipment of avocados is on hand. The shipments, though small, are fairly regular, and there are one or two places where the fruit can usually be found during the season. In the present state of the market there is nothing like a fixed price for avocados. In New York and Washington the usual retail price may be said to be about 25 cents for good fruit; 60 cents is, however, frequently asked for fine fruit, and fair specimens can sometimes be purchased as low as 10 cents. This low figure is, however, never reached except in cases where large shipments have failed to be dis- posed of and the fruit is in serious danger of spoiling. With reference to the San Francisco market, Alexander Craw states: ¢ Sound “avocado pears” always meet with a ready market in San Francisco, and at good prices, at times ranging from $2 to $5 per dozen, retail, for good fruit. Occasionally there is a heavy drop, owing to the arrival of overripe or badly packed fruit. In selecting avocado pears for distant markets see that they are as nearly full grown-as possible, but hard. On no account should the fruit be plucked from the tree, but clipped with pruning shears, leaving but a very short portion of the stem—not over half an inch in length. On no account must any leaves be packed with the fruit, or the horticultural quarantine officers of the Pacific ports will demand the unpacking of such consignments, as occa- sionally a few scales are found on the foliage, but not on the fruit. a Hawaiian Forester and Agriculturist, 2: 67, 1902. MARKET SEASON. 43 - The following, taken from the Crop Reporter of the Department of Agriculture, January, 1903, gives some indication of the prices in England: With regard to the newer fruits which are attracting attention in the English markets, there are several which call for special reference. Among such are the avocado pears. These pears are high priced, selling from 1s. to 1s. 8d. (24 to 30 cents) each, retail. MARKET SEASON. The regular season for avocados is in the summer and the early autumn, the bulk of the fruit being received during the months of August and September. This is the most unfavorable time for a tropical fruit of this kind to be placed on the market, for not only does it come in competition with the fall fruits, but at this time large numbers of the admirers of this fruit are away from the cities at summer resorts, and in order to reach the best class of customers the fruit must be reshipped. This feature of the trade is so important that commission merchants can afford to hold the fruit in cold storage for this class of customers until they return to the cities, and this in spite of the fact that the fruit reaches them in such an advanced stage that but a very small percentage is salable when taken from cold storage. In cities like New York, the Cuban and Spanish popu- lations are always ready to purchase avocados, but this class will buy only at a comparatively low price, which under present conditions serves merely to protect the merchants from total loss. Florida growers say that for fruit that they can hold until the latter part of September or into October they can ask their own price. It will thus be seen that it is of the greatest importance to secure late-maturing sorts. With the improvement of transportation facilities and good ship- ping varieties the northern markets can probably be supplied with avocados every month in the year. In fact, February is probably the only month during which no avocados are received in New York. Outside of the regular season, however, the shipments consist of a few fruits brought in the ships’ ice boxes. Of these, the earliest are said to come from Colombia and the latest from Santo Domingo. The Cooking School Magazine, 9: 153, Oct., 1904. 46 THE AVOCADO. half a green pepper pod cut in fine shreds. Crush and pound the whole to a ~ smooth mixture, then drain off the liquid. To the pulp add a teaspoonful or | more of onion juice, a generous teaspoonful of salt, and about a tablespoonful — of lemon juice or vinegar. Mix thoroughly and serve at once. This salad may be served at breakfast, luncheon, or dinner. : In a report of Mr. John R. Jackson“ it is stated that “it is either cooked or served as a vegetable with white sauce,” as well as eaten asasalad. This is the first account noted of cooking the avocado. FOOD VALUE. The results of the chemical analyses given below show the compara- tive value of the avocado for food purposes. For the following table and the statements concerning it the writer is indebted to Dr. C. F. Langworthy, of the Office of Experiment Stations of the Department of Agriculture. Analyses of the avocado have been recently made at the Maine and the Florida Agricultural Experiment Stations.’ The following table ‘shows the results of these analyses and includes, for purposes of com- parison, similar data regarding a number of common food products: Composition of the edible portion of the avocado and other foods, Carbohydrates. ut 1a) yee value Water. |Protein., Fat. elie 4 Geade Ash. per | axivact.| PSE: pound. : Percent.| Percent. Percent.| Percent. Percent. Percent.|Calories. Avocado (analyzed at the Maine J station) <2." ee ee ee ee 81.1 1.0 10.2 6.8 0.9 512 Avocado (analyzed at the Florida | Stabion) 2-6. soot na eee ee 72.8 2.2 17.3 4.4 1.9 1.4 854 Pickled ips olives nee 65.1 a5.7 25.) 3:7 * “SoS eee 1,201 Pickled green olives ___._.-_.--.---- 78.4 26.9 12.9 1 ee eee 680 Apples = 22 = Se een Sesaee ae 84.6 4 5 13.0 1.2 3 290 Bananas —— eer 75.3 i183 6 21.0 | 1.0 8 460 Pears:s so. Leerssen eee see 84.4 .6 | 5 11.4 2.7 4 295 Cochanuts (0 ee ee 14.1 Dani 50.6 27.9 i iay 2,760 Chestnuts:-fresh 5223 ese 45.0 6.2 | 5.4 40.3 1.8 1.3 1,125 Potatoes< 3 22h. eeeah Bea were eet 78.3 2.2 sil 18.0 4 1.0 385 Wiheatifiour== eee ces 12.0 11.4 1.0 74.8 33) 5 1,650 a Including ash. In the avocados analyzed at the Maine station the edible portion or pulp constituted on an average 71 per cent of the total weight of the fruit, the seed 20 per cent, and the skin 9 per cent. Prinsen- Geerligs,“ in an extended study of tropical fruits, reports similar values for the avocado—i. e., flesh 67 per cent, seed 15 per cent, and skin 8 per cent. As the avocado contains about 75 to 80 per cent water and consequently 20 to 25 per cent total nutritive material, it is apparent that it is more directly comparable with succulent fruits a Agricultural News, November 7, 1903. b Maine Expt. Sta. Bul. 75; U. S. Dept, Agr., Farmers’ Bul, 169; Florida Expt. Sta. Rpt., 1902. ¢ Chem. Ztg., 21: 719, 1897. FOOD VALUE. 47 and vegetables than with such foods as bread. As regards the pro- portion of the water, protein, crude fiber, and ash, the avocado is simi- lar to common fruits like the apple, pear, and banana. In the case of nitrogen-free extract (sugar, starches, etc.) the proportion reported in the avocado was smaller than in the other fruits mentioned. The high percentage of fat in the flesh of the avocado is noteworthy, a large proportion of this constituent in succulent edible fruit being very unusual. In this respect the avocado suggests the olive, which is, of course, very rich in this constituent, the flesh containing, accord- ing to recent analyses made at the California experiment station, from 13 to 88 per cent. Generally speaking, a higher percentage of fat is found in nuts and oil-bearing seeds than in succulent fruits, the high fat content being accompanied by a low water content, as in the case of cocoanuts, cited in the table on page 46. Avocado fat is solid or semiliquid at ordinary temperatures and has been separated, being known as alligator pear oil, Persea fat, and avocade oil. According to Andés,* it has at present no commercial importance. Wright and Mitchell? state that avocado oil is very similar to laurel butter or bayberry fat, from Laurus nobilis, which consists largely of the glycerid of lauric acid, together with a little myristin and other homologues and some olein. Olive oil is quite different in chemical character, consisting of about 25 per cent glyc- erids of solid saturated fatty acids (palmitic, ete.) and 75 per cent liquid gycerids, mostly olein. Olive oil is known to be a valuable food product and quite thoroughly digested. It is presumable that the avocado fat is also quite thoroughly assimilated, although little ean be said definitely concerning its nutritive value, as apparently few, if any, investigations have been reported which bear upon this question. Prinsen-Geerligs ® studied the carbohydrate constituents of the avocado and reports 1.72 per cent total sugar, which is made up of 0.4 per cent glucose, 0.46 per cent fructose, and 0.86 per cent saccha- rose. These figures, taken in connection with the data reported by the Florida experiment station for the total nitrogen-free extract (sugar and starch), would indicate that the starch content is not far from 3 per cent. Considering all the available data, it seems fair to conelude that the avocado has a fairly high food value as compared with other suc- culent fruits, especially when its fat content and consequently rather high energy value js considered, closely resembling pickled olives in this respect. a Vegetable Fats and Oils, 215. London, 1897. + Oils, Fats, Waxes, and Their Manufactured Products, 353. London, 1903. ¢ Loe. cit. 48 THE AVOCADO. COST OF PRODUCTION. In calculating the cost of production, the following are the chief factors to be considered: Cost of land, cost of preparing the land, seed and planting, cost of culture, age at which trees bear, life of trees, yield, cost of gathering and marketing the fruit, price and extent of the market. The cost of land in tropical countries is governed very largely by its position with reference to transportation facilities. In Porto Rico, for example, land located along the main roads and valued at $100 an acre could apparently be duplicated in localities 5 or 10 -iniles distant for $2 or $3 an acre. Thus, the bulk of a crop and its adaptability to transportation over country roads are very important factors. With avocados at anything like the present prices they would constitute a very concentrated product, probably exceeding coftee in pound for pound value. On the other hand, the fruit must be delayed as little as possible after picking, which, of course, mili- tates against the selection of land too remote from a shipping point. The cost of preparing the land varies in different localities, but in most countries this item can be estimated with considerable accuracy, as land is usually cleared by measure. With labor at a reasonable price the seed and planting ought to cost not more than 10 cents per tree, and this with trees 20 feet each way, making 109 to the acre, would aggregate $10.90 an acre. The cost of culture would also vary greatly in different localities, but this again can in each locality be reckoned with considerable accuracy, together with the rebate to be allowed for catch crops. Where orchards are started from choice varieties by asexual methods of propagation, an additional allowance will have to be made for budding or grafting. Trees may be expected to come into bearing about the fourth or fifth year and may yield crops for fifty or seventy-five years. The average yield per tree may be reckoned at 100 fruits, and should come nearer 500. With a crop of great value like the avocado the cost of gathering and marketing is relatively small, although the fruit must be handled with considerable care, especially the thinner skinned forms. In the present state of the market the small shipments of avocados that are received usually retail at from 25 to 50 cents apiece. SUMMARY. The avocado is a tropical fruit little known in the United States but rapidly growing in popularity. Its appreciation by the northern public is doubtless retarded by a misunderstanding of its true charac- SUMMARY. 49 ter as a food, since it is in reality a salad, being very generally eaten with condiments. This unusual role, however, removes it from direct coinpetition with other fruits and tends to make its popularity permanent. This fruit is undoubtedly of American origin, but appears to have been introduced into the West Indies after their discovery. It was an important article of food among the Indians of the continent from Mexico to Peru. It is not yet certain whether the cultivated trees belong to one or more species, botanical writers having given little attention to the many cultivated sorts. There are many wild species of Persea in this region. Though few varieties have been described, the diversity of form is very great. In general this diversity seems to follow geographical lines, the forms of any particular region being more or less closely related. A very distinct type, with thick, hard skin, was found in Guatemala, which promises to surpass in shipping qualities the better known forms. The avocados now found in the markets come largely from Cuba, and the chief commercial difficulty is occasioned by the poor shipping qualities of the fruit and the failure to distinguish the different vari- | eties, the whole industry having suffered from the shortcomings of the poorer forms. Efforts to ship the delicate-skinned Porto Rican fruits have thus far failed. For this island it is recommended that the hard-skinned sorts of Guatemala be introduced. These, it is believed, will stand shipping even better than those from Cuba. Experiments have demonstrated that avocados can be successfully shipped in cold storage. At present the season for avocados in the markets of the United States is the late summer and early autumn. By importing from different countries, however, the season could be extended throughout the entire year. The plant requires a strictly tropical climate, with the possible exception of some of the hardy varieties of the Mexican table-lands, and to be prolific there should be a distinct dry season. Young plants are readily propagated from seed, and budding and grafting can be accomplished, the former method being in common use in Florida. As far as can be judged from the limited and irregular supply, the market is good, especially in the latter part of the season. Prices range from 10 to 60 cents apiece. Uniformity as regards both quan- tity and quality is the prime requisite for sustaining the market. If anything like the present prices can be maintained the growing of avocados of good shipping varieties ought to become a very remu- nerative industry. i aed bored ome Bul. 77, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE Ill. es LEAF AND FRUIT OF AVOCADO, TAPACHULA, MEXICO. (Natural size. a AR RA RR ae SNe EE Bul. 77, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE AVOCADO FRUIT, ** THICK-SKINNED OVAL,’? GUATEMALA CITY, GUATEMALA. (Natural size ) Bul. 77, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept of Agriculture. AvocaAbo FRUIT, * THICK-SKINNED ROUND,’? GUATEMALA (Natural size.) PLATE V. City, GUATEMALA. Bul. 77, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE VI. AVOCADO FRUIT, CUBA. (Natural size.) PLATE VII. Bul. 77, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. AVOCADO FRUIT, CUBA. (Natural size. Bul. 77, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. PLATE VIII. HARDY AVOCADO, OR * YAS,’ SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA. (Natural size. * Pe oe ART MENT "OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY—BULLETIN NO. 78. B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau. IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. BY TL LEON: AGRICULTURIST AND ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF THE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION OF NEBRASKA, AND COLLABORATOR OF THE BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS, IN COOPERATION WITH THE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION OF NEBRASKA. IssuED OcToBER 24, 1905. WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1905. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. T. GALLOWAY, Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in Absence of Chief. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK V. COVILLE, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. SPILLMAN, Agriculturist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. G. B. BRACKETT, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A. J. PreterS, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. CorBETT, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND GROUNDS. E. M. ByRnEs, Superintendent. J. E. ROCKWELL, Editor. JAMES E. JONES, Chiej Clerk. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. SCIENTIFIC STAFF. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge. Erwin F. SmitH, Pathologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Pathology. HERBERT J. WEBBER, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Breeding. WALTER T. SWINGLE, Physiologist in Charge oj Laboratory of Plant Lije History. NEWTON B. PIERCE, Pathologist in Charge of Pacific Coast Laboratory. M. B. WalITE, Pathologist in Charge of Investigations of Diseases of Orchard Fruits. MARK ALFRED CARLETON, Cerealist in Charge of Cereal Investigations. HERMANN VON SCHRENK, in Charge of Mississippi Valley Laboratory. P. H. Ro rs, Pathologist in Charge of Subtropical Laboratory. C. O. TOWNSEND. Pathologist in Charge of Sugar Beet Investigations. P. H. Dorsett, Pathologist. T. H. KEARNEY, Physiologist, Plant Breeding. CoRNELIUS L. SHEAR, Pathologist. WILuiAM A. ORTON, Pathologist. W. M. Scott, Pathologist. JOSEPH S. CHAMBERLAIN,» Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. Ernst A. BEsSEY, Pathologist. FLorA W. PATTERSON, M ycologist. 5 CHARLES P. HARTLEY, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. Kar F. KELLERMAN, Assistant in Physiology. DEANE B. SWINGLE, Assistant in Pathology. JESSE B. Norton, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. JAMES B. RorRER, Assistant in Pathology. Luioyp S. TENNY, Assistant in Pathology. GEORGE G. HEDGCOCK, Assistant in Pathology. PERLEY SPAULDING, Scientijic Assistant. P. J. O’GaRA, Scientijic Assistant, Plant Pathology. A. D. SHAMEL, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. T. RALPH ROBINSON, Assistant in Physiology. FLORENCE HEDGES, Scientific Assistant, Bacteriology. CHARLES J. BRAND, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Lije History. Henry A. MILLER, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. ERNEST B. BROWN, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. LESLIE A. Fitz, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. LEONARD L, HARTER, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. JOHN O. MERWIN, Scientific Assistant. W. W. Cosey, Tobacco Expert. JOHN VAN LEENHOFF, Jr., Expert. J. ARTHUR LE CLERC,¢ Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. T. D. BEcKwITH, Expert, Plant Physiology. a Detailed to Seed and Plant Introduction and Distribution. b Detailed to Bureau of Chemistry. ce Detailed from Bureau of Chemistry. — — LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, BuREAU OF PLANT’ INDUSTRY, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, Washington, D. C., Avril 15, 1905. Str: I have the honor to transmit herewith the manuscript of a technical paper entitled “‘Improving the Quality of Wheat,” pre- pared by Dr. T. L. Lyon, Agriculturist of the Agricultural Experi- ment Station of Nebraska, who, asacollaborator of this Bureau, is in charge of the cooperative breeding experiments conducted by the Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station and the Department of Agriculture, and I recommend its publication as Bulletin No. 78 of the series of this Bureau. Respectfully, B. 'F. GatLoway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. JAMES Wi1son, Secretary of Agriculture. PRE. The following technical paper on “Improving the Quality of Wheat,” by Dr. T. L. Lyon, of the Agricultural Experiment Sta- tion of Nebraska, embodies the results of extended investigations on the application of chemical methods to the selection and improve- ment of wheat. The investigations were carried on mainly at the Nebraska Agricultural Experiment Station in connection with the cooperative work of that institution and the Plant-Breeding Labora- tory of this Office. In the breeding of wheat more extended data are greatly desired so that more intelligent methods of selection may be devised. The investigations of Doctor Lyon, it is believed, have established methods which will be of great value to wheat breeders and mate- rially facilitate the work in their field. This paper was originally presented as a thesis to the faculty of Cornell University for the degree of doctor of philosophy. The author wishes to express his appreciation of the guidance of Prof. I. P. Roberts, Prof. G. C. Caldwell, and Prof. Thos. F. Hunt, who constituted the committee having his work in charge, also of the assistance of Prof. L. H. Bailey and Mr. G. N. Lauman, with whom he frequently sought counsel. For the analytical work, extending through a period of seven years and involving several thousand chemical determinations, he is indebted to Prof. S. Avery, Mr. R. S. Hiltner, Prof. R. W. Thatcher, Mr. Y. Nikaido, Miss Rachael Corr, Mr. H. B. Slade, and Mr. G. H. Walker. Mr. Alvin Keyser has kept the records of wheat-breeding plats and Mr. E. G. Montgomery has assisted in keeping other records. A. F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist. OFFICE OF VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS, Washington, D. C., March 31, 1905. INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT. ‘\ While the art of plant breeding has been practiced for nearly a century, the last decade has witnessed a marvelous awakening of interest in the subject, both from a scientific and practical stand- point. The keen competition in crop production and the resulting cheaper prices, the great and varying demands of modern trade con- ditions, etc., render it necessary that the modern plant breeder have the most thorough knowledge possible of the plant which he is striv- ing to improve. Not only must we secure varieties and races differ- ing in external characters and yielding more heavily under a certain set of conditions, but we must also examine the chemical constit- uents of the product and strive to change and improve them in order that they may better fit our purpose. The great achievements of plant breeding in the past have been mainly in physical characters, requiring only superficial knowledge and gross examination for recognition. Many of the improvements now demanded, however, require the most careful chemical exami- nation of the product and the devising of careful means and methods of selection based on the knowledge thus obtained. The first and still the most noteworthy achievement of this nature is the increase of the sugar content in the sugar beet. When the work on this subject was first started by Louis Vilmorin, the mother beets, which were supposed to contain the most sugar, were separated by their greater density, this being determined by throwing the beets into a solution of brine of such density that the greater number of them would float. The few heavier ones which were found to sink were retained as mothers and planted to raise seed. Later the methods were improved, and finally the percentage of sugar content in the different individual beets was determined by actual chemical analy- sis. This careful method of selection has been in operation for more than forty years, and has resulted in greatly increasing the sugar content in the beets, and has rendered their cultivation profitable where otherwise the industry would have failed. The second most noteworthy case of increasing certain chemical constituents in a plant by careful breeding is that furnished by the investigations of the Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station in increasing the nitrogen, oil, and starch content in corn. These note- worthy experiments carried out by Doctor Hopkins and his assist- ants have greatly stimulated breeding work of this nature, and have paved the way for further research of a similar kind. In wheat it is particularly necessary that a thorough knowledge be obtained of the variations in the chemical constituents and their relation to the other characters of the plant, such as yield, size of 7 8 INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT. kernel, size of head, season of maturity, ete. Doctor Lyon’s exten- sive researches will thus be found very valuable in enabling us to understand more clearly these complex relations and in pointing out the main factors to be considered in breeding wheats to increase the gliadin and glutenin content, and still obtain increased yield and better bread-making qualities. The gross selection of wheat seed heretofore has largely been based on the separation of large and heavy kernels. Doctor Lyon’s re- searches have demonstrated that the smaller and lighter kernels contain the largest percentage of nitrogen, and that while the yield from kernels of this kind at first gives a smaller yield of grain, the total yield per acre of nitrogen is nevertheless greater. By con- tinuous selection of the smaller and lighter kernels for several gen- erations he shows that the grain yield gradually increases and finally approaches or equals the yield derived from the select large and heavy kernels. This gives us a new view of the process of wheat selection necessary to increase the nitrogen yield per acre. The very numerous chemical analyses made by Doctor Lyon give an indication of the great variation of the percentage of proteid nitrogen present in different plants. In the analyses of samples in 1902 the plants varied from 2.02 per cent to 4 per cent, while in the analyses of the next year a variation from 1.20 per cent to 5.85 per cent was found. The existence of this wide variation affords abund- ant opportunity for improvement by selection. Evidence is also given which shows conclusively that the average composition of a spike of wheat may be judged from the analyses of a row of its spikelets. A satisfactory method of conducting selec- tions has thus been devised. The results also show that early-maturing plants give much the largest average yield, which is a most important point m guiding selection to increase the yield. The percentage of proteid nitrogen is rather less in the early plants, but the total nitrogen per plant is probably greater. The quality of the gluten largely determines the bread-making value of a variety of wheat, and it is thus important to keep the ratio of the two elements constituting the gluten—the gliadin and glutenin—the same. Doctor Lyon has shown that as the gluten content is increased by selection the ratio of gliadin to glutenin remains about the same, so that the value of the wheat for bread- making purposes is not impaired. The extensive data presented in this bulletin bearing on important matters relating to the improvement of wheat by breeding will enable wheat breeders to plan and conduct their operations with a degree of certainty which would otherwise not be possible. HERBERT J. WEBBER, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Breeding. Wasuineton, D. C., March 30, 1905. arr CONTENTS: Object of the investigation. ......-.--.--- Boe Saeco ae Part I.—Historical: Some conditions affecting the composition and yield of wheat ..........-.--- Composition as affected by time of cutting.............-..-..-.---.--- imauenee of immature seed upon yield_-.-:----.....--------.--------- Influence of climate upon composition and yield......-.-.-.------.----- Influence of soil upon composition and yield. - Influence of soil moisture upon composition and Paid 2 : Influence of size or weight of the seed-wheat kernel upon ane crop y siue : Relation of size of kernel to nitrogen content...-.-.-.----------------- Influence of the specific gravity of the seed kernel upon yield -.....-..-- Relation of specific gravity of kernel to nitrogen content...........-.--- Conditions affecting the production of nitrogen in the grain -......-.---- Part I1.—Experimental: Some properties of the wheat kernel..............-.-.------------------- IIPEEINGTI ACNE (asec. ee -- - ee eee Method for selection to increase the quantity of proteids in the kernel... ~~ -- - A basis for selection to increase the quantity of proteids in the endosperm of Oo) ii ue pete ee oc sel oe a amavement in the quality of the gliten.-............-.-.---.----------- Some results of breeding to increase the content of proteid nitrogen... -- -- - Yield of g:ain as affected by susceptibility to cold...........-------------- Yield and nitrogen content of grain as affected by length of growing period. - Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant........-.-.--- IC NOSOQS (22 ne oe eee -- =- -- Sain 5 oe n= 9 Page. 13 17 17 20 TaBLeE 1. eroportion of light and of heavy seed -.......-...--.----.-:-------.- . Analyses of large, heavy kernels and of small, light kernels..-....-..- - . Analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged according to nitrogen content of \t TABLES OF EXPERIMENTS. Analyses of kernels of high and of low specific gravity .....-.-.-.----- EMG TC LOY Oil GUD 5-08 Se ae ee ee eae Be. Nate 2 . Summary of analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged soe a Sa content of kernels. Crop of 1902....-.---.----- . Summary of analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged Renee to poate Peamutestom kernels, s Crop Olelouape me. eee. - -~ ha sacn ees == . Summary of analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged according to weight of ras ennol. Oro OF Lian ss eer Pes. |. we a clei oe ee . Analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. I SEE 2 ee ee ea ee ee ee . Summary of analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of pro- reideniinoren.» (Crop of 1903.22. ---55.--22-.------3-- pee . Analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average Se _ Crop of 1903. - op eee fay . Summary af ae o plants cone nie i aie ae average 0 SESS MCS oS A RS oe eee . Summary of analyses of plants, arranged according to grams of proteid nitrogen in average kernel. Crop of 1903. - . Crops grown from light and from heavy seed oe ae Rf! hs Sameera . Analyses of twenty-five spikes of wheat, showing their total organic nitro- . Analyses of twenty-three spikes of wheat, showing their percentage of 0 0 ESSER eo 28 SEL a8 6 . Analyses of twenty-one plants, showing total nitrogen and proteid nitro- . Analyses of spikes of wheat, showing difference in proteid nitrogen -_..- - mEMErinOns in content of proteids-22--2-- 3-5 <<<... 2226 wa ee eee nse . Relation of gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen to proteid nitrogen... .....-- . Summary of analyses, showing relation of gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen fe DUGG) TNA. See SO ee a: re ee . Relation of proteid nitrogen to gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen. .--- ~~... . Summary of analyses, showing relation of proteid nitrogen to gliadin-plus- EE Rg ee eee . Ratio of gliadin, to glutenin as the content of their sum increases... -. - . Summary of analyses, showing the ratio of gliadin to glutenin as the con- Peet Grhhell SUI INCTGASES == 9. 8 sean cse eee... oe ce ck owen whee . Analyses showing transmission of nitrogen from one generation to BGICL a ee eee ewee. 8 ee 94 96 12 TABLE 26 TABLES OF EXPERIMENTS. . Summary of analyses, showing transmission of nitrogen from one genera- tion to’another>......2..--------225---2 =oeeee eee . Analyses showing transmission of proteid nitrogen in average kernel. -- - . Analyses showing transmission of kernel weight ...........-..--.--.-- . Yields of plants, arranged according to percentage killed in each family. - . Summary of yields of plants, arranged according to percentage killed in pach familys: op Lee on bo oe +s Se eee ee . Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of growing period ...-.....-...-----. 355-2 == eee . Summary of yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length ‘of prowing period ........- 220.20 25225502 =—— . Summary of nitrogen content, etc., tabulated according to yield per plant epee ee : Ar Ai ao) sn = . Summary of yield, ete., tabulated according to nitrogen content.-.---- - 5. Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant...--..... . Summary of relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant - . Relation of yield of plant to height and tillering, and to the yield per head . . Relation of yield per head to yield, height, and tillering of plant, and to weight of average kernel. ....2.2.-..2 2 so see ee ee ee Page. 105 dial 111 112 118 118 118 B. P. I.—158. Vo Pa Ps tise IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. OBJECT OF THE INVESTIGATION. Efforts to improve the wheat plant have been numerous and have accomplished important results. The work of Fultz, Clawson, Rudy, Wellman, Powers, Hayne, Bolton, Cobb, Green, and Hays in improving by selection, and of Pringle, Blount, Schindel, Saunders, Farrar, Jones, Carleton, and Hays in improving by hybridization, has resulted in giving this country many prolific strains and varieties of wheat, while Garton Brothers, of England, Farrar, of New South Wales, Vilmorin, of France, Rimpau, of Germany, and others have accomplished the same for other portions of the world. Attempts at improvement have, however, been directed primarily toward effect- ing an increase in the yield rather than in the quality of the crop. While the latter property has not been entirely lost sight of, selection based on quality has never been applied to the individual plant, but only to the progeny of otherwise desirable plants. Why selection for quality of grain in the individual plant has not gone hand in hand with selection for other desirable properties is perhaps to be explained by the fact that no method for such selection has ever been devised. Mr. W. Farrar, of Queanbeyen, New South Wales, in an address made a short time ago, said: Before we can make any considerable progress in improving the quality of the grain of the wheat plant we shall have to devise a method for making a fairly correct quantitative estimate of the constituents * * * of the grain of a single plant and yet have seeds left to propagate from that plant. In devising a method for increasing the percentage of nitrogen in wheat it becomes deSirable to know the causes that produce variation in this constituent of the kernel. Numerous experiments and obser- vations have been made on this subject, the results of which agree in the main in attributing such variation to the following conditions: (1) Stage of development of the kernel. (2) Variation in temperature of different regions. (3) Variation in temperature of different years in the same region. (4) Variation in the supply and form of soil nitrogen. (5) Variation in the supply of soil moisture. 14 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. All of these factors have been studied, and are recognized as opera- tive. Nothing, however, appears to have been done to show their influence upon the actual amount of nitrogen taken up by the wheat plant and deposited in the kernel. This is really the point of greatest interest; for although it is desirable to secure a wheat of greater nutri- tive value, it should not be done at the sacrifice of yield of nitrogenous substance. Admitting that variation in the nitrogen content of wheat is induced by the conditions mentioned, it is essential to the plant breeder to know whether a high or low nitrogen content may be, under similar conditions, a characteristic of an individual plant; whether this quality is transmitted to the offspring; with what con- stant characteristics it is correlated, and whether a high percentage of nitrogen in a normal, perfectly matured wheat plant is an indica- tion of a large accumulation of nitrogen by that plant. The data contained in this paper cover the points mentioned, and it is hoped that some definite information has been gained that will lead to a practical solution of the problem of improving by breeding the quality of wheat for bread making. ponent SOME CONDITIONS AFFECTING THE COMPOST TION AND YIELD OF WHEAT. Experiments to ascertain the effect of different conditions upon the composition and yield of wheat have been conducted mainly along the following lines: (1) Stage of growth at which the grain is harvested. (2) Influence of immature seed upon the resulting crop. (3) Effect of climate. (4) Effect of soil. (5) Effect of soil moisture. (6) Influence of size or weight of seed upon the resulting crop. (7) Influence of specific gravity of seed upon the resulting crop. A brief summary of a number of these experiments is herewith given. COMPOSITION AS AFFECTED BY TIME OF CUTTING. In 1879,¢ and again in 1892,? Dr. R. C. Kedzie conducted very careful experiments to note the chemical changes that occur in the wheat kernel during its formation and ripening. These agree in the main in showing a gradual decrease in the percentage of total nitrogen, albuminoid nitrogen, and non-albuminoid nitrogen from the time the grain set to the time the kernel was ripe. The decrease in all of these constituents was much more rapid during the first than during the last stages of this development. The percentage of ash decreased at the same time. In 1897 Prof. G. L. Teller * carried on some experiments in which he covered the ground already gone over by Doctor Kedzie and also contributed to the knowledge of the subject some very important data concerning the proportion of the various proteids contained in the wheat kernel during thé process of development. Teller found that the proportion of total nitrogen in the dry matter steadily decreased from the time the kernel was formed up.to about a week before ripening, but that, unlike Doctor Kedzie’s results, it gradually increased from that time on. He intimates that this increase before ripening may have been due to defective sampling and hoped to « Report of Michigan Board of Agriculture, 1881-82, pp. 233-239. > Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 101. ¢ Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 53. 27889—No. 78—05 2 ib 18 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. repeat the experiment to remedy this, but he has published nothing further. The amid nitrogen continued to decrease up to the time of ripening, as did also the ash, fats, fiber, dextrins, and pentosans. There was a gradual and marked increase in the proportion of gliadin up to the time of ripening, and a somewhat less and rather irregular decrease in the proportion of glutenin during the same period. Failyer and Willard “ report analyses of wheat in the soft-dough stage and when ripe. The ash, crude fiber, fat, and the total and albuminoid nitrogen were higher in the soft-dough wheat, and the nitrogen-free extract and non-albuminoid nitrogen were higher in the ripe wheat. Dietrich and Konig’ quote results from five experimenters— Reiset, Stockhardt, Heinrich, Nowacki, and Handtke. Only in one case (Heinrich) is there a constant decrease in total nitrogen as the grain approaches ripeness. There is much inconstancy in the results, there being in some cases a decrease in nitrogen between the milk stage and full ripeness and sometimes an increase. There is little informa- tion to be gained from the results quoted by Dietrich and Konig. Kornicke and Werner in their ‘‘Handbuch des Getreidebaues’’’ refer to the work of Stockhardt, and also that of Heinrich, to show that during the process of ripening the percentage of nitrogen in the wheat kernel gradually diminishes, as does also the percentage of ash, and that, on the other hand, the percentage of carbohydrates increases during the same period. Heinrich also shows by a state- ment of the number of grams of these constituents in 2,600 kernels at different stages of development that the absolute amount of nitrogen and ash increases up to the time of ripening, and that consequently the decrease in the percentage of these constituents is due to the rapid increase in the carbohydrates. The results obtained by Heinrich appear as follows when tabulated: Starch. Protein. Ash. y Percentage Percentage Percentage hs Stage of growth. in 100 Grams in in 100 Grams in in 100 Grams in parts of 2,600 parts of 2,600 parts of 2,600 dry matter, kernels. dry matter; kernels. dry matter kernels. of kernel. of kernel. of kernel. 14 days after bloom.......... 61.44 22.0 14.05 5.0 2.48 0.84 Beginning to ripen.-.-......- 74.17 58.5 12. 21 10.0 2.14 1.70 Ripe: 272 to STS eee 75. 66 67.0 11.82 | 10.5 1.97 1275 Overripe 43 sees 76.38 70.0 11.67 | 10.7 1.88 Le Nedokutschajew” analyzed wheat kernels at different stages of development and found an almost uniform decrease in the percentage “ Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 32. » Zusammensetzung u. Verdaulichkeit der Futtermittel, 1, p. 419. ¢ Handbuch des Getreidebaues, Berlin, 1884, 2, pp. 474-476. @ Landw. Vers. Stat., 56 (1902), pp. 303-310. ‘ COMPOSITION AS AFFECTED BY TIME OF CUTTING. 19 of total nitrogen, a slight but irregular decrease in the percentage of proteid nitrogen in the dry matter, and a constant decrease in the percentage of amid nitrogen. He holds that the amid substances are converted into albumen as the kernels ripen. His figures are as follows: Percentage of— Weight Sits oe of Py Date. kernel Dry Total Proteid ents Amid | (mg.). matter. nitrogen. nitrogen. pie aeen nitrogen. LLY 1S. 3 ee 9.17 30. 14 2.87 1.90 0.29 0.68 Falke IR LoL Se ee ane 15. 80 37.23 2.55 1.94 .20 4] JULY £u5255 20 Spee re 30. 7) 45.18 2.65 2.33 .19 Bik) JURY 2)... <2 56S Se eee 37.99 | 38.37 2.46 2.08 16 “29 REE ee the Pe on oie acte Sc os oe 46.39 51.52 2.32 1.98 5183 .21 ERE ee ee 45.46 49.83 2.37 2.13 sa 313 Judging from these results there can be no doubt that the per- centage of nitrogen, both total and proteid, decreases as the kernel develops, owing to the more rapid deposition of starch that goes on during the later stages of growth. The larger part of the nitrogen used by the wheat plant appears to be absorbed during the early life of the plant. This is transferred in large amounts to the kernel in the early stages of its development, after which nitrogen accretion by the kernel is comparatively slight. The deposition of starch, on the other hand, continues actively during the entire development of the kernel. It would further appear that the amid nitrogen is converted into proteid compounds as development proceeds. As showing the stages of growth of the wheat plant at which the greatest absorption of nitrogen occurs, some experiments may be quoted. Lawes and Gilbert “ say: In 1884 we took samples of a growing wheat crop at different stages of its progress, commencing on June 21, and determind the dry matter, ash, and nitrogen in them. Calcu- lation of the results showed that, while during little more than five weeks from June 21 there was comparatively little increase in the amount of nitrogen accumulated over a given area, more than half the total carbon of the crop was accumulated during that period. Snyder’s analyses’? show that of the total amount of nitrogen taken up by the wheat plant, 85.97 per cent is removed from the soil within fifty days after coming up, 88.6 per cent by time of heading out, and 95.4 per cent by the time the kernels are in the milk. Adorjan° finds that assimilation of plant food from the soil is not proportional to the formation of dry matter in the plant, but that it proceeds more rapidly in the early stages of growth. During early growth nitrogen is the principal requirement. The nitrogen stored “On the Composition of the Ash of Wheat Grain and Wheat Straw, London, 1884. » Minnesota Experiment Station Bulletin 29, pp. 152-160. ¢ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 14, p. 436, from Jour. Landw., 50 (1902), pp. 193-230. 20 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. up at that time is, he says, used later for the development of the grain. It is too well known to require substantiation by experimental evidence that the yield of grain per acre and the weight of the indi- vidual kernel increase as the grain approaches ripeness. It is there- fore quite evident that immaturity, although resulting in a higher percentage of nitrogen in the wheat kernel, would curtail the pro- duction of nitrogen by the crop, and, furthermore, that the produc- tion of proteids would be still further lessened by reason of the greater proportion of amid substances present in the grain at that time. INFLUENCE OF IMMATURE SEED UPON YIELD. Georgeson “ selected kernels from wheat plants that were fully ripe, and from plants cut while the grain was in the milk. He seeded these at the same rate on 2 one-tenth acre plots of land. The immature seed yielded at the rate of 19.75 bushels per acre of grain and 0.8 ton of straw, while the mature seed produced 22 bushels of grain and 1.04 tons of straw per acre. Georgeson says that in a similar experi- ment the previous year the difference in favor of the mature seed was still more pronounced. Although the evidence is limited, it may safely be considered that the use of immature seed will result in a smaller yield of wheat than if fully ripe seed be used. INFLUENCE OF CLIMATE UPON COMPOSITION AND YIELD. Lawes and Gilbert” state that ‘“‘high maturation in the wheat crop as indicated by the proportion of dressed corn in total corn, propor- tion of corn in total product (grain and straw), and heavy weight of grain per bushel, is, other things being equal, generally associated with a high percentage of dry substance and a low percentage of both mineral and nitrogenous constituents.”” This is based upon the wheat crops at Rothamsted for the years 1845 to 1854, inclusive. More recent publications’ by these investigators reaffirm their belief that the composition of the wheat kernel depends more largely upon the conditions that affect its degree of development than upon any other factor. They found almost invariably that a season that favored a long and continuous growth of the plant after heading, resulting in a large yield of grain, a high weight per bushel, and a plump Pomel produced a kernel of low nitrogen content. a Apoeeaee! Experiment Station Record, 4, p. 407, fiche ace Experiment _ Station Bulletin 33, p. 50. ? On Some Points in the Composition of Wheat Grain, London, 1857. ¢ Our Climate and Our Wheat Crops, London, 1880, and On the Composition of the Ash of Wheat Grain and Wheat Straw, London, 1884. i | - INFLUENCE OF CLIMATE UPON COMPOSITION AND YIELD. 21 Kornicke and Werner” cite an experiment in which winter wheat grown in Poppelsdorf for several years was sent to and grown in the moist climate of Great Britain, in Germany, and in the continental climate of Russia (steppes). The results were as follows: Weight (in grams = Bees? Percentage of— of— 4 ; | Number Ws 2 eae it ocality. | of exper- sae | iments. 100 Kernels | : > jane from 100} Grain. Straw. I ~" | plants. Soy Ri, TBST (C1 aera xs | 37 600 | 297 37.8 62.3 UPSD VY en Sete Si Sa 18 500 | 204 40.8 59.2 OSE: LMS) (RUSS a ee 19 365 | 160 44.0 56.0 These investigators conclude from the results that in a moist cli- “mate relatively more straw and less grain are produced than in a dry, warm climate. The thickness of the straw and the weight of the kernels from 100 heads are greater, while the percentage by weight of kernels to straw ‘is much less in a moist climate. They also quote Haberlandt as saying that a continental climate produces a small, hard wheat kernel, rich in gluten and of especially heavy weight. Dehérain and Dupont? report some interesting observations as to the effect of climate on the compositionof wheat. They state that the harvest of 1888 at Grignon was late and the process of ripening slow. There was a heavy yield of grain having a gluten content of 12.60 per cent and a starch content of 77.2 per cent. The following season was dry and hot, with a rapid ripening of the grain, resulting in a smaller crop. The gluten content of the grain was 15.3 per cent and the starch content 61.9 per cent. They removed the heads from a num- ber of plants. The next day the stems were harvested, as were also an equal number of entire plants. The stems without beads showed that carbohydrates equal to 5.94 per cent of the dry matter had been formed. The stems on which the heads remained one day longer contained 1.63 per cent carbohydrates.. They argue from this that the upper portion of the stem, provided it is still green, performs the functions of the leaves in other plants and thus elaborates the starch that fills out the kernel in its later development. A report from the Ploti Experiment Station” states that the con- ditions that favored an increase in yield caused a reduction in the relative proportion of nitrogen in the grain. [Excessive humidity favored the process of assimilation of carbohydrates, while drought hastened maturation and produced a grain relatively rich in proteids. “Handbuch des Getreidebaues, Berlin, 1884, pp. 69, 70. b Ann. Agron., 1902, p. 522. ¢ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 14, p. 340, from Sept. Rap An. Sta. Expt. Agron. Ploty, 1901, pp. xiv-180. 22 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. Wiley” sent wheat of the same origin to California, Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri. The original grain and the product from each State were analyzed. The results of one year's test were reported. Regarding the effect of climate, he says: There appears to be a marked relation between the content of protein matter and starch and the length of the growing season. The shorter the period of growth and the cooler the climate the larger the content of protein and the smaller the content of starch, and vice | versa. Shindler,’ in his book upon this subject, says (p. 75): With the length of the growing period, especially with the length of the interval between bloom and ripeness, varies not only the size of the kernel, but also the relative amount of carbohydrates and protein it contains. Again, on page 76, Shindler says: All this shows that the protein constituent of the kernel depends in the first place upon the length of the growing period and next upon the richness of the soil. Melikov ° made analyses of different varieties of wheat of the crops of the years 1885-1899 grown in southern Russia. The protein varied in different years from 14 to 21.2 percent. Melikoy concludes that the nitrogen content is highest in dry years and lowest in years of larger rainfall, in which years the yield of wheat per acre is also greater. Gurney and Morris,” in one of their reports, say: This increased gluten [over previous years] is probably largely due to differences in the seasons, the weather being hot and dry while the grain was ripening, since it is character- istic not of these wheats alone but of most of the grain grown in the colony. : The conclusion to be inevitably derived from these observations is that climate is a potent factor in determining the yield and compo- sition of the wheat crop, and, further, that its effect is produced by lengthening or shortening the growing season, particularly that por- tion of it during which the kernel is developing. A moderately cool season, with a liberal supply of moisture, has the effect of prolonging the period during which the kernel is developing, thus favoring its filling out with starch, the deposition of which is much greater at that time than is that of nitrogenous material. With this goes an increase in volume weight and an increased yield of grain per acre. On the other hand, a hot, dry season shortens the period of kernel development, curtails the deposition of, starch, leaving the per- > Der Weizen in seinem Beziehungen zum Klima und das Gesetz der Korrelation, Berlin, 1893. ¢ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 13. p. 451, from Zhur. Opuitn. Agron., 1.(1900), pp. 256-267. @ Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 12, pt. 2, pp. 1403-1424. INFLUENCE OF SOIL UPON YIELD. 23 centage of nitrogen relatively higher, and gives a grain of lighter weight per bushel and smaller yield per acre. The fact that one variety of wheat is adapted to a hot, dry climate and another to a cool, moist one does not mean that the former under- goes as complete maturation as the latter, even though the grain is not shriveled. This is shown by the fact that a variety of wheat well adapted to a hot, dry climate will, when planted in a cool, moist one, immediately grow plumper and the kernel weight will increase, as was the case in the experiment of taking Minnesota wheats to Maine. INFLUENCE OF SOIL UPON COMPOSITION AND YIELD. In considering the effect of the soil upon the wheat crop there will naturally be included experiments designed to show the effect of fertilizers upon the crops. It is, in fact, upon experiments with fer- tilizers that we must depend for most of our information on this subject. Experiments to ascertain the effect of fertilizers upon the composi- tion of the wheat kernel were conducted by Lawes and Gilbert for a period of years extending from 1845 to 1854.“ Plots of land in which wheat was grown continually were treated annually as follows: Unmanured, manured with ammoniacal fertilizer alone, and manured with ammoniacal fertilizer and proportionate amounts of mineral salts. In composition calculated to dry matter, the wheat on the plots receiving ammoniacal fertilizer alone contained quite uniformly a slightly larger amount of nitrogen than either of the other two. The averages for the ten years were as follows: Percentage of — Weight | por, ; = ; = : of grain nee me Yield per Kind of fertilizer, if any. Nitrogen} Ash in per good aoe in dry dry | bushel | yémels, |(pounds). | matter. | matter. (pounds). a | en | (OUSIDE @) So ee Se ee ee 2.13 | 2.07 58.51 | 90. 6 1, 045 MEPPIREIIEEUEO TAGS 2 So os sce Saleen ses oen ese 2.26 | 1.85 58.9 90.3 1,668 Minerals and ammonium salts........-..-..------- 2. 22 1.96 60. 2 92.8 1,969 There was practically no difference in the nitrogen content of the straw. From these experiments the authors quoted conclude that there is no evidence that the nitrogen content of the wheat kernel can be increased at pleasure by the use of nitrogenous manures. Ritthausen and Pott’ report an experiment in which plots of land were manured (1) with superphosphate alone, (2) with nitrate alone, (3) with a mixture of superphosphate and nitrate, and (4) were left «On Some Points in the Composition of Wheat Grain, Loridon, 1857. > Landw. Vers. Stat., 16 (1873), pp. 384-399. 24 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. unmanured. There were three plots of each. The following is a tabulated statement of their results: Weight of | Yield of Percentage Kind of fertilizer, if any. eee on perseer ee (grams). (kilos). | matter Uniertilizedic:: 5-225 oe oe ee eh hs ae / 1,508; | 2s 6 aoe | 2.60 Superphosphatess: 220 semen eee eae eco aoe oe oo ee eee eres ee 1,339 2.72 3.49 Nitrate cscs oe Se ce oe cat Snag Be ee seit Sp a Senn ee eee 1,413 2.30 3.43 Superphosphate and nitrate. 6s. =~ cose eee ee cee ae eee 1,451 2.03 3. 62 It will be noticed that the effect of the nitrate fertilizer was to decrease the yield of grain, but to increase the size of the kernel and its content of nitrogen. Wolff,” as early as 1856, in summing up the experiments of Hermb- stadt, Muller, and John with barley, and of Lawes and Gilbert with wheat, says In the presence of a sufficient amount of phosphoric acid and alkali the effect of manuring. with an easily soluble nitrogen compound is an improvement in the grain both in quantity and quality [meaning plumper kernels]. The kernels decrease in percentage of nitrogen, but become plumper, become absolutely and relatively richer in starch, and have a better appearance and a higher commercial value. But when the nitrogenous food in the soil exceeds a certain relation to the temperature and rainfail the quality of the grain becomes poorer [harder], it becomes lighter and smaller, takes on a darker color, and generally becomes richer in percentage of nitrogen in the air-dry substance. Von Gohren’ also reports results of experiments in fertilizing wheat. All experiments were apparently made in the same year. He grew the crop on six different plots of land, five of which were manured and each with a different fertilizer. In the crop he distinguished between large kernels and small kernels to show the quality of the product. Determinations of proteids and starch were made, and these were calculated to the yield of each constituent on each plot. The following table shows the yield of each of the characters deter- mined, and compares those raised on the unmanured plot with those on the manured ones by taking the former as one and reducing the others to the corresponding figure: | Oil cake | rare Unierti- P Bat | Peruvian Yield and percentage. se Ashes. | Oil cake. / and P lized. guano. ashes. | Suano. | Yield. of grain=... -93-sese eee = 5-2-5 1. 000 1.011 1.071 1. 145 1.215 | 1. 286 Yield oflargeikemelss-eesseeeree - =~ = 2 - 1. 000 . 146 1.928 2. 552 2. 226 | 2. 786 Yield of small’ kemelseesee-e->- - ------ 1.000 - 953 | . 704 938 | - 781 |} - 642 Yield of protedss cs epee ae: 225 = 1.000 . 999 915 936 | 1.070 | 1.114 Yield of\starchisaas sass eae 6 = 5: Ss 1. 000 1. 009 1.081 1.174 | 1. 264 | 1. 303 Percentageiof proteidse sa. asset - 22 14. 42 14. 25 12.70 11281 8 ae 13. 22 Percentage’ Of starches eeeeeee- --2-.- 5 62. 67 62. 56 63.25 64. 41 65. 24 | 63.55 The results show an increased yield from the use of fertilizers, the production increasing with the application of complete manures. a Die naturgesetzlichen Grundlagen des heeienece Leipzig, 1856, p. 774. > Landw. Vers. Stat., 6 (1864), pp. 15-19. PE ORR EG FI INFLUENCE OF SOIL UPON YIELD. 25 The yield of grain of good quality increases in the same way, and the yield of grain of poor quality decreases proportionately. It must be remembered that by good quality of grain in these early writings is meant plump kernels and not necessarily what would be considered wheat of good milling quality at the present day. The production of proteids per acre decreased with the use of the incomplete fertilizers, ashes and oil cake, and even with the bat guano. It increased, how- ever, with the use of oil cake and ashes combined and of Peruvian guano. The percentage of proteids was greatest in the unfertilized grain and the percentage of starch least, with the exception of one fertilized plot. The very evident effect of the fertilizers in this case was to produce a more completely matured kernel. It will be noticed that the plots producing grain of highest starch content were those having the greatest proportion of plump kernels. Again, in 1884, La'wes and Gilbert“ report results obtained from manured and unmanured soils. These experiments cover a,period of sixteen years and are divided into two periods of eight years each. In one of these periods the seasons were favorable for wheat,in the other unfavorable. Favorable seasons. Unfavorable seasons. eee: Barnyard Un- | Spi Barnyard Un- ae manure. manured. | alone. manure. manured. alone. Weight of grain per bushel “CULO |S) Ee 62.6 60.5 60. 4 57.4 54.3 53.7 Percentage of grain to straw - 62.5 67.4 66. 2 54.5 51.1 46.7 Grain per acre (pounds) -..-- 2, 342.0 1, 156. 0 1, 967.0 1,967.0 823.0 1, 147.0 Straw per acre (pounds)..:..| 6,089.0 2,872.0 4,774.0 5,574.0 2,433.0 3,601.0 Percentage of nitrogen in-dry ros ke Lis 1. 84 2.09. 1.96 1.98 2.25 Percentage of ash in dry mat- U5 eke 1.98 1.96 | 1.74 2.06 2.08 1.91 Nitrogen per bushel (pounds) 1. 083 1.113 | 1. 262 W125 1.075 1. 208 i It is evident from this statement that the largest crops and _ best developed kernels were obtained from the soils treated with barnyard manure, and that these kernels contained the lowest percentage of nitrogen. The crops on unmanured soil stood next in these respects, except in yield. Those on the soil receiving ammonium salts pro- duced the most poorly developed kernels and those of highest nitrogen content, but gave larger yields than the unmanured soil. In the unmanured soil there was a very evident lack of plant food, as indicated by the light crops. The effect upon the kernel was to curtail its development, leaving it of light weight and with a relatively high nitrogen content. « On the Composition of the Ash of Wheat Grain and Wheat Straw, London, 1884. 26 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. Hermbstadt obtained some curious results, as quoted by D.G.F. MacDonald,¢ as follows: He sowed equal quantities of wheat upon the same ground and manured them with equal weights of the different manures set forth below. From 100 parts of each sample of grain produced he obtained starch and gluten in the following proportions: Kind of fertilizer, if any. | Gluten. | Starch. Produce. Tinterittivede wee Saree eee ee Oe cc ket ae eee | 9.2 66.7 | Threefold. Potatompeclsma sos eee eo eee eon ee oie or ies el ae See Sees 9.6 65.94 | Fivefold. OWT Serre oe ee a ee ee ne 2 ee Re et ee ee 12.0 62.3 | Sevenfold. Pig ponidungr: aan csc ese Sack eo doe cere oon alee obs Gehan ees 12.2 63.2 | Ninefold. TOUS Gy CRIN se yo oe = es see eee NASER Ae eee Boe eo nee ce eee 13.7 61. 64 | Tenfold. Goatidinee ses 5 eee es ee tue Seas ese as ceo 32.9 42.4 | Twelvefold. RELOS TD CUTTER Se Cy ere Se tee a aea nite acta ene ee ees 32.9 42.8 | Do. Dried nicht sole sep oe oe eee eee ee De ee See ees 33. 14 41.44 Fourteenfold. Driediox blood=--e-ssseseee see ree ate oO aaa aS oe ie ee a a cares ee 34. 24 41.43 | Do. eG NUM Ai TIN Genesee eee ee eee et cee ois Sere = alata ee | 31.1 39.3 | Twelvefold. These results are not to be considered seriously, representing as they do an impossible condition. Prof. H. A. Huston? treated 0.01-acre plots of land each with nitrate of soda, dried blood, sulphate of ammonia, rotted stable manure, and muck, respectively, either in the autumn or spring, or in both seasons. In 1891 all the plots treated with nitrogenous com- pounds showed marked increase in the percentage of nitrogen in the grain. In 1892 the results were by no means so uniform and would not justify the conclusion that nitrogenous fertilizers increased the nitrogen content of the wheat. Vignon and Conturier’ tested the effect of phosphate fertilizer alone upon the nitrogen content of the grain of two varieties of wheat. On Plot 1 they used 75 kilograms of phosphoric acid per hectare; on Plot 2, 150 kilograms, and on Plot 3, 225 kilograms. Percentage of nitrogen in Ai grain. Variety. aa | Plot 1. Plot 2. Plot 3. Goldendrop ee os acer eee eee eee eo coe ee ace ee eae ee eee | 1.83 | 1.61 1. 54 RIGTC see ce Sere eee nae eeais. Lace wie Nek ohio ne ge Eee eee 2.07 | 1.98 1.82 There was a very evident decrease in the nitrogen content of the crop as the quantity of fertilizer was increased. It was concluded from experiments conducted at the Ploti Experi- ment Station” that, with favorable meteorological conditions, manure increased the total amount of nitrogen taken up by wheat, but, @ Practical Hints on Farming, London, 1868. » Indiana Experiment Station Bulletins 41 and 45. ¢Compt. Rend., 182 (1901), p. 791. @ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 14, p. 340, from Sept. Rap. An. Sta. Expt. Agron. Ploty, 1901, pp. xiv-180. +. 9 aT INFLUENCE OF SOIL UPON YIELD. Be although it thus increased the total production of nitrogen, it decreased the relative proportion of nitrogenous substance. Bogdau “ conducted investigations the results of which indicated that with an increase in the soluble salt content of 22 alkali soils the nitrogen and ash contents of the wheat kernels increased, but the absolute weight of the kernels diminished. These soluble salts are rich in nitrates. ; Experiments were conducted by Whitson, Wells, and Vivian? in which plants were grown in pots the soils of which were in some cases fertilized with nitrates and in others with leachings of single and of double strengths from fertile soils. Field experiments were con- ducted on manured and unmanured plots. All of the analyses, except in the case of oats, were of the whole plant. Of the ripe oat kernels those from the unfertilized soil contained 2.57 per cent of nitrogen, while the average of those from the fertilized soil was 2.78 per cent. Guthrie’ conducted experiments with fertilizers for wheat during two years, in which he kept a record of the yield and gluten content of the grain. The following is a statement of the results: Experiments in 1902, at Wagga. At Wagga At Bathurst. Kind of fertilizer, if any. ae, rz Tee ee Ya iat Yield | Percent-| _* jel Percent- 3 i; tes , | Percent- per acre |. per acre |. u> | per geres|= (bush- | 28°F | “(hush- | 28¢°f | “(bush- | 2e of els) | gluten. ale gluten. als) gluten. JODIE. oC A= et ee 7.7 11.99 13 11.80 17.6 | 9.8 Ammonium sulphate SS ae a 8.7 10. 43 16 11.21 17.6 | 8.7 Seip tess a 0 13.3 12.06 13.5 12.01 22.6 | 11.4 rphosp Poamsgum siiphate.--.----..-.-.-----=- 13.0 12.02 13.0 11.29 19.2 | 10. 0 Ammonium sulphate, superphosphate, MoOURSSINM Sulphate: .-.......-.2:-.-.- 10.0 11.70 13271 12.05 20.3 | 12.0 In this experiment there was in each case a higher percentage of gluten in the wheat raised on the fertilized soil than in that from the soil fertilized with ammonium sulphate, and in the latter less than in the grain fertilized with other material. The most striking feature of these results is their apparent lack of uniformity. In some cases the use of nitrogenous fertilizers was accompanied by an increase in the nitrogen content of the grain and in other cases no increase appeared; in some cases phosphoric acid fertilizers apparently increased the nitrogen content and in others they did not have this effect. Climatic influences have doubtless operated largely in these results, but they are not considered by any of the experimenters except Wolff. a Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 13, p. 329, from Report of Department of Agri- culture, St. Petersburg, 1900. » Wisconsin Experiment Station Report, 19 (1902), pp. 192-209. ¢ Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 13 (1902), No. 6, p. 664; and No. 7, p. 728. 28 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. It is evident that in all experiments with depleted soils the plants on the plots receiving complete fertilizers would take up larger amounts of plant food, including nitrogen, than would plants on unmanured soils. Any conditions that would prevent the normal ripening of the crop on both soils would therefore leave a higher percentage of nitro- gen in the plants upon the unmanured soil. On the other hand, under conditions which would permit of a complete maturation of the crop there might be no difference in the composition of the grain from the manured and unmanured soils. It is evident, however, that the production of both nitrogen and starch in pounds per acre would be greater on the manured soils. Another condition that may affect the results is the arrested devel- opment of kernels on unmanured soils that are seriously depleted of plant food. Such depletion may interfere with complete maturation of the crop while the crop on the manured soil will mature fully. In consequence the grain on the unmanured soil will contain a higher percentage of nitrogen but a smaller yield per acre. The use of a nitrogenous manure alone on exhausted soils may likewise result in a grain of higher nitrogen content. Expressed in a more general way, this means that wheat of the same variety grown under the same climatic conditions will have approximately the same percentage of nitrogen if allowed to mature fully, but any permanent interruption in the process of maturation will result in a higher percentage of nitrogen, and in the latter case the percentage of nitrogen will depend upon the stage at which develop- ment was interrupted, and also upon the amount of nitrogen accumu- lated by the plant, that being greater on soils manured with nitroge- nous fertilizers alone than on exhausted soils, and greater on soils receiving complete manures than on exhausted soils receiving only nitrogenous fertilizers, provided the stage at which development ceased be the same in both cases. it thus happens that wheat grow- ing on the soil allowing it to absorb the largest amount of nitrogen will, other things being equal, have a higher nitrogen content if the development of the kernel be permanently checked, although 1 it were allowed to mature fully if would not have a greater percentage of nitrogen than that grown on the soil affording less nitrogen. Reviewing the experiments, we find that in Lawes and Gilbert’s first experiment the percentage of nitrogen in the unmanured soil was less than on the soil receiving only nitrogenous fertilizer, and that the _ weight of grain per bushel and the percentage of good kernels on the two plots were practically the same. It would not appear, therefore, that the wheat on the plot receiving the nitrogenous fertilizer was less well matured than that on the unmanured plot. In this case there appears to be a slight increase in the percentage of nitrogen, due entirely to the use of nitrogenous fertilizers. Comparing the giain on al i et INFLUENCE OF SOIL MOISTURE UPON YIELD. > 23 the plot receiving only nitrogenous fertilizer with that receiving the complete fertilizer it will be seen that the former has a higher percent- age of nitrogen, but this is evidently due to the poorly developed ker- nels which weigh less per bushel than the grain on the completely fertilized plot. _ Von Gohren’s results show plainly that the kernels on the manured land developed better than on the unmanured, and with this better development there was an increase in the percentage of starch and a decrease in the nitrogen. In Lawes and Gilbert’s second experiment the percentage of nitro- gen in the wheat on the soil manured with ammonium salts was less than that in the wheat on the unmanured soil, but the weight of grain per bushel shows that the higher nitrogen content was due, in part at least, to incomplete maturation. The higher percentage of nitrogen in the wheat on the soil receiving only nitrogenous manures as com- pared with that receiving complete manures can be traced to the same condition of the grain. INFLUENCE OF SOIL MOISTURE UPON COMPOSITION AND YIELD. _ Experiments were conducted by D. Prianishinkoy “ in which wheat was raised with different degrees of moisture, but in the same soil and under the same conditions of light and temperature. With a larger amount of moisture in the soil there was a lower nitrogen content in the grain. It was also stated that the duration of the period of vege- tation was somewhat shorter when the moisture supply was greater. Traphagen’ reports marked changes in the composition of wheat grown with and without irrigation at the Montana Experiment Station. A wheat grown under irrigation on the station farm was planted the following year on land not irrigated. Presumably the land was of similar character. The two crops of grain were analyzed and the percentages stated below were found. . - 7 Nitrogen- 3 Mois- Crude Ether prec Crude ; Crop. ture. protein. extract. ee 3 fiber. Ash. extract. Per ct. Per ct. Per ct. Per ct. Per ct. | Per ct. OED oe 7.87 8.81 1.93 76.99 2. €0 1.80 MMMM WNEAL. ......-.22.----654----2- 7.65 14.41 as 71.33 2.65 1.70 No records of yields or of weights of kernels are given, but it is fair to suppose that the unirrigated wheat possessed the light, shrunken kernel which is characteristic of wheat raised without sufficient moisture. « Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 13, p. 631, from Zhur. Gpuitn. Agron., 1 (1500), No. 1, pp. 13-20. Montana Experiment Station Report (1902), pp. 59-60. a0: IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. Irrigation experiments were conducted by Widtsoe “ in which wheat of the same variety was raised on plots of land each one of which received a different quantity of water. A record was kept of the yield and composition of the grain on each plot. a Percentage of— bear cpries | Water ¥ ied ———_ ee Plot. applied aan anal & eee | (inches). | Protein | Ash in P els). in grain. | grain. Psi Ash. 317 4.63 4.50 24.8 | 2250) 4) 10.7 6.75 319 5.14 3.83 23.2, || 3.07 8.5) | 7.05 320 ZR | wees} 19.9 | Daal tL YE fale fn bas! 318 8.89 11.33 19.4 2.93 | PAI ake) 7/2 321 10. 30 14. 66 18.4 2734.) 25 59h te 20E 2 325 12.09 11.16 21.3 | 3.25. | 22.8 21.44 322 12a18) | el..66 Dyan ls | 2.88 25.8 20.30 326 12.80 13.00 7 Sale 2.52 21.3 21.50 320 | 9 iao0 15.338 17.2 2.57 29-3 23.64 328 21,11 17.33 15.9 2.34 26.4 24. 33 329 30. 00 26. 66 14.0 | 4.14 35.8 66. 20 330 40.00 14. 50 alyfoil 4 2.52 23.8 21.92 | | The results show that with an increase in the water used for irriga- tion up to 30 inches there were in general an increase in the yield of grain and a decrease in the nitrogen content. No volume weights or other means of judging of the development of the kernels on the different plots are given, but there is no reason to suppose that the grain on the plots receiving small quantities of water was not poorly developed. The column added showing the yield of nitrogen in pounds per acre indicates a lack of nutriment in the grain on these plots.’ High nitrogen content arising from a small supply of soil moisture is sometimes due to a restricted development of the kernel. There is nothing in these results to indicate a greater absorption of nitrogen by the crop on soil having less moisture, but results of this nature are cited elsewhere in this bulletin. INFLUENCE OF SIZE OR WEIGHT OF THE SEED-WHEAT KERNEL UPON THE CROP YIELD. - Sanborn’ reports experiments to ascertain the effect of separating seed wheat into kernels of different grades to ascertain the effect upon the yield. He divided the kernels into large, medium, small, ordinary (grain as it came from the thrasher), and shriveled, and continued the experiments for four years. Apparently the large kernels were separated from the crop grown from large seed the previous year, and « Utah Experiment Station Bulletin 80. » Nitrogen has been calculated from proteids by dividing by 6.25. ¢Utah Experiment Station Report, 1893, p. 168. ; INFLUENCE OF SIZE OR WEIGHT OF SEED KERNEL. 31 so with the other classes of kernels. He tabulates his results as follows: Yield of grain on plots (in | Average pounds). | fora Kind of seed. ae A . ies 1890. | 1891. | 1892. 1893, | Bushels per acre. Pedi aa, | ; si ca Large ee ee ea a eas aie ee Sees Seine weulsle aye awe $8.5 (Cae 111 63.0 18. 72 Te RIBS IE ES ne ee ee oe at hic cans eee ee onclsiewace'es 70.0 | 87 67.0 | 16. 60 pete 105.0/ 64) 74.0] 18.72 Ordinary 95.0 } 87 29.5 | 16. 42 Shriveled 43.0 | 7 31.0 | 11.25 The relation between yields of the crops representing different sized kernels is so irregular from year to year that suspicion is aroused regarding the accuracy of the results, due to lack of uni- formity in soil. Sanborn’s conclusion is that very little, if any, advantage is to be gained by separating seed wheat and planting the large kernels. At the Indiana Experiment Station, Latta“ conducted experi- ments in which wheat was separated by means of a fanning mill into heavy and light kernels, but impurities and chaffy seed were fanned out of each lot of wheat. The experiments were continued three years, but the separations were made each year from seed that had not been so separated the year before. The average gain from the large seed for three years was 2.5 bushels per acre. Georgeson,’ at the Kansas station, seeded plots of land with (1) light seed weighing 56 pounds per bushel, (2) common seed weighing 62.5 pounds, (3) heavy seed weighing 63 pounds, and (4) selected seed, obtained by picking the largest and finest heads in the field just before the crop was cut, weighing 61.5 pounds per bushel. Seed was separated each year from wheat not grown from previously selected seed. The average results for three years were as follows: Yield of | | Yield of grain || grain Grade of seed. per acre | Grade of seed. | per acre « (bush- | | (bush- els). | els). “DUE Re Se el ZEST) ||| 1S oe See ee ee ee 27.07 (LST. Se Sei 26.57 || Select (average for 2 years).........--- 25. 82 Desprez® reports experiments extending through three years in which large kernels were selected from a crop grown from large seed @ Indiana Experiment Station Bulletin 36, pp. 110-128. > Kansas Experiment Station Bulletin 40, pp. 51-62. ¢ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 7, p. 679, from Jour. Agr. Prat., 59 (1895), 2, pp. 694-698. oo IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. for several years and small seed from a crop grown from small seed for several years. Five varieties of wheat were used. The average results for three years were a difference of 1,067 to 1,828 kilograms of grain per hectare in favor of the large seed, but the difference was in general greater the first year than later. The use of large seed gave a crop with kernels larger than those grown from small seed. Middleton” reports the yields obtained from large wheat kernels to be almost double those obtained from small seed kernels. Bolley,’ as the results of experiments continuing for four years in which plump kernels of large size and plump kernels of small size were selected for seed, concludes that “perfect grains of large size and greatest weight produce better plants than perfect grains of small size and light weight, even when the grains come from the same head.”’ At the Ontario Agricultural College, Zavitz® selected large plump seed, small plump seed, and shrunken seed of both spring and winter wheat. Experiments were continued for eight years with spring wheat and five years with winter wheat, the selections each year being from a crop grown from previously unselected seed. His results are as follows: Yield per acre (in bushels). Kind of seed. pe toe Re ee te Spring | Winter wheat. | wheat. LUE Wefexo hy OL Uh aay Oe a Seay Mes Sled a ee ees pet BS cies Be none Soe ee See 21.7. 42.4 Small po Pee Bee See rasa a es ee es are RE Se Ice 18.0 | 34.8 Shrunken 3:8 os ce eee ee ee ee le ee Sane ere 16.7 33.7 Dehérain and Dupont” report that the yields from small and large kernels of a number of varieties of wheat were in all cases in favor of the large kernels, but a large difference in yield was obtained only when there was a marked difference in the weight of the kernels. Soule and Vanatter’ conducted experiments for three years in which large and small kernels were separated by means of sieves. In addition a plot of unselected seed was planted. The large seed was, each year after the first, selected from the crop grown from large seed the previous year. The same was true of the small seed. These investigators say: a Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 12, p. 441, from Univ. Coll. of Wales Rept., 1899, pp. 68-70. » North Dakota Experiment Station Report, 1901, p. 30. ¢ Ontario Agricultural College and Experiment Farm Report, 1901, p. 84. : /’ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 15, p. 672, from Compt. Rend., 135 (1902), p. 654. ¢ Tennessee Experiment Station Bulletin, vol. 16, No. 4, p. 77. eee Se Se INFLUENCE OF SIZE OR WEIGHT OF SEED KERNEL. 33 The average difference in yield at the end of three years between iarge grains (607 per ounce ), commercial sample (689 per ounce ), and small grains (882 per ounce ), with Med- iterranean wheat, was 2.06 bushels in favor of large grains as compared with the commercial sample, and 5.18 bushels in favor of large grains over small grains. The difference in yield between the large grains and the commercial sample chiefly occurred the first year; but it is possible, though hardly probable, that the difference was partly due to variation in the soil. The experiment has been carried on in different parts of the field for the last two years, and the difference in yield is now only 0.32 bushel per acre in favor of the large grains. Cobb“ reports tests of various grades of wheat kernels with respect to size, and concludes that large kernels give better yields of grain. The seed of one year was not the product of the corresponding grade of the previous one. Grenfell’ selected plump and shriveled kernels from the same bulk of grain. Of these 150 kernels were sown in each row, with rows of plump and shriveled kernels alternating. The germination in both rows appeared much alike, but the plants in the rows sown from plump grain soon began to gain on the others and kept ahead for the remainder of the season. The tillering was better in the plump- grain plants. Grenfell tabulates his results thus: Average ‘Percentage | - | Tjlarine | Yield per Variety. Kind. of plants plete os 3 acre that grew. aCe PEOVCE a aniiate els), | = : ls as csr oh 15-832: See (RININP 52s n= oe 96.0 179 1.24 | 10.9 oO 89.3 174 ! 1.29 9.9 Purple Straw 89.3 153 1.14 6.1 LD? So: 3 = eee Jelbvtaty oye eat See 90.0 200 1.49 10 WO) 26 5 Se Shriveled.sss235-0- 76.0 140 1.16 6.9 il) pees be ee eee Pitim peer cae eee oes 92.0 161 23 8.4 LLG) +123 35a Shrivelediesposecoe ss 98.0 155 1.34 2 asinip-Rernel AVeraves -....- 2)... ----2<2.-.2--5-555--8 92.7 180 Heese 9.8 shriveled-kernel averages .-..'........---------+:----- 88.5 155 1.23 (55) As bearing upon this subject some experiments conducted by Riinker’ are of interest. He weighed each of the kernels of a large number of heads of wheat of the Spalding Prolific and Martin Amber varieties, and found that the heaviest kernels occur in the lower half of the spike. With spikes of different lengths and weights, the weight of the average kernel increases with the size of the spike. Weights of individual kernels from the same spikes show that there is a great range in this respect. One spike, of which Riinker gives the weights of all the kernels, and which is given as representa- tive of the average, shows kernels varying in weight from 36 to 71 milligrams. @ Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 14 (1903), No. 2, pp. 145-169. » Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 12 (1901), No. 9, pp. 1053-1062. ¢ Jour. f. Landw., 38 (1890), p. 309. 27889—No. 78—05——3 34 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. It is therefore quite evident that a sample of wheat taken from spikes of different sizes when separated into lots of ight and heavy kernels would have both the larger spikes and smaller spikes repre- sented in each lot of kernels, but doubtless the proportion of kernels from large heads would be greater in the lot of heavy kernels. It would appear from these results that the evidence was over- whelmingly in favor of large or heavy wheat kernels for seed. Most of the experimenters selected seed of different kinds each year without reference to previous selection. If large seed or small seed represent plants of different characteristics and if these properties are hered- itary, the results of selection of large or small seeds for several years may be quite different from what they would be the first year. It is only those experiments in which selection of the same kind of seed has been continued for several generations that may be relied upon to indicate the value of continuous selection of large kernels for seed. Such experiments have been conducted by Sanborn, by Desprez, and by Soule and Vanatter. The work of Desprez indicates that the size of the kernel is a hereditary quality. That being the case, it is evident that the small seed of the first separation may be composed partly of seed that is small on account of immaturity and partly of seed that is small by inheritance, but which is perfectly normal: When such seed is planted the immature seed will be largely elimi- nated in the crop, but the naturally small seed will have reproduced itself and will compose most of the crop. When the seed is again separated a much smaller percentage of small seed will be immature, and in consequence a larger number of kernels will produce plants. It would appear from Desprez’s experiments, however, that those plants producing small kernels are not so prolific as those producing large kernels. Sanborn’s results make a very good showing for the small kernels, but, as before stated, the extreme irregularity would lead to the belief that the soil on the plots lacked uniformity, or that some other errors had influenced the results. To offset this the tests cover a period of four years, which should help to rectify mistakes, and in consequence the good showing made by the small kernels is entitled to some consideration. Soule and Vanatter’s results fulfill exactly the conditions of the hypothesis that the small seed would the first year contain a much larger proportion of immature kernels than it would in subsequent years, and hence yield more poorly the first year. Their results with heavy kernels as compared with ordinary seed offer little encourage- ment to the continuous selection of large kernels. ———S ee PAA SO. a, RELATION OF SIZE OF KERNEL TO NITROGEN CONTENT. 35 The fact before referred to that both large and small kernels are found on the same head of wheat is perhaps an argument against the superior value of large seed. If the plant and not the seed is the unit ‘of reproduction, small seed from a plant whose kernels averaged large size may be better than large seed from a plant whose kernels averaged small size. On the other hand, there can be no doubt that the majority of the kernels in the lot of heavy kernels would be from plants having large spikes, and vice versa. This would give the kernels in the heavy lot some advantage. Again, the advantage that the large kernel is sup- posed to possess for seed may not be in producing a large kernel in the resulting crop, but in giving the plant a better start in life, or producing a more vigorous plant. RELATION OF SIZE OF KERNEL TO NITROGEN CONTENT. Richardson“ has made a large number of analyses of wheats from different parts of the United States. The weight of 100 kernels was also determined in each sample. There can not be said to be any constant relation between the nitrogen content and the kernel weight, but in the main the large kernels have a lower percentage of nitrogen than the small kernels, and inversely. Pagnoul? reports that in a test of eleven varieties of wheat there was in the main a decrease in the percentage of nitrogen in the crop -as compared with the seed when there was an increase in the weight of 1,000 kernels in the crop as compared with the seed. The same investigator’ again states that in an examination of seventy varieties of wheat there was no constant relation between the size of the kernels and their nitrogen content, but that in general the varieties with small kernels were the varieties richest in nitrogen. Marek’ separated wheat of the same variety into lots of large and of small kernels. He found on analysis that the large kernels con- tained 12.52 per cent protein and the small kernels 13.55 per cent protein. Woods and Merrill’ made analyses.of a number of wheats grown in Minnesota and of the same varieties grown in Maine. The wheats uniformly developed a larger kernel when grown in Maine. Grouping five varieties raised in Minnesota and five raised in Maine, it will be seen that with this increase in the size of the kernel there was a «U.S. Department of Agriculture, Division of Chemistry, Bulletins 1 and 3. b Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 1893, p. 616, from Ann. Agron., 1892, p. 486. ¢ Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 1888, p. 767, from Ann. Agron., 14, pp. 262-272. d Abstract in Centrib. f. Agr. Chem., 1876, from Landw. Zeitung f. Westfalen u. Lippe, 1875, p. 362. € Maine Experiment Station Bulletin 97: 56 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. decrease in the nitrogen content. The analyses, reduced to a water- free basis, are as follows: | Weight of Where grown. 100 kernels woe (grams). | Pp Minnesota nc ose oe oe eee Bn ee oe ae ae Se See Se = ee atel= ete 2.239 16. 22 a Bhi): Pee ee ee eo eee Se ae ee Pee ae rae paar Beco o Soa 3.109 | 15.43 In a review of the experiments concerning the relation of weight to composition of cereals, Gwallig’ says that the results obtained by Marek, Wollny, Mircker, Hoffmeister, and Nothwang divide barley and rye into one group, and wheat and oats into another, as regards this relation. With barley and rye, the largest, heaviest kernels are the richest in protein. With wheat and oats, the smallest, lightest kernels have the highest protein content. Gwallig says further that with an increased protein content there is a decrease in nitrogen-free extract. The fat and ash do not stand in a definite relation to the kernel weight, but the small, light kernels have a higher percentage of crude fiber, which circumstance is accounted for by the larger surface possessed by the smaller kernels. Snyder?’ has divided small kernels into two classes—those which are small because shrunken and those which are small although well filled. He finds that as between small kernels of the first class and large, well-filled kernels, the former contain a higher percentage of nitrogen, but as between the small, well-filled and the large, well-filled kernels, the latter contain the higher percentage of nitrogen. In testing this he used large and small kernels of the same variety in each case, and the wheats represented a large portion of the wheat- growing area of the United States. As regards the relation of large, perfect, and small, perfect kernels there were twenty-four out of twenty-seven cases in which the large kernels contained a greater percentage of nitrogen. Johannsen and Weis,’ in experiments with five varieties of wheat, find that as a general rule the percentage of nitrogen is increased with increasing grain weight, but that there are many exceptions to the rule. Cobb” states that small wheat kernels contain a larger proportion of gluten than do large ones, but he does not submit any analyses to substantiate his statement. « Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 24 (1895), p. 388, from Landw. Jahrbiicher, 23 (1894), p. 835. > Minnesota Experiment Station Bulletin 85. ¢ Abstract, Experiment Station Record, 12, p. 327, from Tidsskr. Landbr. Planteavl., 5 (1899), pp. 91-100. @ Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 5 (1894), No. 4, pp. 239-250. mass et, i a Re INFLUENCE OF SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF SEED KERNEL. 37 Kornicke and Werner“ quote the experiments of Reiset to show that shriveled kernels have a higher nitrogen content than plump ones. With different varieties of wheat he found the following: Percent- 3 age of Variety. Kind. nitrogen in dry matter. i DEE 1. a a5 ee ee Siriveledicscecss eae 2.48 OOP 22s dbs 33 Se ee Bee POOL BSS22 a See Ss, cee [ed ioe of eens a Sears ere 2.33 PetOria ~~ ----------- 2-2-2 eee eee eee ene eee | Shot he (20s ae eee 2. 44 Rot A ore See ieee anos ne ese s Sede ese - IBLE) oe ae © 2 ae ae 2.08 TEDL 2. 2 ce eS eee Se SHTLVeleGece7u.- ee poree tere cei = 2 = a ee eee ee eee ee eee 29.5 31.2 33.0 1,000 crop) kernels se pete saree aera ae oie. ae eee 34.3 35.5 / 36.3 Wollny objects to the results of the experiments by F. Haberlandt, Church, Trommer, Hellriegel, and Ph. Dietrich with various cereals, in which almost without exception the kernels of high specific gravity produced the best yields, because no distinction was made between absolute weight and specific gravity in the kernels. He claims that the value of the seed lies in the kernels of absolutely heavy weight rather than in the kernels of high specific gravity. He concludes that the specific gravity of the seed exerts no influence on the yield of the crop. “Science with Practice. » Jahresb. Agr. Chem., 1866-67, p. 298. ¢ Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 1887, p. 169, from Forschungen a.d. Gebiete Agri- kulturphysik, 9 (1886), pp. 207-216. | 5 q SPECIFIC GRAVITY AND NITROGEN CONTENT. 39 In the light of the experiments that have been conducted with seed wheat of high and low specific gravities, it would appear that, in general, seed = very low specific gravity does not yield well, ae it is evident that such seed must be deficient in mineral matter and is probably not normal in other respects. There would not appear, however, to be any marked difference in the productive capacity of kernels of medium specific gravity and kernels of great specific gravity. RELATION OF SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF KERNEL TO NITROGEN CONTENT Marek“ found that with an increase in the specific gravity of the kernel there was a decrease in nitrogen content. Pagnoul,’ in testing seventy varieties of wheat, found that the nitrogen content rose with the specific gravity, but not regularly, and that a definite relation could not be traced. Wollny’ tock kernels of horny structure and kernels of mealy structure. He says it is generally recognized that the hard, horny kernels have a higher specific gravity, and that it is commonly attributed to their higher content of proteids. He contends that as starch has a higher specific gravity than protein the mealy kernels | must really have a higher specific gravity than the horny ones. Kornicke and Werner” state the specific gravities of the various chemical constituents of the wheat kernel as follows: Starch, 1.53; sugar, 1.60; cellulose, 1.53; fats, 0.91 to 0.96; gluten, 1.297; ash, 2.50; water, 1.00; air, 0.001293. They state also (p. 121) that the specific gravity of the kernel does not stand in any relation to the volume weight, for the factor which results from weighing a certain volume mass is influenced by the air spaces between the kernels, and these depend upon the form and size as well as the surface and acci- dental structure of the kernel. They also contend that there is no relation between the volume weight and the content of proteid material. Schindler’ shows that by tabulating a large number of varieties of wheat from different parts of the world, and representing different varieties, there is no relation between the weight of 1,000 kernels and the volume weight of 100¢.c. Byseparating these into varieties, even when grown in different localities, kernels of the same variety did show a definite and constant relation. The volume weight increased with an increase in the weight of 1,000 kernels. @ Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 1876, p. 46, from Landw. Zeitung f. Westfalen u. Lippe, 1875, p. 362. b Abstract in CentrIb. f. Agr.Chem., 1888, p. 767, from Ann. Agron., 14, pp. 262-272. ¢ Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 1887, p. 169, from Forschungen a. d. Gebiete Agri- kulturphysik, 9 (1886), pp. 207-216. @ Handbuch des Getreidebaues, 2, p. 120, Berlin, 1884. € Jour. Landw., 45 (1897), p. 61. 40 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. There has long been a desire manifested by workers in this field to establish some definite relation between the specific gravity of the wheat kernel and its composition, or at least its nitrogen content. Very contradictory results have been obtained by several experi- menters, and little progress has been made. It is true that the various chemical constituents that go to com- pose the wheat kernel have different specific gravities, and as those of the carbohydrates are all less than those of the proteids it might be argued that a wheat having a large proportion of proteid material would have a low specific gravity. However, the specific gravity of the ash is so much greater than that of any other constit- uent and the ash in wheats from different soils and climates varies so much that these factors completely prevent the establishment of a definite relation. The size and number of the vacuoles also influence the specific gravity. In general, it may be said that as between kernels of the same variety grown in the same season and upon the same soil, the specific gravity is inversely proportional to the nitrogen content. CONDITIONS AFFECTING THE PRODUCTION OF NITROGEN IN THE GRAIN. So far as the writer has been able to ascertain there is no literature bearing directly upon the conditions affecting the production of nitrogen in the grain of wheat. Regarding high nitrogen in the wheat crop as arising merely from failure on the part of the kernel to develop fully, it would seem that a high percentage of nitrogen would inevitably be accompanied by a small production of nitrogen per acre. This, however, does not always appear to be the case. Taking, for instance, the yields of wheat obtained by Lawes and Gilbert” for a period of twenty years, which they divide into two periods of good and of poor crops, each covering ten years, we have the following figures: Average = yield of | Weight | ‘eld of Seasons. grain per per bushel ee eens acre (pounds). Gai Se (pounds). pounds). Good crop’ Se880N8~2---ea--2 see e=- == - 6 = oo ee ee ee eee 1,833 60.2 28.0 PO OT CRO PESG RISO TS eet reese eee a ee 1,740 57.1 29.8 It will be noticed that the largest production of nitrogen per acre was in those years in which the weight per bushel and the yield per acre were least. ANG Of course this is not always the case, but that it should occur at all is an indication that the conditions that make for high nitrogen re ae at ERR CONDITIONS AFFECTING PRODUCTION OF NITROGEN. 41 content in the grain also conduce to a large accumulation of nitrogen by the crop, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the conditions which favor a large accumulation of nitrogen by the crop often result in giving it a high nitrogen content. Reference has already been made to the observations of Dehérain and Dupont“ on the wheat crops of 1888 and 1889 at Grignon. The figures for the yields of grain, the percentages of starch and gluten, and the production per acre of these constituents for the two years are as follows: | yi Percentage of— | a ee Pea i : Gluten per | Starch per Year. ene hectare hectare (kilos). Gluten. Starch. | (kilos). (kilos). (OSS 1: 22 oa 2 eee 3,445 12.6 | LiAe| 434 | 2,659 eee ee aiia le = = == = = 2,922 15.3 | 61.9 447 1,808 From this it will be seen that for the year in which the yield of grain was less per acre the production of gluten per acre was greater. Apparently the conditions were favorable for a large accumulation of nitrogen by the plant in 1889, but were unfavorable to the pro- duction of starch. If the latter had not been the case, the crop of 1889 would have been larger than the crop of 1888. A number of instances of this kind have occurred among the wheat crops at the Nebraska Experiment Station. In fact, it may be said that, in general, large yields of grain have there been accompanied by a low percentage of nitrogen per acre as compared with the same properties in small yields of grain. The following table will show this: Production of nitrogen per acre in wheat raised at the Nebraska Experiment Station. Yield of | Percent- Proteid : Z . Date of LST ee ee grain age of nitrogen ube aeey | Year. per acre | proteid | per acre ps en (pounds). | nitrogen. (pounds). DE OO Silt LEG cl 22 3s ee oe 1900 1,980 3.02 52.73 | June 27 oe outst ee re eee 1901 2,370 2.00 43.04 June 24 a se bt 502 ee eee eres 1902 1,800 2. 86 51.48 | June 23 Con. .- 2655 a ee ee ee 1903 1, 864 2.40 | 44.74 July 9 (D2 pt ee ee Sere ree | 1900 1,320 3.01 | 34.58 | July 2 Oa Wie eee BS gael ens eee ..| 1901 1,794 2.18 36.08 July 1 4. 22 eer ree OF IE Ce CA eee 1903 a962 2. 54 24.43 | July 14 SRMEIITREEIM eS io oo ono ooo Soc eece esc sdcce sce 1902 1,605 3.16 46.32. June 24 Oo 2 Jb 55 a ae Ee Se. 1903 1,891 2.10 39.71 July 10 OF ibn Lo ei Se a 1902 1,475 2.92 43.10 | June 24 BV OF Se Se oa | oO eee Aree ates ere, 1903 1,830 2.16 39.53 | July 10 LEP E DL 2 2 UE ee eee a See er ta [Nc ore Tee AG ge eae oe) ee 41.43 a Yield decreased by lodging of grain. A word in regard to the character of the seasons that produced these crops may help to an understanding of their differences. @ Ann. Agron., 28 (1902), p. 522. 42 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. The season of 1900 was rather dry and hot from the time growth started in the spring until harvest. There was no time when there was an abundant supply of moisture, but occasional rains wet the soil for a few days at a time. The temperatures during the day were high and the air was dry. In 1901 the spring was quite moist and cool until June, when it became extremely hot and dry. A few days before harvest the temperatures ranged above 100° F. daily, with no rainfall. The season of 1902 was the direct opposite of that of 1901, except that the change came earlier. It was extremely dry and hot until the middle of May, when abundant rains came, and the temperatures were considerably below normal until harvest. The season of 1903 was wet and cool throughout. In general, it may be said that in those seasons, like 1900 and 1902, in which the temperatures were high and moisture scarce dur- ing all or the early part of the growing season, the grain had a high percentage of nitrogen, and there was a large production of nitrogen per acre. In years of low temperatures and abundant moisture, as in 1903, or even when such conditions obtained late in the sea- son, as in 1901, there were a low percentage of nitrogen in the grain and a small production of nitrogen per acre. High temperatures and scant moisture during early growth would, therefore, seem to favor the accumulation of nitrogen by the wheat plant. It may also be noted that these are the conditions favorable to the process of nitrification and to the accumulation of nitrates near the surface of the soil. Comparing the wheat crops grown at Rothamsted for a period of twenty years, the yields and nitrogen production of which have just been stated, with the averages for the Nebraska-grown wheats con- tained in the last table, it will be seen that the yields of grain were larger at Rothamsted, but that the production of nitrogen per acre was considerably greater in Nebraska.¢ Yield (in pounds) Station. Petar se | Grain. Nitrogen. Rothamsted Station’ os sees eee > - ~ = 2 one cee ee ee 1,7 28.9 Nebraska station == 2533 ace. een = - = ss eee eek seep ee ee ee eee eae aes 1,717 41.4 The maximum production of nitrogen per acre at Rothamsted during the twenty years was 38.1 Semis, while at Nebraska it was 52.7 pounds. There can be little doubt as to whether this difference was due in greater measure to soil fertility or to cimate. Nowhere is better a The yield of nitrogen at Rothamsted ; is apieatel iG total organic nitrogen, while at the Nebraska Station it is from proteid nitrogen. i ai eee PS es eatin CONDITIONS AFFECTING PRODUCTION OF NITROGEN. 43 tillage given or are crops more scientifically provided with food than at Rothamsted. It is true that of the ten plots of land on which these wheats were raised one received no manure and three were not sufficiently manured. In order to make the comparison more favorable to the English environment, the five plots completely manured and producing the largest yields may be taken. The yield of nitrogen per acre was 36.4 pounds for the years 1852-1861 and 34.6 pounds for 1862-1871. Even with the best manuring the yields of nitrogen fall very much short of those in Nebraska. In Nebraska no commercial fertilizers had ever been used on the land on which the wheats were grown, but farm manure had been applied. The soil was a heavy one, well adapted to wheat growing, and had been well tilled. It had been well manured for corn in a rotation of corn, oats, and wheat. The varieties, with the exception of Turkish Red, had just been introduced from Europe and had not fully adapted themselves to the new environment. The average nitrogen production for the only acclimated variety, Turkish Red, was 48 pounds per acre. It would seem, therefore, that a climate affording high temperatures, dry air, and a moderately dry soil is favorable to the accumulation of a large amount of nitrogen by the wheat plant, provided there is a large supply of nitrogen in the soil. The heat and scant soil moisture are doubtless instrumental in making available the nitrogen of the humus, and the bright sunshine and dry, hot air stimulate growth and increase transpiration. It has just been said that hot, dry weather in the early growing season contributes to a large nitrogen accumulation by the wheat plant. The same conditions cut short the growing period of the plant and prevent the large accumulation of starch that takes place in the kernel of wheat raised in a cool or moist region. It thus happens that such wheats are high in nitrogen and low in starch. The properties of the wheat kernel characteristic of a continental climate and rich soil are probably due to rapid nitrification and highly stimulated growth causing a large accumulation of nitrogen by the crop, and to incomplete maturation, caused either by heat, or frost, or lack of moisture, resulting in high nitrogen. It would be interesting to know what relation the production of nitrogen per acre bears to the production of mineral matter, but the necessary figures are not at hand. The wheat kernel produced in a continental climate is not usually plump as compared with the kernel produced in an insular or coastal one. The yield of grain per acre is also usually less. That this is due to incomplete maturation is shown by the fact that winter varieties of wheat that make their growth early in the season always yield better than spring varieties. The latter, on the other hand, have a higher percentage of nitrogen, but usually not so large a 44 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. nitrogen production. Their disadvantage lies in the fact that their roots are not sufficiently developed to absorb a large quantity of nitrogenous matter at the time most favorable for its accumulation. As a maximum nitrogen accumulation is the chief desideratum, spring wheats are not desirable where winter ones can be grown. This does not mean that a variety of wheat which has been grown, for instance, in England will show all the qualities of an inland wheat when first grown in Kansas or Nebraska. Such a wheat will undergo modifications that will give it some of these qualities, such, for instance, as less well-filled kernels, and less weight per bushel. On the other hand, the Turkish Red wheat, when raised in a cool, moist climate, becomes later maturing, and the kernel becomes plumper, more starchy, and softer. It is between varieties adapted each to its peculiar climate, and raised there for years, that these distinctions are most marked, but the fact that a modification of any variety begins at once when transferred from one climate to another shows that such qualities as those mentioned are influenced by the climate. It must be quite apparent, although it has not often been remarked, that the ordinary selection of seed wheat to increase the yield has resulted in producing a grain of lower nitrogen content. This has been noticed by Girard and Lindet“ and by Biffen,? and incidentally by Balland,’ who, in commenting on the decrease in the nitrogen content of wheat in northern France and the increased yields, attributes the former to a deficiency of nitrogen in the fer- tilizers used, and states that the gluten in the wheat of that region in 1848 ranged from 10.23 to 13.02 per cent, while fifty years later it ranged from 8.96 to 10.62 per cent. In the same time the aver- age yield increased from 14 to 17.5 hectoliters per hectare. In the light of the results of experiments to ascertain the effect of nitroge- nous fertilizers upon the composition of wheat, it can not be supposed that this decrease in nitrogen content can be due primarily to lack of nitrogen. It would seem more likely that the increased yield was largely due to the deposition of starch in the grain, and that consequently the percentage of gluten was smaller. 3 Has the improvement in the yield of wheat been accompanied by a greater yield of nitrogen per acre? It is evident that the increase in the grain and that in the nitrogen are not proportional, but it is a Le Froment et sa Monture, Paris, 1903. b Nature (London), 69 (1903), No. 1778, pp. 92, 93. ¢ Abstract in Centrlb. f. Agr. Chem., 1897, p. 785, from Compt. Rend., 124 (1897), p. 158. i é CONDITIONS AFFECTING PRODUCTION OF NITROGEN. 45 desirable to know whether there has been any increase in nitrogen per acre. Returning to the figures given by Balland it will be seen that the wheat of 1848 produced on an average 163 kilos per hec- tare, while that of fifty years later produced 171 kilos, an increase of about 5 per cent in gluten per hectare, with an increase of 25 per cent in yield. These figures can not, of course, be taken as strictly accurate, as they are based merely on what M. Balland refers to as the range of nitrogen content. Some data on this subject are available in the published records of wheat improvement at the Minnesota Experiment Station. 4 Yields and gluten content of improved varieties and of the original variety from which the improved strains have been developed by selection are given. The figures cover the same seasons for all varieties, and the averages of six trials are reported for each, as follows: Ioy, et | Yield per | Eamee ae: | Gluten Nitrogen Variety. acre dry elu- | Per acre | per acre | (bushels). er | (pounds). (pounds). Minnesota No. 149, produced from Power’s Fife..........- 25.6 13.5 | 207.4 36.4 Powers Pile; unmodified by selection-.-...............-.- 23.6 14.0 | 198. 2 34.8 Minnesota No. 109, produced from Hayne’s Blue Stem.... 28.5 1225 213.7 37.5 Hayne’s Blue Stem, unmodified by selection ............-- 24.6 13.4 198.8 34.7 In each case the new variety yielded more grain per acre, possessed a lower gluten content, and produced more nitrogen per acre in the grain. It should be explained that determinations of gluten and baking tests were made of strains of wheat produced by the selection of individual plants, and that the quantity and quality of the gluten in these strains were considered in deciding which strain was to be perpetuated. For that reason the gluten content of the improved wheat is doubtless greater than it would have been if no attention had been paid to those qualities. Incidentally it may be stated that the quality of the gluten in these new varieties of wheat origi- nated by Professor Hays is much better than that in the original varieties. The difference between selection for gluten carried on in this way and selection for gluten applied to the individual plant is that the latter must increase many times the opportunity for devel- oping a strain of desirable gluten content. Returning to the nitrogen production per acre, it is apparent that it is slightly greater in the improved wheats, or at least is not less than in the original varieties. This is encouraging, as it indicates the possibility of increasing the production of gluten per acre. @ Minnesota Experiment Station Bulletin 63. 46 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT... Gluten is the valuable constituent of wheat. The wheat growing of the future may be looked upon as a gluten-producing industry. The problem is to secure. the highest possible quantity and quality of gluten per acre. If this can be done by sacrificing starch produc- tion, it will be economical. Starch can be more cheaply produced in other crops and, if necessary, added to the flour of wheat. It may be argued that this is not to the interest of the farmer. But it is clearly to the interest of mankind and any step toward its accomplishment must in the end redound to the advantage of the farmer. SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. If a number of wheat kernels of the same variety and raised under similar conditions are separated into approximately equal parts with regard to their specific gravity, the kernels of low specific gravity will be found to contain a higher percentage of both total and proteid nitrogen than the kernels having a high specific gravity. A number of samples of wheat grown in different years and repre- senting different varieties were separated into approximately equal parts by throwing the kernels into a solution of calcium chlorid hay- ing such a density that about half the kernels would float and the other half sink. The specific gravity of the solution in which each sample was separated is given in Table 1 and the signs < and > are used to represent “less than” and ‘‘greater than,” respectively. Thus “‘<1.29”’ means that the kernels have a specific gravity of less than 1.29, while ‘‘>1.29”’ indicates that the kernels have a specific eravity greater than 1.29. TaBLe 1.—Analyses of kernels of high and of low specific gravity. a Percentage of— et 2 | Specific Rea | Name of variety and year of Serial number. gravity. | Total | Proteid or oF growth. | nitrogen. | nitrogen.« nitrogen. | it Lee pee eee <1. 290 3.51 2.49 LGU re ep oan =e nu et ravi PLMIGTRcii) 1.290 3.97 2.39 “98 jHickman, grown in 1895. Rea ao ess - <1. 286 2.51 1.88 68 Ninn ies Pees = an ij, 1. 936 | 251 1.94 57 j Turkish Red, grown in 1897. Tie ce: Bee “1.250 | 2.80 2.26 .54 \Spring wheat, Marvel, grown Se oes Jn eee >1. 250 2.78 2315 63 |f in 1897. ssh <1. 265 2.95 2.13 .82 |\Spring wheat, Velvet Chaff Wik EO one 1. 265 2.66 2.01 -65 f grown in 1897. To <1. 264 3.30 2.41 BON See ee he eee, 1 a 31,264 3 06 2.99 77 j Turkish Red, grown in 1898. a Proteid nitrogen in this paper = nitrogen by Stutzer’s method. Proteids = proteid nitrogen x 5.7. With the exception of serial Nos. 30 and 31 the kernels of low specific gravity have in each case a higher percentage of both total and proteid nitrogen than have the kernels of high specific gravity. It will also be noticed that the percentage of nonproteid nitrogen is greater in the kernels of low specific gravity. Samples of wheat were also divided into light and heavy portions by means of a machine which operates by directing upward a current of air, the velocity of which can be regulated. Into this current the srain is directed. The result is that the heavy kernels and the large 27889—No. 78—05——4 49 50 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. kernels fall, and the light kernels and small kernels are driven out. The separation thus accomplished is somewhat different from that effected by a solution, the difference being that the latter separates the kernels entirely according to their specific gravities while with the air blast a large kernel of a certain specific gravity might descend with the heavy kernels, when if it were smaller, although of the same specific gravity, it would be blown out. The number of light kernels that descend on account of their large size is relatively small, owing to the fact that large kernels are, as a rule, of higher specific gravity than small ones. The following test was made to determine the relation between the size of wheat ker- nels and’ their specific gravity. An average lot of wheat was nearly equally divided by means of two sieves into three portions represent- ing medium, small, and large kernels. Each of these portions was then thrown upon solutions of the same specific gravity, and the pro- portion by weight that floated, or light seed, and the proportion that sank, or heavy seed, were determined. TaBLeE 2.—Proportion of light and of heavy seed. E Kind of seca Heavy seed Light seed | ee (grams). (grams). | Heavy. Light. = | | reall. te, ek eek Ee EM, .. 8c ee 8.72 | 11.28 1| 1.29 LOTS aah ss eevee eee eae 8) eS. eae 9.62 | 10.78 1 | 1.12 1 bY: eS he one a ee ees re 11.96 | 1 | 67 | 8.04 The weight of light kernels among the small was nearly twice that of light kernels among the large seeds. Analyses of samples of wheat separated by this machine into light and heavy kernels gave about the same results as the samples sepa- rated by solutions of certain specific gravities. TaBLe 3.—Analyses of large, heavy kernels and of small, light kernels. Percentage of— Serial number. | BEBE | notai | Protea | Noapro-| Name of Vereua ena wear es nitrogen. ae owe 9. fe etter bight .2227.2—- 2.99 2:24 0.78 |\Spring wheat, Marvel, grown 10. oo et od Soca ae Heavye-see- == 2.76 2.04 -72 |f in 1896. SCI Hwee) io] oe] les fCurrell, grown in Tes. Be LLL) Bey] «285 | Zot | cer Spring wheat, erown in 1896. BL] Baws] 28] se | 223 [Bis Frame, grown in 1800. BB | Meeps] «See | gs | lon [J Tartan Red, rows stamp BB LI] Heawyc| «= 268] 265] go, Bie Frame, grown in 1000. 008. LT] Bees. | 246 | 2a8| fam [fBls Frame, grown tm iear Se | Mewes] «|| Tat] fiz |}arkish Red, grown in 1901, i ? 08 OL IEEE I OM SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. 51 It thus becomes very apparent that the percentage of nitrogen is relatively greater in the ight wheat selected in the manner described. It is well known that immature wheat is of lighter weight than mature wheat and that it contains a greater percentage of nonproteid nitrogen. In a field of wheat there are always certain plants that mature early, others that mature late, and some that never reach a normal state of maturity. The last condition is very likely to occur in a region of limited rainfall and intense summer heat. The con- ditions most favorable for the filling out of the grain are shown to be an abundance of soil moisture and a fair degree of warmth. The more nearly the conditions are the reverse of this the more shriveled the kernel and the lighter the weight. In the same variety and in the same field there are kernels that are small and shriveled because of immaturity, disease, or lack of nutriment. All of these classes would appear among the “‘light”’ kernels separated in this way. In order to approach the question from another standpoint, a num- -ber of spikes of wheat of the Turkish Red variety were selected in the field, care being taken that all were fully ripe, and that they were composed of healthy, well-formed kernels. These spikes were sam- pled by removing one row of spikelets from each spike and the kernels so removed were tested for moisture, proteid nitrogen, specific eravity, and weight of kernel, and from the last two the relative volume was calculated. It will be shown later that a sample taken in this way permits of an accurate estimation of the average com- position of the kernels on the spike. The number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the row of spikelets on each spike was calculated from the data mentioned, and the average weight of the kernels on the row of spikelets was determined from their total weight and number, thus permitting of the estima- tion of the number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel on each spike. In Table 4 the spikes having a proteid nitrogen content of from 2 to 2.5 per cent are arranged in one group, and on the same line with each spike are placed the number of kernels on one row of spikelets, weight _ of these kernels, weight of average kernel, relative volume of average kernel, specific gravity of kernel, grams of proteid nitrogen in one row of spikelets, and grams of proteid nitrogen in average kernel. Spikes having a proteid nitrogen content of from 2.5 to 3 per cent are similarly arranged, and so with all spikes up to 4 percent. The aver- age for each group is shown in the table. There are, in all, 257 spikes, of which 18 have from 2 to 2.5 per cent proteid nitrogen; 82 from 2.5 to 3 per cent, 107 from 3 to 3.5 per cent, and 49 from 3.5 to 4 per cent. 5g IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLe 4.—Analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged according to nitrogen content of kernels. Crop of 1902. 2 TO 25 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. g ie | Weight (in grams) | Percent | Proteid nitrogen | Neos of— mound | Specific | age of | (gram) in— 5 Record bige e= of ahi Brevity proteid | ; number. | age ker- | of ker- | nitrogen | row of x | Average Fi yh Average ‘spikelets. Kernels. Teel nel. nels. ge Kernels. kecact | | re | 1 Le WONT OL 0280) | 222. 12k oe) oe ae ae 2.06 0.00983 | 0.000577 16 4425 SOQTGNG|- i: 0 Pee | 2.37 | .01049 000654 14 SSO GA dct (70 steed DERE eRe, HB eae 7 2.41 00897 - 000642 7 15 .4824 .0321 | 0.0241 1.3323 2.41 01548 - 000774 18 5221 .0290 | .0209 1.3850 2.23 | .01616 | .000647 . 21 5336 . 0254 0189 «1.3424 2.24 | .01195 | .000569 22 6708 . 0304 0220 =—-:1.3853 2.02 | .01354 . 000614 ; 15 4549 .0303 0216 =: 1. 4031 2.44 | .01110 000739 15 4063 -0270 | .0192 | 1.4074 2.36 | .00959 . 000637 2 6689 | 0318 | .0235 | 1.3544 | 2.33 | [01550 | .000742 14 4336 -0309 0225 1.3735 2.35 .01019 - 000726 19 | .4787 .0251 | .0183 1.3680 2.28 01091 000572 ; 17 4594 -0258 | .0188 | 1.3718 2.33 01070 - 000601 21 5878 -0279 | .0200 | 1.3915 2.44 01434 - 000681 13 2771 MODIS | zee a Eee 2.44 00676 - 000520 17 4566 UPB.) | 2 ae 17 5450 meme U269 | |. eee EMA oe 2.99 | -.01372 - 000804 QO TEs sence 15 4584 | 0305 0.0230 | 1.3248 | 2.73 | .01709 - 000833 10. 14 .3955 | .0282 -0288 | 1.2363 | 2:95 01167 - 000832 - ie ee 17 5211 . 0306 .0228 | 1.3416 | 2.90 01511 . 000887 DoD) ae 15 . 4298 . 0286 0211 1.3537 2.97 01277 - 000849 DIT ae 18 . 6299 . 0349 -0259 | 1.3461 | 2.86 .01802_ | .000998 D1Sh Saree 18 .5130 . 0285 0214 | 1.3303 | 2.58 | .01324 - 000735 1a elma | 19 . 3862 .0203 0157 | 1.2950 | 2.71 | .01047 -000550 Pair eee 19 .4611 . 0242 018255) e333 2198 .01351 - 000709 DIT ae 19 .5581 | .0293 -0214 | 1.3704 | 2.71 | 01624 . 000794 590 Fa ae 17 -4849 0285 | .0206 | 1.3856 | 2.96 | .01387 . 000844 OSD er vne ae 15 . 4867 . 0324 - 0234 1.3815 2:54 | .01236 | .000823 Pah See 3 17 5166 . 0303 -0220 | 1.3794 2.70 | .01395 -00U818 230 aoe 17 3910 .0230 01649 | 1.3941 2.60 .01017 - 000598 DA ey. See 18 4230 - 0235 .0178 | 1.3196 2.76 | .01168 000049 Dapa tae e a: 18 4562 . 0253 . 0184 1.3753 2.96 | .01350 000749 O50 ete 19 4898 . 02578 .0186 | 1.3875 2.55 01249 000055 Dee 14 3792 . 0270 0203 1.3286 2.86 | .01u85 000772 2 aie wai 17 4956 -0291 0217 1.3428 2.82 | .01398 - 000821 ee 19 5042 - 0265 -0187 1.4155 2.53 | .01276 . 000670 7. eee ee 17 4858 | .0285 .0206 | 1.3835 2.64 | 01283 . 000752 204) hfe aa! 19 4173 | .0219 | .0159- | 1.3813 2.56 | .01068 - 000561 Ss Seats 22 5569 | .0253 -0190 | 1.3312 | 2.68 | .01437 - 000678 30602. 2-8 19 4922 0258 -0185 | 1.3996 2.51 01235 . 000650 S08 225e2 15 4951 | .0330 0237 | 1.392 2.85 01411 - 000941 Sib oc ae 16 4994 | .0312 0224 1.3916 2.75 .01373 . 000858 SIG. Shae 17 4644 | .0273 0203 | 1.3447 2.86 | .01328 000781 S20 eee es 18 5668 | .0314 0229 | 1.3710 2.98 | .01689 | .000938 Lp eae 16 5107 0219 0236 | 1.352 2.55 | .01302 | .000813 300). “Preiss: 12 3903 | 0325 0234 1:3911 2.88 | .01241 . 000936 330 oe 17 3431 . 0201 0161 1. 2498 2.62 . 00899 - 000527 330) a te 16 4847 .0302 0218 | 1.3879 2.58 | .01251 | .000779 SGA im AEM 18 5399 .0299 0215 1.3922 2.62 .01415 | 000783 335 Sh a 18 6474 . 0359 0258 1.3928 2.82 .01826 — .001012 B37 nena 15 4497 . 0299 0215 1.3877 2.89 01345 - 000864 340) SE 20 4155 . 0207 0153 1.3550 2.74 | .01138 - 000567 FAS) Se 15 5058 . 0337 0243. «(1.3890 2.97 . 01502 -001001 3 aes 2 14 -4486 | .0320 .0228 1.4037 | 2.60 .01166 | 000832 BAR aa ia 13 4012") .0316 | .0224 1.4107 | 2.50 . 01028 -000791 Se ae 16 | .4004 . 0250 . 0184 1.3611 | 2.93 01173 000733 eae See 18 5422 . 0301 -0216 | 1.3919 2.56 . 01388 -000771 Rigid ee. 19 . 6393 . 0336 0242 | 1.3913 2.55 -01630 — .000857 32 ioe 18 . 6328 . 0351 -0262 | 1.3415 2.83 | .01822 001010 ‘ 4 2a om cogs a’ SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. 55 TaBLe 4—Analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged according to nitrogen content ae kernels. Crop of 1902—Continued. 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. ] Percent- | Aneel | Weight (in grams) © Proteid nitrogen of aia] | of— / Volume | Specific age of (gram) in— Record aan | of aver- | gravity » proteid | number. aaa | | Average 28 ker- | of ker- | nitrogen Average spikelets. eee aL nel. nels. pee: Kernels. ernie Reh a 17 0.4573 | 0.0269 0.0195 1. 3822 2.66 0.01216 0.000716 cc pa 16 | - 4437 -0277 | - .0199 1.3891 2.64 -O1171 - 000731 A ro 21 -6386 | .0304 -0217 1.4002 2.73 - 01743 - 000830 coo. eee 16 | .5008 | .0313 -0223 1.4022 2.84 01422 . 000889 a 19 .5304 | .0279 | .0200 | 1.390 2.91 -01543 000812 5 1 |) 23882) | 4 10259 - 0186 1.3915 | 2.97 - 01153 - 000769 SBOUSa noe. 24 - 6375 - 0265 - 0191 1.3840 | 2.89 - 01842 - 000766 Obes = 2:2 14 | .3297 - 0235 0170 1.3819 2.94 - 00969 - 000691 PS a masa 18 -4724 - 0262 -0191 1.3729 2.92 - 01379 - 000765 3 18 . 5695 -0316 | - 0227 1.3906 2.99 - 01703 -000945 | 36) 18 . 5861 -0325 |- .0235 1. 3838 2.87 - 01682 - 000933 37 eee 12 - 2677 -0223 | .0162 1.3747 2.60 - 00696 - 000580 i) a 14 - 4099 - 0292 - 0212 1.3761 PA) - 01127 - 000803 333). ae 12 - 3416 . 0284 - 0206 1.3771 | 2.96 -O1011 - 000841 | 3: 16 -4921 -0307 | .0223 1.3741 | 2.52 - 01240 - 000774 Baier a- =~ 19 ~OLTT -0272 - 0198 1.3758 2.73 -01413 - 000743 3 a 21 - 5830 0277 - 0204 1.3569 2.96 - 01726 . 000820 2D ee 16 - 3047 -0221 0171 1.2947 2.94 - 01043 . 000650 Re ess <:= 15 -3494 | .0232 | 0165 | 1.4070 2.70 . 00943 - 000626 eo. 16 -3897 | .0243 | .0180 1. 3508 2.77 - 01079 - 000673 3) 17 - 4805 - 0282 - 0206 1.3693 2.98 - 01432 - 000840 10a 14, .3448 ee OZAG si eee eet 2.86 . 00986 - 000704 ‘YA 15 . 3097 (PL ey Wks te 554 eee eee 2.53 . OO784 - 000521 UL 18 - 4991 WS ae ke oe so Bae 2.62 . 01308 - 000726 Dy eee 17 MBG) «SUPT Pye eee Sno. cd ee 2. 60 .01205 - 000707 23) 18 | Res (BTS A ee ats ooo 2.82 -O1611 - 000894 cS: 16 | 4624 BULOO: oa eeeeeeh sinc oes 2.86 . 01322 - 000827 281). See 22 JGISS) Pe enO279)) | Eeeeer abe Soke 2.88 . 01768 . 000834 8 2 J OnBeee 23 . 6997 RO S05 eee eee oS 2.67 . 01868 . 000812 3) ee 18 5600 asi! le = |e ae 2.98 . 01669 . 000927 PA a = 19 - 9327 O28 See eee. eas on 2.93 - 01561 - 000820 tes = =. 2 13 4131 BUS (0 en ee <8 es 2551 . 01037 . 000796 Average... 17.07 4791 027 - 0207 1. 3680 2.76 - 01332 - 000776 —— = — = St 3 TO 3.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. 7: ae OO wie Os 5003. |e O50295 | paemerree lee <2. 2 3.08 0.01821 | 0.000909 gee aes. - 2 21 ~ Onto 20274 este neces Pee 3.46 01997 - 000948 iy ae 20 . 5804 AVL eS... ee 3.10 -01799 - 000899 OO... « 18 4673 AUS eee ae _ ee 3.25 .01519 | — .000842 a 17 427 4017555 Hae |e Se Be eee 3.25 01091 000816 i 17 .4126 2: 28) SSS SS | ae12 . 01287 . 000755 Lt eee 13 - 3218 SO24T: HeSeeee. a2 |. Ae 3.48 . 01104 . 000847 aa 19 - 4924 RAD HOW Meas soe aa 3.33 . 01640 - 000862 1 18 - 4683 At) | |e eee 3.18 01489 . 000827 2) ) ea 18 5764 POR20 7 eee. 3.24 01868 001040 2. ae 14 - 3824 -0273 0.0200 1.3615 ea k? .01197 . 000854 2.1) ioe 16 5251 0328 .0241 | 1.3614 3.07 -01612 | .001007 2 17 . 3392 . 0199 - 0157 1.2709 3.44 . 01166 . 000685 2 19 - 4939 . 0259 -0192 | 1.3494 3. 21 - 01585 - 000831 Sos 15 -4116 - 0274 . 0204 1.3415 3.31 . 01362 . 000907 2) ae 16 . 4371 027. . 0208 | 1. 3082 3.09 -01351 - 000844 2) 15) Wp, 8122 0208 -0165 | 1.2588 3.33 01040 - 000693 | a 17 | .5040 . 0296 0222 | 1.3350 | 3.20 01613 000947 ME 2 os 3 <0 V7 i 24795 - 0282 - 0204 1.3970 | 3.31 01587 000933 Pee oe: | 91 1) 5380 0256 .0170 1.4951 | 3:11 .01673 000796 2 14 4143 0295 -0211 | 1.3945 | 3.40 01409 - 001003 221). Si! 18 . 5888 0327 0242 | 1.3514 | Sit 01831 - 001017 a 13 | .3825 | .0204 | .0221 | 1.3280 | 3.11 | .01190 | .000914 Lo 17 - 5331 -0313 0231 | 1.3558 3.32 - 01663 - 001039 25. See 16 - 5201 - 0325 .0243 | 1.3363 | 3.23 . 01680 . 001050 re 25 | .7451 | .0298 -0220 | 1.3504 | 3.19 02377 000951 25 24 . 6349 . 0264 -0196 | 1.3487 3.47 . 02203 . 000916 2. ae 19 . 5839 . 0307 .0214 | 1.4305 3.30 -01927 001013 MNS Be So sien 16 4415 -0275 - 0199 1. 3850 3.21 -O1417 . OOOS83 2 15 -4514 - 0300 -0213 1.4100 3.12 - 01408 - 000936 2) a 22 6190 | .0281 0208 | 1.3823 | 3.46 02142 - 000972 Peis Faas 18 | 5948 - 0330 .0233 | 1.4146 3.03 - 01802 001000 2) ae 21 5277 . 0251 - 0184 1.3629 3.31 -O1747 . DO0832 TC ae 17 4703 0276 0211 1.3065 3.38 01590 000933 54 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TasLe 4.—Analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged according to nitrogen content of kernels. Crop of 1902—Continued. 3 TO 35 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. . | Weight (in grams) | Percent- | Proteid nitrogen deg ees i= | Volume | Specific | age of | (gram) in— Record - Aik ae of tek ! eee proved number. s age ker- of ker- | nitrogen rowof | y- | Average : 3 Average spikelets. Kernels. | omnel. nel. nels. i Kernels. orig 2625 o 225-02 18 | 0.4604 | 0.0255 | 0.0193 | 1.3216 3.20 | 0.01473 | 0.000816 : 263-2 amc oe 18 | .5040 .0280 | .0197 1. 4206 3.24 - 01633 - 000907 Dette ae 18 | .4138 .0229 .0169 | 1.3544 3.37 | .01395 = 000772 20a Rese 18 -4429 0246 -0189 | 1.3005 3.30 - 01462 - 000812 3 266 22 = 2-55 19 - 5010 -0263 | .0187 1.4090 3.11 01558 - 000818 : 1S eee oe 17 - 4531 - 0266 .0209 | 1.2748 3.21 01454 - 000854 } 744) eee 20 - 5183 - 0259 -0191 | 1.3541 3.37 | 01747 - 000873 24 [le oe 14 | .3275 - 0233 -O177 1.3143 3.39 01110 000790 DUDE o'o.- wee 15 | .3858 - 0257 - 0190 1. 3564 3.14 | 01212 - 000807 DIOS oye 18 -4559 - 0253 -0178 1. 4228 3.39 | 01546 - 000858 DOSS acon 18 - 4862 - 0270 0197 | 1.3711 3.33 01619 - 000899 DIGISs = eee 15 .3973 | .0264 .0191 | 1.3815 3-15 01251 - 000832 Bee aes 15 -4715 -0314 | .0226 1.3903 3.12 01471 - 000980 723) eee ee 21 | .6938 | ~.0330 -0241 | 1.3693 3.26 02262 - 001076 Dee ec Oe 18 |. .4973 | .0276 - 0200 1.3795 3.02 01502 | .000834 PO ae Eee | 19 - 5205 - 0273 - 0201 1. 3608 3.06 01593 - 000835 30022 2 oes 19 | .4994 -0262 | ~ .0188 1.3945 3.07 01533 - 000894 3) eae 16 | .5492 -0343 | = .0249 1.3787 3.09 01697 - 001060 SUpe Teo skSe 13 | .3452 -0265 | .0197 1. 3432 3.07 | 01060 - 000814 SOT 20 | .4122 -0206 | .0140 1.4727 3.19 | 01315 - 000657 BiOmeer ae: 18° |). 24867" | O20. | +. 0198 1.3681 3.16 | 01538 - 000853 Bilge! == See 15 - 4324 - 0288 - 0210 1.3718 3.49 | 01509 - 001005 j ae eases 153i) eae 2 | eer: ||. , £0201 1.3657 3.16 | 01303 - 000866 Sale een oe 17 -4157 | .0244 | .0178 1.3733 3.36 | 01397 - 000820 Si cae ee 7 -4412 | .0259 | .0193 1.3424 3.43 01513 - 000888 BA ee ae ee 18 | .5484 | .0304 - 0207 1. 4660 3.43 O1881 - 001043 S2O cee AT 4075 - 0239 -O177 1.3487 3.43 01398 - 000820 8 7 ge eee le - 4230 - 0248 - 9180 1.3740 3.19 01349 - 000791 BOD ea cime 17 -5110 - 0300 - 0220 1.3658 3.46 01768 - 001038 SLT eee 16 - 4039 0252 0191 1.3225 3.45 01393 - 000869 Sode seca ses 16 - 4610 . 0288 0206 1.3956 3.26 01503 - 000939 BOOP tes e se 13 - 3637 . 0279 0198 1.4102 3.36 01222 - 000937 3892 = Seles 16 - 3803 - 0237 0171 1.3828 3.33 | 01266 - 000789 Soe te eae 15 3843 - 0256 0186 1.3812 3.32 | 01276 - 000851 S0n == Meese 15 - 4497 - 0299 0217 1.3899 3.05 01372 - 000914 BS ee = 16 - 4726 -0295 | 0211 1.3988 3.1L | 0147! - 000917 302. SS2enee 19 - 5258 . 0276 0201 1.3701 3.03 | 01593 - 000836 Bit ieee aac 17 | .4214 - 0247 0185 1.3350 3.17 01336 - 000783 SO a ai aeee 20 -5351 | .0267 0197 1.3555 3.37 01803 - 000900 BOSE. Seas 19 -3877 | .0204 0151 1.3497 3.06 01186 - 000624 BOORE =. ae 19 - 5560 - 0292 0214 1.3621 3.34 01857 - 000975 O1Oe es aoe 17 - 4200 - 0247 0180 1.3735 3.09 01298 - 000763 Stee ase 17 - 4811 -0283 | 0206 1.3714 3.31 01593 .. 000937 Be Sees ee 17 -0249 | .0308 0218 1.4142 351500] 01653 . 000970 St0e eae 18 - 5147 - 0285 0203 1.4018 3.41 | 01755 - 000975 OU fee 14 -3173 - 0226 0174 1.3013 3.47 01101 - 000784 SY eae se 18 - 5271 - 0292 0213 1.3703 3.09 01629 - 000902 od | een oe 13 - 3506 - 0269 0199 1.3544 3.45 01210 - 600928 Oe Same 19 -5057 | 0266 0194 1.3728 3.23 01633 - 000859 She eae ote 19 - 5799 0305 0221 1.3773 3.05 01769 . 000930 S90 ses. hee 19 - 4764 0250 O181 1.3806 3.22 01534 - 000805 SOM ea ass 18 - 4474 0248 0182 1. 3628 3.26 01459 - 000808 Bi ees ae 12 - 3058 0254 0188 1.3510 3.10 00948 - 000787 A008 2 [ee 20 - 5720 0286 0206 1. 3837 3.35 01916 - 000958 AT ates. ee 16 - 3996 0249 0183 1.3575 3.37 01347 - 000839 A03. = oe ee V7 - 5000 0294 0211 | 1.3927 3.04 01520 - 000894 AVES Nee eee 18 - 4286 0238 0180 1.3221 3.30 01414 - 000785 HAO ee 20 - 5368 3.27 01755 - 000780 cb Dey i 14 - 3479 3.15 01096 - 000781 aS See 19 | .5044 3.14 01584 - 000832 AIG 3... 15 - 4269 3.24 01383 - 000920 ASE ees | 21 - 4995 3.05 01523 - 000723 423 535 52068 18 -4845 3.14 01521 - 000845 DO ee seek 16 -4801 3.30 01584 - 000990 Ce 18 - 5166 3.09 01596 - 000887 fe ee 19 - 5433 3.06 01662 . 000872 ADO 2 iene 20 - 4704 3.04 01430 - 000714 AS 1h So = Cees 18 -4119 3.20 01318 - 000732 AN SS tee 21 - 6306 3.00 01892 - 000900 135 he Be aa 20 | .5206 3.12 01624 - 000811 GY iste ae 16 | .4336 3.13 01357 - 000848 Pei Oy 17 - 3889 3.23 01256 - 000736 Average . .| 17.4 - 4724 - 0270 - 0199 1.3666 | 3.23 01520 | 000874 » } 2 a t ea SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. - 55 TaBe 4.—Analyses of spikes of wheat, arranged according to nitrogen content of kernels. Crop of 1902—Continued. 3.5 TO 4 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. ae E ] j teenies W See grams) a : Percent-| Proteid nitrogen aia! olume | Specific | age of (gram) in— Record alator of aver-| gravity | proteid : number. SawOE Average | 28¢ ker- | of ker- | nitrogen ke spikelets, Kernels. | yernel nel. nels. in ker- Kernels. ak nels. eh. ie tee oe as 025ee Os 0223 eee tants |ok coco ec 3.76 | 0.01513 ). 000838 ig =e 19 .4073 a 31) CECy en eae 3.57 01454 | oe ee 19 4972 siztails | |S S 2 ae ee eee 3.85 | .01914 | .001005 TS0SSe 2: <3: 17 | .5262 AUS Cho es ieee Soe | 3.58 | .01884 | .001110 i 20 5512 Ui A) Ee eo el ae 3.78 . 02084 .001040 ie 21 5414 UES eS es ee 3.97 | .02149 | 001020 2 ae’ 15 | .4015 .0267 | 0.0198 1.3460 3.90 .01566 | .001043 2. ae 17 | .3588 0211 0164 1. 2828 3.82 | .01371 | .000806 Diese 2. 120 |). 2881s 0276 0205 1.3493 | ‘ 3.79 . 01258 001046 Soe 2: 17 4891 - 0287 0220 1. 3039 3.65 -01785 | .001048 Dae 3. 19 4976 0261 0193 1.3507 3.55 01766 - 000927 22). eee 18 4555 0253 0192 1.3164 3.65 | .01663 | .000923 a re 16 - 3984 -0249 0177 1.4025 3.53 01406 . 000879 Piece 15 | .3971 . 0264 0200 1.3230 3.64 01445 000961 pee 18 4562 - 0253 0194 1.3058 375) 2Otral 000949 Di ioe 18 4937 0274 0202. | 1.3561 3.50 01728 000959 ae 17 4617 0271 0193 1.4095 3.65 | .01685 000991 ots 21 . 5960 . 0283 0203 1.3917 3.63 . 02163 001327 2S ae 19 4932 0259 0193 | 1.3400 3.84 01894 000995 pete se | 17 5195 -0305 0229 (SBIR 8 *SE50) |) {A é Per cent | ; * a Range of weight of | of aver- ar, ee eee ae oe Les i ae a : average kernel | age ker- | nels aiher Aeoeen ia (gram). ; nel Analy-| 1-1. = cedar Average ee | (gram). | ses. Kernels. | (gram). nels. ee ereae Kernels. Below 0.024......... 0.02214 | 27 16.9 0. 3812 1. 341 3.197 0. 0007184 0.01215 0.024 to 0.026.......- 02528 | 38 17.5 4425 1.361 3. 28 . 0008294 - 01438 0.026 to 0.028.......- 02705 | 48 17.0 - 4609 1.360 3. 22 . 0008711 -01475 0.028 to 0.030....-...- . 02896 | 40 17.0 -4916 | 1.372 Sok . 0009090 - 01546 0.030 to 0.032. ...-..-.. - 03089 | 26 17.0 | 5274 1.388 . 2.86 . 0008787 01506 0.032 and over......- . 03324 | 19 16.8 . 5588 1.373 | 2.88 - 6009594 .01617 There seems to be no relation between the weight of the average kernel and the number of kernels on the spike. The weight of all the kernels on the spike naturally increases with the weight of the average kernel. The specific gravity of the kernels increases with the weight of the average kernel. The percentage of proteid nitrogen decreases with an increase in the weight of the average kernel, in | which respect it agrees with the two previous tables. The grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel and the total proteid nitrogen in the spike increase with the weight of the average kernel. Samples from each of the spikes of wheat from which these data were derived were planted, together with samples from other spikes, all of which have been analyzed, aggregating 800 in all. Each kernel was planted separately at a distance of 6 inches each way from every other kernel. The kernels from each spike were marked by a stake bearing the record number of the spike. During the winter a considerable number of plants were killed, so that the stand was irregular in the spring. In some cases all of the plants resulting from a spike of the previous year were killed, and in other cases only a portion of such plants. The result was a some- what uneven stand, which doubtless gave certain plants an advantage over others in growth and yield. 58 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. When the crop was ripe in 1903 each plant was harvested sepa- rately, and all of those resulting from spikes which the previous year had shown a proteid nitrogen content of more than 4 per cent or less than 2 per cent were analyzed, as were also a certain number resulting from spikes of intermediate values. The good kernels on each plant were counted and weighed, thus giving a record of the yield of each plant. From these data the average weight of the kernels per plant was calculated. The specific gravity was not determined and consequently the average volume of the kernels on each plant was not calculated, as was done the previous year. In Table 8 the plants harvested in 1903 are arranged in classes of 1 to 2 per cent proteid nitrogen, 2 to 2.5 per cent, 2.5 to 3 per cent, 3 to 3.5 per cent, 3.5 to 4 per cent, 4 to 4.5 per cent, and over 4.5 per cent. The number and weight of the kernels on each plant are stated, as is also the average weight of each kernel. The number of grams of proteid nitrogen in all the kernels of the plant is shown, and also the number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel on each plant. Table 9 shows the average for each class. These results, so far as they cover the same ground as those of the previous year, have the same significance. They show a quite uniform although slight decrease in the weight of the average kernel accom- panying an increase in the percentage of proteid nitrogen, and a very marked increase in the number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel. Especially marked is the increase in the amount of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel, amounting to 28 per cent of the weight of the kernel for every 1 per cent increase in the content of proteid nitrogen. One column of this table, not contained in that compiled from results of the previous year, shows the number of grams of proteid nitrogen contained in all of the kernels on the plant; or, in other words, the proteid nitrogen production of the plant. This appears, on the whole, to increase with the percentage of proteid nitrogen, although the results are not sufficiently consistent to permit of an unqualified statement to that effect. The uneven stand of the plants, before referred to, doubtless accounts for these inconsistent results. Two other columns contain data not obtained in 1902. The first of these shows the number of kernels per plant, which apparently decreases slightly as the percentage of proteid nitrogen increases, but this can not be stated unqualifiedly. The next column shows the weight of kernels per plant, or the yield per plant, which likewise seems to decrease slightly with an increase in the percentage of pro- teid nitrogen. } | Percent- ' TABLE 8.— Analyses of plants, arranged ac 1903. 1 TO 2 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. Waiher | Weight (in grams) of— Total pro- Proteid Record num-| 28¢ Of “Of ker- teid nitro- nitrogen in ber. proteid | nelsper Kernels | Average | 8@0 inall average ker- nitrogen lant eat iene He iceorria} kernels nel in kernels. P Rone eat : (gram). (gram). 322 ee emai eco 507 | 10.4036 | 0.02052 | 0.18831 0. 0003714 30 | 1.20 P| 5.2268 | 02323 | . 06272 . 0002788 2 ————_— 1.62 305 7.0889 | .02271 | ~LI2235 . 0003679 22) a 1.39 77 1.1132 - 01446 - 01547 . 0002009 Sa ee 8 1.61 508 11.1476 - 02194 . 17948 . 0003533 ADING- |: ==. =. 1.46 25 - 3161 - 01264 | - 00462 - 0001846 45606. ....--. 1.91 220 4.0358 . 01834 - 07708 . 0003504 Aas 2c 2 =< 1.84 124 1.5298 . 01234 - 02815 - 0002700 AMMOT. 5 = 1.50 718 11. 2890 - 01572 - 16933 . 0002358 HLS = = 2 1.34 862 15.5935 - 01804 - 20881 - 0002422 SoS) oe 1.89 342 5. 6864 . 01663 - 10747 - 0003142 et ae 1.69 Sv al| 9.8378 - 01705 16626 . 0002881 3( 0 1.98 41 - 8328 - 02031 01649 - 0004022 SC ee ir 736 16.4433 . 02234 24847 | - 0003865 TN So as ws 1.88 95 1.9469 . 02049 03660 | . 0003853 feces = 25-5. 1.87 35 - 9952 -O1701 | 01113 | - 0003180 Gs i ae 1.90 208 4.0230 - 01934 .07644 | - 0003674 i 1.66 558 12.0136 -02153 | - 19943 | - 0003574 Po ee 1.89 543, 9. 3629 . 01724 - 18538 . 0003414 WOU = | 1.98 216 4.4222 - 02047 - 08756 . 0004054 5) | 1.81 729 15.7835 - 02165 . 28569 . 0003919 Bite. ts... / 1.98 465 9.7922 -02106 | . 19388 . 0004170 Til Se ; 1.92 396 9.1411 - 02308 . 17550 - 0004432 Hy 1. 66 St 2 ql 8983 - 01695 - 01491 . 0002814 Cr). 1.65 64 1.2117 . 01893 . 01999 - 0003124 94605........ 1.95 56 7319 - 01307 - 01427 - 0002549 94908. .-..... 1.96 125 2.3678 . 01894 . 04641 . 0003713 ios) ae 1.81 159 2.8356 - 01783 . 05132 - 0003228 Average 1.749 320.3 6. 23823 - 01871 . 10655 - 00032914 2 TO 25 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. AONE T eo 2.5.2) 2.13 738 15.6996 | 0.02127 0.33441 0. 0004531 Wiha 2.18 497 9. 2038 . 01852 . 20065 . 0004037 Sere -. 2.02 137 2. 1462 . 01567 - 04335 . 0003164 27) 2.16 84 1.7216 . 02050 . 03718 . 0004427 SL | rr 2.45 58 1.5420 02659 .03778 . 0006514 PAIS oS eas a 2.19 582 12. 3685 . 02125 . 27086 . 0004654 i 2.33 390 9. 2850 . 02381 - 21634 | - 0005547 AUS ~ as 2.47 361 7.7296 | . 02141 . 19092 . 0005289 i 2.31 510 9.7236 | -O1907 | . 22461 | . 0004404 7.2 2.41 891 16. 4061 . 01841 . 39539 . 0004437 Ln 2.36 Ti7 19.1854 | - 02469 - 45276 . 0005827 716) i 2.47 684 13.3011 - 01945 . 32853 . 0004803 2.415 2.12 539 12.0399 . 02183 . 24942 . 0004627 Reso... 25 Zod 318 6. 1026 -01919 | . 14341 . 0004510 4317 2.03 421 8.1268 -01930 | . 16498 . 0003919 Pemaes s sh 2.39 301 7.0596 . 02345 | - 16872 | . 0005605 33006_........ 2.21 382 8.1890 . 02144 . 18098 - 0004738 5o 1 pa 2-13 156 2.9886 - 01916 . 06366 . 0004081 i 2.34 56 1. 2069 - 02155 . 02824 . 0005053 of906...----- 2.44 19 . 2063 . 01086 . 00503 . 0002649 OL Se 2.11 1,031 21.5399 . 02089 . 45435 . 0004407 5 2.37 346 4.6383 . 01341 . 10967 -0003177 | i See 2.44 101 1.8246 . 01806 . 04452 - 0004408 | PRION mes 22 2.38 608 11. 6655 . 01919 - 27765 . 0004567 48409........ 2.02 314 6.4302 | . 02048 . 12989 . 0004137 DIDO. «25 as 2.48 167 2.5160 . 01507 06240 | . 0003736 55306. ....-.. 2.18 214 | 4.1323 | .01931 .09008 | . 0004210 Ca a | 2.31 837 | 22.5848 . 02699 -52194 | . 0006236 O00U8......-. | 2.42 562 | 12.2210 . 02175 29575 | . 0005262 55909. ...-..- / 2.30 302 9.2120 . 03050 .21187 | . 0007016 i ———e 2.42 509 9. 3093 . 01829 . 22529 | . 0004426 2 | 2.34 462 10. 9073 - 02361 . 25522 . 0005524 03 ata | 2.43 261 4.7117 . 01801 . 11445 . 0004387 Te 2.21 380 12.0728 -03177 | . 26680 . 0007021 BSG... -2-. tie PREG: 170 2.3031 . 01355 | 05596 . 0002292 i 2.12 382 7.1828 | . 01880 . 15228 . 0003986 59606... ..... 2.16 567 9.7084 | ‘01712 | | 20970 "0003698 Baty =... 5 2.43 417 9.3120 02233 | . 22628 - 0005426 59 cording to percentage of proteid nitrogen. Crop of 60 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLe 8.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. Crop of 1903—Continued. 2 TO 2.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. a : | | Pereent- | number Weight (in grams) ofi— Total pro- _— Proteid Nicwilanmne|| 2E2OL | ips = teid nitro- nitrogen in ’ ber. | oe nelsper Kernels Average | a hte ker- J ierncls plant. per plant. kernel. (gram). | (gram). : | | 63506........ 2.44 | 158 2.3986 | 01568 0.05853 | 0.003825 6530622 e 2: 2.41 544 9. 8298 . 01807 23690 0004355 Bapbiee o-~ <2 2.28 373 7.0051 . 01878 15971 0004282 B5s08Ha. es? 2.09 583 11. 7066 . 02008 24468 0004197 69505eo se =! 2.29 225 4.7116 . 01847 . 10790 0004231 PAKS ee ie es 2.47 1, 260 28. 2136 . 02239 . 69688 0005531 (eho 2.13 372 9. 1522 - 02191 . 19936 VP {|= oe DH f 398 9.0386 - 02270 . 20518 0005154 fp Th 2.48 167 2. 6462 . 01585 06563 0003930 TOU ee» 2.45 | 414 8.5373 . 02062 20918 0005052 . Fou ee ees 2.39 25 . 5572 - 02229 01332 0005327 14606325 2 2 2.30 464 9.6451 . 02079 22184 0004781 ; ite. ae Zao 498 | 8. 4407 - 01695 19836 0003983 LEVER ee 2.34 786 18. 3614 . 02336 42965 | 0005466 BUiOps so ee 2.41 287 7.3993 . 02578 17833 0006213 81709........ 2.28 757 16. 4692 102175 37548 0004960 1 BHOSse2-- 52 2.48 | 428 8.7448 . 02043 21687 | 0005067 84905... 22.2 2-32 37 . 7130 - 01927 01654 | 0004471 88608.....--- 2.47 74 1.5355 - 02075 03793 0005125 88609. ....... 2.42 470 9.8719 . 02100 23890 0005082 O2409 a5. 3 oe 2.30 315 5.7131 . 01814 13140 0004171 7 |? 2.49 190 3.6006 - 01895 08965 0004719 94406........ 2.47 549 10. 5556 . 01923 26073 0004749 S740 72 ae 8 2.07 419 6.7664 | .01615 -14007 | 0003343 Lh eet Deh’ 286 4. 4423 . 01553 . 10439 0003650 LG (| eae 2.48 138 2.9475 02136 07310 0005297 OF(Of- 21>. = 2.47 52 1577 01457 01872 0003599 Average.... 2.319 | 396.8 8. 2502 .020113 | .190316 . 0004660 i 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. 17409 >= ee ; 2.75) | 802 14. 8957 0. 01857 0. 40964 0. 0005108 ‘We ET eee 2.88 | 744 16. 9987 - 02285 -48957 | . 0006580 i 2.78 | 163 | 3.3138 . 02033 -09212 | . 0005652 DF (1 yee 20 _ |} 444 9.9070 . 02282 . 27443 . 0006181 DOL08 25 F 2.58 | | 2.4690 . 02024 . 06399 . 0005221 RTE Se 2.83 867 iy . 01974 . 48428 .. 0005586 - DAD Rea2 hl 2.96 118 2.3066 - 01955 . 06804 . 0005766 DIS a ee 3 2. 67 312 6.2514 - 02004 . 16691 - 0005350 ZIBOG RA oe. 2.90 226 4.1516 . 01837 - 12039 | - 0005327 PAT OSes = 2.59 59 . 8478 . 01437 . 02196 . 0003722 DAVAD eek 2.71 873 17. 1820 -01968 | - 46563 . 0005334 PARN5 SS. ee 2.69 1, 232 20.9290 | -01699 | . 56299 . 0004569 DISH eSnee 2.71 599 14. 2450 . 02378 . 38604 0006444 PAS W/E as 5 bs Baik 377 9.4172 -02498 | . 25709 . 0006664 ZISDSe cer eee 2.08 1,156 19. 7446 -01708 | . 50744 . 0004389 ZASIOS Hoe 2s se 2.73 418 8.0214 .01919 . 21898 - 0005238 PALSY 1S ape 2.69 52 1.0304 -01982 | . 02772 2 PLS (ees a ee | 2.64 791 14.3111 . 01809 37781 - 0004777 p7a. VANE 2.81 283 2.6965 - 00953 - 07577 - 0002677 PAY foe Det 169 3.2787 | . 01940 . 09082 . 0005374 25205. - oil 522 10. 7836 . 02066 . 28560 - 0005599 DGS ste 2.76 205 4. 6754 .02281 | . 12904 - 0006295 SHING 5-8 2.63 90 2.0737 | 02304 - 05454 2805s 22. Aske 2.81 220 4.9456 | 02248 . 13897 - 0006317 26806-2228 2.60 152 2: (255° | 01793 -O7086 | . 0004662 JEROT SEE eee 2. 80 721 17. 2324 02390 . 48250 . 0006692 Pi 2.76 326 6. 4102 01966 . 17692 - 0005427 2H90GE eco ear | 228 4. 2376 01859 . 11484 - 0005037 Pv! ¥ Cae ae a 2.61 102 | 1. 827 01792 -04995 | - 0004677 2500855. 520 2.96 | 192 | 3.9797 02073 -11780 | . 0006135 2E009) 3 -2e 2.80 180 2.9999 01667 . 08400 - 0004667 Vi | 2.63 866 16. 4120 - 01895 . 43164 . 0004984 Py | y eo a 2:93 | 166 3. 3266 - 02004 - 09712 . 0005850 Dislo esos = 2.58 267 5. 5666 2085 . 14362 0005379 Dio eee ee 2.53 167 3.0850 01847 . 07805 0004674 27506... 22. 2.70 444 | 10.0005 02252 "27003 0006082 DISOBS3 = oe 2.64 251 5. 5324 02287 . 14608 0006037 PAU none 2.90 | 243 5.3615 02206 . 15549 0006399 ZOO see 2.91 | 7 2.1851 02512 . 06359 0007309 32006; soso oo 7X SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. 61 TABLE 8.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. Crop of 1903—Continued. 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN —Continued. | Percent- | Number | “&8ht Gugrams) of—| Total pro-| _Proteid Record num) L25° of niicar teid nitro- nitrogen in hae proteid nels per Kernels Average gen in all average ker- nitrogen iste nena lanai areal kernels nel in kernels. P op |) deettae : 2 (gram). (gram). 2.91 132 2. 5601 0.01939 0. 07450 0. 0005644 2.94 18 | - 8089 - 01716 - 00908 - 0005045 2.87 283 | 4.6045 - 01627 - 13215 - 0004670 2.81 119 | 2. 2862 - 01921 -06424 | - 0005399 2.13 464 9.1498 - 01972 - 24979 | - 0005383 2. 84 611 13.5556 - 02219 - 38505 - 0006273 2.96 309 | «6. 1394 01987 -18173 | — . 0005881 2.64 461 | 8.0905 - 01972 - 23998 | - 0005327 2.94 193 | 3.3004 -01710 -09670 | . 0005010 2.53 | 37 | . 9452 - 02555 - 02391 - 0006463 2.84 | 139 | 2.5134 . 01808 -07138 | .0005135 2.89 8 | 1.6799 - 01975 - 04855 . 0005712 2.63 401 8.4605 - 02110 «22251 | . 0005549 2.82 158 | 3.0228 - 01913 - 08522 - 0005394 2.74 293 | 6. 7665 - 02309 - 18540 | - 0006475 2.59 365 7.2545 - 01988 - 18789 - 0005148 2.88 447 9.3541 - 02093 - 21399 . 0006027 2.93 67 1.9218 - 02869 - 05631 - 0008404 2.82 170 4.1546 . 02444 - 11716 - DOOES92 2.92 124 2. 8000 - 02258 -O8176 - 0006594 2.94 340 5.9990 - 01764 - 17637 - 0005187 , 2.86 55 1.1271 - 02049 - 03223 - 0005861 2.90 | 124 2.5235 - 02035 - 07318 - 0005902 2.82 61 . 7081 -O1161 - 01997 . 0003273 2.54 | 82 1.6103 - 01964 - 04090 - 0004988 2.54 478 8. 3935 - 01756 . 21319 . 0004460 2.87 473 12.0278 - 02543 - 34524 . 0007299 2.81 | 27 - 3485 -01291 . 00979 - 0003627 2.64 | i 1. 6036 - 02296 - 04233 - 0006062 2.76 | 603 11. 2008 - 01858 - 30986 - 0005127 2.7 547 9. 8346 . 01798 . 26553 . 0004877 2.80 | 35 -4701 - 01343 - 0003761 2.60 | 944 17. 4226 - 01846 . 0004799 DSB I 578 11. 3592 - 01965 - 0005031 2.54 | 397 | 9.5078 - 02395 . 0006225 2.80 | 866 17. 8506 . 02062 . 0005773 2.63 504 | 9.8228 -01949 .0005126 2. 64 500 10.9180 - 02184 . 0005765 2.58 503 11.0930 - 02205 - 0005690 2.69 138 | 2.3931 - 01734 . 0004665 2.67 331 5.7948 -01751 - 0004674 2.81 499 7.9968 - 01603 . 0004503 2.59 749 19. 3966 . 02590 - 50238 . 0006707 2.13 336 5.7431 - 01709 . 15679 - 0004667 ey 644 12.0161 . 01866 30881 | . 0004795 2.96 872 14. 4556 - 01658 - 42790 - 0004907 Deol 333 6. 5232 - 01959 - 16373 - 0004917 2.61 563 13.5720 - 02356 . 34616 - 0006149 2.59 950 15. 8086 . 01664 40945 . 0004310 ry (i 88 1.5364 .01746 - 04164 - 0004731 2.76 701 10. 1836 -01453 . 28107 . 0004010 2.65 168 3.3176 - 01975 . 08792 0005233 2.76 407 3. 7263 - 00916 . 10285 0002527 | 2.86 434 7.9772 - 01838 . 22815 . 000: Dio 135 2.4923 01846 . O8S54 . 0005077 2.62 762 14.9992 - 01968 . 39297 . 0005157 2.61 596 “12. 2004 . 02047 . 31842 0005343 2.80 180 2.7616 - 01534 -07733 | . 0004296 2.85 359 6. 9861 -01946 | - 19905 | 0005545 2.54 611 10. 6261 .01739 » .26990 - 0004417 } 2.74 | 132 3.0790 | - 02333 | 08436 | 0006391 2.64 438 8.6189 | - 01968 . 22756 | - 0005195 4 2.87 270 | 4.8988 | .01814 . 14060 - 0005207 j 2.67 148 1.3961 | - 00943 . 03728 - 0002519 ; 2.95 273 | 7.4516 | - 02730 . 21982 - 0008052 } 2.74 1,158 | 23. 1471 -01999 | - 63422 | . 0005464 2.79 165 | 3. 3006 02001 09208 | 0005581 2.63 370 | 7.6690 . 02073 . 20170 0005451 2.50 663 13.5696 | - 02047 . 33923 | - 0005117 2.50 244 3.7810 -01550 09453 . 0003874 2.95 430 8. 2929 . 01929 . 24464 . 0005689 2.92 624 14. 2986 . 02291 -41752 . 0006539 2.73 23 | 4096 -O1781 -O1118 - 0004862 2. 60 57. | . 8172 01434 02125 . 0003728 2.60 399 7.1181 .01784 . 18507 . DO004638 7 62 : IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLe 8.— Analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. Crop of 1903—Continued. 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. | Percent- amber | Weight (in grams) of— | 7 Totalpro- Proteid | teid nitro- nitrogen in Record num- of ker- | < ber. BS ipiscs nels per | Kernels | Average | its a ae ker- fet ccna) plant. | perplant. | kernel. (gram). (gram). | | A= = — 2.5 491 8.3406 0.01699 0.21352 0. 0004349 81405 2. 62 240 4.5737 . 01862 11710 . 0004879 Sin05s-. 0 2.94 146 2. 8327 01940 . 08328 - 0005704 Si70nwes | 2.71 722 15.3928 . 02132 41715 - 0005778 Shoes 2.60 214 3.4766 01625 . 09039 - 0004224 a | 2. 66 376 4.9315 .01312 . 13118 - 0003332 R6105 he 2.56 203 3.0282 01495 07964 - 0003923 q Ralises-— | 2.63 436 7.6241 01749 . 20052 ; BONG aia! Be | 2.80 69 1. 6362 02731 04581 . 0007640 : SSHieee se 2.53 481 9.9456 . 02068 25162 0005231 . S86075e-2-. 2.61 234 5.1584 . 02205 . 13463 . 0005754 88905.......- 2.83 293 5.3069 01811 . 15019 0005126 ; 88906.......- 2.65 546 9. 9034 .O1814 | £26245 - 0004807 SiNNg ie 2.81 200 3.5486 .01774 | .09972 . 0004986 E GP ies 2.74 345 5. 2616 01525. 14417 - 0004179 ; 27065 2.67 46 1. 1074 .02407. | .02957 Z eat ee eee 2.55 209 3. 6926 -01767 | ~— .09416 - 0004505 OURS = Dare 353 6.6206 . 01876 . 18008 0005102 92305........ | 393 160 2.3859 01491 06991 “0004369 . QOD Saeee en 2.97 207 3.7820 01827 11233 - 0005426 ! Gone cee 2.58 505 9. 677: 01916 24969 0004944 94206......-. 2.78 402 7.5006 01866 20851 0005187 q WOE R 25 2.86 718 13. 7057 01909 39199 . 0005460 Vi eee 2.94 626 12.1918 01948 35844 - 0005726 O55 REE see 2.81 37 3146 00850 00884 - 0002389 95506_..----- 2.74 597 11.0548 | .01852 30291 - 0005074 (550 Tes ee 2.59 -571 12.1592 | .02030 31492 - 0005515 Q550Bet see 2.56 740 14.4617 | .01954 BYU he ws 957052 2.54 636 10.3426 | .01626 26270 0004131 O5706s22 2 = oes Dull 267 5.1629 | .01934 14095 . 0005279 Average ....| 2.731 370.36 7.1755 . 019354 194423 . 00052706 3 TO 3.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. : | \ | | ? | TB05e 3.03 183 | 3.6302 0.01984 0.10999 0.0006010 TAS ee | 3.09 | 243 3.9968 01645 - 12350 - 0005082 W320 3.46 138 3. 1454 . 02280 . 10883 . 0007886 TRUSS 3.25 Gla “Tes 02012 .03994 - 0006540 . 174060852 22" 3.29 124 2.0907 01685 06878 0005547 ISOs 3.48 65 . 9229 01420 - 03212 0004941 | D705 te 3.09 109 1.8517 01698 05722 - 0005249 R709 3.05 258 5.3229 02063 - 16235 . 0006292 S05 ces 3.32 697 14. 6942 . 02157 . 48784 - 0006999 . PA by edad 3.16 123 2.3642 01922 -07471 | = .0006074 PIMR ene 3.24 287 5. 1594 01798 -16712 | 0005824 . TiDiee- ee 3.15 10 . 2806 - 02806 - 00884 é PAB ly eeeeee. 3.04 143 2.5691 | .01796 07810 0005461 ZIZ08e =! 3.45 354 5.8080 | .01641 20038 0005660 FAM Ue ee 3.18 408 10. 4800 . 02563 33403 . 0008168 PAL yim 3.35 158 2.9248 01851 09798 0006201 : > | S219 ees 3.01 492 10. 1925 . 02072 30680 - 0006235 : DIAM ee aes 3.22 146 2.5712 01720 08086 - 0005538 DIR eames 3.18 118 1.9090 01619 06071 0005144 277 1Gus ee 3.17 298 6.0173 .02019 19075 - 0006401 PAPA tN wee ee 3.17 561 11.5675 02062 36671 - 0006537 D510 eens 3.02 131 1. 8242 .01393 05508 - 0003662 ESR aerae ae 3.09 222 3.8811 01748 11992 0005402 PT es 3.08 75 | 1.3746 -01833 04234 - 0005646 par) ae ee 3.07 219 | 4.3698 -01996 13415 . 0006126 28806......-.. 3.02 68 | 14.4630 02111 43679 0006376 Soe ee 3.48 69 | = 1.957 . 01822 04375 - 0006341 S350n ee ees 3.41 150 3.1346 .02090 | 10689 . 0007126 SSRN aes 3.22 136 2. 8903 02125 | 09307 - 0006843 34606_......- 3.12 280 | 6.1962 - 02213 - 19332 - 0006904 3950728025 3.02 9] ) SsSae .01699 05696 - 0005132 40305. ......- Sei 179 | 3.6003 02011 11197 - 0006255 - 40405......-- 3.17 46 | - 6316 01373 02002 - 0004352 42405.....--. 3.07 66 1.4892 02251 -04572 - 0006927 | 42005. ....... 3.17 67 1.2499 - 01866 03650 0005447 | 46105........ 3.00 260 4.6146 01775 13843 - 0005324 Ae 3.29 157 2.6571 01692 08742 - 0005568 ; j SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. 63 -‘Tasre 8.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. Crop of . 1903—Continued. 3 TO 3.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. ees araaiher | Weight (in grams) of— Total pro-| Proteid ecordmnam= | 2600 ea || teid nitro-| nitrogen in ber. ceo nels per Kernels | Average | See dee 3 Ker- | | | Ss | ne in eeaniet plant. perplant. Kernel. | (gram). (gram). | ANOS 2). 3.31 76 0.9701 0.01276 0.03211 “| 0.0004225 ARGOS e cc: 3.20 556 9.4585 01701 .30267 | 0005444 Benner 3.13 264 | 4.3615 01652 .13652 | .0005171 Sa ea 3.00 379 «6. 1986 01635 -18596 | .0004906 49505.....--- 3.24 67 1.2716 - 01898 04120 . 0006149 50905.......- 3.30 221 | 2.3982 01085 07914 | .0003581 65005... ...- 3.05 393 7. 9684 - 02028 -24304 | 0006185 MING ee 3.16 451 7. 1852 01593 . 22705 - 0005034 Wy. 3.10 40 . 6893 01723 . 02137 0005342 55508. ....... 3.11 216 3.7407 | -01732 . 11636 - 0005386 vee 3.19 501 8.5777 01666 -29188 | .0005326 57905.....--- 3.18 221 2.4731 -O1118 .07859 | .0003556 Se 3.09 307 4. 2207 01375 . 13042 0004248 Geos . - 3.01 235 2.5436 01082 07656 . 0003256 Gone 3.25 111 1.3451 01212 . 04272 . 0003938 wi 3.24 90 1.5452 01717 - 05007 0005563 ui ae 3.36 213 8.4415 .03963 . 28363 . 0013316 Pili. 2. =<. 3.49 225 4.5806 - 02036 . 15986 0007105 cl 3.01 110 2.0970 01906 06312 0005738 BDZ eno. - 3.02 493 9. 2130 01869 . 27823 . 0005644 SIE he ae 3.31 72 1.2391 | .01721 -04101 | .0005697 SHONGE 5. : ee 382 7.5438 01975 25873 0006773 BIS05 os .- 3.21 138 3.0940 02242 09932 0007197 jt 3.36 198 3.4436 01739 1157 0005844 ares 3.10 214 3.4356 § —.01605 . 10650 0004977 Te in Sit 380 8.2366 | .02168 25616 0006741 92505........ 3.00 156 2.6615 01706 07985 0005118 Co 3.10 322 3.7828 01175 11727 . 0003642 94906. ....... 3.41 685 | 12.3862 . 01808 . 42236 0006166 Average ....| 3. 184 235.5 4.38558 . 018366 . 139656 00058156 3.5 TO 4 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. ¥ 16... 32 | 3.52 93 2.2881 | 0.02460 0.08044 | 0.0008660 r Vii (oe 3.80 43 | 7220 01795 0006822 ; 1SG0ge. oS... ars 103 1.4864 01443 0005498 ib a 3.61 89 1.4484 01627 0005875 2 ae 3.75 567 11.9114 - 02101 0007877 SONG go 3.82 173 3.557 . 02056 | .0007855 ie eee 3. 84 31 - 4336 01399 | -0005371 23 3.92 144 2.0390 01416 .07993 | .0005551 ROS Ss 2.2... 3.78 55 1.0183 01851 . 03849 . 0006998 20 3.73 81 1.5940 01968 05946 | .0007340 36905. ..-...- 3.88 267 5.0200 01880 .19478 . 0007295 i ae 3.61 563 12. 1088 . 02252 .43713 | .0007764 49905. ....... 3.63 94 1.8494 -01967 :06713 | .0007142 7 I 3.58 235 3. 2340 01376 11575 | .0004927 ASHO5 S520: : 3.66 137 | 1.9154 - 01398 07010 | .0005117 49905........ 3.62 23 . 6760 . 02939 .02436 | .0010640 BOD. = 25 2 3.54 30 5958 01986 .02109 | .0007032 50906........ lp 3157 114 = 1: 7280 .01516 06169 | .0005411 oe | 3.54 366 | 6.0090 01642 . 21272 0005812 Vi 3.59 174 3.1555 - 01814 . 11328 - 0006510 fej) | 3. 86 591 14. 6802 . 02484 .56666 | .0009588 94909........ | 3.60 218 3.6977 01696 13312 "0006106 Average | 3.69 | 190.5 | 3.68947 - 018666 . 13698 00068723 if | 64 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLE 8.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. of 1903—Continued. 4 TO 4.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. Percent- | number | ¥%8ht Ga ea) of— Total pro- _-Proteid Record tina Wane Oe | area -—— teid nitro- nitrogen in Gee proteid 1 K 1 x gen inall average ker- | nitrogen cs 3 c SEG " abasic: ip kernels nel inkernels,| D- | per plant. Hae (gram). (gram). PALS PA eee 4.26 983 14. 8139 0.01507 0.63107 0. 0006420 21813222 = 222 4.04 216 4.0258 - 01877 - 16377 - 0007582 7AM A ese See 4.43 525 12. 1819 - 02317 - 53889 - 0010265 27308. ...--.- 4.15 254 4.5123 -O1777 . 18726 - 0007373 Bett Se aaa ee 4.33 207 4.1281 - 01994 - 17875 - 0008635 43905...-.--- 4.13 93 1.4464 - 01555 - 05974 - 0006423 Ani Moe eth = 4.18 44 - 7332 -01712 - 03148 - 0007155 _ DOT Ae ss. 4.21 118 2.1571 -01828 - 09082 - 0007696 6930525 -22~..- 4.42 103 2.0430 - 01984 - 09030 - 0008767 LO2008 to = = 4.45 447 5.4411 -01217 - 24213 - 0005417 92506. 22/2. - = 4.39 229 3.8709 - 01690 . 16993 - 0007421 Average A271.) 292-0 5.03397 . 017689 . 21674 . 00075594 MORE THAN 4.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN 4.70 29 0. 3885 0.01340 0.01826 0. 0006296 | 5.23 149 2. 8564 01917 . 14939 0010026 | 5.03 237 3.9143 .01578 | .19689 0007934 4.71 807 19.3318 .02390 | .91052 -0011283_ | 5.48 383 8. 4593 .02209 | =. 46356 - 0012103 5.85 61 1.2124 | .01988 | 07093 . 0011627 4.55 19 . 3037 01598 . 01382 . 0007273 / 4.69 194 3. 6302 01871 17026 -0008776 4.87 249 3. 2964 - 01324 . 16053 -0006447 | 4.92 | 78 1.8018 . 02310 . 08865 -O011365 | SoM 110 2.4420 . 02220 14213 -0012921 | 4.65 65 1.1166 01718 05192 -0007988 5.59 188 3.4442 01832 . 19253 -0019241 4.93 347 6.0091 01732 29625 . 0008539 Average .... 5.07 | 208.28 4.15727 01859 . 208974 - 0009487 TaBLeE 9.—Summary of analyses of plants, arranged according to percentage of proteid nitrogen. Crop of 1903. : Weight = grams) Proteid nitrogen 0 a Percent-| Number oi— (in grams) in— f Range of per- aoe centage of proteid ae | nitrogen. a Boe Analy-| Ker- ieniele Average All ker- Average mals ses. nels. ‘kernel. nels. kernel. | | el 1.749 28 | 320.3 6. 2382 0.01871 | 0.10655 | 0.0003291 2 2.32 65 | 396 8. 2502 .02011 | - 19032 | - 0004660 2 218 145 | 370 7.1755 - 01935 | - 19442 - 0005271 3 3.18 66 | 235 4.3856 . 01837 | - 13966 | - 0005816 3. 3.69 22) 190 3. 6895 - 01867 . 13698 - 0006872 | 4 4.27 11 | 292 5.0340 . 01769 21674 | - 0007559 | As 5.07 14 | 208 4.157. 01859 | - 20897 | - 0009487 Table 10 shows the analyses of the crop of 1903 arranged on the basis of weight of average kernel. Determinations of gliadin and glutenin were made in these analyses and the sums of these are inserted in this table.” All plants having an average kernel weight « Determinations of Sratlin and alata were made by methods praca the same as those described by Prof. Harry Snyder in Bulletin No. 63 of the Minnesota Experiment Station, except that smaller quantities were used. SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. 65 et less than 0. 010 gram “form the first class and each succeeding clags s ees by 0.002 gram. Table 11 is a summary of these anions j Taste 10.— Analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average kernel. Crop.of 1903. WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.000 TO 0.010 GRAM. / Per- Proteid nity Percent-| Gliadin-plus-glu- | Weight Num- Weight centage (aaaia age of | tenin nitrogen | Berord ‘of aver- ber of (4¢ ,arnels| Of PTO- gliadin- (gram) In— number. |, ae pseaels) on plant = a aca 1 | DLUuS-Elu | ( pen: ee (grams). eee Average | Kernels see Average | Kernels | wala kernel. | on ema kernels, | /ernel. | on plant. 22205... - - 0. 00953 283 2.6965 2.81 | 0.0002677 | 0.07577 1.97 | 0.0001877 | 0.05312 $7105... .2 / .00916 407 3.7263 2.76 - 0002527 ts UM eRe es ey eel eet, 58206- -..- - 00943 148 1.3961 2.67 - 0002519 oh USY p23) (eis Sel See eel eee oe 95505... - . 00850 37 | -3146 2.81 . 0002389 AUG I cisi be Meare eee een aera eee Average .| 00915 | 219 | 2.0334} 2.76 | .0002528, .05618 | 1.97 | .0001877 | 05312 ST900.. «= - | 0.01086 19 | 0.2063 2.44 | 0.0002649 | CE QORUS She tert Sale ate le ee See ae 45605... .- -O1161 61 . 7081 2.82 | .0003273 | POLO elite oo ae wes oe Say ae Se 50905... -- | ~01085 221 | 2.3982 BV Si! = SUE DSSS C19 RACY 0) a (a (ear aes Bie) 201718 221 2.4731 3.18} .0003556 | .07859 2.92 0.0003264 | 0.07221 7/15 eee | 01082 235 2.5436 3.01 | .0003258 07656 | 2.47 | .0002673 | .06283 94208... .. / .01175 322 3. 7828 Sale woOUOsb4ae | fNFO7 | eo. SR ae Ae | ob aie ilo Average | -01118 179 | 2.0187 2.98 | .0003326 . 06276 | 2.69 | .0002968 | ..06752 | \ WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.012 TO 0.014 GRAM. 7G00" so 0.01340 29 0. 3885 4.70 | 0.0006296 | 0.01826 |.......... Reenter ee ss Jae 55006. 2... 01593 451 7.1852 3.16 | .0005034 | .22705 1.75 | .0002788 | .12574 Daso . . 01507 167 2.5160 2.48 | .0003736 . 06240 1.97 . 0002969 04957 D000... 01453 701 10. 1836 2.76 .0004010 BUSIOY 12; . Seo sb dg ee ee 27889—No. 78—05——d 66 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. T..ste 10.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average kernel. Crop of — 1903—Continued. ea WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.014 TO 0.016 GRAM—Continued. Per See | Percent-| Gliadin-plus-glu- Weight | Num- | wejent centage! ee ene / age of tenin nitrogen Record | of aver- | ber of |o¢ oe of pro- | | eiadin- (gram) in— number. | ,o8%5) Frisia on plant oe a pie beekee ie } ait plage: (grams). ae a Average Kernels linaeentag Average Kernels alee kernel. onplant. pornels.| Kernel. on plant. | Z ; | 57506. .--- | 0.01534 | 180 2.7616 | 2.80 | 0.0004296 | 0.07733 | 2.34 0.9003590 | 0.042 63506... .- | .01568 153 953986 | 2) 447)" [00088251 ~ 05853! |-2 os ee ae 1. ae 69705. ..-- | 01550 244.) 3.7810') 2.50. .0008874.| ~<09453.4..!..___. |... 2 eee 72005..... | 01585 167 |) ~2.6462"| 12:48 |) .0008930)|= #06503:|5. 22850: el eee |. ee 74508... -- 01434 57 “8172,|. 2:60} . 0003728 | 202125. |5) 29.0 ee eee | 96105... ‘01495 | 203 | 3.0282 | 256'| 0000023 | -c07084 |......._.-|-)) ikon | 92905.....| .01525 345 | 5.2616 | 2.74 .0004179 14417 | nee 92305__.-- .01491 | 160) 2.3859 | 2.93 .0004369 206991 |.....:-2..|s¢5.20 eee 92905... -- .01534.| 176| 2.7000) 3.50) .0005369 09450")... 22... | ee 92906. __- 01592 181 2.8816 | 2.99 .00047€0 108616:|:- 2-2. er fe catenins 94905...... .01553 986 | 4.4423 | — 2.35.| -.0008650)|' + 10439) |... 2. =. 2/520 eas See | 95707... -.- 01457 52 .7577 | 2.47 | .0003599.| 201872, |5... 2.2222): eee | Average. .01516 | 232, | 3.5480 3.00 .0004555 . 10619 1.76 | .0002805. .09320 | | | WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.016 TO 0.018 GRAM. | 173062 | 0.01645 943 | ~ 3.99681! 3:09] .0:0005082.| (0:12350 |__2.._=-. |S Sees ee 17406._-.- | 01686 124} 2.0907] 3.29 .0005547 (06878: |. 12.0... eee Gy pete .01795 | 43 .7720 | 3.80 .0006822 20705. .... .01698 | 109 1.8517 | 3.09 | .0005249 308m | > 201798} 287) 551594 3.24 | .0005824 21209.....| .01627 | 89 1. 4484 3.61 | .0005875 2307 01796 143) 2.5691 3.04 | .0005461 71308 ee 01641 354 «5.8080 | 3.45 | .0005660 21805. - .01699 1,232 20.9290] 2.69 .0004569 21808... .- .01708 | 1,156 | 19.7446 | 2.57 | .0004389 29906... _- 01720 146} 2.5712 | 3.22] .0005538 D0 eee | 01619 118 1.9090 | 3.18) .0005144 | 26806... . - 01793 152) 2.7255 | 2.60) .0004662 | 26808... - 01748 Gio) | SASS 3.09 0005402 26907....- .01792 | 102 1.8276 | 2.61 | .0004677 26909... .. .01667 | 180) 2.9999 | 2.80 .0004667 27308... - - | 01g | 254 | 4.5123 | 4.15 .0007373 33106... .- 1.01716 | 18 3089 | 2.94 .0095045 33406... | 01627 283 | 4.6045 | 2.87 .0004670 STs | .01710 193 3.3004 2.93 | _.0005010 39507... ... -01699 111! 1.8862 | 3.02! .0005132 44505 01764 340 5.9990 | 2.94 .0005187 45705...-- 01712 | 44 7582 | 4.18 | .0007155 46105_..-- 01775 260! 4.6146 | 3.00 0005324 46107... .- .01756 | 478! 8.3935 | 2.54) .0004460 48306... 01692 | . 157 | 2.6571] 3.29 .0005568 48506... 01701 | 556| 9.4585 | 3.20 .0005444 487055 ee 01652 264 | 4.3615 | 3.13 .0005171 48706_.-.- 01635 379 6.1986 | 3.00 .0004906 48806... -- 01798 547 | 9.8346 | 2.70 | .0004877 55205 01723 40 6893 | 3.10 .0005342 55307... .- 01663 342 5.6864 | 1.89 .0003142 55508... . - .01732 216 | 3.7407 | 3.11} .0005386 55607... -- 01734 138 | 2.3931 2.69 .0004665 55905... -- 01751 331 5.7948 | 2.67 | .0004674 55906... -- 01603 499 7.9968 | 2.81 | .0004503 56105. ...- 01709 336 | 5.7431 2.73 | .0004667 561072. 220 01658 872 | 14.4556 2.96 | .0004907 56209 01664 950 | 15.8086 | 2.59 .0004310 57005... .- 01746 88} 1.5364 | 2.71 | .0004731 57305. .-- . 01666 501 | 8.5777] 3.19 | .0005826 57308... ..- 01705 577 | 9.8378 1.69 | .0002881 57509...-- 01739 611 | 10.6261 2.54 | .0004417 59606... - 01712 567 | 9.7084 | 2.16 | .000398 | 60605..... 01701 35 . 5952 1.87 | .0003180 | 63105..... .01717 | 90 1.5452 | 3.24 | .0005563 | 66006... . 01642 366 | 6.0090 | 3.54 .0005812 eae" 2 = SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. > on Taste 10.—Analyses cf plan's, erranged according t> weight of average kernel. Crop of ear ~ 1905—Continued. WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.016 TO 0.018 GRAM—Continued. Per= | a ee Percent- Gliadin-plus-giu- Weight | Num-_— Weight centage = aaa age of tenin nitrogen | of aver- | ter of | )\ O86 of pro- gliadin- (gram) in— Record of kernels ,(-45 —. s acer age kernels : CO a-2 l= , ver. n plant | Seo Nl eee) lant. (grams). eee Average Kernels foe a Average | Kernels gr -|)P I miaiel kernel. on plant. SM kernel. | on plant. s Bow. Uke an = fomoss ==. 0.01718 65 | 1.1166 BEB EINOROOO MBS aL Os O5192 ese 2s | Woe ie) . 01724 543-9. 3629 1.89 - 0003414 | Bene ouilnnee coe es | adee St a. ee iG - 01781 23 | - 4096 2.73 | .0004862 (UU 9 eee oe oe ee ee 74605. ...- . 01784 399 7.1181 2.60 .0004638 ESTES UTA A ee ett [ee Sie el Be ee eo | 74607... - -O1E99 491 8. 3406 2.56 - 0004349 OD ae ant eee et ae, ne / TO203=_ 55. - 01695 498 8. 4407 2.35 . 0003983 MLSS jee ok RR at Be Sth NR, or odes / 81406.:..- ~Q1721 | - 2¢\ Sa230r 3.31 - 0005697 BOAT ae SA Ie es eels ane ace / 85205... .. - 01625 214 3.4766 | 260 .0004224 SUE UST a iS, Beret LAA See Maciel P| Saree 86106... .. - 01749 436 | 7.6241 2.63 - 0004599 a DUG PAS ett? Soe et (eS Oh Ie Ne Acer ; 91905... .. - 01739 198 | 3.4436 3.36 | .0005844 eS ee he len S| a ae | 91906.....; .01774 200 3.5486 2.81 - 0004986 IS 2a ere eo a Ses emi cv hh oe aes Az. | - 01767 209 3.6926 2.55 - 0004505 ROE i oon vere ees [ha ae Be os) ap aneees | S062... -.01732 347 6.0091 4.93 - 0008539 - 29625 4.06 0.0007032 0.24397 92405... ... - 01605 214 3.4356 3.10 - 0004977 LOU) ees ne |e a eee | CP - 01695 53 . 8983 1.66 - 0002814 ROA | eae ae | Cee epee ae AN eisié Segoe | 93505. =. . 01706 156 2.6615 3.00 - 0005118 OA seria See see! Pt Se na ee Reine oS eee - 01690 229 3.8709 4.39 - 0007421 S993) sae see |e wee es asa St * 92908... .. - 01732 187 | 3.2388 Pesta ONCAOI Sale WAOTOI4: Jeno bcp ee Sens le eee: | 94407... _. -O1615 419 6.7664 | 2.07 | .0003343 CI ie he et are | eens OY yay = Ys eee 94909. _... . 01696 218 | 3.6977 3.60 .0005105 S121 IP AY bin oy Seeds OM Been oy aan vee 2 8 S551 52. | .01783 159.| 2.8356 1.81 | .0003228 SU Ay ees eS eel al ee eer dsl| eet Oe! 95705... - - | 01626 | 636 10.3426 2.54 - 0004131 OAT OM EE Sele Gee) ee te Sima Bel |e DE oe S Average ; -01709 | 305.9 5.2055 | 2.93 - 0005020 . 14618 2.07 0003519 . 13548 WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.018 TO 0.020 GRAM. l | | [ete ; | B7505=- 2: | 0.01984 183 3. 6302 3.03 | 0.0006010 0.10999 |.._.. Krahs | yoct eer se | SS oe 17408: .. .- } 01852 497 9. 2038 2.18 - 0004037 a2 UU eee | Pere el ve SE | 17409... .. | .01857 802 | 14.8957 2.75.) .0005108 PAQOEA |i ones Seas SS prey POLO! =.= | .01974 867 17.1115 2.83 | .0005586 | - 48428 2.00 0.0003948 0.34222 “GS eee - 01922 123 2.3642 3.16 - 0006074 | CLUE 7 I) Rs eee ae] Pee BN I ee 21206... . 01917 149 2. 8564 5. 23 - 0010026 pL Re ea eed Leerssen beets - A 217. - 01955 118 2.3066 2.96 - 0005766 SLUTS a) ee nee iat A Veeco pena a8 em rt 2) PASOGS =: - 91837 226 4.1516 2.90 - 0005327 PASO Moe t= tan ee eee os eee Lee a ae - 91968 873 17. 1820 PEA - 0005334 MONO: | oe. 8s oss 2 | s-k Ae eel. eee 21809. ._.. - 91919 418 8.0214 Dike - 0005238 . 21898 2.18 | .0004183 . 17487 7A) - 01982 52 1.0304 2.69 | .0005330 BODIE [ats /cee 22 oo eee ss ae eee BASIS. <2 2. - 01877 216 4.0258 4.04 | .0007582 . 16377 2.14 | .0004017 | .08615 ‘ ASOD. 2 2; - 01809 791 14.3111 2.64 | .Q004777 -37781 2.18 | .0003944 | .31198 21907_.... - 01851 158 2.9248 Bee - 0006201 09798 2.15 - 0003980 -06288 | : 7A) oe - 01907 510 9.7236 2.31 - 0004404 ae A gd Eas eee | Fe SE OS | a ssreeee } 22207 -01940 169 3. 2787 2.77 | .0005374 - 09082 1.82 | .0003531 | .05967 26905... < . - 01966 326 6.4102 2.76 -0005427 ~ .17692 2.09 - 0004109 . 13398 26906... .. - 01859 228 4. 2376 Patil . 0005037 . 11484 1.82 .0003383 . 07712 L 27005... .. - 01895 866 16.4120 2.63 | .0004984 - 43164 1.90 | .0003600 | .31182 4 27205... - « - 01841 891 16. 4061 2.41 - 0004437 - 39539 1.70 . 0003130 . 27890 27306... . - 01945 684 13.3011 2.47 - 0004803 DODO Petes eee é 33105... .. -01939 132 2. 5601 2.91 | . 0005644 3.50 | .0006787 | .07450 | § 33107... .- -01919 318 6. 1026 2.35 | .0004510 . 14341 1.92 | .0004163 | .12643 | 33405... =. - 01930 421 8.1268 2.03 . 0003919 RL BAOID) Nec cle es «2 al ote elem tk WD wl ie a | = | 33906..... -01921 119 2. 2862 2S - 0005399 ROGAOL |=. 55. 2. lec dav ee oe eee 34205... .. -01972 | 464 | 9.1498 2.73 - 0005383 iM RS Sr eee Ps eee } 34206... .. - 01968 81} 1.5940 3.73 | .0007340 BEES OT. i cidae = 5) aaaaw ake on alae eee | 34208... .. - 01916 156 2. 9886 2.13 - 0004081 U5) ne re! Meera a) Mike me 34405. .... - 01994 207 4.1281 4.33 | .0008635 .17875 2.44 | .0004865 | . 10073 fae -O1880 — 267 5.0200} 3.88 | .0007295 AE es Pe aed perp | 37305... .. |. .01987 |, 309 6.1394 2.96 | .Q005881 - 18173 2.29 | .0004550 | . 14060 5 | .01972 461 8.0905 2.64 - 0005327 bal 1.26 . 0002485 . 10194 38005... .. | -01808 139 2.5134 2.84 | .0005135 : f 1.23 | .0002224 | .03091 38506... .. | - 01975 85 1.6799 2.89 . 0005712 {UC a A Ne 38605... .. - 01987 61 1.2124 5.85 | .0011627 JN(U 8 Caan ee eer Cee Bec - 01913 158 3.0228 2.82 . 0005394 . 08522 1.73 0003309 . 05229 38706... .- - 01988 365 7.2545 2.59 | . 0005TI8 A 7 ey ee ee Fy 40205... .. - 01871 194 3.6302 4.69 | .000877 . 17026 3.07 | .0005744 | .11145 68 Taste 10.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average kernel. Crop of 1903—Continued. - IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.018 TO 0.020 GRAM—Continued. = Per- | Proteid nitrogen | Weight | Num- Weight centage (gram) in— Record. | Of aver- ts er of ‘of kernels, of antl number. | 1525, 1 ernels) on plant | pe ae ] Cue eas (grams). '°S°D| Average | Kernels (gram). | plant. |in ker-| “;ernel. | on plant. | nels | / 42205 0.01967 | 94 1.8494 3.63 | 0.0007142 | 0.06713 42905... .- 01866 | 67) 422499 3-17 -0005447 03650 44607....- 01806 | 10), 1.8246 2.44 -0004408 04452 45605... -- 01834 | 220 4.0358 | 1.91 - 0003504 - 07708 AG106E - =. ~ 01964 | 82} 1.6103 | 2.54 . 0004988 . 04090 48106... .- 01919 608 11.6655 | 2.38 - 0004567 - 27765 48508... . - 01858 603 | 11.2008 | 2276 - 0005127 - 30986 49505... .- 01898 | 67 | 1.2716 3.24 - 0006149 - 04120 50705. 2 == 01986 | 30) - 5958 3.54 - 0007032 . 02109 DI05e Eee 01804 | 862 15. 5835 1.34 - 0002422 - 20881 59007 =<... 01828 | 118 Beibrl| “aber . 0007696 - 09082 55008... - - 01846 944 17.4226 | 2.60 -0004799 | .45299 55206. . . - - 01965 | 578 | 11.3592 2.56 -0005031 =. 29079 55306. . .. - 01931 214-| 4.1323 2.18 - 0004210 - 09008 DI007 == = 5 01949 504 | 9.8228 | 2.63 -0005126 | .25834 SGL0G_. ~ - = 01866 644 | 12.0161 2.57 - 0004795 . 30881 96205. .- == 01959 333 | 6. 5232 2.01 -0004917 |. 16373 56206... . -| 01829 | 509 9.3093 | 2.42 . 0004426, . 22529 57007... - - | 01975 | 168 3.3176 | 2.65 - 0005233 - 08792 57306. _ - - 01838 | 434 7.9772 | 2.86 | .0005257 - 22815 57307 -:-.= 01801 261 4.7117 2.43 | .0004387 | =. 11445 57406... _- 01846 135 2.4923 | 2.75 -0005077 |. 06854 57407... - 01968 762 14.9992 2.62 | .0005157 | .39297 Dio tae 01946 359 6.9861 | 2.85 0005545 , =. 19905 57608... -- 01968 438 8.6189 |. 2.64 - 0005195 . 22756 57805_. = =< 01814 | 270 4.8988 | 2.87 - 0005207 - 14060 58805. - - - - 01999 1,158 23.1471 | 2.74 | .0005464 - 63422 59605. -. - - 01880 | 382 Feees |) = De - 0003986, - 15228 63505... - - 01934 208 4.0230 | 1.90 .0003674 | =. 07644 65306... . - 01807 544 9.8298 | 2.41 - 0004282 | .23690 65307... . -- 01878 373 7.0051 2.28 - 0004355 |. 15971 66008... . . - 01814 174 3. 1555 3.59 -0005510 | .11328 69305... =. 01984 103 | 2.0430 4.42 - 0008767 - 09030 69505 - 01847 255 4.7116 2.29 - 0004231 . 10790 fA ee 01929 430 | 8.2929) 2.95 . 0005689 - 24464 200 fee 5-2 01832 188 3.4442 5.59 - 0010241 . 19253 72806. - - - - 01906 | 110 | 2.0970 3.01 - 0005738 . 06312 (4507-5 01869 © 493 | 9.2130 3.02 - 0005644 . 27823 $1405... ...= 01862 | 240 | 4.5737 2.62 - 0004879 -11710 81505 01940 146 | 2.8397 2.94 - 0005704 - 08328 84905... .- 019927 37 - 7130 202 - 0004471 - 01654 84906 01975 382 7.5438 3.43 | .0006773 . 25873 88905... .- O1S11 293 5.3069 | 2.83 | .0005126 - 15019 88906... . - 01814 546 9.9034 | 2.65 - 0004807 - 26245 92208 . . - . -| 01876 353 6.6206 | 2.72 - 0005102 - 18008 92408. . . . - 01827 207 3.7820 | 2.97 - 0005426 . 11233 92409... .- | 01814 315 De lot 2.30 - 0004171 . 13140 S250 fetce 01916 | 505 9.6779 2.58 lites 0004944 - 24969 92909... - 01916 529 10.1363 | 2.70 - 0005173 - 27367 94205. = =.= 01893 64 1.2117 | 1.65] .0003124 . 01999 94206... .- 01866 402 7.5005 2.78 | .0005187 - 20851 94207. ...- . 01909 718 13.7057 | 2.86 - 0005460 - 39199 94209... .- - 01895 190 3.6006 2.49 - 0004719 - 08965 94406... .- | .01923 549 10.5556 | 2.47 . 0004749 - 26073 94906... .- .01808 | 685 12. 3862 | 3.41 - 0006166 - 42236 94907... .- - 01948 | 626 12.1918 | 2.94 - 0005726 . 35844 94908... .. | .01894 | 125 2.3678 | 1.96 . 0003713 . 04641 95506... . - } .01852 | 597 11.0548 | 2.7. . 0005074 . 30291 95008. ... . - - 01954 | 740 14.4617 | 2.56 | .0005003 - 37023 95706... .- | .01934 267 5.1629 | 2.78 | .0005279 - 14095 | Average | . 01901 | 349.6 | 6.6327 | 2.88 | 0005476 | 18039 | . WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, | | | | SUS0gaeeee 0.02012 | 61 1.2275 3.25 | 0.0006540 | 0.03994 | 17405 eee .02127 | 738 15. 6996 2.13 - 0004531 . 33441 2070035-.= . 02033 | 163. -3..31388 2.78 - 0005652 09212 2070SSt2-— . 02024 | 122 2.4690 2.58 - 0005221 05399 20709 2 - 02053 258 | 5.3229 3.05 - 0005292 16235 20895 . 02157 C97 14. 6942 3.32 . 000.999 48784 Percent-| Gliadin-plus-glu- age of tenin nitrogen gliadin- (gram) in— pape | : enin ni- - | Average | Kernels path kernel. ese plant. 2.73 ) 0.0005370 0.05049 "778020003454 20997 — |S ee ~""""9"91 | 50004040 | -.04767 1.58 | .0002917 | .27528 1.87 | 0003675 0. 21241 ~""""9'07 | 0004034 | . 20333” 2.09 .0003900 | -.25114 1.85 | .0003624 12068 1.95 0003566 |. 18153 1.68 .0003036 | .16514 1 - 0003399 E PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. 69 : 10.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average kernel. Cro, : 1903—Continued. TOS ee WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.020 TO 0.022 GRAM—Continued. ; Per- oe ee Percent-| Gliadin-plus-glu- Weight | Num- | yweojop_ centage aon age of tenin nitrogen Record | Cf aver- | ber of |; kemmels, Of PTO- gliadin- | (gram) in— nu er age kernels anal teid ni- plus-glu- ~er. plant xs Bilis kernel on trogen - tenin ni- _— : Se | (gram). | plant (grams). | in Kor- | Average | Kernels |; ocenin| AVerage | Keracis : : Fale kernel. | on plant. ne | kernel. on plant. | 21212... 0.02049 84] 1.7216 | 2.16 | 0.0004427 | 0.03718 |.......... Weiss: . 5. | ees ve 21305... .. - 02004 312 6.2514 2.67 | .0005350 - 16691 1.97 | 0.0003948 | 0.12315 21707... -- 02125 582 | 12.3685 2.19 0004654 - 27086 21709... . 02141 361 7.7296 2.47 - 0005289 - 19092 FIST... . - 02101 567 11.9114 3.75 0007877 - 44666 21908... .. - 02056 173 3.5574 3.82 - 0007855 . 13589 ZIGIS =<). - 02072 492 | 10.1925 3.01 - 0006235 . 30680 22210: - - = - - 02019 298 6.0173 3.17 | .0006401 - 19075 255 2274 h - 02062 561 | 11.5675 3.17 | -.0006537 . 36671 1.69 | .0003485 | . 19548 Boma =! - 02066 522 10.7836 | | 2.71 | .0005599 piles it) ba oe Seem | Ae AP (ME at at ee - 02073 192 3.9797 2.96 | .0006135 . 11780 2.16 .0004478 =. 08596 ZIT <—- - 02004 166 3.3266 2.92 | .0005850 - 09712 1.95 - 0003908 - 06487 ee - 02085 267 5. 5666 2.58 | .0005379 - 14362, 1.73 | .0003€07 — .09630 2 - 02183 539 12.0399 2.12 - 0004627 . 24942 1.65 - 0003602 - 19866 pee -O2111 685 14. 4630 3.02 - 000837 - 43679 1.86 - 0003926 . 26901 32206... . . - 02052 507 10. 4036 1.81 . 0003714 g UNS HR MAES eee Foe ee Sed ON eS: 732606: ... . 02145 94 2.0162 2.88 | .0006177 at SSS a es een IOS ae ea ee SS ae! 5 150 3.1346 3.41 0007126 . 10689 2.41 0005037 07554 Be . 02144 382 8. 1890 2.21 0004738 BOGS i eee | ee ret oe eee 33607... . - 02125 136 2.8903 | 3.22) .0006843 09307 2.45 0005206 O7081 33905... . 02194 508 DIS |) 1.61 Bay cere An ee ene Pa een 37705... -. - 02155 56 1. 2069 2.34 | -02824 |..... seatee PISS E Bea e iets - 02110 401 8. 4605 2.63 | =22201 | 1.39 - 0002933 - L760 Dee: = Ss = -02089 | 1,031 | 21.5399 21 |) -45435 | 1.84 .0003844 | .39635 39405... .. - 02093 447 9.3541 2.88 | - 21399 | ° 1.44 .0008014 13470 | 40305... . - 02011 179 3.6003 | 3.11 | LUG Bee IS af Ne Ore (Se coe ey ee oe 44605... .. _ .02049 55 1.1271 2.86 Ais 725 3g ena Fe (Sar Ree Sone Sere 44606... . -02035 124 2.5235 | 2.90 07318 | 1.29. .0002625 48409... - 02048 314 | 6.4302 | 2.02 . 12989 1.50 | .0003072 | one - 02028 393 7.9684 | 3.05 | . 24303 1.99 .0004036 Be ous - 02062 866 5 17.8506 2. 80 | . 4995 2.20 = 0004536 ' 55605... .. . 02184 500 10.9180 2.64 | - 28823 1.96 . 0004281 eee -02175 562 12. 2210 2.42 29575 1.96 - 0004263 T4051: 02031 41 -8328 | 1.98 GON ee ee 28 ee 57408... . -02047 596 | 12.2004} 2.61 | 31842 1.64 | .0003357 ei - 02049 95 | 1.9469 1.88 | PUSGBO) |. cnt 28 ie an ae ae eee 63106_._.- - 02001 165 3.3006 2.79 | .0005581 09208 2.20 | .0004402 . 07261 ae - 02008 583-11. 7066 2.09 .0004197 1.95 - 00038916 . 22828 Eeeue -02073 370 7.6690 2.63 .0005451 2.18 .0004519 .16714 69506 =... . 02047 663 13. 5696 2.50 ah OU NY |) 8 SU 25) ee ee Eee eee Sees ee. = 2 SE 69806... .. - 02153 558 12.0136 IGG Minnie ee 1 GG4S. |. 8 2 lose os ce clb ce poe ceee 72705-.. 02191 Salesian 22 earenicalmme DHS lg 19036 |. =... slo... se ole | Leena | M2107: 5 = 02036 225 4.5806 By G0 AGP OTIn | es OCs ear ire mies eeu oS Se ee as - 02062 414 8.5373 2.45 .0005052 a en ee eee ana el 74305... - 02047 216 | 4. 4222 1.98 / BURR USfOO: |< osc. v2-|- seis scan) ose | 74606... - 02079 464) 9.6451 2.30 | .0004781 2.05 | .0004262 | .19772 | pes. 02165 729 | 15.7835 1.81 | .0003919 1.77 .0003832 27937 | PODS. . 02106 465 9.7922 1.98 .0004170 1.96 | .0004128 .19193 | 81706... .. - 02132 722 15. 3928 2.71 - 0005778 2.03 . 0004328 . 31248 i 81709... 02175 Tat ) 46.4603) \0 62 One) = ONOMIBON |) = 87548 |.22..-.--|-.:...--.--facesoeet ee I $4405..... - 02043 428 8.7448 2.48 SOOT LO 4) 22) hy al Pt Fee da! | 88606...... .02068 AS \ ROlGaai oP na ee OOeE N21 95162 |... .......|..: 2. cs-cal aceshaaes 88608... .. - 02075 74 fest55 1 ede OUUaIeaEe Bt03799. |... .--..-! sicbeccesc|-cswasenel 88609... .. - 02100 470 | 9.8719 | SOE te OCU nome OSOO = 22. soles soee ecole coe eteee 92408... .. - 02168 380 | 8.2366 3.11 META LG 1. oc oct ont eee eo cloee ae eee 92907... .. - 02040 219 | 4.4673 2.56 0005220 MULASOW Po oek 2k hele. cee eee } 95507.-... - 02029 571 | 12.1592 2.59 .0005515 BaHOD i: Se). 2S bo eee eee 95509... .. -02136 TASS | eal odicos Anam OeO Mem 207310 |... 2... 2-1. ..sachense[ace ceecegs | Average. =. 02085 | 386.6 | 8.1267 2.60 | .0005422 | .20510 1.92 | .0003999 .17351 WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.022 TO 0.024 GRAM. it. 0.02279 | *, 138 3. 1454 SAD MOMENT OMIOGSS |. oss =. Salas cs we actumbensaedes ee 17410..... 02285 744. | 16.9987 2.88 | .0006580 | .48957 |...... ” owl caw an See 20707..... . 02282 444 | 9.9070] 2.77 | .0006181 | .27443 | 1.85 | 0.0004222 0. 18328 21706. .... .02390 807 | 19.3318 Cer eile: 38) 5) Se i Parca so! | Pegines Cnem 21708..... 02381 390 D2) || eer oOn MAM eS Z1GS4 |... 2... .|= 70 3% Saber wae ees 21806... .. 02378 599 | 14.2450 2.71 S(V i Ui Oe el ed bee 8 ep eat ot 21909... .. - 02317 525 | 12.1819 4.43 .0010265 |. 53889 1.98 .O005677 29846 | 5.48 | .0012103 |. 46356 |...... BY eR a eet eee vat hh Te - 02209 383 | 8. 4593 70 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLe 10.—Analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average kernel. 1903—Continued. WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, J.022 TO 0.624 GRAM—Continued. “Crop of. | Per-_ Proteid nitrogen — Percent- Gliadin-pius-glu- aa Weight | Num- Wojent, comtage (gram) ti age of tenin nivrogen | Sra | of aver- | ber of (eT E oi pro- | gliadin- | eebeaes in— / Record age | kernels ° kernels ¢ciq ni = 'plus-giu- - = -| EAN | Tera ate eee trogen | 4 vor: Kernels | eninni-| ay | amanetett (gram). | plant. ‘8"@™S)- in ker- vecrat lon plant. | SrOBerin | oe ae nets male ernel. on plant. ernels, Kernel. on plant. Wwe2oZUbeesee 0.02281 205 4. 6754 2.76 0.0006295 0:12904.\ 50.2 -.....¢ 2a : Pl0G.2= <2 . 02304 90 2.0737 | 2.63 - 0006060 £05454 |2.s2.o02: -|\P2 2s See 2660p == ae . 02248 | 220 4.9456 2.81 . 0006317 13897 |... -<-...-)3s io aoe aehe ee eee DOSUhe en. - . 02390 721 17. 2324 2.80 - 0005692 48250 |.....2-2.-.-5|2 se eceeee eee } D506 =. . 02252 Add 10. 0005 Par | - 0006082 27003 | 1.98 0.0004459 0.19800 © Zi508 25-2 . 02287 | 251 5. 5324 2.64 . 0006037 — 14608 2.02 - 0005306 - 12835 aE) | ae . 02206 243 ae 36 15 2.90 .0006399 | 15549 | 1.69 - 0002405 - 05844 7 ea . 02323 225 5. 2208 1.20 . 0002788 06272')|.. =e... .- Sees (ee eso pee OF eas . 02271 305 7.0889 | ,1.62 . 0003679 W223i | 225 225 o-oo eee |e eee : 3a00D >. -- = - 02345 301 7.0596 2.39 . 0005605 16872 | 1.92 - 0004502 | . 13554 37 7) eee . 02219 611 13. 5556 2.84 . 0006273 | 38505. |. 2225 2: ch cee 34606... .- . 02213 280 6.1962 | 3.12 - 0006904 | 193832: | 52-40 05.21s2 ee eee | = eee ee! BODO OS He ar 02252 563} 12.1088 | 3.61 . 0007764 43713 1.77 0003986 .21432 38609... .: 02309 293 6. 7665 2.74 - 0006475 — 18540 1.34 0003094 - 09067 49405... < 02251 66 1.4892 3.07 . 0006927 | 04572 -).... 2. 2. cE 43405... . 02258 124 2. 8000 2.92 . 0006594 — O8176 1.18 0002664 . 03304 48507. . .. - . 02296, 70 1.6036 | 2.64 - 0006062 | 04233''... 2 2.23 tI ee ISUS..c soe . 02395 397 9.5078 | 2.54 - 0005225 | 24150 '2.0N.. 22.2] 2-4 eee eee BDUUDE So . 02205 503 11.0930 2.58 - 0005690 28580 1.49 0002609 | . 16529 D6207 =< == 2 . 02361 462 10.9073 2.34 - 0005524 | 25522 1.83 .0004321 -199€0° | 56208—. =~ - 02356 563 13.5720 2.61 ° .0006149 | 34616 1.95 0004594 - 26465 | 516062. =.= . 02333 132 3.0790 2.74 - 0005391 08436 |=... 2.0.3). pee eee 5607-2 == - 02234 736 16.4433 iS 733 - 0003865 s2ABAT |... ose See eee eee | ta Oe 63107 - 02233 417 9.3120 2.43 - 0005426 | +22628 | 02a eee Io: Sees 653805... : . 02310 78 1.8018 4.92 - 00113865 | 08855 :.....-..2. 22 es 69805... =. 110 2.4420 5.82 0012921 | . 14913 | 1.94 - 6004307 04758 W9059_. 2° «1, 2c0 28. 2136 2.47 - 0005531 - 69988) )_..2. 222. ee eee W2t08- === “02270 398 | 9.0386 2.20 . 0005154 20°18 |W. So. 2.) eee (Ea eee . 02229 | 25 9072 2.39 - 0005327 01332. ):.-..-...2) See (oasee aoe . 02291 624 14. 2986 2.92 - 0006539 41752: |. 2-2... 2 eee S07 a - 02336 786 18.3614 2.34 - 0005466 | AQGED: |b. coe 28 aoe LLU es - 92308 396 9.1411 1.92 | .0004432 17550 |. . 22.2... -| See oe 88607... - . 02205 234 5. 1584 2.61 . 0005754 13463. |; 22-2: Ge. oe eee eee (Onis iiee nse . 02242 138 | 3.0940 3.21 . 0007197 09932 |.5..-..:..2|22 eos eaee eee Sat Average . . 02285 388.1 | 8. 8879 2.90 . 0006624 25166 1.74 - 0004011 15515 | WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.024 TO 0.026 GRAM. L75062 32 = 0.02460 93 2.2881 oeo2 0. OOO8660 0. 08044 2.23 0.0005486 | 0.05102 haa 82) UY ers 5) - 02498 377 9.4172 2-13 . 0006664 . 25709 | 2.90 .0005271 | .19870 fed ALAS) OS page shes | . 02563 408 10.4800 | 3.18 -OOO8168 | - 33403 | 2.10 . 0005382 - 22008 PA fe | Coen . 02469 | 777 19.1854 | 2.36 | .0005827 - 45276 | 1.46 - 0003605 -28010 | | 28805... .- . 02512 87 2.1851 | 2.91 | -0007309 08359 1.55 - 0003894 | 03387 lengUpeeese 02555 37 9452 | 2.53 | 0006463 | .02391 RecN Pr a ean, oa) er ee | 40505 | 02444 170 4. 1546 2.82 | .0005892 11716 | 2.19 - 0005352 09099 | 48305 . 02543 | 473 12.0278 2.87 | . 0007299 - 34524 beth, - 0004501 21289 | ~56907. 2. 3.< | - 02590 749 19. 3966 2.59 | .0006707 - 50738 | 1.€1 - 0004170 31229 ener bss see | . 02484 591 14. 6802 3.86 | .0009588 206586: 12. 5... =. 5) ee ee or | *S1708=— 55 - . 02578 287 7.3993 2.41 - 0006213 . 17833 | 1.64 - 0004228 12135 | 92206... 2¢- . 02407 46 1.1074 2.67 . 0006428 102957) |... 2.252 -. see ee | QAI 05> 55 . 02543 22 . 5595 2. 67 . 0005790 301494 |... 6. . 5.2). ee Average . - 02511 316.7 7. 9866 2.86 | .0007154 : 22816 1.85 .0004654 16903 | WEIGHT OF AVERAGE KERNEL, 0.026 GRAM AND OVER | Pala tile 0.02806 | 10 Q. 2806 3.15 0. 0008839 (0. 00884: |. = =. --2-|5 Le eee 21 705.- eo . 02659 58 1.5420 2.45 0005514 | WOBTTIS AL 23 SS ae tos ae | 39506Ss255 . 02869 67. 1.9218 2.93 0008404. 05631 2.06 | 0.0005915 0.03959 | 49905 . 02939 23 | . 6760 3.62 . 0010640 02436. 2 25aed2ch ee oes Uccel eee | 5608... .. - 02699 837 22.5848 2.31 . 0006236 02194" |: . <<... 231 eee | heme oes } } 99909. - 03050 302 9.2120 2.30 -O0U7016 . 21187 | 1.66 - 0005053 . 15292 | 57508....- 03177 380 12.0728 2.21 . 0007021 . 26680 | 2.05 -0006513 | .24750 | 5850525. 02730 273 7.4516 2.95 . OOO8052 + 21982)-|..25~0 o-c3| eee ete Sie (2408 2” 03963 213 8.4415 3.36 . 0013316 28363 |...2. 2. <..): che eee eee : | Average. .02088 | 240.3 7.2425 | 2.81 0008449 —. 18126 1.92 | 000589 | 14667 | OCEAN OS AAW geiko NEL TS ae eossosssoss SOME PROPERTIES OF THE WHEAT KERNEL. § 1 s TaBLeE 11.—Summary of analyses of plants, arranged according to weight of average kernel. Crop of 1903. | | | | Proteid nitrogen’ Per | Gliadin-plus- (gram) in— cent- glutenin nitro- | > j ish ageof| gen(gram)in— mee EE S| eel | 7 Ca => Range of Num- ee aight | Num- Weight | age of | : ag | weights of |berof| .caier-| ber cf | Of ker | pro- | plus- | average kernel | analy- re kernels, _DelS | | teid ni- glu- (gram). ses. | (gram). | ‘\(grams).) trogen| Average Ker- | tenin| Average} Ker- : | in ker-| kernel. nels. |nitro-} kernel. | nels. | | nels. genin | ker- nels. —| — | | tear | | 000 to 0.010-. 4 | 0.00915 | 219 2.0334 2.76 0.0002528 0.05618 1.97 |0.0001877 | 0.05312 010 to 0.012. 6 -O1118 179 2.0187 2.98 | .0003326 .06276 2.69 | .0002968 | . 06752 012 to 0.014... 19 - 01323 155.7 2.0510 3.12 .0004120 . 06687 1.98 | .0002641 | .074S9 014 to 0.016. 27 | .01516 | 232 3. 5480 3.00 | .0004555 .10619 | 1.76 | .@002805 | .09320 016 to 0.018... 69 -01709 | 305.9 5. 2055 2.93 | .0005020 | .14618 | 2.07 | .0003519 | .13548 018 to 0.020. 103 -01901 | 349.6 6. 6327 2.88 | .0005476 .18039 2.08 | .0003979 . 15541 020 to 0.022. 64 -02085 | 386.6 | 8.1257 2.60 | .0005422 .20510 1.92 | .0003999 . 17351 022 to 0.024.. 42 -02285 | 388.1 8. 8879 2.90 | .0006624 . 25166 1.74 | .0004011 . 15515 024 to 0.026 13 . 02511 316.7 | 7.9866 2.86 | .0007154 . 22816 1.85 | .0004654 . 16903 026 and over. 9} .02988 | 240.3 | 7.2425 | 2.81 | .0008449 | .18126 | 1.92 | .0005829| .14667 | | | With an increase in the weight of the kernel, as shown by this table, there is an irregular increase in plant up to a point somewhat beyond after which there is a decrease. pliant seems to follow the same rule. The the number of kernels on the the kernel of average weight, weight of the kernels on the The percentage of proteid nitrogen in the kernels decreases, in general, with the weight of the average kernel, while the number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel increases steadily. The grams of proteid nitro- gen in all the kernels on the plant increase up to the same point as do the number of kernels on the plant, and then decrease. Table 12 shows the summary of the analyses of the crop of 1903, arranged according to the grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel. All piants having less than 0.0003 gram of proteid nitro- gen form the first class, and the following classes increase with each 0.0001 gram of proteid nitrogen. It is difficult to trace any relation between the grams of proteid nitrogen in the aveiage kerne] and the number of kernels on the plant, or the weight of the kernels on the plant. The weight of the average kernel increases directly with the grams of proteid nitrogen in the kernel. The percentage of proteid nitrogen increases regularly with an increase in the grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel. The grams of proteid nitrogen in all the kernels on the plant show no definite relation to the grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel. It becomes evident from these results that selection of large, heavy kernels for seed would result in discarding the immature and unsound kernels, but that there would also be discarded many sound kernels, which, although small and of low specific gravity, would contain a high percentage of proteids. 72 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. Another effect of such selection, as indicated by the foregoing results, would be to increase the yield of grain from each plant when grown under the conditions that obtained in these experi- ments. What the effect would be upon the yield under ordinary field conditions these experiments do not indicate. On the other hand, selection based upon percentage of proteid nitrogen alone would not result in securing plants of greatest yield when raised under these conditions. It would, moreover, not result in obtaining plants producing the greatest amount of proteid nitro- gen, nor even of kernels containing the largest quantity of proteid nitrogen. TABLE 12. Summary of analyses of plants, arranged according to grams ur proteid nitrogen in average kernel. Crop of 1903. Proteid w eigh t (in grams) Percent-| Proteid : Num- Number of— age of nitrogen Range of proteid nitrogen in Peas ole ber of | of ker- proteid in ker- average kernel (gram). eee suey per Kernels Average ee ee _ (gram). = | Pp * on plant.| kernel. aes 3 | (gram). iBelow.0! 00030 = es =- 22 ee es 0. 0002509 14 257.9 3.9190 | 0.01364 1.96 0.06531 0.00030 to 0.00040....-..-------- - 0003602 42 266.7 | 4.6742 - 01628 2.31 | - 09644 0.00940 to 0.00050 .-.....-------- - 0004537 80 409. 2 7. 5309 -01811 2.54 - 18644 0.00050 to 0.00060......-.- ---- -0005406 116 341.5 6.7159 | 01908 2.86 - 18440 0.00060 to 0.00070-.....- at . 0006409 59 310.3 6. 7257 - 02137 3.07 - 19805 0.00070 to 0.00080... .- - 0007430 24 204.9 4.5158 | .02110 3.66 - 15318 0.00080 to 0.00090. - . - 0008538 9 189. 1 4.2480 | . 02334 3.79 15944 0.00090 to 0.00100... ss - 0009588 1 591.0 14. 6802 - 02484 3.86 - 56666 0'00100 andover== > =~ 2-2-5. - | .0011578 11 244.9 6. 6082 - 02875 4.62 | - 27980 It will be shown later that the determination of gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen is a safer guide to the bread-making value of wheat than is a determination of proteid nitrogen, but whether selection should be based upon the percentage of nitrogen or the total production of nitrogen by the plant, or upon the amount contained in the average kernel, is a question that can not be solved except by trial under field conditions. Some results of experiments with light and with heavy seed con- ducted on large field plots for several years may throw some light on this subject, and are given herewith. YIELD OF NITROGEN PER ACRE. It is important to know whether the absolute amount of nitro- gen per acre of grain raised is greater in light or in heavy wheat. If the absolute amount of nitrogen per acre is less in light than in heavy wheat the supposition would be justifiable that the kernels were immature or had been prematurely checked in their develop- ment. On the other hand, if the amount of nitrogen per acre is greater in the light wheat it would be reasonable to suppose that, as both had been raised under the same conditions, the light wheat had, in part at least, come from plants that possessed greater ability to acquire and elaborate nitrogenous material. 4 : i = _. YIELD OF NITROGEN PER ACRE. 73 To afford information on this point analyses were made of crops grown from light and from heavy seed. Records of the yields of the plots were kept in each case so that the actual amount of proteid nitrogen contained in an acre of each kind of wheat can be calculated. The number of grams of proteid nitrogen in 1,000 kernels of each seed and crop sample is also stated. The first samples separated, Nos. 78 and 79 of the Turkish Red variety and 80 and 81 of the Big Frame variety, were taken from seed that had never before been treated in this way. When planted they produced the crops indicated in Table 13 by 78b, 79b, 80b, and 81b, respectively. Each of these crops was then separated into two portions, of which the light portion of the light wheat was retained for analyzing and planting, and the heavy portion of the heavy wheat likewise retained. Thus No. 383 is the light portion of No. 78b, and No. 384 is the heavy portion of No. 79b. The accuracy of the records of relative yields of light and heavy seed harvested in 1902 being open to suspicion, samples of the same seed were sown again in the autumn of 1902 and harvested in 1903. The results from this test are stated at the bottom of the table under the heading ‘‘Check experiment.” These experiments are to be understood as duplicating those of 1902, which, as regards the relative yield of light and heavy wheat, should be accurate, although tried in 1903. The difference between this check experiment and the regular one of 1903 is that in the check experiment the seed of the crop of 1901 was used, while in the regular experiment in 1903 the seed of the crop of 1902 was used. TABLE 13.—Crops grown from light and from heavy seed for four years. SEED. Percentage of— Weicht of _Proteid ee Racha: —- eee p ae 1,000 ker- a yea Relative ap ariety. Total Proteid ezotaid nels. eeeneis weight. nitrogen. nitrogen. nitrogen. (grams) (gram). | = —_ mnmeniited es) ee eee Se. L724. |S Seen oe Light. 71 ae 21S eee a eRe ens He ere Peper cacee | 30563) |= Sosaesaes Heavy. PIE EAING”_. ..- 2-2 o eee 2.45 2.00 0.45 | GREY) 0.3120 | Light i ee Seo a A eee 2.20 1.96 . 24 28. 56 . 5606 | Heavy. Pe AUThISh REG... ....--.2--- 3.12 3.10 . 02 27. 1 .8401 | Light ot ee (bint a ae 3.02 2.93 09 28. 47 8350 | Heavy. 385 mPa’... 5. -scece. 3.13 2.82 31 27.11 . 7642 | Light 2) ee Oe ae See aaa 2.95 2.65 30 28. 09 . 7446 | Heavy EO LRT A Se ee Ap ges ees Goo Se enc dd <2 A ee Sere Light us ee tere le ee eed eee |. = 33 «ot ss lle aw'= aa vn OS Ulan) LE ee) a Se eee es Si 8 eS nn ed a eee Light oes = Uo eee eh oenccetben’ oS6o3ec5¢5 ben 33 Ace boc Se BRR peerage Th Somer burkienh Red /..:-..--/.--- 3.33 2. 87 Boul). 3.5 U8. sete cede teeters | Light ie pe Gt A ae ee 3. 06 2. 86 QO) |-2-- 2-2 ne fennaeewcceee Heavy Pasi PANG =. 2 2...-2.-2 2: 2. 88 2.63 | i ae ee Ae AS. Light 953 |..... Wn oe ee SG SAE be SO ee So ee |S | rs ee ae ee Heavy / CHECK EXPERIMENT shekrye 120" ee A eee DEE LE) a re ei e 7- Light Soees oy See, Gu ie (EE eS Se (o>) rs ree care i Tha Ei SA RE 3 Oa | eae a .| Light. Seca = Ts oe eS a «| ER ae Le ee ey Pen ee erie ees ka 74 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TasLe 13.—Crops grown from light and from heavy seed for four years—Continued. CROP. = = = g- {Son }q2 | = = = = ceo ee of IO Sa |es ) = 2 eigels 1&8 |=. bee | 2 lee ze lwe\es|= | 2 | Sg | 38 | 32 ee.) eles se Variety. Sa er) aire een Vee 2s = 2 Ss) 65 =e Hi | 2\ee! 8 | 38 | ae | 38) sa (Sse f \e= | eo] g@ | 2° | as | 23 | Be STB) ele S peceee Re 6 5 of | 2S | 22 |e = eae & [|= = = Z Se FOS ma | 78 | Turkish Red.......| 23.0 |.....- 3.20 | 3.09 0.11 | 45.54 |i... . | 1900 | 78b Fouls dose eee Fis) | eae 3.08 | 2.94 14 | 52.04 25.10 | 0.7379 1900! 79b 80 Big Frame ........- DW5t pa 3.13 | 3.06 07 363 Ae 1900 80b Siseee due te ih Gees 2.81 | 2.59 22 39.01 | 24.84) .6423 | 1900 Sib 383 | Turkish Red....-.-- 26.7 | 60.5| 2.35 | 2.13 22 | 34.12 | 26.19 | .5581 | 1901 612 354 joes doers eee 99.3| 61.5] 2.11] 1:94 17 | 34.11 | 27.04} .5238 | 1901 613 385 Big Frame......... 21.2 | 58.0] 3.30) 3.06 24 | 38.92 | 23.89 .7409 1901 602 ad ae doe ae 27.7| 60.5 | 2.46) 2.24 22 | 37.22 | 28.82 | .6451 | 1901 603 Turkish Red...-.--- 19.7 | 57-0 2.15 2.14 O11) 25:29) 2 ee 1902 621 Le OSs eee TRON SRO" |) IhOS) y= okey f1.|) 20: 207) | ee 614 Bigvkrame <2 3-22 LOS ji. 2 Se 3.54 3.32 Dos) See 19.56 .6494 1902 604 Ine Ons eeet 2 eM IROSE ates || Oa etary, 23 |.......| 26.41 | 25887 |) 1902 611 957"), Turkish Reds. 2. |/95: Gy) ee BUST teen ced 53.91 | £2.12 | .7764/|.1903 | 1240 956"|-2.-: Oe. 25 ee Ieee ee 21S tere eee 27.86 | 23.13 | .5042 1903 1239 O52, big Prame se. s.ss-s| peel ota. ede ee oa |S Meee 2 33.13 | 19.82 4241 1903 1248 958 |... attr. Saree. oa 8 ees eee se ete PS 24.71 | 23.26 | .4605 1903 | 1249 CHECK EXPERIMENT. | | / | | | Turkish Red-=--25- BOSSE Sel Fes ec je eg) eae 36: 3.2 ae | 2. wee 1903 1245 | Leese GO.) 2 A SENSIS LA ey a GA 28 21S: | ee cee Big Frame Sah Manes, 8 ie et ae sd eae: 35167 |o2- se i eee 1903 | 1252 cas Cie eee ans ant |): RO a DO eam ed Pea EL 2) Boe 23.52 eee 1903 | 1254 Comparing the analyses of the light and heavy seed in this table with those in the preceding tables, it will be noticed that the total and proteid nitrogen are both uniformly higher in the light seed. The nonproteid nitrogen is not so uniform as in the previous analyses, but the general tendency is the same. In the crop the high total and proteid nitrogen of the light seed is uniformly transmitted. There is no uniformity in the nonproteid nitrogen. As was to be expected, the heavy seed produced in the first two years the largest yields per acre. The quality of light or heavy weight as indicated in the resulting crop by weight of grain per bushel gave some indication of being transmitted. In 1900 there was an absence of data on the subject, but in 1901 the heavy seed in each case produced grain having a greater weight per bushel than did the light seed. Turning to the column showing the absolute amount of proteid nitrogen prcduced per acre, it is very apparent that the heavy seed produced in 1900 considerably larger amounts of proteid nitrogen per acre than did the light seed, but in 1901 the difference was very slightly in favor of the light wheat, which advantage continued with the light wheat during the remaining years. YIELD OF NITROGEN PER ACRE. 75 It would seem from these results that the quality of lightness, with its correlated qualities of high total and proteid nitrogen, is hereditary. The question then arises, Why should the light wheat accumulate more nitrogen per acre than the heavy wheat after the first generation ? . A possible explanation for this is that the light seed from the first generation contained kernels whose lightness was due in some cases to immaturity, and in other cases to the individual peculiarity of the plant on which they grew. The latter class transmitted this pecul- larity in the crop, while the former became less conspicuous with each generation, on account of the lesser vitality and productiveness of the immature seed. A peculiar feature of these results is found in the fact that the yield of grain from the light seed approaches each succeeding year more nearly in quantity to that obtained from the heavy seed until, in 1903, it becomes greater. These two qualities of seed were raised on plots side by side, and every precaution was taken to obtain an accurate estimate of the yield of each. While it is probable that the results for 1903 are misleading, it is certainly significant that so little difference in yield exists after three years’ selection in this way. Instead of the difference between the light and heavy seed becoming greater each year it is without doubt becoming less. In considering the relative yields of the light and heavy wheat, it must be borne in mind that the seeding was done with a drill set to deliver 14 bushels per acre of ordinary seed wheat. The result would be to deposit a larger number of kernels of light seed per acre than of heavy seed. In a season like that of 1903, when the rainfall was large and the weather moderately cool until harvest, there might be an advantage resulting from the thicker seeding, which may account for the greater yield from the light seed in that year. It is possible that the same cause may have operated in other years to increase the yields from the light seed, but it is not likely that it produced a very marked effect, because the seeding was a large one for Nebraska, and, the wheat being sown in the early fall, there was abundant opportunity for it to stool, and thus equalize the stand. It has never been observed that there was any diiference between the plots in this respect. Taking, together, the results of 1902, which show a decrease in the weight of the kernels on a single head as the content of proteid nitrogen increases, the results of 1903, which show a slight decrease in the weight of the kernels from the plant, accompanying an increase in the percentage of proteid nitrogen, and the yields of the light and heavy seed for the four years beginning with 1900, there would appear to be a slight decrease in yield of grain, accompanying an increase in the percentage of proteid nitrogen. This loss in yield is 76 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. not sufficient to counteract the increase in nitrogen, and the result is to increase the production of proteids per acre. Viewed in the light of these various experiments, the selection of large, heavy wheat kernels for seed does not appear to be altogether unobjectionable, as in this case it resulted in a decreased production of proteids per acre, without a compensating increase in the yield of grain, when continued for a number of years. On the other hand, the selec- tion of the small, light seed is hardly to be recommended. In fact, selection based upon kernel size or weight is not a satisfactory method for permanently improving wheat. The individual plant should be taken as the basis for selection, and very large numbers should be handled. The figures in Table 8 show what great opportunity there is for securing not only kernels of high nitrogen content, but also plants giving at the same time an increased yield of grain and abun- dant production of proteids. If the average nitrogen content and yield of grain by plants be observed in this table, it will be seen that numerous plants may be selected that have not only a nitrogen content above the average, but also a greater yield of grain. While, therefore, it is probable that improvement in yield of grain can not be effected so rapidly where it is combined with improvement in nitrogen content as if the latter were neglected, yet present yields of wheat in Nebraska can be increased at the same time that the production of proteids is augmented. ) METHOD FOR SELECTION TO INCREASE THE QUANTITY OF PROTEIDS IN THE KERNEL. The following tables show the results of analyses of -a total of forty-eight spikes of wheat. In the case of each spike one row of spikelets, for instance, row No. 1, was analyzed, and the other row of spikelets, which would then be row No. 2, was analyzed sepa- rately. In the case of the set of spikes forming Table 14 the total organic nitrogen was determined in both lots, and in the set com- prised by Table 15 the proteid nitrogen was deterinined. The last column shows the difference between the nitrogen content of the two rows of kernels. ¥ ee ee ee ee rm Percentage of total organic || | Percentage of total organic : nitrogen. | | nitrogen. _ Number of spike. hy sae | Number of spike. | = ¢ iier- | | - ai Differ- Row 1. | Row 2. ence | Row 1. | Row 2. erica Lo 3 3.14 — 3.32 (Ve tks\:|| Mes 2.83 2. 7S 0. 04 4) «6 ae 2.97 3.15 | cbs Ch| Re 2.78 2.76 .02 ee ns 2.89 2.99 C10) || “23a eoe oe 2.94 3.03 | 09 0. 2.0 See 2.99 3.21 ea hu: bee 2.98 2.89 .09 os Ae ee 2.89 2.82 WY). || GES 88s ee ee ee 3.00 3.08 .08 Pee ee Se 2 2.82 2.81 NQaa Metisse ea we sn 2.84 2.67 TL li. oe 2.50 2.76 erty)! ce See 3.03 2.90 a 3 lu. 226234 3.13 3.11 wi U 2 | Er ee ee 2.65 2.79 .14 if eee pall 3.18 SUG | che eas ae es 2.62 2.84 .22 int 2 ee 2 2.80 (11 ic. Lt Se 3.02 3.18 16 ipo Ge 2.85 | 2.79 TOOT se nooo 5. tccmes 3.02 2.80 22 i= i 3.26 | 3.07 19 Li. SS ee 2.94 | 3.07 -13 PRVEUR PON «ies Ponts las ser Sa oc SRC 12 here eee. 3.45 — 3.67 22 | | _- Tasre 15.—Analyses of twenty-three spikes of wheat, showing their percentage of proteid ‘ semen Ra tt dies nitrogen. | Percentage of proteid Percentage of proteid nitrogen. "4 nitrogen. Number of spike. / cS Number of spike. | a El ae ao iffer- | ey +9 Differ- | Rowl. | Row 2. | “ence. | Row 1. | Row 2. Back (le 2.90 ole (a2 | NE ee athe ee a 2.86 3.02 0.16 PE ae 2.97 2.86 | SiH) | Wet. nae a oe ea 2.33 9.52 | -19 Si a re 2.68 2.79 Stiles 9 eRe ia | 2.88 2.85 | .03 Ske i ore ee 2.54 2.76 | 1 Ve Ocoee 2.43 2.45 02 «TE ee 2.42 2.53 .25522 .19960 | .0005524 =. 0004321 2.21 2.05 380 12.0728 | .03177 . 26680 . 0007021 . 0006513 2.41 1.68 544 9. 8298 . 01807 . 23690 - 0004355 . 00038036 2.28) 1.81 373 | 7.0051 | .01878 | .15971 0004282 . 0003399 2.09 1.95 583 11.7066 | .02008 . 24468 . 0004197 . 0003916 2580)) 12°05 464 9.6451 | .02079 . 22184 . 0004781 . 0004262 Peoeils 964 786 18.3614 | .02336 - 42965 . 0005466 . 0001495 . 2.41 1.64 287 7.3993 | .02578 . 17833 . 0006213 . 0004228 ‘ Average..| 2.30) 1.68 | 489.6 | 10.5874 | .02173 . 24272 . 0004991 0003652 * | | i * 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. - 711 aes | 2.78 | 2.05 163 3.3138 | 0.02033 | 0.08212 0.0005652 0. 0004168 2 UL Det, 1.85 | 444 9. 9070 . 02282 . 27443 . OO06181 . 0004222 4 PA Gee se 4 ae 2. 83 2.00 867 | 17.1115 . O1974 . 48428 . 0005586 . 0003948 oy pi 2.96 Bly / 118 | 2.3066 .01955 .06804 20005766 =. 0000332 Me 725 (5 2560 1.97 313 6.2514 . 02004 . 16691 , . 0005353 . 0003948 i 2 2.90 .97 226} 4.1516 [| .01837 .12039 | .04027 , .0005327 ~—-. 0001782 } isbn... 2.69 | .23 | 1,232°| 20.9290! .01699 .56299 .04704 | .0004569 —. 0000391 -. 7.1: fe ae PI BA a ea 377 | 9.4172 | .02498 .25709 .19870 .0006664 .0005271 - 91808........:. 2.57) 1.96 | 1,156 | 19.7446 | .01708| 150744 .38700 0004389 | . 0003348 g Wl Ria es 418 | 8.0214 | .01919 | .21898 .17487 .0005238 .0004183 } 21 2.64 | 2.18 791 | 14.2111 .01809 | .37781 .31198 .0004777 . 0003944 22205. ..-.-.--- 2.81 | 1.97 |, 283 | 2.6965 .00953 | .07577 .05312 .0002677 |. 0001877 Le 2.40 1. 82 169 | 3.2787 . 01940 . 09082 .05967 | . 0005374 . 0003531 2 2.7 2.05 326 | 6.4102 | .01966 | .17692 .13398 .0005427 .0004109 2 S12) ©1582 228 | 4.2376) .01859 | .11484 .07712 .0005037 =. 0003385 Ci r 2.96 | 2.16 192 | 3.9797 .02073 | .11780 08596 | .0006135 , .0004478 Ne es Ss 2.80 1.88 180 | 2.9999} .01667 | .08400 .05640 .0004667 =. 0003134 {iis ee 2.63 |» 1.90 866 | 16.4120 . 01895 43164 .31182 .0004984 0003600 Ea a. 2.92} 1.95 166 | 3.3266 .02004 .09712 .06487 .0005850 . 0003905 7S | ye one a 3 267 | 5.5666 .02085 | .14362 .09630 .0005379 =. 0003607 SU 2.53 . 82 167 | 3.0850 .01847 . 07805 .02530 . 0004674 0001515 LU 2.70 |} 1.98 444 | 10.0005 .02252 .27003 .19800 .0006082 .0004459 Mo 2.64 | 2.32 251 5.5°24 > .02287 .14608 .12835 | .0006037 | .0005206 2 71 } 2.90} 1.09 243. 5.3615 | .02206 | .15549 =. 05844 | .0006399 | .0002405 | | 86 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaB_e 19.—Relation of gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen to proteid nitrogen—Continued. 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. a | Weight (in grams) of— a es ee | / 1 Glia~ Num- * | | Gliadin- ., | Gliadin- Record number. Pro- | oe oe Proteid plus- a nee plus-glu- | teid | P 1 = To Ker- Average nitro- glutenin a ee tenin ni- nitro- poe nels. | nels. | kernel. | genin | nitro- age ker.) =0ectl in | | gen. | ie |kernels. genin | ee el average OES kernels. kernel. gen ) Lis Seah immer oe ee 2.91 | 1.55 87 2.1851 0.02512 0.05259 0.03387 0.0007309 0.0003894 SSI Stace eee 2.91 3. 50 132 2.5601 01939 .07450 .05960 .0005644 =. 0006787 Diese eae 2.96 2.29 309 6. 1394 .01987 | .18173 - 14060 .O0005S81 . S771 SE ae 2.64 1.26 461 8.0905 . 01972 . 23998 | .10194 .0005327 .0002485 SYA 2.93 2.10 193 3. 3004 .01710 | .09670 . 06931 .0005010 - 0003591 et a See oe 2.84 1.23) 139 2.5134 -01808 | .07138 ) .03091 | - 0005135 .0002224 GOOG. 6-2 ase 2.63 1.39 401 8. 4605 .02110 | .22251 | .11760 .0005549 - 0002933 SSOUS ss aes 2. 82 1.73 158 3. 0228 .01913 | .08522 | .05229 | .0005394 | .0003309 DRO akc oS ek 2.74 1.34) 293 6. 7665 . 02309 . 18540 | 09067 .0006475 .0003094 BOA Des. =. ets 2.88 1.44), 447 9.3541 . 02093 . 21399 tees 13470 =. 0006027 . 0003014 SO ce axe 2.93 2.06 67 1.9218 .02869 .05631 .03959 .0008404 .0005910 . CUS eens 2.82.1 219 170 =°4.1546 .02444 .11716 .09099 .0006892 , .0005352 foe eee! 2.92 1.18 124 2. 8000 02258 | .08176 . 03304 .0006594 | .0002664 Bae asco ok 2.94| .70 340 5.9990 .01764 | .17637 | .04199 | .0005187 - 0001235 BAGONG ts5 5. tS 2.90 1.29 124 2. 5235 . 02035 . 07318 03255 .0005902 . 0002625 AnIOTee a 2. 54 2.08 478 8. 3935 . 01756 .21319 | .17458 0004460 - 0003652 ASOD ee ee 2.87 ea. 473 | 12.0278 . 02543 . 34524 . 21289 | .0007299 . 0004501 BRAGS os 2.70 ath 547 9. 8346 . 01798 . 26553 .07376 .0004877 + .0001348 1 Ue ge 2.60 1.58 944 17.4226 . 01846 . 45299 . 27528 , .0004799 - 0002917 Gy 0 ee es 2.56 1.87 57. 11. 3592 . 01965 . 239079 . 21241 . . 0005031 . 0003675 HD SUS es. sae 2.54 .65 397 9. 5078 . 02395 . 24150 .06180 .0006225 .0001557 a) ets S 2.80 2.20 866 17. 8506 . 02062 . 49995 . 39272 | .0005773 | .0004536 FT, UF eee ae 2.63 2.07 | 504 9. 8228 . 01949 . 25834 . 20333 .0005126 . 0004034 Sabb see. 92 ae 2.64 1.96 500 | 10.9180 . 02184 . 28823 21400 .0005765 . 0004281 55606 39S 2 ee 2. 58 1.49 593 | 11.0930 . 02205 . 28580 . 16529 .0005690 . 0002609 5500522 cee 2. 67 1.75 | 331 5. 7948 .01751 .15470 | .10141 — .0004674 . 0003064 5nOOG Rae aaa 2.81 1.47} 499 7. 9968 . 01603 . 22471 | 11755 =. 0004503 . 0002356 55907 22220 see 2.59 1.61: 749 19.3966 . 02590 . 50238 31229 .0006°07 0004170 | 56105 cee 2.73 2.12 336 5.7431 . 01709 . 15679 | 12175. 0004667 0003622 5O10G 2522 35 a8 2. 57 2.09 644 12.0161 . 01866 -30881 | .25174 . 0004795 0003800 5610S. See 2.96 | 2.23 872 | 14. 4556 . 01658 - 42790 | .32236 . 0004907 0003697 56205 See: ae } (2251 1.85 333 6. 5232 . 01959 . 16373 12068 .0004917 0003624 562082 224 s/- Sae | 2.61 1.95 563 | 13.5720 . 02356 . 34616 26465 .0006149 (6004594 5G2Q008¢ = eee 2. 59 2.21 950 15. 8086 . 01664 - 40945 34937 .0004310 0003677 ROO (Css... 5 eee 2. 65 2.09 88 | 1.5364 . 01746 . 04164 03211 .0004731 0003649 Sf Ce Sea be 270 213 135 2. 4923 . 01846 .06854 | .05309 .0005077 0003932 LYE UY fe en 2.62 | 1.86 762 14.9992 . 01968 - 39297 | .27898 | .0005157 . 0003660 Abs. 2 ee 2.61 1.64 596 ) 12. 2004 . 02047 . 31842 | .20008 | .0005343 . 0003557 bY, | ep aeeeaes 2.80 2.34 180 2.7616 . 01534 .07733 | .06462 . 0004296 . 0003590 Py hii aes aaa 2.85 1.55 359 6. 9861 . 01946 -19905 .10828 .0005545 . 0003016 STROSS ee 2.87 2.68 270 4. S988 .O1814 . 14060 - 13126 | .0005207 . 0004861 Bess to ee 2.74 2211 | 1,158 | 23.1474 . 01999 63422. 48839. 0005464 . 0004218 63106 Path 2.20 165 = =3. 3006 . 02001 09208 | .07261 .00055S81 . 0004402 la Gb0G524.55e— 20 2.63 2.18 Yi 7. 6690 . 02073 . 02017 . 16714 .0005451 Wee 0004519 $1505 2.94 2.65 146 2. 8227 . 01940 .08328-— .07507 .0005704 .0005141 S706. 22 -S eee | DSTAL 2.03 722 | 15.3928 . 02132 41715 .31248 | .0005778 | .0004328 Average ..| 2.74 1.79 | 419.3 8. 2271 - 01991 .22222 .14658 .000546S . 0003557 3 TO 3.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. 2.31 258 5.3229 0.02063 0.16235 | 0.12296 |0.0006292 0. 0004766 2..26 697 14.6942 | .02157 | . 48784 | .33208 | .0006999 | . 0004875 -22 123 -3642 01922 |” .07471 | .00520 | .0006074 | . 0000423 2.15 287 . 1594 | .01798 16712 | .11093 | .0005824 — . 0003866 (5691 .01796 .07810 | 01182 .0005461 —. 0000826 “4800 02563 . 33402 4 122008 0008168 | . 0005382 2.9248 01851 .09798 | . 06288 | 0003980 = 2 5 2 0. 2. 2.11 146 2.5712 .01720. 08086) .05425 | .0005538 0003629 2.14 118 1.9090 .01619 .06071 .04084 | .0005144 | .0003465 1.55, 298 6.0173 .02019 .19075 | .09327 | .0006401 | - 0003129 | 1.69 561 | 11.5675 | .02062 .36671 | .19548 | .0006537 | .0003485 2.28 222 3.8811 .01748 .11992| .08849 | .0005402 0003985 | 2.42) 219 4.3698 .01996 .13415 | .10575 | .0006126 .0004830 | 1.86 685 14.4630 .02111 .43679 .26901 | .0006376 =. 0003926 ! 2. 41 | 150 3. 1346 . 02090 . 10689 07554 | .0007126 . 0005037 2.45 | 136 2.8903 .02125 .09307 .07081 | .0006843 | . 0005206 a 157 2.6571 . 01692 . O8742 .05660 .0005568 _ .0003604 > ad 556 9.4585. 01701 =. 30267 |. 20525 | .0005444 =. 0003681 ee i ae ee eS ee er a eee re ee = - Z i ® SELECTION TO INCREASE PROTEIDS IN ENDOSPERM. 87 ‘Taare 19.—Relation of gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen to proteid nitrogen—Continued. 3 TO 3.55 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. | : piheoet ian Weight (in grams) of— | Glia- Num-) | oN ee SE eh ie Gliadin- . tiadin- Record number. Pro-— =a ag 'Proteid plus- | Proteid | reais | | | teid ghu- Feile Ker- jAverage nitro- glutenin mitrogen tenin ni- |nitro-| fenin| | nels. | kernel. | genin | nitro- | Ver | trogen in | gen re kernels.| genin | 88° XT | avérace | | nitro j re 1 nel. : & "gen. | | cernels. kernel. | < | Sa a 3.13 1.56 264 4.3615 | 0.01652 |-0.13652 0.06804 0.0005171 | 0.0002577 | aol) 3; 00 -f1 | 379 | 6.1983 . 01635 - 18596 | .04401 | .0004906 . 0001161 Pee n= ~ | 3.05) 1.99) 393 7.9684} .02028| .24303 | .15857 | .0006185 | . 0004036 PERN oe = = = 3.16 S75 |) 450 1721852 - 01593 pe 22705 | .12574 | . 0005034 . 0002788 55508.......-.- 3.11| 1.96) 216 | 3.7407 | .01732| -11636 | |07332 | 10005386 | | 0003395 57905 Tosa 3.18 | 2.92] 221 2.4731 .01118 . 07859 -07221 .0003556 | .0003264 i 3.09 | 2.49 | 307 4. 2207 - 01375 . 13042 - 10510 | .0004248 . 0003424 2S ee 3.01 2547 | 235 2. 5436 . 01082 | 07656 -06283 | .0003258 | .0002673 | Average ..| 3.16 1.95 | 299.5 | 5.5817 -01817 | .17602 - 10889 . 0005741 x 0003516 tea | | Sl ee as Hea ee es 3.5 TO 4 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. . | eee Raa | io 3.02 | 2.23 93 2.2881 0.02460 | 0.08044 0.05102 0. 0008660 | 0. 0005486 l(b 3.81 | 1,54 103 1. 4864 . 01443 . 05663 -03315 .0005498 | . 0003218 Sr Sato. 2016 567 11.9114 . 02101 - 44666 .25728 .0007877 | .0004538 | 3. 82 ) 1.88 173 3.5574 . 02056 . 13589 .06688 .0007855 | . 0003955 Penner kak 3.92 1.35 144 =. 2.0390 . 01416 . 07993 -02753 . 0005551 . 0001912 2S Snel | Ast 563 12.1088 . 02252 - 43713 -21432 .0007764 | .C003986 22 ee 3.63 } 2.73 | 94 1. 8494 . 01967 . 06713 -05049 .0007142 | .G005370 1 3.58 1.36 235 3. 234) . 01376 . 11575 .04398 .0004927 | . OOO1N71 250 7 3.66); 1.76) 137 1.9154 . 01398 . 07010 -03371 .0005117 | .0002460 ()) ed 3.54 1.38 366 6.0090 . 01642 . 21272 -08292 .0005812 . 0002266 | Average . 3.68 | 1.82 | 247.5 4. 6399 -O1811 . 17024 -08613 .0006620 |: 0003506 | | atl aed Ba, aa: Sa | 4 T0O 45 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. LS pe | 4.26 | 2.02} 983 | 14.8137 0.01507 0.63107 0.29934 0.0006420 0. 0003044 LR ee 4.04} 2.14 216 | 4.0258 | .01877 . 16377 08615 . 0007582 . 0004017 Pp ses =. 2S) | 4.43 1.98 525 12. 1819 . 02317 53889 . 29846 .0010265 . 0005677 ik ie 435 2.44) 207} 4.1281 | .01994| .17875 . 10073 =. 0008635 . 0004865 i (he eee 4.21 PEP al 118°} 2.1571 | .01828 } .09082 - 04767 .0007696 | .0004040 (UL Lie 4.45 2.03 447 5.4411 01217 | . 24213 -11046 = .0005417 . 0002471 Average - | 4.29 2.14 416 | 7.1230 .01790 | .20757 .15714 .0007669 . 0004019 : } | MORE THAN 4.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. Or 2 | 5. 23 0. 22 149 2.8564 | 0.01917 0.14939 | 0.00628 0.0010026 | 0. 0000422 22 tL ae | 5.03 1.34 237 3.9143 . 01577 19689 | .05245 .0007934 . 0002113 Boden < 4.69 3.07 194 3. 6302 .O1871 . 17026 .11145 | . 0008776 . 0005744 382 Fee 4. 87 2.25 249 3. 2964 . 01324 . 16053 .O8168 . 0006447 . 0002979 Cir) 5. 82 1.94 110 2. 4420. . 02220 . 14213 .04738 .0012921 . 0004307 (or | 5.59 Daal 188 | 3. 4442 . 01832 . 19253 .08645 .0010241 . 0004598 es a | 4.93 4.06 347. 6.0091 . 01732 . 29625 . 24397 . 0008539 . 0007032 Average . -| 5.16 | 2.198 210.6 | 3. 6561 . 01782 . 18685 08995 .0009269 . 0003885 88 E IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLe 20.—Summary of analyses, showing relation of gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen to a nitrogen. | ac Weight (in grams) of— / Range of per- | Num- Glia- Num- = seca Te “aa He centage of |berof p,, din-_ ber of Protcid ered Proteid Biter proteid nitro- | analy- fl plus- Ker- Average nitrogen tenin nitrogen | tenin ni- cow | 88. | nitro-, Slu- | nels. Kernels. ‘yernef. in ker- nitrogen trogen in | tenin . average | | gen : nels. in | aver: nitro- featcin kernel. rates | gen : Lito eet 3 1.89 1.76 512.0 10.4207 0.01978 0.19568 0.18667 0.0003744 0.0003518 2to2.5-.- 21 | 2.30 1.68 489.6 10.5874 .02173 .24272 .17872 | .0004991 | .0003652 PAD 0S has ee 7 2.74 1.73 419.3 8. 2271 - 01991 - 22222 - 13948 .0005468 .0003442 DiLOd. Dae = 26 | 3.16 1.95 299.5 5.5817 - 01817 .17602 .10889 .0005741 .0003516 3:0 LOA See 10 3.68 1.82 | 247.5 4. 6399 - 01811 - 17024 -08613 .0006620 .0003506 AtO4. 3 eee 2 6 4.29 2.22 | 416.0 7. 1230 - 01790 - 30757 .15714 .0007669 .0004019 4.5and over i fa ee ht ee 2.20 210.6 3.6561 .01782 18685 .08995 .0009269 | .0003886 The figures in Table 20 show that while ghadin-plus-glutenin nitro- gen increases with proteid nitrogen it does not do so in the same ratio, the increase in proteid nitrogen being due in large measure to an increase in other proteids. The same analyses are tabulated in Table 21 according to the increase in gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen, and the averages for each group are stated in Table 22. In the latter table the increase in proteid nitrogen does not keep pace with the increase in gliadin-plus- glutenin nitrogen, there being 1.74 per cent other proteid nitrogen in the first group and 1.25 per cent in the last. It thus becomes evident that a determination of proteid nitrogen in the kernel is not an accurate guide to the content of ghadin plus glutenin, and that a direct determination of these substances is necessary. It is, furthermore, apparent that a determination of gliadin-plus- glutenin nitrogen will permit of the selection of kernels having a large percentage of these substances. TaBLe 21.—Relation of proteid nitrogen to gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen. GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 1 TO-~L5 PER CENT. | Percentage oi— ; Ww eight (in grams) of— = as Num- Gliadin-| | Gliadin : Gliadin- Proteid sed ete ee plus- |Proteid pat Average |Plus-glu- beat plus-glute- nitrogen aie glute- | nitro- joj, Kernels. anes tenin ni-| 5, ee nin nitro- in aver- nin ni-| gen. 7 trogen in | mes gen in aver- age ker-- trogen.) | kernels. | ro age kernel. nel. ) ; | 21210. > 22s e 1.34 5.03 237 3.9143 . 0.01575 | 0.05245 | 0.19689 | 0.0002113 ) 0. 0007934 26107 e toe 1.35 3.92 144 2.0390 .01416 | =. 02753 -07993 | .0001912 .0005551 : } 1.46 2.36 V7 19, 1854 - 02469 . 28010 - 45276 - 0003605 — ) - 0005827 1.09 2.90 243 5.3615 -02206 | =. 05844 - 15549 | = .0002405 - 0006399 1.26 2.64 461 8.0905 - 01972 - 10194 - 23998 . 0002485 - 0005327 1.23 | 2.84 139 2.5134 - 01808 -03091 | .071388 | .0002224 0005135 1.39 2.63 401 8.4605 - 02110 . 11760 -22251 | =. 0002933 - 0005549 1.34 2.74 293 6. 7665 . 02309 . 09067 -18540 | .0003094 - 0006479 1.44| 2.88) 447 9.3541 | .02093| .13470| 21399 | .0003014 | . 0006027 1.18 2.92 124 2. 8000 - 02258 .03304 | =. 08176 . 0002664 ~ . 0006594 1.29 | 2.90 124 2.5235 - 02035 - 03255 - 07318 - 0002625 .0005902 1.36 | 3.58 235 3. 2340 - 01376 . 04398 . 11575 - 0001871 - 0004927 1.49} 2.58 505 =: 11. 0930 -02205 | .16529 . 28580 - 0002609 - 0005690 1.47 2.81 499 7.9968 . 01603 - 11755 . 22471 0002356 - 0004503 1.38 3.54 366 6. 0090 - 01642 - 08292 21272 | 0002266 .0005812 Average. -- 1.34 3.08 333 }.6228 .01939) .09198 | .18748 | .0002545 | .0005843 GLIADIN-PLUS- GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 1.5 TO 2 PER CENT. 89 /‘Tapte 21.—Relation of proteid nitrogen to gliadin-plus-qlutenin nitrogen—Continued. abet of Ww eight (in Bo! of— Gliadin | Mumm: | Gliadin- | i | Gliadin- | Proteid ee am | plus- | ee bee Average - Plus-glu- fF rotele plus-glute- | nitrogen glute- _ nitro- aa Kernels. Tea eal tenin ni- a rae nin nitro- | in aver- ninni-| gen * trogenin| “jes geninaver-| age ker- trogen. kernels. | ~* |age Kernel.} nel. } | | } 1.54 3.81 103 1.4864 | 0.01443 | 0.03315 | 0.05663 0.0003218 | 0.0005498 1.85 | 2.77 | 444} 9.9070 - 02282 - 18328 - 27443 ee - 0006181 1.97 2.67 | 312 6.2514 - 02004 - 12315 - 16691 - 0005350 1.96 | 2.57 | 1,156 | 19.7446 -01708 | .38700 | =. 50744 § | =.0004389 1.88} 3.82 173 | (3.5574 -02056 | =. 06688 |. 13589 0007855 1.98 | 4.43 525 | 12.1819 -02317 | .29846 - 53889 : - 0010265 197 | 2281) 283 2.6965 -00953 | 05312 -O7577 “0001877 | .0002677 1.82) 2.77 | 169 3. 2787 -01940 | .05967 |; .09082 -0003531 | .0005376 1.55} 3.17] 298 6.0173 -02019 | .09327 | .19075 -0003129 | .0006401 1.69} 3.17) 561 | 11.5675 | .02062| .19548 | 36671 0003485 | .0006537 1:82} 2.71) 228) 4.2376; -.01859 | .07712 - 11484 - 0003383 | .0005037 1.88 | 2.80) 180] 2.9999 -01667 | .05640 - 08400 0003134 | .0004667 1.90} 2.63 | 866 16.4120} .01895 - 31182 - 43164 - 0003600 - 0004984 1.70} 2.41; 891) 16.4061 | .01841 | -27890 - 39539 - 0004437 1.95 | 2.92 166 3.3266 | 02004 - 06487 - 09712 4. 0005850 1.73 | 2.58 267 «5. 5666 -02085 - 09630 - 14362 - 0005379 1.65 2.12 539 | 12.0399 — . 02183 -19866 |’ . 24942 - 0003602 | .0004627 1.98} 2.70| 444 | 10.0005 | .02252 - 19800 | 700: 0004459 | .0006082 1.55} 2.91 | 87 | 2.1851 -02572 - 03887 - 0003894 | .0007309 1.86 | 3.02 685 14.4630 02111 . 26901 0003926 | .0006376 1.92} 2.39 301 7.0596 - 02345 - 13554 -0001502 | .0005605 1.77) 3.61 563 | 12.1088 - 02252 - 21432 -0003986 . 0007764 1.73 2.82 158 3.0228 -01913 - 05229 - 0003309 . 0005394 1.84 2.11 | 1,031 | 21.5399 - 02089 - 39635 -0003844 .0004407 1.80 | 2.38 608 | 11.6655 01919 - 20997 0003454 . 0004567 Ltd 2.87 473 | 12.0278 02543 - 21289 | .0004501 | .0007299 1.50} 2.02 314-6. 4802 - 02048 - 09645 - 12989 -0003072 | .0004137 1.76 3.66 1387 |) 1.9154 - 01398 -03371 -07010 -0002460 = .0005117 1.56 3.13 | 264 |) 4.3615 - 01652 - 06804 36 -0002577 =. 0005171 1.99 | 3.05 393 7.9584 02028 - 15857 | -0004036 . 0006185 1.75 | 3.16 451 | 7.1852 - 01593 . 12574 .0002788 .0005034 1.58 | 2.60] 944] 17.4226 - 01846 . 27528 . 45299 0002917 .0004799 1.87! 2.57 | 578] 11.3592 -01965 |. 21241 .29079 | .0003675 — . 0005031 1.97 | 2.48] 167] 2.5160 01507 - 04957 . 06240 0002969 — .0003736 1.56{ 1.89| 342| 5.6864] .01663 .08871 | .10747 | .0002599 | .0003142 1.96 3.11 216 3. 7407 -01732 -07332 . 11636 -0003395 — . 0005386 1.96} 2.64/ 500| 10.9180 - 02184 | . 21400 . 28823 .0004281 — . 0005765 a 2. 67 331 | . 5.7948 -01751 | .10141 | .15470 -0003064 — .0004674 1.61 2.59 749 19.3966 - 02590 | -31229 | .50238 -0004170 =. 0006707 1.96 2.42 562 | 12.2210 -02175 | .23953 | =. 29575 0004263 .6005262 1.66 | 2.30 302 | 9.2120 -03050 |. 15292 - 21187 - 0005063 0007016 1.85 | 2.51 333 | 6.5232 -01959 | .12068 - 16373 .0003624 — .0004917 -1.95 | 2.42) 509 9.3093 -01829 |. 18153 0003566 — . 0004426 1.83 | 2.34 462 10.9073 -03361 | —. 19960 - 0004321 - 0005524 1.95) 2.61 563 | 13.5720 -02356 | 26465 | 5} 0004594 . 0006149 1.86 2.62 762 | 14.9992 - 01968 - 27898 | -0003660 | .0005157 1.64} 2.61 596 | 12.2004 02047 | —. 20008 | 0003357 . 0005343 : } 1.55) 2.85 359 6, 9861 -01946 | =. 10828 | -0003016 = .0005545 i } 1.68] 2.41 | 544] 9.8298 . 01807 . 16514 | -0003036 . 0004355 & G0s00 2225... - i ly Ste) 2.28 373 7.0051 - 01878 - 12680 - 15971 .0003399 — . 0004282 ¥ (Et eee 1.95 2.09 | 583 | 11.7066 02008 . 22828 8 0003916 .0004197 4 PEe00s 2 -.._-.- 1.94 5.82 110 2.4420 -02220 | .04738 .0004307 =. 0002921 2 Seen eye sans 1.76 1.81 729 | 15.7835 -02165 |. 27937 0003832 .0003919 S005--..:-..--- | 1.96 1.98 | 465] 9.7922 02106 | —. 19193 -0004128 . 0004170 Hy 1.64 2.41 287 7.3993 02578 - 12135 0004228 | .0006213 | Average 1.80 2.76 442.5 9.0243 2016 - 16392 23801 .6003653 .0005538 3 . 5 GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 2 TO 25 PER CENT. | = # i ae oe eh esr 93 | 2.2881 | 0.02450 | 0.05102 0.08044 0..0005486 0. 00086F0 20706. ..=.....-- | 2.05; 2.78| 163] 3.3188) .02033 | .06793 | .09212 | .0004168 | .0005652 2 1 eee 2.31 3/05 |*-258:]\ 5: 3229 . 02063 . 12296 . 16235 0004766 | . 0006262 LAT 2.00 2. 83 Ch New db ep ks 01974 . 34222 . 48428 0003948 | . 0005586 a asst. 2... 2.26 |", 3.32 | 697 | 14.6942] . .02157 . 33208 . 48784 9004875 | 0006999 CE ite 2.15| 3.24| 287| 5.1594 .01798 |. 11093 . 16712 0003866 | . 0005824 7 ea 2.11 2.73 377 | 9.4172] .02498| .19870 25709 0005271 | . 0006664 ; 20 Tee ee BAS | +2: 73 418 | 8.0214 01919 . 17487 . 21898 0004183. 0005238 % Lee eae 2.16| 3.75) 567| 11.9114] .02101 | .25728| .44666 | 0004538 | . 0007877 ' an 2.02} 4.26| 983] 14.8139 . 01507 . 29934 . 63107 0003044 0006420 = Jo 2.14 4.04 216 | 4.0258] .01877 08615 . 16377 0004017 0007582 : Ao 2.18 | 2.64 791 | 14.3111 | .01809 . 31198 37781 0003944 | 0004777 90 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TABLE 21.—Relation of proteid nitrogen to gliadin-plus-glutenin nitrogen—Continued. GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 2 TO 2.5 PER CENT—Continued. Percentage of— Weight (in grams) of— ee el) Num-. | : 2 | = = m Gliadin- _ Gliadin- F Gliadin- | Proteid Herons num plus- Proteid oe : | Average | Plus-glu- seco (iat ae glute- | nitro- | 14) g, | Mernels. | yore, | tenin ni- in ker. | im nitro- | in aver- nin ni-| gen. | : " |trogenin| “jcis, |£e0 in aver- age ker- trogen. | kernels. * age kernel. nel. QAGNGE Roe aeaee 2,.10)|) {3.28 408 10.4800 0.02563 0.22008 | 0.33403 | 0.0005382 | 0.0008168 PAN eee Ao 2.15 3.35 158 | 2.9248 . 01851 - 06288 . 09798 - 0003980 | . 0006201 222005 oe ones ZU ree | © l4s6ul Seb gte . 01720 -05425 . 08086 - 0003629 - 0005538 ‘ 2.14) 3.10} 118} 1.9090 | .01619| .04084| .06071 -0003465 | .0005144 2. 28 3.09 222 3.8811 | .01748 . O8849 . 11992 - 0003985 - 0005402 2.09 2.76 | 326) 6.4102 | .01966 | .13398 . 17692 - 0004109 . 0005427 2.16) 2.96 192 3.9797 - 02073 - 08596 . 11780 - 000447: - 0006135 2.32} 2.64] 251 | 5.5324| .02287| .12835| .:14608| .0005306 | .0006037 2.42 | . 3.07 219 4. 3698 . 01996 -10575 | =. 13415 - 0004820 | .0006126 2.12 2. 35 318 6. 1026 -01919 | .12643 . 14341 - 0004163 .0004510 2.41 | 3.41 150 3.1346 .02090—. 07554 . 10689 . 0005037 | .0007126 2.45 3. 22 136 2.8902 | .02125| .07081 . 09307 . 0005206 . 0006843 2. 44 4.33 207 4.1281 - 01994 -10073 | = .17875 - 0004865 . 0008635 2.29 2.96 309 6.1394 | .01987 | .14060; .18173 - 0004550 . 0005881 2-10)} 2298 193 3. 3004 . 01710 -06931 | .09670; .0003591 . 0005010 2.06} 2.93 67 1.9218 | .02869 | .03959 . 05631 - 0005910 . 0008404 2,49: ~2)'82 170 4.1546 .02444 .09099 | .11716 - 0005352 . 0006892 2.08 2.54 478 8. 3935 -01756 | .17458 . 21319 . 0003652 . 0004460 2.13" 3529 157 2.6571 . 01692 I . 05660 . 08742 . 0003604 . 0005568 2.25 4.87 249 3. 2964 .01324 | .08168 . 16053 . 0002979 . 0006447 2.17 3.20 556 9.4585 | .01701 | .20525 - 80267 - 0003691 . 0005444 PPA 4.21 118 2.1571 | .01828 . 04767 . 09082 . 0004040 . 0007696 2. 20 2.80 866 | 17.8506! .02062) .39272 - 49995 - 0004536 | . 0005773 2.07 | 2.63 504 9. 8228 | .01949 | .20333) .25834 . 0004034 | .0005126 2.12 2.73 336 5.7431 | .01709 | =.03503 15679 - 0001042 . 0004667 2.09| 2.57 644, 12.0161 | .01866| .05768 30881} .0000896 | .0004795 2.23 2.96 872 | 14.4556 |. 01658 . 10553 . 42792 . 0001210 . 0004907 PPA 2.59 950 |- 15.8086 | .01664 | .34937 - 40945 . 0003677 . 0004310 2.09 2. 65 168 | 1.5364 | .01746 | . 03211 . 04164 . 0003649 . 0004731 2.13 2.75 135 | 2.4923 | .01846 | .05309 | .06854 . 0003932 . 0005077 2.34 2. 80 180 | 2.7616; .01534| .06462 . 07733 . 0003590 . 0004296 2.05 2.21 380 | 12.0728 03177 | 24750 | . 26680 . 0006513 . 0007021 2.49 3.09 307 | 4.2207 | .01375 | .10510 . 13042 | . 0003424 . 0004248 2.47) 3.01 235 2. 5436 -01082 | .06283 - 07656 . 0002673 . 0003258 2.11) 2574) D58 | 231471 -01999 | .48839 | .63422 . 0004218 | .0005464 2.20 2.79 165 3. 3006 . 02001 . 07261 . 09208 . 0004402 . 0005581 2.18 | 2.63 370 7. 6690 -02073 | .16714; .20170 . 0004519 | .0005451 2.05 2. 30 464 9. 6451 -02079 | .19772 . 22184 | .0004262 =. 0004781 2.03 4.45 447 5. 4411 .01217 | =. 11046 . 24213 . 0002471 | .0005417 2.03 PAA 722 15. 3928 .02132 | .31248 -41715 |. 0004328 - 0005778 Average . -- 2.18 3.08 380.1 7. 2520 -01935 |. 14641 -21535 |. 0004063 |. 0005872 | GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 2.5 TO 3 PER CENT. | | ] | 2 Vat pera eee 2h78) 3.63 94 1.8494 | 0.01967 , 0.050049 0.06713 | 0.0005370 | 0. 0007142 Lyte Vy See a Se 2 | 2.68 2.87 | 270 4. 8988 01814 | .13126 . 14060 . 0004861 - 0005207 YAS 8 | 2.92 3.18 | 221 | 2.4731 .01118 | .07221 . 07859 - 0007264 .000°556 UAE Rs Cee eee | 2.51 5.59 188 3. 4442 -01832 | .08645 . 19253 0004598 — .0020241 S505 ue os cease | 2.65 2.94 146 2. 8327 .01940 | . 7507 08328 |. 0005141 - 0005704 Average...| 2.698 3.64 | 183.8 3. 0696 01734 | .08310 . 11248 - 0004647 =. 0006370 GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 3 PER CENT AND OVER. : i z 7 = 2 : 3.07 | 4.69 | 194 3.6302 0.01871 0.11145 0.17026 | 0.0005744 | 0.0008776 .06 | 4.93 | 347 6. 0091 - 01782 . 24397 | .29625 - 0007032 | . 0008539 Average...| 3.56} 4.81 | 270.5 4.8196 ha O1801 W771 | 23325 es 0006388 | . 0008657 IMPROVEMENT IN QUALITY OF GLUTEN. 91 TaBLeE 22——Summary of analyses, showing relation cf proteid nitrogen to gliadin-pls- glutenin nitrogen. Percentage | Number Weight (in grams) of— of— of— Range of rae) percentage of alle Gliadin- Gliadin- | proteia gliadin-plus- J)4,-| Pro-| an plus-glu- Proteid | plus-glute- PToteld glutenin ni- ju. teid siy_-| Ker- | eres. | AVerage tenin ni- | nitrogen nin nitro- nitrogen trogen. tn nitro- “'Y~| nels. ‘| kernel. trogen in ker- Senin |e : Ty | eS in ker- nels average | 28 ker- nitro- 3 = oot nel. | gen. nels. kernel. a ee ee | 4 a z IVEO) Lo. 55. - 1.34 | 3.08 15 | 333 6.6228 | 0.01939 0.09198 | 0.18748 — 0..0002545 | 0. 0005843 RUD). = =.- 1.80 | 2.76 | 55 | 442.5 9.0243 . 02016 . 16392 - 23801 - 0003653 . 0005538 2 18 | 3.08 | 52 | 380.1 7. 2520 01935 - 14641 2153: . 0004063 | . 0005872 PediGinias.2 2. .| 2. 20 | 3.64 5 | 183.8 | 3.0696 . 01734 . 08310 . 0004647 . 0006370 3 and over...., 3.56 | 4.81 2 | 270.5 | 4.8196 -01801 17771 | 0006388 | . 0008657 IMPROVEMENT IN THE QUALITY OF THE GLUTEN. It is well known that large differences exist in the bread-making values of different varieties of wheats even when they have approxi- mately the same gluten content and are raised in the same locality. This fact is generally attributed to differences in the quality of the gluten. W. Farrar“ points out the difference in the bread-making qualities of two wheats due to the quality of the gluten. He compares Saxon Fife wheat, which had a gluten content of 9.92 per cent, and which produced 309 pounds of bread from 200 pounds of flour, with Purple Straw Tuscan wheat, which had a gluten content of 9.94 per cent, and which produced only 278 pounds of bread from the same quantity of flour. In this case it was not the amount but the quality of the gluten that determined the greater excellence of the Saxon Fife wheat. It has further been stated by Girard,’ Snyder,’ and Guthrie” that the ratio in which gliadin and glutenin exist in the gluten determines its value for bread making. It was considered desirable to ascertain whether the proportions of these two constituents remain about the same in wheats of high and of low content. If the quality of the gluten remains constant as the quantity increases, the value of the wheat for bread making will improve in about the same ratio. If, on the other hand, there is a tendency for the quality to deteriorate as the quantity increases, there would be greater difficulty in effecting improvement. In Table 23, analyses of the crop of 1903 are arranged in groups according to their content of gliadin plus glutenin. The first group comprises all plants having less than 1 per cent, and each succeeding group increases by 0.25 per cent. It is followed by Table 24, which is asummary of Table 23. « Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 9 (1898), pp. 241-250. bCompt. Rend., 1897, p. 876. ¢ Minnesota Experiment Station Bulletins 54 and 63. @ Agricultural Gazette of New South Wales, 9 (1898), pp. 363-374. 92 - IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TABLE 23.—Ratio of gliadin to glutenin as the content of their sum increases. GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, BELOW 1 PER CENT. | Record number. | Percentage of— = of— | = of— | Gliadin- E Other _ plus- | Gliadin | Glutenin od: . ee A -glutenin | fer enact: nitrogen. Gliadin. eee | nitrogen. nitrogen nitrogen. ee = 0.216 0.114 Lo ae oe 0. 102 0.528 0.472 | 3.16 / 2.944 .218 nae - 076 #651 -), "349 5.23 | 5.012 -170 -O71 “O25 418 | 2.96 2.790 - 192 “109 . 083 - 567 - 433 2.16 1.968 -975 505 - 470 518 | - 482 2.90 1.925 BAGI) e255 - 206 447 | 558 3.04 2.579 -230 | 126 . 104 - 548 - 452 2.69 2.460 821 | —.806 015 982 | ~ .018 | 2.53 1.709 -748 | .018 Ati - 024 -976 2.70 1.952 - 690. 4 - 629 026 - 960 -040 2.54 1.885 | 2636) 1). 12237, | 399 -372 | 628 2.34 1.704 : 484 - 276 . 208 - 562 | -438 De 2.448 © w Average .: GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 1.087 1.072 0.015 0.986 0.014 2.90 | 1.813 1.227 | 593 . 634 483 | 517 2.84 | 1.613 1.184 | 1.078 106 “910 | 090 | 2.92 | 1.736 1.166 914 | .252 793, | 2.89 | 1.721 .207 | 1.25 TO 1.50 PER CENT. OBO ee 1.352 0. 108 1.244 0.080 | 0.920 3.92 2.568 D7 20655 fo ee 1.465 -815 .650 .556 444 2.36 .895 S705 0 =o ee 1.265 715 .550 565 435 2. 64 1.375 SR606s 2454 eeeeee 1.387 By 2a . 662 .522 ATS? lip DER 1.243 38600 thee ee 1.336 -586 .750 .439 .561 2.74 1.404 SO805 5. 5.22 2s yee 1.439 .818 .621 568 .432 2.88 1.441 4460622625 - en oe 1.287 1.057 . 230 .821 -179 2.90 | 1.613 4505: Bee ee 1.361 15240) | sos121 911 .089 | 3.58 | 2.219 Gre (ieee Be ge 1.493 . 899 594 $602 e398 2:58 | 1.087 55006! .- 2 ee 1.470 443 1.027 -301 . 699 2.81 | 1.340 Average ..| 1.385 | 741 645 536 - 463 2.90 | — 1.518 | : GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 1.50 TO 1.75 PER CENT. | | 18005 -e cts ase | 1.537 0.143 1.394 0.093 | 0.907 3.81) aie Po ALh See ee | 1.555 .801 - 754 1515 485 3.17 1.615 DOO |i a Seen | 1.692 1.002 . 690 .592 .408 3.17 1.478 Dies eee | 1.700 12.073 -\|, © 627 -631 | .369 2:41.) aoa T7305 ee eee |. 1.785 1.075 | .660 4619) || eset 2.58 | .845 FG ee eee te Se | 1.651 1.032 .619 625 .375 2.12 .469 i Ne Ree oF fe ass .958 597 .616 | .384 2.91 218355 S8608:2 2 case | ado . 962 . 769 .556 | 444 2.82 |° 1.089 ASMOON 2 22. ae | 1.504 - 690 .814 .459 | .541 2.02 | .516 ASi05 2 ee tesa) | 057 +) 1.506 .036 | .964 3.13 1.567 BHOUS! si ae eee | 1.581 . 687 . 894 .435 565 2.60 | 1.019 55307. 2. | 0561 908 | .653 .582 .418 1.89 | 329 Siete se ee 1. 608 . 632 | 97 . 393 .607 2.59 982 55009 eee | 1.658 -810 . 848 .488 .512 2.30 | 642 STAUB sce | 1.639 1.177 | .462 717 . 283 2.61 971 STS eee 1.546 1.141 | | .405 . 738 . 262 2.85 1. 304 65306. oe ee 1.683 965 | 718 573 427 2.41 727 8170852 See 1.641 1.221 . 420 . 744. . 256 2.41 . 769 | 1.619 | «852 767 523 | 477 2.65 | 1.037 Average . 7 = GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 1.75 TO 2 PER CENT. ‘Record number. Average .. Percentage of— Proportion of— Percentage of— oe Gliadin | Glutenin} Gi04;, |cnitenin | Proteid | Other glutenin | nitrogen. nitrogen. @#@din. Glutenin. nitrogen, Proteid | “nitrogen. nitrogen. | : 1.855 1.046 0. 809 0. 564 0. 436 QT 0.915 1.995 1.125 871 . 564 -436 2.83 . 834 1.959 1.049 920 .533 467 2.67 .701 1.963 1,046 917 533 467 2.57 . 607 1.876 1.015 . 861 SOtip | 8450) 5° 23182 1.944 1.976 1.367 . 609 697 -303 | 4.43 2.454 1.969 1.185 . 784 . 602 .398 | 2.81 - 841 1.819 988 831 543 457 2.71 891 1.879 996 . 883 531 -469° |. . 2.80 921 1.904 1.066 838 559 -441 | 2.63 726 1.946 1.278 . 668 . 652 RABE 1 © 42599 974 1.977 1.147 . 830 580 420 | 2.70 723 1. 864 902 962 . 484 -516 | 3.02 1.156 1.919 | 1.124 795 585 £415. «|. < 2539 471 1.766 | 862 904 488 512 3.61 1.844 1.845 1.117 728 . 605 395 2.11 265 1.805 1.035 sti .573 427 2.38 575 1.766 996 .770 564 . 436 2.87 1. 104 1.757 965 792 549 451 3.66 1.903 1.987 1.102 885 555 445 3.05 1.063 1.754 1.099 . 655 . 626 374 3.16 1.406 1. 866 840 1.026 450 550 2.56 . 694 1.974 | 1.042 932 528 472 2.48 - 506 1.959 1.037 922 529 471 3.0 1.151 1.959 1.044 915 533 467 2.64 681 1.750 | .575 1.175 328 672 23670 ees TROBE V5" 10750 |= 28889 549 451 2.42 | .463 1.850 - 883 . 967 477 523 2.51 . 660 1.949 1.089 . 860 559 441 2.42 471 1.827 987 840 540 . 460 2.34 513 1eO4G |, © 20127 819 579 421 2.61 . 664 1.858 935 -923 503 497 2.62 762 1.815 1.052 763 579 421 2.28 465 1.946 1.090 . 856 . 560 . 440 2.09 . 144 1.937 1.142 -795 589 411 5.82 3.883 1.770 1.159 611 661 .339 1.81 040 1.956 1.048 908 | .535 465 1.98 . 024 1.889 1.044 845 | 552 448 2.82 929 GLIADIN-PLUS-G LUTENIN \ WN NNN NPNNNNNN ENN NENNNNNNNNNNNI 0.345 - 470 NWN NNN NRO RAN NN NNN WWW WIR toto wrt NITROGEN, 2 TO 2.25 PER CENT. bat et ND et BLE 23.—Ratio of gliadin to glutenin as the content of their sum increases—Continued. 94 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaB_e 23.—Ratio of gliadin to glutenin as the content of their sum increases—Continued. GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 2 TO 2.25 PER CENT—Continued. Percentage of— Proportion of— Percentage of— Gliadin- Record number. | “pius- | Gliadin Glutenin Gliadin. |Glutenin.| Proteid be glutenin | nitrogen. nitrogen. : ‘| nitrogen. a ae a nitrogen. ROeeUST | y(t Vieeeempee are 2.093 1.159 0.9384 0. 553 0.447 2.65 0.557 STANCE Se eee oe: 2.134 1.080 1.054 | - 506 -494 2.79 - 616 LOOSE. ake 2.053 1.124 -929 - 547 - 453 2.21 . 157 OSS05 A. <2 -cseeace 2.112 1.060 1.052 - 501 - 499 2.74 . 628 GS1OGESs A Seas 2.199 1.186 1.013 . 539 - 461 2.79 -591 6600522. 222 soe. 2.181 1. 142 1.039 - 528 -472 2.63 ~ 449 TAEOGSEF Le See 2.046 1.016 1.030 - 496 - 504 2.30 - 254 HOD0G eo 2 ses | 2.029 1. 223 - 806 - 602 - 398 4.45 2.421 SIVOGE=e st ees 2.034 1.701 333 - 816 - 184 2.71 - 676 Average -. 2.130 1.187 - 943 557 - 443 3.05 921 GLIADIN-PLUS-GLUTENIN NITROGEN, 2.25 TO 2.50 PER CENT. 207092. 2. see ee 2.313 1.307 1.006 0. 565 0.435 3-05 |= 105737 72.0131 Gee eee 2.259 1.215 1. 044 - 538 - 462 3.32. | _ 15061 DESUB ae es ce cca 2.281 1.377 904 - 604 396 3.09 | . 809 DOB Ee ee tae aris 2.324 1. 247 1.077 . 537 - 463 2.64 | 316 PW. ae eee eee 2.424 1.366 1.058 563 - 437 3.07 | 646 DaGOD: ho sees 2.407 1.182 | 1,225 491 509 3.41 1.003 B80 Tes neces cee 2. 446 1.391 1.055 569 431 3.22 . 774 As Es 2 eo aes 2.443 1. 230 1.213 - 503 497 4.33. | 1.887 eyewear neo se 2.293 1.208 1.085 -o2t 473 2.96 | - 667 plD0Gse25 sere eee 2.344 1. 203 1. 141 511 489 2.80 | - 456 S820 ook cae eens 2.492 1.313 1.179 526 474 3.09 | . 598 E: 70 . 0004877 01798 [i i 3.19 000791 02488 || 49505... .......- i ae aer . 0006149 01898 at es 3.36 . 000937 £02797 || 50705-6......... 3.17 . 0010793 . 03329 CTI Di: pee 3.33 . 000789 AOD Rel OOO sec... <2 1.34 . 0002422 01804. Go FP eee 3.05 . 000723 SO2379h! SeQ0ht= ens. | 2.48 . 0003292 01355 i] 59601 3.30 - 000990 .03000 || 59605-6......... 2.14 . 0007684 035 ' SYS TL eae ee aa bere Bs Se MEP ete ae 3.25 . 0003938 “01212 31 1G ete aad Sere ees (RB5305-822 2.2.2 2.925 | .0024199 - 08003 SLT 9 [is Sepals Sele ARES Dee | 66005-6, 8......- 3.25 0017773 . 05529 SED a) |, See aoe Meare em 69805. 555... 4. 42 . 0008767 01984 PG ee cae ce eae |e tie? es 69805-6........- 3.74 0016495 . 04373 SHIP | Lee Seana | oo oon eae RAQOD! sewn. 22 ce 2. 47 . 0005531 . 02239 Lit ol babe eds Soar [ERA SS. (EG ae 3.155 | .0019005 . 05892 at eee noe a] eee FIGS 7. aa 4.04 . 0021643 05274 SRO Reet oe ee eee 72705-8.......--| 2.937 | .0026515 . 08981 etal oS fb. 2A aus hoe 7s ee ee 3.01 . 0005738 01906 32. aN eee eee Ole ae Ree mee S eon aso. < eee 2848 . 0003930 01585 3S CY ee eee) Fe ea eae EG. 35 eee 1.98 . 0004054 . 02047 3 LIF ea een eet Lert Mt Mae TESOG She 02 2.78 | .0014234 . 05084 S11 Rare peed Cae S Seah TABS iee eens 2.486 | .0013768 05562 SECT Utne As DERE SE ane e oe ie ln: ee 3. 40 . 0009400 02912 eA OE ese aan An eee Sno eeeee eso. 1.81 . 0003919 . 02165 BASRA sect BAR ete BIA05-6255--.2.. 2.965 | .0010576 . 03583 1a HAT REE AAR DRE La Bis0o sees. 2.94 | 0005704 01940 Sh BM | eae ee nel (laa #2 eal Ci age ae as . 0005067 . 02043 Silt) hy eRe eee eee REY ee SAG 6225.8. | 92.875) .0011244 . 03902 TRL cee ee ae aoe SER Sob =H ne 2.63 0007556 . 02937 55275 ol elie Reales ES ata ae ae 86105-6222 .24..- 2.595 | .0008522 03244 SH 7 Mg | ihe aie Ee re 88605-9......... 2.566 | .0026832 11179 CIN lee Fee ele (ies ae 88905-6....----. 2.74 . 0009933 03625 Att 1 fing) pe Re Se cee i ee Gane 2. 67 . 0020214 i 23 coil Ee ee cece | AE ae 93805-6)....---- 3.93 . 0012908 . 0322 ROE ha om a en eae | 95705-7........- 2.58 0013009 05017 | 1 =. — — Average . 3. 239 . 000875 02700 | Average | 2. 932 | 00056037 | 019189 3.5 TO 4 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. 3. 3 02 late 0. 0003164 | 0. 01567 3. 567 | . 0054768 . 15672 3. 3 165 | .0037042 11711 3. - 735 | 0011894 | . 04347 3. 3.19 "0015273 | 05113 3. 0028791 | . 10761 2.688 | i 98 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TABLE 25.—Analyses showing transmission of nitrogen from one generation to another— Continued. 3.5 TO 4 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN—Continued. 1902 | 1903 Percent- ; | | Percent- - age of i ay Weight of age of Btidf Weight of Record num- | proteid in HES e| average | Record num- | proteid | fan neaed | average ber. nitrogen ee +e kernel ber. nitrogen | ‘lee | kKerne in ker. (gram) (gram). | | in ker- (gram (gram). nels 8 : | nels. | gram). S200 Se se ee B50 [kets cutee sone eae 33905-6....-.--- 2.21 0.0008932 0.04115 SOOO) Ls ececseeee 3. 82 0. 000806 0.02110 |} 38005.....-.-.-- 2.84 0005135 — . 01808 SSG0I1— = sao-- sese 3.79 | . 001046 .02765 || 38605-9.......-- | 3.718 . 0036318 - 09917 SO200 ee Senos 3.98 | . 001039 -02616 || 39205.........-. 2:11 . 0004407 . 02089 ni" () eee aie | 3.65 | . 001048 - 02877 || 39506-7......--- 2.975 . 0013536 | . 04568 SOGOIEs S seecsk oF 3.55 | . 000927 -02619 || 39606_.--------- | 2.37 . 0003177 © . 01341 DD: Ohne 3.63 | 001327 302838)||' 4240558. 2328 3.07 . 0006927 | . 02251 = A Rs See 3.57 . 000796 02531 | 4450522. <2 228 2.94 . 0005187 . 01764 1.0) ees ea 3.79 . 091020 - 02690 || 45005.-....---.. 3.58 - 0004927 | . 01376 CN 0) Dee ee 3. 87 . 001238 ~03205' |, 45605-6. .-. =--<= 2.365 . 0006777 / - 02995 c GY (1) eee 3.55 . 000865 - 02435 || 45705......----- 4.18 . 0007155 | - 01712 YN eee ee 3. 87 . 001146 - 02963 |). 45805......----- 1.84 - 0002700 | . 01234 ARAQ ase eos 3.53 . 000993 . 02822 "|| 48405-9........- 2.90 | .0020794 .07511 Ue ees Be 3.61 . 001043 . 02898 || 49905.....-.--.- | 3.62 . 0010640 . 02939 Lass, DID See wa 3.55 . 001020 . 02866 |} 55506-8. ...-...- | 2.846 | .0016285 - 05743 Dope kee sere 3.7: . 001050 .02775 || 55605-8....-.--.- | 2.555 | .0022356 - 08822 DOU ee eos tees 3.76 001030 - 02750 || 57606-8.--.-.... 2.37 | .0015451 . 06535 GY CU Eee ae ae 3. 80 000891 - 02353 || 57805.....-.-.-- 2.87 | .0005207 . 01814 YA! Ui ae 3. 64 000852 - 02348 || 57905....----.-- 3.18 | 0003556 - 01118 SOU I oe ease cee 3.80 000904 . 02384 || 58805-6.....-..- 2.31 | . 0009317 . 04048 GOG0IEe = 232-422 3.53 000759 - 02155: ||) 606052 === = 22-22 1. 87 . 0003180 01701 Gsl0Uaescsasee oe SAQU) ee nce eels weer esses 63105-7.....-.-- 2. 82 0016570 05951 iW ae eanes see S7Si | eesias eee [Sate se SRE 81705-10.-...--- 2.27 . 0031019 13635 a 2 ai | eee aes gisNhse oe ome 3.21 | 0007197 “02242 QIBOTe se sete ee 7 DG) eee ce Bete Gas ences Q2505S7E 22 = see 3. 32 - 0017483 . 05312 Average . 3.68 000990 02650 Average. 2.906 | .0005508 | 019204 4 TO 4.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. | | DESOLE 2 225 aes ASO7 «| eres on ev pee | 26805-8....-.--- 2.825 0.0023073 0. 08179 DRA ees snot 4530) * Vee esos le ee 2 ake Soe | 282003 = - eee 3. 07 . 0006126 . 01996 AGIOS ese 4.00 0. 000988 | 0.02472 || 46105-7........- 2.69 | .0014772 | . 05495 Average . 4.123 | . 000988 | 02472 | Average . 2.806 .0065496 — . 019588 | MORE THAN 4.5 PER CENT PROTEID NITROGEN. S0Q0 Ise scenes | 4.95 | 0.001074 | 0.02171 | 50905-6......... 3.435 0.0008992 0.02001 ASV CLA EG (o| bmice ame ate See eae nina Average -| 3.435 0004496 - 010005 TaB_E 26.—Summary of analyses, showing transmission of nitrogen from one generation to another. 1902 | 1903 | Percent- Bs. | [cee || Percent- Range of percentage of | age of | Num-| Pros am Gent || ageof | Num- Proteid | Weight Sorat f nitrogen | of aver- | : nitrogen | of aver- proteid nitrogen. proteid | ber of. ms proteid | ber of k nitrogen analy- maverage) age Xer~ || nitrogen | analy- in average age Ker- inker- | ses. | Kemel nel in ker- | ses. | Kemel net nels (gram). | (gram). SG (gram). | (gram). | = feeaumy sds |..2ccteee PaePer: | 2.59) — 46| 0.0004960 |. 0.01991 2.35 3 0.000601 0.02585 2.68 13 . 0005172 . 01915 2.61 2 loos eee eee Heaters 2.49 ll . 0005147 . 02032 3.24 84 . 000875 . 02700 | 2. 93 199 | .0005604 . 01919 3. 68 31 .000990 —- ..02650 | 2.91 79 | .0005508 . 01920 4.12 3 -O00988 |. 02472 2.81 8 | .0005496 . 01959 4.95 | 1, .001074 | 02171 | 3. 43 2.) .0004496 . 01000 BREEDING TO INCREASE PROTEID NITROGEN. 99 In Table 26 the averages for each group are stated. This table is designed to show whether there has been a tendency for plants of a certain class to reproduce the qualities pertaining to that class, or whether these are lost in the offspring. It is unfortunate that there are not a greater number of analyses of plants of medium and of low nitrogen content. The plants selected for reproduction in 1903 were largely those of high nitrogen content, and, consequently, comparatively few analyses of the low nitrogen and medium nitrogen plants of 1903 are at hand. Table 25 shows that in the main there is a tendency for each class of plants to reproduce in the same relation to the other classes, but that there is less difference between the extreme classes in the off- spring than in the parent plants. In other words, while all plants tend to reproduce their own qualities, those plants varying widely from the average produce, in general, offspring varying from the average less widely than did the parents. Although this is a rule, its application to the individual is not universal. Certain plants may be found whose tendency to variation extends through both generations. There is also wide variation between certain plants of the same parent. For instance, the plants numbered from 21205 to 21212, all of which come from the same parent, vary from 2.16 to 5.23 per cent in proteid nitrogen content, while plants 69805 and 69806 vary from 5.82 to 1.66 per cent in this constituent.” It would seem, therefore, entirely reasonable to believe that a very considerable increase in the proteid nitrogen content of wheat may be effected by careful and continuous reproduction from plants of high proteid nitrogen content. Table 27 contains the analyses of plants raised in 1902 and their progeny raised in 1903, arranged according to the number of grams of proteid nitrogen contained in the average kernel of the former. TaBLe 27.—Analyses showing transmission of proteid nitrogen in average kernel. 1902 | 1903 +] | = Ire y | areca ad 7 Range of proteid nitrogen | acon wel aces | Weight fe chee Num- ae ot Weight in average kernel |.’ Be t f 2s Fs || CAEN eae Doriotl- mea tetdn (gram). in aver- | ber of| protei age ker- in av Pp d | age ker- | age ker- anal- | nitrogen | “* al age ker- | anal- ee n al nel yses. | in ker- | 5 nel | yses. | in ker- . (gram). ’ nels. (gram). (gram). | nels. (gram). | | i | 0.000600 to 0.000700. ....... 0. 000659 3 3.03 0.02220 0.000496 8 2.59 0. 01895 0.000700 to 0.000800 ....... . 000776 9 3.29 . 02405 . 000444 15 2. 68 | . 01673 0.000800 to 0.000900 ....... . 000850 18 3. 33 . 02576 . 000544 38 2.91 . 01875 0.000900 to 0.001000.......- . 000938 18 3. 37 . 02796 . 000514 35 2. 89 . 01784 0.001000 and over ......... . 001077 15 3.71 . 02880 . 000593 28 3.06 . 01905 « Table 25 represents the properties of each plant grown in 1903 arranged according to immediate families. For instance, plants numbered 17305-17308 are all the offspring of * the same plant grown in 1902. The parent bears the number 17301. This is the system of records devised by Prof. W. M. Hays, formerly of the University of Minnesota. 100 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLE 28.—Analyses showing transmission of kernel weight. ~ ; — 1902 1905 | Percent-| Proteid Percent- Range of weight of aver- Aas pew Num- | age of | nitrogen | | bed pent Num- age of age kernel (gram). Ree ize ber of proteid | in aver- Rae ber of proteid ote | anal- | nitrogen | age ker- re anal- pees: : | yses. | in ker- nel yses in ker- (gram). nels. (gram). (gram). nels Below 024 eee eee | 0.02253 12 3.61 | 0.000811 | 0.01684 19 | 2.69 | 0:024) to O026: = soos. ee . 02515 12 3. 28 .000813 || .01740 | 28 2.88 | 0.026500) 00285 en cece eee . 02709 18 | 3.43 | .000927 | 01947 | 38 2.91 | 002860) 01030 2554 =-2aac-,- . 02878 16 | 3.41 | .000993 || .01875 31 2.98 O!030/and"over=-s-..------ | .03152 | 6 | 3.31 .001044 || 01869 12 2.96 Table 28 shows the analyses of plants raised in 1902 and their prog- eny raised in 1903, arranged according to weight of average kernel. There is more variation in this table than in the preceding one, but the tendency toward transmission of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel may be noted. The averages for 1902 are much higher than for 1903, owing partly to the higher percentage and partly to greater kernel weight. The weight of the average kernel shows some tendency toward transmission, although there are some variations. It will be noticed that the kernels average much heavier in 1902 than in 1903, and that in spite of this the percentage of proteid nitrogen is higher in 1902. The relation of light kernel and high percentage of nitrogen does not therefore appear to hold as between crops of different years. All of the qualities of which determinations have been made in both years appear to be transmitted. It may be safely assumed that certain plants will have greater power to transmit these qualities than will the average plant. Such plants will assert themselves in the course of three or four generations. From these plants individuals may be selected that have a combination of the desired qualities. OE YIELD OF GRAIN AS AFFECTED BY SUSCEPTIBILITY TO COLD. As has already been stated, a large number of plants on the breed- ing plots were killed during the winter of 1902-3. This afforded an opportunity to ascertain the effect of the severe weather upon the surviving plants. The question arose whether the surviving plants of a family of which a large percentage of members were killed yielded less per plant than the plants of a family of which but a small per- centage had succumbed. As each spike of the crop of 1902 was represented by a number of plants, and as records of each plant were available, there were very extensive data at hand from which to secure information on the subject. In Table 29 the surviving plants of each immediate family, ¢ or, in other words, the surviving plants descended from the same plant of the previous year, are classified according to the percentage of plants that survived the winter. Thus all plants of which only from 10 to 20 YIELD AS AFFECTED BY SUSCEPTIBILITY TO COLD. 101 per cent survived are grouped together. In the next class are all plants of which from 20 to 30 per cent survived. The other classes increase by 10 per cent surviving plants until 70 per cent is reached. All plants of which more than 70 per cent survived form the last class. Table 30 gives a summary of Table 29, the averages for each class being shown. From this table it will be seen that with an increase in the proportion of surviving plants there is an increase in the weight of grain per plant and in the number of kernels per plant. It is therefore to be concluded that decrease in yield from winter- killing is due not only to the loss of plants that are destroyed, but also to a decreased yield from most of the surviving plants. Table 30 also shows that the weight of the average kernel is not affected by the freezing of a large proportion of the family, the decreased yield being due, it may be assumed, to the decreased number of kernels, owing to a decreased ability to tiller. With an increase in the proportion of surviving plants there is, perhaps, a slight decrease in the percentage of proteid nitrogen in the kernels and in the number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel, although this is so slight and so irregular that it would not be safe to draw any conclusions from it. The total pro- duction of proteid nitrogen per plant naturally increases. TaBLeE 29.—Y ields of plants, arranged according to percentage killed in each family. 10 TO 20 PER CENT. Percent- | : | age of | eee * oes ee Proteid | Proteid lants of ker- um- | of aver- | _°. nitrogen | nitrogen Booed aeiber fn 1903 nels on ber of _age Eee in ker- in average surviv- | plant kernels.) kernel | i, j¢, nels | kernel ing from) (gram). | (gram). | “hols (gram). (gram). 1902. sas | | | = | | | Uvc Di. eee 11.1 2. 1462 137 | 0.01567 | 2. 0.04335 | 0.0003164 0D 10.0 14. 6942 697 . 02157 he 48784 . 0006999 | Da a re 18.2 7. 7295 363 .02173 | 2. . 20732 . 0005947 RO Bee e722. 16.7 | 2.9905 156 - 01858 | Hs . 07566 . 0005066 ieee ee 16.7 | 6.1394 309 -O1987 | 2. . 18173 - 0000881 Ch ee | 14.3 2.5134 139 . 01808 2.8 .07138 . 0005135 Pe ce ae 2 cen 16:'7.| “215899 1,031 - 02089 | 2. 45435 - 0004407 Si ae 16.7 | 9. 3541 447 . 02093 2. 8 . 21399 . 0006027 LU) 14.3 3.6302 194 .O1871 4. . 17026 . 0008776 2) 16.7 . 6316 46 . 01373 S - 02002 . 0004352 i) ee 16.7 1. 2499 67 . O1866 oe . 03650 . 0005447 te | 16.7 2.8000 |. 124 . 02258 | ms -O8176 | .0006594 Se ee | 16.7 5.9990 340 - 01764 | 2. 9: . 17637 - 0005187 MS sacs su 16.7 3. 2340 235 . 01376 Ahh lore, . 0004927 LO) a 14.3 BY i874 Ad .01712 4.1 .03148 . 0007155 Un A 16.7 1.5298 124 . 01234 1.3 .02815 | .0002700 J) 14.3 1.2716 67 | -OLS98 See -04120 | .0006149 0 ee 14.3 . 6760 23 . 02939 | 3. 6% 02436 - 0010640 St rie! } 16.7 15. 5835 862 .O1804 | is . 20881 | ai (1) 16.7 3. 7263 407 . 00916 2.0 . 10285 fi 16.7 | 7.4516 273 . 02730 | 2.98 . 21982 BSE sc him ovavn = | 16.7 2.5436 235 . 01082 a. . 07656 SE oe cerara str | 16.7 2.3031 170 - 01355 | 2. 4 . 05596 GOON ee oe oar See! 16.7 . 5952 35 -O1701 | 1.8 -O1113 (3. a 16.7 1. 3451 111 .01212 3. 25 . 04272 URE a 16.7 | 2.0430 103 01984 | 4.42 . 09030 | Ji) oe 16.7 4.4222 216 | - 02047 | 1.98 . 08756 . 0004054 Ue ae 16.7 8.7448 428 | .02043 | 2.48 . 21687 . 0005067 CUS 14.3 3.0940 | 138 | .02242 3.21 . 09932 -OOO7T197 | AN ee a sia’: Sere 14.3 | . 5595 22 | - 02543 2.67 01494 . 0006790 Average . .| 15.78 4.7098 | 251.4 . 01856 | 2.91 . 12294 . 00051366 102 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. ] TaBLe 29.— Yields of plants, arranged according to percentage killed in each family—Cont’d. 20 TO 30 PER CENT. | Percent- ope e alga < eight | P eg Proteid | Proteid | plants of ker- Num- | of aver- nitrogen) nitrogen eo ae in 1903 | nels on | ber of age eons. / in ker- | in average jy surviv- | plant |kernels. kernel A rai, nels kernel ing from (gram). (gram). mole (gram). | (gram). 1902. F 20.0 | 1.2046 84 | 0.01431 3.64 | 0.04437 | 0.0005219 20.0 | 16.4120 866 - 01895 2.63 - 43164 - 0004984 28.6 | 6.1962 280 | .02213 3.12 - 19332 | .0006904 20.0 | 5.0200 267 . 01880 3.88 19478 | .0007295 28.6 | 4.6383 346 - 01341 2.37 - 10967 - 0003177 25.0 | 3.6003 179 | .02011 3.11 - 11197 - 0006255 20.0 | 4.1546 170... 02444 2.82 - 11716 - 0006892 25.0 | 1.0827 59 .01615 2.54 - 03587 - 0004494 20.0 | 1.4892 66 - 02251 3.07 | .04572 | .0006927 25.0 | 1.4464 93 - 91555 4.13 - 05974 - 0006423 28.6 | 5.2800 321 .01643 3.06 - 16124 - 0005038 25.0 | 9.8346 547. 01798 2.70 | .26553 - 0004877 20.0 | 4.8988 270 | .01814 2.87 .14060 | .0005207 25.0 | 2.4731 221 | .01118 3. 18 07859 | .0003556 28.6 | 12.5470 626 | .02024 2.31 .33541 | .0004658 20.0 | 28.2136 1,260 . 02239 2.47 - 69688 | .0005531 20.0 | 14.7835 729 - 02165 1.81 - 28569 - 0003919 20.0 | 2.8327 146 - 01940 2.94 | .08328 | .0005704 22.2 | 3.4961 199 | .01756 3.09 | .10771 - 0005415 28.6 | 6.2877 106 - 04425 1.87 .11373 | .0008062 Average - . 23.5 | 6.84457 | 341.75 | .019779 2.88 - 18065 | .0005527 30 TO 40 PER CENT. 33.3 | 1.9790 122 0.01704 3.19 0.06318 | 0.0005091 33.3 | 4.3698 219 | .01996 3.07 - 13415 - 0006126 33.3 | 8.3240 386 | .02311 2.96 - 25019 | . 0006842 33.3 | 6.7169 313 | .02057 2.2105 S1Z186 - 0004466 33.3 .9107 28 | .01820 2.48 - 01447 - 0004556 37.5 | 5.03306 252 | .01814 3.20 . 24284 - (006738 33.3 | 7.2545 365 | .01988 2.59 - 18789 | .0005148 33.3 | 7.3424 315 | .02117 3.08 - 21633 | .0006433 33-3 | 2.0631 167 - 01000 3.43 - 07041 - 0004496 33.3 | 8.4456 474 - 01796 2.14 . 18099 - 0003842 33.3 | 3.7810 244 - 01550 2.50 - 09453 - 0003874 33.3 | 7.6051 419 | .01812 2.74 - 20632 ~ 0004966 33.3 | 4.1975 253 - 01612 3.93 - 18308 - 0006454 Average - - 33.6 | 5.2065 273.6 | .01813 | 2.89 - 15125 - 0005310 | | 40 TO 50 PER CENT. 42.9 | 1.1495 55 0.01865 4.01 | 0.04268 | 0.0007259 44.4 | 4.6950 259 01819 3.01 - 14144 - 0009449 42.9 | 2.9905 156 =. 01858 Pa 07566 | .0005066 42.9 | 1.8251 93 01963 2.73 . 04998 - 0005390 40.0 5329 32 01664 3.17 -01712 | .00U5396 40.0 | 8.3672 321 02946 3.15} .26913 - 0009502 40.0 | 2.0970 110 ..01906 3.01 | .06312 - 0005738 40.0 | 2.6462 167 01585 2.48 - 06563 - 0003930 40.0 | 6.9409 472 01456 3.40 . 22024 —. 0004700 40.0 | 2.9064 156 01791 2.96 -07905 | .0005288 40.0 | 5.3261 314 01622 2.59 -14008 | .0004261 44.4 | 4.1705 238 01894 2.67 | .11199 - 0005053 | 42.9 | 5.4034 297 101771 3.32 116649 | | 0005828 42.9 | 8.6610 484 01769 2.27 - 20040 | ..0004046 Average.... 41.7 | 4.1223 225.3 01843 2.96 - 11736 - 0005493 | Yo 4 lo ee ae YIELD AS AFFECTED BY SUSCEPTIBILITY TO COLD. 1038 TaBLeE 29.—Y ields of plants, arranged according to percentage killed in each family—Cont’d. 50 TO 60 PER CENT. Percent- | age of | Weight | Weight Perea | Proteid | Proteid ants of ker- | Num- | of aver- = | itr Se umiber [ 1903 | nels on | ber of age nites os a) : a i ‘Surviv- | plant j|kernels.| kernel ee nels kernel oe (gram). (gram). nels. | (8ram).| (gram). WA Doo} 50.0 3.0000 156 | 0.01980 3.21 | 0.09556 | 0.0006380 LD ee re 54.5 | 11.7777 581 -O1961 | 2.65 | .30061 | .0005161 be PRUs Ss neon 50.0 6. 6626 327 - 02012 2.85 | .18906 | .GQ05€97 7 LL a ae 50.0 12.9727 611 - 02105 2.56 -31509 | .0005371 4 Sou Uh. 2 50.0 5. 2333 271 - 01818 1.98 - 10621 0003569 peste ee Les 50.0 6. 0463 27. . 02205 2.61 - 14759 . 0005729 3 212 5 sa-6e4 14 41.7 4.1223 225 . 01843 2.96 - 11736 | - 0005493 HOO 60 Seseeen eae 17 51.5 6.0616 303 01974 2a - 15237 - 0005361 60'to0)702 S23 sa.--.ee 21 64.6 6. 5092 340 - 01896 2.80 . 17280 . 0005324 WO)andOverss=- == ee 22 82.4 | 7.3275 371 .01902 2.83 - 20357 - 0005348 YIELD AND NITROGEN CONTENT OF GRAIN AS AFFECTED BY LENGTH OF GROWING PERIOD. Early-maturing varieties of wheat are, in general, better yielding sorts in Nebraska than are later maturing ones. There are some exceptions to this rule, however, Turkish Red yielding better than any earlier maturing variety. The advantages from early maturity have usually been ascribed to the cooler weather and greater supply of moisture that obtain in the early summer. The hot, dry weather common in July is thought to prevent the filling out of the kernel and to cause light yield and light volume weight. Each wheat plant on the breeding plots was harvested separately in 1903, and a record was kept of the date of harvesting of each of these plants. These data have been tabulated for the purpose of showing the relation between the length of the growing season and the yield of grain from individual plants of the same variety. ) Table 31 contains these data, tabulated according to the date of ripening. Plants ripening between the 7th and 11th of July, 1903, form the first class, those ripening between July 11 and 15 the second class, and the succeeding classes increase by four days until July 27, all ripening after that date constituting the last class. The dates of ripening thus extend over a period of three weeks. The season of 1903 was a very wet and cool one. The effect of this upon the wheat crop is shown by the fact that the crop in the field was not ready to harvest until July 10, while usually it is har- vested between the 20th and 30th of June. Even at the close of the ripening period the weather did not become dry or hot as compared with the normal season. It will therefore be seen that the ordinary advantages from early maturity did not obtain, or at least not in the customary way. It may also be said that some of the later maturing wheats yielded as well in 1904 as did the Turkish Red. Table 32 isa summary of Table 31, with a statement of the average for each class. Table 33 is a summary of the same plants, tabulated according to the yield of grain per plant. ; o YIELD, ETC., AS AFFECTED BY GROWING PERIOD. 105 Table 34 is a summary of the same plants, tabulated according to the percentage of proteid nitrogen. It is very evident from these tables that the early-maturing plants are the most prolific. The weight of the average kernel remains very uniform, so that the later maturing plants do not appear to have pro- duced shrunken kernels. Evidently the plants ripening during the first four days produced the largest amounts of grain, and their ker- nels were as heavy as those produced later. The smaller productive- ness of the later maturing plants in the season of 1903 does not appear to have been due to a shrunken or light kernel. The percentage of proteid nitrogen appears to be somewhat less in the grain of the early-maturing plants. The number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel is likewise less in these early- maturing plants. The relation of length of growing season to both yield and compo- sition of grain is contrary to what might have been supposed. A long growing period without excessively hot or dry weather might naturally be thought to increase the yield and increase the percentage of carbohydrates in the grain. The season of 1904 was very similar to that of 1903 up to time of wheat harvest. The data for 1904, when tabulated, will serve as a check on the results obtained in 1903. TaBLe 31.— Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of growing period. DATES RIPE: JULY 7 TO 11, 1903. | Tei: Proteid nitrogen Date | Yield ea of aver (gram) in— Record numher. ripe. | (grams). proteid app ke r- hes ae ~ Q = es nitrogen. (gram). Kernels. eefoanil Jj July 10 | 20.9290 2.69 | 0.01699 0.56299 | 0.0004569 Sic ee a aes do...| 14.2450 | et “02378 | . 38604 - 0006444 NS 1 re Pe doz-:| (9 :4172 2.7 . 02498 .25709 | . 0006664 2 eee ee do...) 19.7446 2.57 | .01708 .50744 .0004389 Lol eee ee do...) 8.0214 ey | 01919 | .21898 | .0005238 2 Se eee do...) 1.0304 2.69 | .019816 | .02772 | .0005330 27112 eee do...| 11.9114 3.75 | .021007 | .44666 | .0007877 ii eee ee do...| 14.8139 4,26 | .01507 | .63107 | .0006420 2 ees pen do...| 4.0258 | 4.04) .01877 | .16377 | .0007582 — ae July 8 | 17.8506 2.80 | .02062 | .49995 | .0005773 Titi le eee qdouw. 9. 8228 2.63 .01949 | . 25834 | .0005126 2 eae eee do... 10.9180 2.64 | .02184 | .28823 | .0005765 RENMNY S2- > 22 evs] --'2 do...| 11.0930 2.58 | .02205 . 28580 0005690 PERM en oe cte fase do 2.3931 | 2.69 . 01734 . 06437 . 0004665 Tee ae do....| 22.5848 2031 .02699 | . 52194 . 0006236 1, Lee ae eee do... 5. 7948 2.67 -01751 - 15470 . 0004674 BOMUG «on 5-2 2s July 7 7.9968 2.81 | .01603 . 22471 | .0004503 iD) Ue ee cee July 8 19.3966 2.59 | .02590 - 50238 | .0006707 10) ar eee do 12. 1221 2.42 .02175 | -29575 . 0005262 Ci July 9 9. 2120 2.30 | .03050 | . 21187 | 0007016 Ue July 8 12.0161 2.57 . 01866 . 30881 . 0004795 FN) eo re July 7) 14.4556 2.96 | .01658 .42790 | .0004907 BANE Sirens July 8 9. 3093 2.42 | .01829 | . 22529 | .0004426 TL a Pee do... 10.9073 2.34 . 02361 . 25522 . 0005524 56208......-- Ae Eee do...) 13.5720 2.61 | .02356 | .34616 | .0006149 2 ee cee eae do... 15.8086 2.59 .01664 .40945 | .0004310 LUG ae July 10 2. 8327 2.94 | .01940 .08328 | .0005704 PORDaS o,cietaixsxa:3 July 8 15. 3928 2.71 . 02132 -41715 | .0005778 LU See Pa do...) 18.3614 2.34 . 02336 . 42965 . 0005466 AUG eas anawte a af sos Gos 7.3993 2.41 . 02578 . 17833 . 0006213 IGGL a oemess ss 2}- >. - do...) 16.4692 2.28 | .02175 .37548 .0004960 106 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. 4 TaBie 31.—Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of growir period—Continued. DATES RIPE: JULY 7 TO 11, 1903—Continued. Weight Proteid nitrogen Percent- i : of aver- . (gram) in— Record number.| Date a oe ee age ker- ripe. |(grams).| proteid Fall Pes nitrogen. (gram) Kernels. iearricle SLO ose July 8 9.1411 1.92 | 0.02308 0. 17550 0. 0004432 BS600E7 Soe coe July 10 1. 6362 2.80} .02731 -04581 | .0007640 S806 2 eA do..-| 9.9456 2.53 02068 -25162 | .0005231 BBO oe eee sees do...| 5.1584 2.61 02205 - 13463 | .0005754 ; BOOS oe ee oe eo Oss 1.5355 2.47 02075 - 03793 - 0005125 88609 2 22S 22285 = edoss 9.8719 2.42 02100 - 23890 - 0005082 D400 te eo ee -dOWs 2] 12.1918 2.94 01948 - d0844 - 0005726 94908. Ss oecce ns Rodopeel) we brs 1.96 01894 - 04641 0003713 DAO cee eee eee July 9 3. 6977 3.60 01696 - 13312 | .0006106 Soe ; 2.81 00850 - 00884 | .0002389 2.74 01852 .- 30291 | .0005074 2.59 02029 + 31492 - 0005515 2.56 01954 37023 | .0005003 2. 48 02136 07310 | .0005297 1.81 01783 05132°, . 0003228 2.54) 01626 . 26270 |. 0004131 2.73 | .01934 - 14095 . 0005279 2. 47 01457 01872 | .0003599 2.69 02024 26475 0005356 | DATES RIPE: JULY 11 TO 15, 1903. 7 re | July 13! 14.3111 | 2.64 0.01809 | 0.37781 | 0.0004777 DiO0Gh tet ee a ee do...) 10. 4800 3.18 | .02563 . 33403°| . 0008168 7 a 2.9248 | 3.35 | .01851 .09798 | .0006201 3.557 3.82 02056 13589 | . 0007855 12. 1819 4.43 | .02317 . 53889 | .0010265 8. 4593 | 5.48 02209 . 46356 |. 0012103 9. 7236 | 2.31 01907 22461 | .0004404 10. 1925 | 3.01 | 02072 30680 | 0006235 2. 6965 2.81 00953 .07577 | .0002677 6.0173 3.17 | .02019 .19075 | .0006401 11.5675 3.17 | . 02062 36671 | .0006537 : 16. 4120 2.63 .01895 | . 43164 | .0004984 . 16. 4061 2.41] .01841 39539 | .0004437 19. 1854 | 2.36 | .02469 45276 | . 0005827 3. 3266 | 2.92 . 02004 09712 | .0005850 5. 5666 2.58 | .02085 . 14362 | . 0005379 13.3011 | 3.47 01945 32853 | .0004803 3.0850 | 2.53 01847 07805 | .0004674 4.5123 4.15 01777 18726 | .0007373 12. 0399 pep 02183 24942 | . 0004627 10. 0005 2.70 02252 - 27003 | . 0006082 5. 5524 2.64 | .02287 14608 | .0006037 3.2964 | 4.87 01524 .16053 | . 0006447 11. 2890 1.50 01572 16933 | . 0002258 . 3485 2.81 01291 00979 | .0002627 6. 4202 2.02 02048 12989 | . 0004137 9. 4585 3.20 01701 20267 | .0005444 1. 6036 2.64} .02296 04233 | .0006062 11. 2008 2.76 | 01858 30986 | .0005127 9. 8346 2.70 | .01798 26553 | . 0004877 7. 9684 3.05 |. 02028 24303 | . 0006185 7. 1852 | 3.16 | .01593 22705 | ~. 0005034 2.5160 | 2. 48 01507 06240 | .0003736 4. 1323 | 2.18 | .01931 09008 | .0004210 5. 6864 1.89 01663 10747 | .0003142 9.5078 | 2.54} .02395 24150 | . 0006225 5.7431 273 01709 15679 0004667 6. 5232 2.51 01959 16373 0004917 1.5364 2.71 01746 04164 | .0004731 10. 1836 2.76 01453 | 28107 | 0004010 3.3176 |* 2.65 01975 | 08792 | . 0005233 3.7263 2.76 00916 10285 | . 0002527 8. 5777 3.19 | .01666 | 29188 .0005826 7.9772 2.86] .01838| .29815 | .0005257 - 4.7117 | 2.43} .01801 11445 | ..0004387 9, 8378 1.69 | 01705 16626 | . 0002881 . 8328 | 1.98 | 02031 .01649 | .0004022 2.4993| 2.75| 01846 “06854 |. 0005077 14. 9992 2.62} .01968 | 39297 | . 0005157 ie is | 4 } é + 2 eg YIELD, ETC., AS AFFECTED BY GROWING PERIOD. period—Continued. DATES RIPE: JULY 11 TO 15, 1903—Continued. ereont-| Selon | (gram) ine Record number Bae poet age of | ace ker- ‘| ripe. |(grams).| proteid Saal x Geniee nitrogen. (gram). Kernels. k aeaele AOR = x ae Scoen = July 13 12. 2004 2.61 | 0.02047 0. 31842 | 0. 0005348 MUO. Soasse ec V2-dOs~.| «2. 7616 2. 80 . 01534 .07733 | .0004296 Sf ee PEL edOc 6. 9861 2. 85 - 01946 -19905 | 0005545 ERRNO oa bSsed one 12. 0728 2.21 . 03177 . 26680 | . 0007021 MOOD Son's eeisecne ~2do-- 10. 6261 2.54 . 01739 . 26990 | . 0004417 TG eee do. 3.0790 2.74 . 02333 - 08436 | .0006391 Si ee “2G On = 16. 4433 1.73 . 02234 . 24847 | .0003865 TEL ee Oe ea dox. 8.6189 2.64 . 01968 . 22756 | .0005195 ioe Li ae err do-33 1.3961 2. 67 . 00943 .03728 | .0002519 1 ae ee do.. 4, 2207 3.09 . 01375 . 13042 | .0004248 UST Synge SS eee! nee do.. 1. 8018 4.92 02310 - 08865 . 0011365 L531) Cee ee lee QO)-.. 9. 8298 2.41 01807 . 23690 | .0004355 Wer ascseecc|a-4e do.. 7.0051 2.28 01878 - 15971 . 0004282 Bette a a| ssa! do 11. 7006 2.09 02008 . 24468 . 0004197 AO eos). wis coe July 11 4. 4423 2.35 01553 . 10439 | .0003650 LC ee (-7--do..- 12. 3862 | 3. 41 01808 | . 42236 | . 0006166 Average... July 13 7. 6611 2.81 01887 - 20820 . 0005290 DATES RIPE: JULY 15 TO 19, 1903. | | UC July 15 0.9229 3.48 0.01420 | 0.03212 0.0004941 PAN do 19. 3318 4.71 - 02390 - 91052 - 0011283 2 er do 12. 3685 2.19 - 02125 | . 27086 . 0004654 2 aemed Oss] 2 Ls 8242 3.02 01393 | .05508 | .0003662 Soh July 18 4, 6045 2.87 01627 | .13215 | .0004670 3 o 1.5940 3.73 .01968 | .05946 | .0007340 BINNS coco: se do 2. 9886 2.13 . 01916 06366 . 0004081 Ol July 15 . 2062 2.44 . 01086 | .00503 | -.0002649 PANS ooo esos co) 3. 2340 3.58 . 01376 -11575 | .0004927 Lis do . 7081 2. 82 01161 .01997 | .0003273 Lh do - 9701 3.31 .01276 | - 03211 . 0004225 cit) do 1.9154 3.66 .01398 | - 07010 . 0005117 3! 15. 5835 1.34 . 01804 . 20881 - 0002422 To July 18 1.5452 3. 24 .01717 . 05007 . 0005563 ReN eee = oo to) 3.3006 2.79 . 02001 . 0005581 MON ooo: eos. do 6. 0090 3.54 .01642 | . 0005812 (2) do 1.1166 4.65 01718 | 05192 | .0007988 eevee. 2. do 2.0970 3.01 .01906 | 06312 . 0005738 Papas Soon. do 7.1181 2. 60 . 01784 18507 | .0004638 ES 9. 7922 1.98 02106 19388 | .0004170 RENN ee ones. July 16 5. 3069 2.83 .O1811 15019 . 0005126 BAG 2. Scho... S200= 9.9034 2.65 01814 . 26245 | .0004807 PAAUDE =,05< 2 = /a's.<.- Gye 3.4486 3.36 - 01739 . 11570 - 0005844 SENIOR 2 512s soa 35- »d0- 3. 5486 2.81 .01774 .09972 | .0004986 U2: eee doe 5. 2616 2.74 01525 -14417 | .0004179 (2 -*doz 1.1074 2.67 . 02407 .02957 | .0006428 SAGE Sconces ..do. 3.6926 Daa . 01767 .09416 | .0004505 Un ..do. 6. 6206 Cp) . 01876 .18008 | .0005102 2) Mdo= 2.3859 2.93 .01491 .06991 | .0004369 1 .2d0- 6.0091 4.93 01732 9625 .0008539 AOS Ss crc.oxs ss do. 8. 2366 3.11 . 02168 . 0006741 i ..do. . 8983 1.66 01695 -01491 | .0002814 Oe .-do. 3.7820 2.97 . 01827 . 11233 - 0005426 Pe oe acca 3 ..do. 5.7131 2.30 . 01814 -13140 | .0004171 eee =dos 3. 8709 4,39 01690 .16993 | .0007421 IAS 1 ee .-do. 9.6779 2.58 | .01916 - 24969 | .0004944 2 do 2. 7000 3.50} 01534 | .09450 | .0005369 ln) Sa do 2.8816 2.99 . 01592 . O8616 . 0004760 Lf) je do 4. 4673 2.56 - 02040 . 11436 | .0005220 BOOS 2 Sccccec-s do 3. 2388 2.32 01732 07514 | 0004018 7) Seeados=.) 10;1363 2.70 | .01916 | . 27367 | .0005173 LLU July 15 |} . 5595 2.67 02543 .01494 | .0006790 U2 re July 16 1.2117 1.65 - 01893 .01999 | .0003124 JU ae eetlon 7.5006 2.78 . 01866 . 20851 . 0005187 LAO | Ue el (ee do.:.| 13.7057 2. 86 .01909 | —-.39199 | 0005460 94208... ..-..2% A aaa ee 3. 7828 3.10) .01175| .11727| .0003642 JE) Se ee 0...| 10.5556 2.47 | 01923 | . 26073 | .0004749 Ui ae eee eee do 6. 7664 2.07 -01615 | .14007 | .0003343 Oe re do .7319 1.95 01307 | .01427 | .0002549 CUS eee (eee do 11. 8435 1.80 - 07544 . 21319 . 0013576 Average. .| July a 5.1354 | 2.87 01869 .14452 | .0005222 107 Taste 31.—Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of growing 108 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. Taste 31.—Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of period—Continued. DATES RIPE: JULY 19 TO 23, 1903. Percent.| Weight Proteid Sea : of aver- (gram) in Date Yield age of | 2S ase Record number. : : age ker- ripe. |(grams).| proteid sal Aven nitrogen. (gram). Kernels. peg 14. 8957 | 2.75 | 0.01857 0. 40964 | 0.0005108 . 3885 | 4.70 .01340 .01826 | .0006296 2. 1462 2.02 - 01567 - 04335 0003164 9. 9070 2.77 - 02282 . 27443 0006181 2. 4690 2.58 - 02024 - 06399 0005221 - 2806 Salo - 02806 - 00884 4.1516 2.90 - 01837 - 12039 0005327 5. 8080 3.45 01641 - 20038 - 8478 2.59 01437 - 02196 0003722 7 17. 1820 2071 01968 - 46563 - 4336 3.84 01399 - 01665 0005371 2.7255 2.60 01793 - 07086 0004662 17. 2324 2.80 02390 - 48250 0006692 3.8811 3.09 01748 - 11992 0005402 4. 2376 2th | 01859 -11484 | .0005037 7 1.8276 2.61) 01792} .04995 . 0004677 2. 9999 2.80 01667 -08400 .0004667 2.6162 2.88 | 02145 - 05807 0006177 2.5601 2.91 | .01939 -07450 . 0005644 11. 1476 1.61 | 02194 -17948 | .0003533 2. 2862 2.81 01921 -06424 .0005399 8.4605 2.63 02110 . 22251 .0005549 - 3037 4.55 - 01598 -01382 | . 0007273 3.0228 2.82 01913 -08522 .0005394 38609 6. 7665 2.74 02319 -18540 0006475 7.2545 2.59 01988 18789 0005148 - 6316 3.17 01373 - 02002 0004352 -3161 1.46 01264 - 00462 0001846 1.8246 2.44 01806 - 04452 11. 6655 2.38 01919 -27765 . 0004567 12. 027 2.87 02543 -34524 .0007299 2.6571 3.29 01692 -08742 | .0005568 6. 1989 3.00 01635 - 18596 0004906 2. 1571 4.21 01828 - 09082 0007696 17. 4226 2.60 01846 - 45299 0004799 11. 3592 2.56 - 01965 - 29079 | .0005031 23. 1471 2.74 - 01999 - 63422 | .0005464 9, 7084 2.16 -01712 | - 20970 | .0003698 9.3120 2. : : - 0005426 4. 0230 i 2 2 3.1555 3.59 - 01814 - 11328 . 0006510 2.0430 4.42 - 01984 - 09030 | .0008767 28. 2136 2.47 - 02239 - 69688 | .0005531 9. 3629 1.89 -01724 | - 18538 | .0003414 3.4442 5.59 - 01832 | - 19253 - 0010241 72705 9. 1522 71153 -02191 | - 19936 | .0004668 14. 6802 3.86 - 02484 .56666 | .0009588 4. 5806 3.49 - 02036 - 15986 . 0007105 9.0386 2.27 . 02270 - 20518 | .0005154 9. 2130 3.02 - 01869 - 27823 - 0005644 5.4411 4.45 01217 - 24213 0005417 A . 7130 2.32 01927 - 01654 0004471 -| 7.5438 3.43 01975 - 25873 0006773 4.9315 2.66 01312 - 13118 0003332 We S52 S515 3.10 | 01605 - 10650 0004977 3. 6006 | 2.49 01895 - 08965 0004719 Average. .| July 20.1 6.5399 2.93 01886 18064 0005482 DATES RIPE: JULY 23 TO 27, 1903. ViBUDS sate July 23} 3.6302 3.03 | 0.01984 0.10999. 0.0006010 SOD aoe ae -..-0...| 3.9968 3.09 01645 - 12350. 0005082 T7308. ; - 222-2 }----d05-.) 1.2275 3.25 02012 - 03994 0006540 TYAQGEs- cee jeeedoe. -|- 2.0807 3.29 OI686 06878 0005547 17408) 2 ase ae i---He..| 9.2038 2.18 - 01852 20065 0004037 T7ALOE s 3-0 Sere ----G0.-.| 16.9987 2.88 - 02285 48957 7 Ui Teese TOO a. - 1.8517 3.09 | 01698 05722 0005249 2006S 5 eSneee aedos- |. (3.3138 2.78 02033 09212 0005652 POTIOS Sa aaa aoeeGe. -|| 17-1115 2.83 | 01974 48428 0005586 PU | as a Ns .---do...| 14.6942 3.32 | 02157 48784 | 0006999 | YIELD, ETC., AS AFFECTED BY GROWING PERIOD. 109 - Tase 31.—Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of growing period—Continued. DATES RIPE: JULY 23 TO 27, 1903—Continued. @, | P a Vej rote yo Pereent-| Waeer |. (eram)in~ | Record number. Date Yield | ageof | age ker- |—— = “| ripe. (grams). protein ate z Average q | [EEROEED.) (gram) ernels. kernel. | 8 pee July 24 2.5691 3.04 | 0.01795 0.07810 0.0005461 2G 5 eee | July 23] 1.5420 2.45) .02659| .03778| .0006514 Vlei tare aa do. 9. 2850 2.33 - 02381 - 21634 . 0005547 2071s do.. 7.7296 2.47 - 02141 - 19092 - 0005289 2) ee eee do. 2.5712 3.22 - 01720 - OSO86 - 0005538 202) 5 ee ee do 1. 9090 3.18 - 01619 - 06071 . 0005144 Pee 2. 2 July 24| 6.4102 2.76 -01966 | .17692 — . 0005427 2h el do. 3.9797 2.96 - 02073 - 11780 - 0006135 ZV sae July 23 1.3746 3.08 01833 04234 | .0005646 PMO ee oa Oe . - s doe 5.3615 2.90 . 02206 15549 0006399 22S, ‘do...| 2.1851 2.91 02512 04359 0007309 Bo) ae or do. 14. 4630 3.02 02111 .43679 0006376 227 eee Eee do. . 3089 2.94 01716 .00908 0005045 S210 5a do. 6. 1026 2.35 -01919 | —. 14341 ~~. 0004510 32 pee do. 8.1268 2.03! .01930 - 16498 - 0003919 2. hee ae do. 9.1498 ais 01972 -24979 | .0005383 32.5 (aa do. 13.5556 2.84 .02219 | 38505 | .0006273 220. eee July 24 1.6799 2.89 .01975 | .04855 —- . 0005712 31105) 4. July 23 1.2124 5.85 . 01987 .07093 .0011627 JUL eee oe do. 3. 6302 4.69 | .01871 .17026 — .0008776 HS 1) ee do. 3.6003 3.11 02011 -11197 | .0006255 1. an ao do. 1. 2499 3.17 . 01866 03650 | .0005447 UN 5 ae do! 5.9990 ! 2.94 01764 -17637 .0005187 2 ido. 2. 5235 2.90 | .02035 .07318 .0005902 LC. do. 4.0358 | 1.91 01834 .07708 .0003504 S75 3a seeeeee ee do. . 7532 4.18 01712 .03148 .0007155 ene eo ..do. 1.5298 1.84 .01234 02815 .0002700 21h i 5 es ie ea do. 8.3935 2.54 01756 21319 .0004460 UTS ae eee ..do. . 5958 3.54 01986 02109 | .0007032 SU ae ..do. 4701 2.80 .01343 .01316 | .0003761 Tie ..do 2. 3982 3.30 01085 -07914 | .0003581 Bae) os July 24 . 6893 3.10 01723 | .02137 | .0005342 | Tiel edo 4. 8988 2.87 -01814 | - 14060 - 0005207 i ir iidos 2.4731 3.18 -01118 | .07859 =~. 0003556 a July 23 7.4516 2.95 .02730 21982 | 0008052 | Soi oe Eedo2 2.5436 3.01 .01082 | .07656 | .0003258 Henne ss ||. tido. 5952 1.87] .01701| .01113 | .0003180 32202 oe ..do. 1.3451 3.25 | .01212| 04272) .0003938 ie ee rr do. 9. 6451 2.30 | .02079 . 22184 . 0004781 Vee ..do. 8.3406 2.56 01699 21352 .0004349 815 535 July 24| 3.0940 3.21 | .02242| .09932 .0007197 22.5) ee nee do. 2.6615 | 3.00 | .01706 07985 | .0005118 Average. .| July 23.2 4.9015 2.93 - 01878 .13654 | .0005544 i DATES RIPE: JULY 27, 1903, OR LATER. 3. 1454 3.46 | 0.02279 0.10883 0. OOO7S86 15. 6996 2.13 | .02127 .33441 — . 0004531 2. 2881 3.52 | .02460 .08044 — . 0008660 . 7720 3.80 | .01795 .02934 . 0006822 1. 4864 3.81 | .01443 .05663 . 0005498 5. 3229 - 3.05 | .02063 . 16235 | .0006292 2. 3642 3.16 | .01922 .07471 | .0006074 2. 8564 5,23 | .01917 .14939 0010026 2. 3066 2.96 | .01955 .06804 — . 0005766 5. 1594 3.24 .01798 . 16712 | .0005824 1. 4484 3.61 | .01627 | .05228 — . 0005875 3. 9143 5.03 | .01577 | . 19689 | .0007934 1.7216 2.16 | .02049 | .03718 . 0004427 6. 2514 2.67 | .020037 . 16691 0005350 22/23 a ee do... 2) -3:2787 2.77 | .01940 .09082 0005374 23 ee do...| 10. 7836 2.71 | .02066 .28560 . 0005599 Lik re do...| 4.6754 2.76 | .02281 .12904 =. 0006295 2 b...do...] 2.0737 | 2.63 | .02304 05454. 0006060 2 SUL (a do | 2.0390 3.92 . 01416 . 07993 0005551 2S ee do. 4.9456 | 2.81 | .02248 .13897 . 0006317 220 Fe do...| 4.3698 3.07 | .01996 | .13415 0006126 3 se re oe do... 10.4036 1.81 | .02052 | . 18831 . 0003714 2 ae do. 1. 2573 3.48 . 01822 . 04375 . 0006341 ERAS ee do 5. 2268 1.20 | .02323 .06272 . 0002788 110 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TABLE 31.—Yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of gre ving period—Continued. DATES RIPE: JULY 27, 1903, OR LATER—Continued. Weight -Proteid nitrogen Percent- 5 f aver- (gram) in— Date Yield age of iB | Record meer) ripe. | (grams).| proteid ace aah ae Bae (gram). Kernels. — ores | | S208 aos | July 27 1.0183 | 3.78 0.01851 0.03849 0. 0006998 BSR Gee eee a se|ee.sdG see) 351546 3. 41 . 02090 . 10689 . 0007126 7 ze 7. 0889 1.62 . 02271 . 11223. 0003679 1. 1132 1.39 01446 .01547 0002009 7.0596 2.39 02345 . 16872 —. 0005605 8. 1890 2.21} .02144 .18098 | . 0004738 2. 8903 3. 22 | 02125 . 09307 0006843 4.1281 4.33 | 01994 | . 17875 | .0008635 6. 1962 3.12 | 02213 . 19332 0006904 5.0200 3. 88 01880 . 19478 0007295 6. 1394 2.96 01987 . 18173 0005881 8. 0905 2.64 01972 . 23998 0005327 1. 2069 2.34 02155 . 02824 0005053 3. 3004 2.93 01710 . 09670 0005010 - 9452 2. 53 02555 . 02391 0006433 |} 2.5134 2.84 01808 .07138 .0005135 | 12.1088 3.61 02252 . 438713 | .0007764 21.5399 2 02089 45435 0004407 9. 3541 2.88 02093 . 21399 | . 0006027 | 1.9218 2.93 02869 . 05631 . 0008404 | 1.8862 3.02 01699 . 05696 - 0005132 4. 6383 | 2.37 01341 . 10967 | .0003177 4. 1546 2. 82 | 02444 . 11716 . 0006892 1. 8494 3.63 01967 .06713 .0007142 1. 4892 3.07 02251 .04572 . 0006927 | 2. 8000 2.92 | 02258 .08176 . 0006594 1. 4464 | 4.13 01555 .05974 . 0006423 112 2. 86 02049 . 03223 . 0005861 4.6146 3.00 0177. . 13843. 0005324 1.6103 2. 54 | 01964 . 04090 . 0004988 4.3615 | 3.13 | 01652 . 13652 0005171 1.2716 3.24 | .01898 04120 | .0006149 - 6760 | 3. 62 02939 . 02436 .0010640 SOSUG IE: oe aes do.. 1. 7280 3.57 | 01516 . 06169 0005411 SOUR ae: 2. pee eee do.. 3. 7407 3.11 01732 . 11636 0005386 SERGIO S! 5. a AREAS dom 1.9469 1.88 02049 . 03660 0003853 DSO0D ahs eee dose. 2. 3031 2. 43 01355 | . 05596 0003292 5OGON As 2-5 See ae do_..| 71828 2.12 01880 . 15228 0003986 635062 2: 355 Sees do 2. 3986 2. 44 01568 .05853 . 0003825 66005222. se doze. 7. 6690 2.63 02073 -20170 =. 0005451 69506322 <. 2Ne eee do. 13. 5696 2. 50 | 02047 - 33923 0005117 69805-2522 eee do.. 2. 4420 5. 82 | 02220 . 14213 . 0912921 69206) A528 ee do...| 12.0136 1.66 02153 . 19943 . 0003574 P2A00S =. S22 dos 8. 4415 3.36 03963 . 28363 | .0013316 12406 5... 52 ee ee eee do... 8. 2929 2.95 01929 . 24464 0005689 (2005 = 22 2 eee do..- 2. 6462 2. 48 | 01585 . 06563 — .0003930 UBo0l = 2 =e2 5a eee do.. . 9072 2.39 2229 . 01332 - 0005327 18808 53 sa 55- 20 ae do... 14. 2986 2. 92 02291 - 41752 .0006539 (4305-2 % 22 ee do. 4, 4222 1.98 02047 08756 0004054 ES - 4096 | 2.73 01781 01118 . 0004862 . 8172 | 2. 60 01434 . 02125 . 0003728 8. 4407 2.35 01695 . 19836 | - 0003982 15. 7835 1.81 02165 . 28569 . 0003919 4.5737 2.62 | 01862 . 11710 . 0004879 1. 2391 3.31 | 01721 . 04101 . 0005697 8. 7448 2. 48 | 02043 . 21687 0005067 3. 4766 | 2.60 | 01625 - 09039 0004224 3.0282 | 2.56 01495 . 07964 0003923 7.6241 2.63} .01749 20052 | .0004599 Average. .| July 27.2 4.6626 2.94 | .01992 | . 12854 | .0005800 aliad a RELATION OF SIZE OF HEAD TO YIELD, ETC. hay TaBLe 32.—Summary of yield and nitrogen content of grain, tabulated according to length of growing period. " WIG Parcant: Weight Proteid nitrogen Plants grouped according to| ber of | Average | Yield | ageot | % gs (ere date ripe. anal- | date ripe. |(grams).| proteid | , 25°.) peace | ] var 4 -] yses. Prenat (gram). | Kernels. eerrinih { uly ose CF meets secs aca a 7 uy eee : ae = ue | Lele 0. 26475 0.0005356 LS LS 0) 9S ; Vgle eee 5 2.8 - 01887 . 20820 . 0005290 TEER Th) 0 ft err 50 | July 16.2.. 5. 1354 2.87 | .01869 . 14452 5 Ui clbe SL 0?8 3 9s ee rr 56 | July 20.1..| 6.5399 2.93 - 01886 - 18064 Ub Oe §2 | July 23.2. . 4.9015 2.93 | .01878 . 13654 Mlves VODNACED 2.2525 -js.0102 0 | 83 | July 27.2..| 4.6636 2.94 | .01992 . 12854 | . 0005800 TABLE 33.—Summary of nitrogen content, etc., tabulated according to yield per plant. y 9 gq 0 4 per 7 Sha Paweant Weight | Proteid nitrogen o . i aver am — Plants grouped according to ber of | Average | Yield | ageof eee (er mae ee 2 yield (in grams). | anal- | date ripe. | (grams).| proteid me el : Average yses. nitrogen. (gram). | Kernels. | “kernel. lu 31 | July 20.2..) 0.6049 2.91 0.01683 | 0.01731 | 0.0004916 i bes a8 sy lccoe Se ed 4 uly gue: 2 Eee 5 09 01852 .05456 | 0005730 HC Oe At See ee u Bare ; 3.03 -01796 | 10794 | 0005445 Gt) (ee 94 July keh Bee 7.6706 2.68 "01997 "90270 "0003351 UU oe 2 52 | July Laos) > 1202573 2.71 .02168 | .33433 - 0005774 IS Wie cer 20 | July 15.1..| 17.1908 2.54 .02103 . 43921 . 0005382 MGre biath 20e ssc... 4 | July 14.5..) 23.7186 2.55 - 02159 - 60401 | - 0005450 ABLE 34.—Summary of yield, etc., tabulated according to nitrogen content. TABLE 34.—S y of yield, ete., tabulated ling to nitrog tent 1 nes Pci Weight | Proteid nitrogen Plants grouped according to| ber of | Average | Yield age of | ee (gram) = percentage of nitrogen. anal- | date ripe. (grams).| proteid | eects al i Nearace yses. nitrogen. | (gram). Kernels. | Teal LOR OU A 4) July 22.5... 5.8099 1.35 | 0.01709 | 0.07290 —0..0002266 = i@eo ee ee 25 | July 18.5..| 2: 7423 1.80 | .02124 -11620 | — . 0003867 OLS Se ee eee 18 | July 19.8..| 8.9542 Dale, .02030 . 19070 - 0004325 eeu eo Pe eee =... 2 47 | ce Mod 7.3389 2.39 | .02000| .18478 "9004773 LT a degen 82 | July 16.3..| 8.0817 2.63 | .01938 | .21280 0005102 Lig BEA |e 67 July 19.6..) 5.9093 2.85 | .01910] .16609| .0005454 a8 he ee 47 | July 21.2..| 4.4497 3.11} .01824| .13847 . 0005667 2 LICR Boho: oe 20 Tale fey 4. 6756 3.37 | .01870 | 5 30 | "0006213 DUR) Re 23 | July 21.5..) 3.6486 3.68 . 01852 | Bia - 0006807 Lipa Ulihis | . e 25 | July 19.5..| . 4.5431 4.72 | .01819 . 0008639 RELATION OF SIZE OF HEAD TO YIELD, HEIGHT, AND TILLERING OF PLANT. The size of the head has always been considered to be closely con- nected with the productiveness of wheat. The well-known work of Hallet in increasing the yielding qualities of wheat is perhaps the best example of wheat improvement by the selection of plants having large heads. Whether large heads or a large number of medium- sized heads on a plant are more desirable is still a question. Table 35 gives the yields, ete., of between 300 and 400 plants, tab- ulated according to the number of kernels on the head. Table 36 is a summary of these, while Tables 37 and 38 consist of the same data tabulated according to the yield per plant and yield per head, respectively. 112 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. It will be seen from Table 36 that the heads of slightly more than — medium size produced the largest yields of grain; that the weight of the average kernel did not increase with the size of the head, nor did it decrease except on the very largest heads; that the plants with somewhat more than average-sized heads were the tallest, and that the plants with medium-sized heads or slightly less tillered most largely. Table 37 shows that with an increased yield per plant there is a constant increase in the height and tillering of the plant. Table 38 indicates that the yield per head and yield per plant do not increase together, but that the largest yielding plants are those of medium yield per head. The same would seem to be true of the height and tillering of the plant. The weight of the average kernel increases quite uniformly with the yield per head. In considering these results it must be borne in mind that these plants were grown 6 inches apart each way, and were therefore not under the conditions that would obtain in a thickly drilled or broad- casted field, where lack of ability to tiller would be compensated for -by the larger number of plants. However, the variety of wheat yielding best in Nebraska is one having only a medium-sized or even small head, as compared with most wheats, but it is a strong- tillering variety. TaBLe 35.—Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant. SIZE OF HEAD, BELOW 16 KERNELS. [ede af Weight of Record num-| Size of | ae ad Yield er | average | Height ‘Tillering © | - r | . ber. head. | (grams). (grams). fae | (cm. ). 5 11 18 il 2 6 26 5 3 6 5 12 3 2 3 4 2 1 6.9 SIZE OF HEAD, 16 TO 20 KERNELS. PALO Sere 19.1 | 16.9987 0.4358 | 0.02285 S4 46 21205. 17.6 3642 . 3378 | . 01922 55 10 ||, 21805222 ssaee 16.4 6.2514 .3290 | 02004 | 65 21 21307 2-22. 17.9 2.5691 -d211 | -01796 | 53 10 PAWS eee Se 19.3 1.5420 -5140 | .02659 | 73 3 PA tr AL be ee eos 19.7 - 8478 - 2826 - 01437 59 6 ae r, . = _ “RELATION OF SIZE OF HEAD TO YIELD, ETC. 113 TaBLE 35.—Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant—Continued. SIZE OF HEAD, 16 TO 20 KERNELS—Continued. cay . . Weight of Record num- | Size of Se per | Yield per | ‘average | Height |miy.; ber. head. | 1 ay ( a) kernel (em.). | Tillering. | sr 3 sr ~ | (grams).. DIS iee: hoc. 1858) lan Ola 72 0.4709 0.02498 77 25 OTe a) 18.8 3.2787 . 3643 .01940 65 16 DNR ents | 16.8 1.9090 2727 01619 57 8 page= 8:|) - 1950 4.2376 .3531 . 01859 70 16 25909! =. =. 18.0 2.9999 - 3000 . 01667 50 10 OUR Steet | 19.9 4.3698 . 3972 - 01996 80 26 BeOG soon -2s: 18.0 . 3089 -3089 01716 43 2 STORE oa 7-5. 18.7 1.2069 .4023 02155 | 42 4 37906........ 19.0 . 2063 - 2063 . 01086 50 2 : ROR oe le 19.8 2.5134 .3591 01808 | 53 7 4 QUiIy/a ae ee | 19.0 . 3037 . 3037 01598 56 2 2 4 eG 3.0228 . 3359 01913 | 60 11 2 19.5 6. 7665 4511 02309 65 6 | en | 18.8 1.8494 .1699 | — .01967 68 6 MBS. = 2-2 18.3 1.1271 . 3757 02049 53 3 44606... ....- 17.7 2.5235 3605 02035 | 52 8 ARAN DR 5.2: 19.0 .9701 . 2425 01276 55 5 MOWGS. =... | 7125 4701 . 2350 01343 | 38 2 55905... .-.-. ) Tiga 5.7948 .3219 01751 | 75 34 55906.......- 19.2 7.9968 . 3076 01603 | 85 | 40 } RBIObE SS - >. 17.7 5.7431 . 3023 01709 70 | 35 i en 17.7 10.9073 4195 02361 | 84 | 42 Ti6Ny Sees 16.3 4.7117 2945 01801 | 67 | 17 BuTdeec.-=:. 17.4 3.7810 2701 | .01550 88 | 28 Wa5OS oe. =! 19.0 .8172 .2794 | —-.01434 50 | 4 hi ae ie 1980 7.3993 | . 4933 . 02578 86 | 20 Se aes PSR: 1.5355 . 3839 02075 69 4 pone 2+ | 19.0 3.6926 . 3357 .01767 73 15 99505........ Uy PaCS BUGGTH .2957 | .01706 68 12 95510... ..... 19.9 2. 8356 3544 | 01783 70 | 8 | Average - .| 18.4 3.7758 . 3383 | . 01862 ani aly Gee hy; | | SIZE OF HEAD, 20 TO 24 KERNELS. : ive 229m |= 3.6302 0.4538 0. 01984 61 125 5 MACs ears oi Dar 7a 1952088 . 4383 01852 7 24 | MISO 3. 21.5 | . 7720 . 3860 01795 | 78 4°) DNIOS! 2 22s. Ses 1.8517 .3703 01698 | 55 6 Wit ses 23.3 3.3138 .4734 .02033 | 61 7 POWs nee: 21.1 9.9070 .4718 02282 | 75 22 2 23.5 5.3229 .4839 | .02063 | 67 Bie 212. 23.6 2. 3066 4613 01955 | 60 Cn} Bion e a: =. - 21.0 1.7216 . 4304 02049 | 50 5 2h 22.6 4.1516 4152 | .01837 60 ll DIGI oo. . = 23.3 12. 3685 .4947 | 02125 90 24 2 20.5 9. 2850 4887 | —.02381 85 26 71: ra 20.9 8.0214 4011 01919 84 25 Digits 2.2: 21.0 | 11.9114 4412 | .02101 87 29 7) a 22.9 | 14.8139 .3445 | .01507 90 54 | 214) ee 22.6 | 2.9248 .4178 | . 01851 82 8 PN. kk 23.6 2. 6965 .2247 | 00953 80) 54 Zi 22.5 2.0737 5184 02304 60 9 | 2 21.7 2.7255 . 3894 .01793 56 12 | 2 21.8 17. 2324 5222 | — .02390 76 40 PN... 5: 20.7 3.3266 4158 | .02004 75 9 NTR. 23.8 3. 0850 - ,4407 . 1847 80 10 05 21.6 | 12.0399 4815 02183 Sd 38 7c ee iy) 2.1851 5463 .02512 65 6 SplUbes 2... 2. 22.0 | 2.5601 4267 .01939 65 12 eo 2 aos 23.4 8. 1268 .4515 - 01930 68 20 2 21.8 | 7.0889 . 5063 . 02271 67 18 BBONG So 05 - a) Si 22862 4572 01921 67 9 S808... ~ =... 22.3 | 8.4605 -4700 .02110 ‘a | 24 3 —— 2a) 5 7.2545 . 4267 . 01988 75 30 40405... ..... 23.0 | . 6316 .3158 .01373 54 3 ASOD 2... = 23.2 | 1.4464 . 3616 .01555 45 3 45605........ 20.3 | . 7081 . 2360 01161 55 6 45705.....--. 22.0 | _.7582 | —.8766 .01712 58 6 AST <= Sor. 21.0 | 11.6655 4023 01919 79 39 i as 23.6 | 12.0278 | . 6014 02543 8] 28 oo a 22.6 3. 2964 .2997 | .01324 68 13 Ce 23.3 1. 6036 .5345 | —.02296 63 7 114 TaBLE 35.—Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant—Continued. IMPROVING THE QUALITY-OF WHEAT. SIZE OF HEAD, 20 TO 24 KERNELS—Continued. See re Weight of ake num- oe ee tag os b54 dg Felewt Sigs ead. ‘ erne cm.). (grams). (grams). (grams). 48806.......- 21.0 9. 8346 0.3782 0.01798 78 55205... cies 20.0 . 6893 - 3446 . 01723 56 BHONGAe See 22.9 11.0930 - 5042 - 02205 92 DOUG T Pacey 21.4 19. 3966 . 5542 -02590 | 95 Bo08 2 23 3= oe 23.4 12.2210 - 5092 - 02175 95 D002 ee 21.5 9.2120 - 6580 - 03050 85 DO208 se a tenee 23.8 6. 5232 -4659 = 01959 82 56206 )..5,2 22-2 20.4 9.3093 -3724 - 01829 86 DO2US oases 22.5 13.5720 . 5429 - 02356 88 DO200 eee. ] 21.1 15. 8086 -3513 . 01664 90 GF (i aera ee 22.0 1.5364 . 3841 01746 73 pilosa oe 23.9 3.7263 . 2192 - 00916 85 DiSOD eee 22.8 8.5777 . 3899 - 01666 78 DSO ere Oe DA ler 7.9772 - 3989 - 01838 80 SOG toe oe ce 21.4 9. 8378 . 3644 - 01705 80 Dib] see ee 22:5 2.7616 - 3452 - - 01534 72 DION ec ose 23.9 6.9861 - 4657 - 01946 78 OY ts eae pe 2258 12.0728 - 7102 -03177 85 GSI05F ee 22.5 1.5452 - 3883 -01717 68 63106 <---> 23.6 3.3006 -4715 - 02001 a, Bator, es 21.9 9.3120 - 4901 - 02233 80 {PN eee age 21.7 1.1166 . 3722 -01718 52 W205 oS. wee ce 21.9 9.1522 - 5384 . 02191 68 S05" = es Zi Gwal 4.4222 - 4422 - 02047 60 (iL ee ec 20.5 9.2130 . 3839 - 01869 70 14000 Les oo 21.0 | 7.1181 . 3746 . 01784 69 74606...02 5-255 23.2} 9.6451 . 4822 . 02079 75 76205. = es 7, 8.4407 . 3670 01695 70 81405. 55 Use 21.8 4.5737 Sibi 21 9. SiT06t2 = 21.2 : Sti 23.8 W(t eae es 20.5 $4405 (2 5 23.8 §8607,.52o5552 23.4 O19052 a 22.0 91900). 2S a 22.2 906 E== EE 23.0 92305... Ss 22.9 92306 >a. 2 ee 23.1 92506 se ee 22.9 Q2507 sf eer 22.0 Average. 22.2 SIZE | | 2A-3 | 3. 9968 0.3997 | 0.01645 66 25.1 15. 6996 . 5414 - 02127 72 24.3 14. 8957 -4514 | - 01857 85 25.5 17.1115 . 5032 . 01974 77 24.8 2. 8564 -4761 -01917 62 25.3 5. 8080 -4149 - 01641 i4 26.9 19.3318 . 6444 . 02390 88 25.8 7.7296 . 5521 . 02141 8&5 24.2 17. 1820 -4773 | . 01968 85 24.9 14. 2450 .5935 | . 02378 91 25.7 | 19.7446 -4388 | . 01708 96 26.0 1. 0304 - 5152 - 01982 55 27.3 10. 1925 . 5662 . 02072 M4 Bled 6.0173 . 5470 - 02019 78 24.7 3.8811 . 4312 - 01748 64 25: 1 6.4102 - 4931 . 01966 66 24.0 3.9797 -4974 - 02073 62 26.2 16. 4061 - 4825 . 01841 87 24.3 5. 5666 - 5061 - 02085 80 24.7 10. 0005 - 5506 - 02252 85 25.0 1.3746 -4582 | - 01833 50 27.9 5.5324 -6137 | - 02287 78 27.5 1.0183 5091 | - 01851 50 24.5 6. 1026 4694 | 01919 7 25.0 3. 1346 .5224 | 53 par | 4.6045 4186 01627 72 25.7 1.1132 3711 01446 56 Tillering. RENNES wRonBRrSBSSiuGZEBRERR OR RELATION OF SIZE OF HEAD TO YIELD, ETC. 11S TaBLE 35.—Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant—Continued. tas SIZE OF HEAD, 24 TO 28 KERNELS—Continued. ; : Weight of | Record num- | Size of po la Boel eo average | Height | pinorj ber. head. foram) terns) kernel - | (cm.). | ~?-C™D8- 8 $ g 7 (grams). | cr an 27.4 7.0596 0. 6418 0.02345 65 14 eM nc 5 cas 27.3 8. 1890 - 5489 -02144 | 72 17 MGI 45,255). ree 2.8903 .5781 -02125 | 58 | 6 33 26.7 11. 1476 . 5867 . 02194 iia | 23 0 26.6 13.5556 5894 .02219 ff) 22 S77 eee 25.6 8.0905 -4495 01972 | 60 | 22 2S (ae 27.8 1. 8862 -4715 -01699 59 | 4 C5 %\) 24.4 4.0358 - 4484 . 01834 59 13 LSS 26.2 2.6571 - 4428 - 01692 58 | 7 Ct (eae 26.6 11.2890 | -4181 . 01572 82 | 53 2 ee ee 26.2 6.4302 - 5358 - 02048 74 19 io ee 27.4 1.9154 | - 3831 - 01398 70 | c A) 27.4 11. 2008 . 5091 - 01858 80 36 ReIO n= s5- 27.1 17.8506 | .5578 - 02062 95 58 77 (ee 24.9 14.4556 | . 3023 -01F58 90 | 49 RIO So =~ 27.8 10. 6261 - 4830 -01739 | 84 37 Sy (1 26.4 3.0790 - 6158 - 02333 78 8 See eames 21.3. 16. 4433 - 6090 . 02234 87 48 VC 24.3 8.6189 | -4788 -01968 | 83 38 : ip ae 24.7 1.3961 | . 2327 -00943 | 75 29 RN as So 25.5 2.3986 | - 3998 - 01568 64 7 Rite ss. cos 26.0 1.8018 | - 6005 . 02310 65 10 BaseDs> 5 =,-.5- 25.9 9.8298 | 4681 -01807 | 75 28 TS 26.5 11. 7066 BP Mend . 02008 77 35 Beret ere, 24.9 3.1555 4505 | . 01814 76 8 i 25.5 4.7116 -4712 | . 01847 66 13 Boss 2 oo 2 Wied 2.4420 - 6105 | . 02220 62 7 ho) a eee 27.9 12.0136 - 6007 - 02153 75 28 FLO ee eee Zl od 9.3629 ~ - 4681 . 01724 82 26 ye 26.9 3.4442 - 4920 | . 01832 74 8 2 27.8 2.6462 -4410 | - 01585 59 5 7 25.8 8.3406 .4390 | . 01699 76 31 Omer <7. 25.1. 15. 7835 . 5442 . 02165 70 33 i 24.0 1.2391 +4130 | - 01721 55 3 0 ee 24.7 9.1411 Spills - 02308 90 24 84906.......- Pasa 7.5438 5029. | -01975 65 16 | Se 26.7 3.4766 -4386 | - 01625 65 ll 2 AS eee 25.4 3.0282 . 3785 - 01495 68 4 Co 27.2 7.6241 -4765 - 01749 76 25 oa ee 25.3 9.9456 . 5234 . 02068 85 23 2) 24.7 9.8719 . 5196 - 02100 74 26 Bea .- 26.6 5.3069 | - 4824 -O1811 82 17 i222 26.5 5.2616. | -4047 | - 01525 TZ 18 WAND = 26.7 3.4856 | . 4294 - 01605 78 | 10 PANY oats oo 26.5 8983 | -4491 | - 01695 68 2 07 24.3 4.4673 | . 4964 . 02040 84 10 v2) ee 25-1. 7.5006 . 4688 -O1866 76 19 DANG: =o = 2 == 24.8 3.7828 . 2909 01175 71 19 Ji) ee 26.2 6.7664 | . 4229 01615 82 23 10 eee 27.2 12.1918 . 5301 - 01948 85 23 J 25.0 2.3678 . 4736 -01894 | 73 9 94909........ 24.2° 3.6977 . 2631 . 01096 72 9 ET 2a 25.9 11.0548 - 4806 -01852 | 86 25 Lite ae 26.0 12. 1592 - 5527 . 02029 90 22 95508... ..-.. 25.5 14. 4617 - 4987 -01954 | 97 31 Ur Oa 26.5 10.3426 | - 4309 | . 01626 80 31 PONE re ret, 2c 26.0 told | .3788 | . 01457 67 | 4 Average. 25.9 7.5207 - 4848 . 01874 73.8 21.2 SIZE. OF HEAD, 28 TO 32 KERNELS. PiaODses. 2-6 | 29.0 0.3885 0. 3885 0.01340 46 7 Ld ee | 31.0 2.2881 | . 7627 . 02460 55 6 2 / 4 Sy f 14. 6942 . 6679 02157 | 85 30 Ay. 28.7 5. 1594 -5159 . 01798 63 11 BI ccs... Hee (9027 1.4484 . 4828 01627 51 6 AA » 29.6 3.9143 - 4893 .01577 59 8 4) 29.3 | 20.9290 4983 . 01699 91 48 | MADOD o se ws - 2s 28.2 | 14.3111 -5111 -O01809 | 92 62 | OUD =o s0.0s2 | 31.4 10. 4800 . 8062 02563 88 27 2 / 28.8 3.5574 | . 5929 . 02056 92 9 7 | 30.9 12.1819 . 7166 02317 | 86 29 1) 29.5 8. 4593 -6597 | — 02209 90 23 116 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TaBLE 35.—Relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant—Continued. SIZE OF HEAD, 28 TO 32 KERNELS—Continued. : 2.3) Weight of Record num- | Size of | Yield per | Yield per | average | Height | mani’ plant head Tillering. ber. head. ; kernel (cm.). (grams). | (grams): (grams). VAN eae et 29.2 . 2.5712 0.5142 0.01720 70 9 222M 2 = een 28.0 11.5675 - 5784 - 02062 88 59 POLOTeeree ae 28.8 2.0390 - 4078 01416 67 6 73(0 eer eee 28.9 16. 4120 5471 01895 77 40 Pi2Q0G so ence 28.8 19. 1854 - 7106 - 02469 90 49 ZIB0GS sce sce 28.5 13.3011 - 5542 - 01945 88 48 BIBUSE | (grams). | (grams). (naan) | (cm.). 34.5 | 3.1454 0.7863 0.02279 70 8 34.3 1.4864 .4955 -01443 50 4 32.7 1.8242 4560 -01393 69 13 34.0 1.8276 6092 -01792 55 8 34.2 14. 4630 7232 -02111 75 30 © 34.5 4.1281 “6881 “01994 62 8 iS 35.0 6.1962 7745 102213 61 13 - 33.4 5.0200 |- .6275 “01880 58 7 32.2 21.5399 6731 “02089 82 40 33.0 | 1.4892 (7446 02251 60 2 33.5 | 1.2499 6249 01866 68 4 32.7 9.4585 5564 “01701 82 30 33.5 1.2716 6358 -O1898 60 3 4 34.5 15. 5835 6233 - 01804 75 32 : 33.7 17. 4226 6222 “01846 82 30 | 33.4 2.5160 . 5032 01507 75 12 | 33.1 9.5078 -7923 02395 79 28 33.3 10.9180 - 7279 . 02184 89 23 | ; 34.5 2.3931 “5983 “01734 77 7 " 33.5 | 22.5848 9034 02699 95 31 | : 33.6 3.3176 | 6635 “01975 90 9 | 33.7 2. 4923 6231 “01846 92 uu 35.0 12. 2004 27177 02047 90 26 35.1 93.1471 | .7014 -01999 78 51 | 35.0 5052 »5952 -01701 57 4 | 34.3 | 2.0430 | .6810 01984 70 7 | 35.5 8.4415 1.4069 03963 67 6 33.2 9.0386 7532 02270 78 12 | 34.7 14. 2986 “7944 -02291 74 3 | 34.2 4.9315 4483 -01312 69 13 34.5 1. 6362 -8181 02731 7 3 34.5 3.0940 7735 -02242 76 | 6 | 35.3 | 6.6206 6621 :01876 78 | 17 34.5 | 8.2366 “7488 .02168 81 | 17 . 35.0 | 5.7131 6348 “01814 81 | | : 35.2 | 2.7000 5400 101534 75 | 6 | 33.1 10. 1363 6335 “01916 86 | a1 | : 34.5 2.9475 7369 02136 74 | 4 | — | 34.1 7.2530 6868 02023 | 73.9 15.4 | ABB0BS 2.5 e = 65.0 0.9229 | 0.9229 | 0.01420 67 5 7k an 43.2 4.0258 | . 8051 01877 80 21 20 | 40.5 1.5940 .7970 01968 74 5 Shi oe 38.6 3.3004 .6601 | 01710 64 5 ae 38.8 3.6302 | .7260 | 01871 65 11 AOSO5E Soo 42.5 4. 1546 1.0386 | .02444 60 4 43405.....-.- 41.3 2. 8000 9333 | .02258 64 a) | J es ora 4.6146 .6592 | 01775 73 8 sees... | 44.0 4.3615 .7269 | .01652 80 7 ii 47.4 6. 1986 . 7748 01635 78 12 55508. ....... 36.0 | 3.7407 .6222 | 01732 73 12 yi 41.0 | . 8328 = 48328 .02031 73 1 3712) (7 38.6 | 4. 8988 . 6998 -O1814 76 17 BONS i... 3 36.8 2.4731 4122 | 01118 74 17 (ae 58.7 2.5436 . 6359 01082 68 1 SONS < 49.5 | 2.3031 5758 01355 66 13 59605.......- 38.2 |. 7.1828 ar Ae} S 01880 | 77 30 Ti 37.0 1.3451 4484 01212 | 70 14 CT 52.3 6.0090 .8584 | .01642 73 12 il 36.7 2.0970 . 6990 . 01906 62 5 AOU ms ss =e 37.6 8. 5373 7761 . 02062 78 20 $1505... ...... 48.7 2. 8327 9442 01940 78 7 Rangbee ns. . 37.0 .7130 .7130 01927 A7 4 92906.......- 36.2 2. 8816 5763 01592 75 7 WG 2 37.0 . 3146 3146 | . 00850 79 3 Average. 42.1 3.3723 .7148 -O1710 | 71.0 } 10.2 118 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. TABLE 36.—Summary of relation of size of head to yield, height, and tillering of plant. : . . Average < - | Weight of | eee acoe re Bis Number number oe Se i et average Height of plants. of kernels Be | kernel (cm.). head. on spike. (grams). (gram). | (gram) Below 16. 22225. 2.5 eee 18 | 13233: 1.3169 | 0.2654 0.02059 55.2 1G (tO AO = tee eel 36 18.4 | 3.7758 | *, 3383 . 01862 64.1 2060 PA ee 80- 22.2 | 6. 8466 | - 4355 - 01953 73.8 DE UO) 2832 sees cate Sees 84 25.9 7.5207 | - 4848 - 01874 73.8 28: GO'S2.8 BAe eres 73 30. 1- 7.4992 - 5998 - 01958 74.5 32 tO'Sb =" eas le a 38 34.1 | 7. 2530 | - 6868 - 02023 73.9 More than 36.............. 25| 42.1 71.0 | 3.3723 | .7148 -01710 TABLE 37.—Relation of yield of plant to height and tillering, and to the yield per head. | = | | a Classification according to yield per plant, in | Number SEE | Height Tillering Ya | - grams. of plants. | CESSES | (em.): | (gram, 31 | 0. 6050 56.5 | BHré 0. 3553 67 | 1. 7673 62.2 | 7.0 . 4740 87 3.5526 69.1 | ee -4917 93 7. 6485 75.4 | 22.1 - 5320 51 12. 2862 | 84.4 32.3 - 5592 20 17.1908 $4.6 42.9 - 5310 - More than 20 352 fa. 2 e ee atneeee eeee ee e aeie 5 | 23. 2829 85.2 43.2 - 6865 TABLE 38.--Relation of yield per head to yield, height, and tillering of plant, and to weight of average kernel. ; == Yield per Yield per Height | Weight of Classification according to yield Number eeaval | myo average pont plant 7 Tillering per head, in grams. of plants. (gram). (grams). (em. ) | (amee | = Below: 0:30006 22 2 ee eanee eee 80 0. 2484 1. 6939 60.8 | 11.4 0. 01586 0:30) to:\0:400) 2... 3 eee 62 . 3007 | 3. 7365 | 65.6 15.5 - 01737 0400) t0:0: 500s 8 eee 98 . 4524 6. 7326 72.8 19.9 - 01847 05500) t0\0!6002 207.2 oe ee 78 - 5477 9. 5646 © 76.6 ~ 21.8 - 02073 0:600 'to\0:700 49 - e 50 - 6372 7.6214 | 74.3 17.3 . 02056 0:700 to0'0: S002 ac% eae ee eee 25 - 7456 4.4523 © (ale 18.6 - 02179 More than'0!300=--3— a eee 12 . 9229 5. 7687 | (eey/ 10.3 - 02151 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS. As between wheat kernels of the same variety raised under similar conditions, those kernels having a high percentage of proteid mate- rial have a lower specific gravity, weigh slightly less, and occupy a smaller volume than kernels having a smaller percentage of proteids. As between individual spikes and individual plants, the same rela- tions obtain. As between individual plants in different years, these relations do not hold. The quality of high proteid content and its correlated properties may be due to immaturity in the kernel, or they may belong to the normal and fully ripened kernel. As between kernels, spikes, and plants, those kernels of greater weight contain a larger weight of proteids—this in spite of the fact that they contain a lower percentage. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS. ake Plants bearing the largest number of kernels have kernels of more than medium but not the greatest weight, as do also plants producing the greatest weight of kernels. The same is true of plants producing the greatest weight of proteid matter and gluten. Heavy seed wheat drilled at the rate of 14 bushels per acre pro- duced a much larger crop of seed the first year of the separation than did light seed drilled at the same rate, but by continuing the separa- tion of the respective crops and selecting heavy seed from the crop grown from heavy seed, and light seed from the crop grown from light seed, the difference in yield in three or four years was small. After the first year of separation the light seed produced a greater amount of proteids per acre than did the heavy seed. A determination of the total or of the proteid nitrogen content in the kernels on one row of spikelets of wheat affords a fairly close esti- mate of the same constituents in the kernels on the other row of spikelets. A determination of the total or of the proteid nitrogen content in the kernels on one-half of the spikes on a wheat plant will give a very good estimate of the same constituents in the kernels on the other spikes, provided there are at least an average number of spikes on the plant. . There may be quite a large variation in the proteid nitrogen con- tent of different spikes on the same wheat plant. Determinations of the proteid nitrogen content of 800 spikes of wheat of the same variety representing different plants showed a variation of from 1.12 to 4.95 per cent of proteid nitrogen, and 351 plants of the same variety the following year varied from 1.20 to 5.85 per cent. The proportion of gluten to proteids in kernels of different wheat plants may vary considerably. A determination of proteid nitrogen is therefore not always a guide to the gluten content of the wheat. Selection for improvement should be based on the determination of gluten. Wheat plants having kernels high in gluten contain a smaller pro- portion of other proteids than do plants of medium or low gluten content. In wheat of the same variety, raised in the same field in the same year, the ratio of gliadin to glutenin was practically the same in plants of low, medium, and high proteid nitrogen content. It may therefore be assumed that an increase in the gluten con- tent of a given variety of wheat raised in the same region would carry with it a corresponding improvement in its value for bread making, although there might be fluctuations from year to year in the quality of the gluten. 120 IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF WHEAT. The content of proteid nitrogen, the kernel weight, and the tot: proteid nitrogen production by the wheat plant are hereditary quali- ties. FS There is a tendency for plants possessing any of these qualities in an extreme degree to produce progeny in which the same qualities approach more closely to the average, but certain exceptional plants may transmit the same or more extreme qualities. The yield of grain per plant after a severe winter was decreased in proportion to the susceptibility of the plant to cold. The effect of the cold caused the plant to produce a less number of heads, or, in other words, to tiller less. The early-maturing plants yielded the most grain, and those ripen- ing later produced in each case less when grouped into ripening ~ periods of four days, extending through more than three weeks’ time. The early-maturing plants produced grain of slightly lower nitro- _ gen content than the later maturing plants, and the number of grams of proteid nitrogen in the average kernel was likewise less in the early-maturing plants. Plants with heads of slightly more than medium size produced the largest yields of grain, and were taller than plants with either larger or smaller heads. Plants with heads of medium size, or slightly ae tillered most extensively. The weight of the average kernel did not increase with the size of the head, nor did it eee except on the very largest heads. The largest yielding plants were the tallest and tillered most. O U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY—BULLETIN NO. 79. B. T. GALLOWAY, Chief of Bureau. THE VARIABILITY OF WHEAT VARIETIES IN RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. L: i HAREER. ScrenTIFIC ASSISTANT, LABORATORY OF PLANT BREEDING. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. IssuED JuLy 27, 1905. WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1905. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. B. T. GALLOWAY, : Pathologist and Physiologist, and Chief of Bureau. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. Apert F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge, Acting Chief of Bureau in . Absence of Chief. BOTANICAL INVESTIGATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. FREDERICK V. COVILLE, Botanist in Charge. GRASS AND FORAGE PLANT INVESTIGATIONS. W. J. SprtuMAN, Agrostologist in Charge. POMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. G. B. Brackett, Pomologist in Charge. SEED AND PLANT INTRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION. A. J. Pierers, Botanist in Charge. ARLINGTON EXPERIMENTAL FARM. L. C. Corpetrr, Horticulturist in Charge. EXPERIMENTAL GARDENS AND GROUNDS. E. M. Byrnes, Superintendent. J. E. ROCKWELL, Editor. JAMES E. JONES, Chief Clerk. VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS. SCIENTIFIC STAFF. ALBERT F. Woops, Pathologist and Physiologist in Charge. ERwin F. Smiru, Pathologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Pathology. GEORGE T. Moore, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Physiology. HERBERT J. WEBBER, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Breeding. Water T. SWINGLE, Physiologist in Charge of Laboratory of Plant Life History. Newton B. Prerce, Pathologist in Charge of Pacific Coast Laboratory. M. B. WaIteE, Pathologist in Charge of Investigations of Diseases of Orchard Fruits. Mark ALFRED CARLETON, Cereaiist in Charge of Cereal Investigations. HERMANN VON SCHRENK, in Charge of Mississippi Valley Laboratory. P. H. Rours, Pathologist in Charge of Subtropical Laboratory. C. O. TOWNSEND, Pathologist in Charge of Sugar Beet Investigations. P. H. Dorsett,® Pathologist. . T. H. KEARNEY, Physiologist, Plant Breeding. CorNELIUS L. SHEAR, Pathologist. WILLIAM A. OrTON, Pathologist. W. M. Scorr, Pathologist. JosepH S. CHAMBERLAIN,® Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. Ernst A. Besspy, Pathologist. FLora W. PATTERSON, Mycologist. Cuarutes P. Hartruey, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. Kart F. KELLERMAN, Assistant in Physiology. DEANE B. SWINGLE, Assistant in Pathology. Jesse B. Norron, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Breeding. JamMps B. Rorer, Assistant in Pathology. Luoyp S. Tenny, Assistant in Pathology. Grorcr G. Hepecock, Assistant in Pathology. PERLEY SPAULDING, Scientifie Assistant. - Pr. J. O'Gara, Scientific Assistant, Plant Pathology. A. D. SHAMEL, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. T. RALPH RoBINSON, Assistant in Physiology. FLORENCE HeEpaeEs, Scientific Assistant, Bacteriology. CHARLES J. BrANnb, Assistant in Physiology, Plant Life History. Henry A. Miuuer, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. Ernest B. Brown, Scientific Assistant, Plant Breeding. Losuip A. Frivz, Scientific Assistant, Cereal Investigations. LronarD L. Harrer, Scientific Assistant, Plani Breeding. Joun O. MEeRwIN, Scientific Assistant, Plant Physiology. W. W. Cosey, Tobacco Fxrpert. . JOHN VAN LEENHOFF, Jr., Parpert. J. Arruur Le Cuierc,e¢ Physiological Chemist, Cereal Investigations. T. D. BeckxwitH, Papert, Plant Physiology. «}etailed to Seed and Plant Introduction and Distribution. » Detailed to Bureau of Chemistry. ¢ Detailed from Bureau of Chemistry. bo LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. U. S. DerarTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, Bureau or Puant Inpustry, OFFICE OF THE CHIEF, Washington, D. C., May 1, 1905. Sir: I have the henor to transmit herewith a technical paper entitled * The Variability of Wheat Varieties in Resistance to Toxic Salts,” and to recommend that it be published as Bulletin No. 79 of the series of this Bureau. This paper was prepared by Mr. L. L. Harter, Scientific Assistant in the Laboratory of Plant Breeding, Vegetable Pathological and Physiological Investigations, and was submitted by the Pathologist and Physiologist with a view to publication. The subject-matter of the bulletin will be of interest to experimenters who are working on the problems of securmg alkali-resistant strains of agricultural crops. Respectfully, B. T. GaLtoway, Chief of Bureau. Hon. James WILson, Secretary of Agriculture. oo felon The main object of the acc companying paper is to prove that differ- ent varieties of a single species behave differently in the presence of the harmful salts that are present in the so-called alkali soils of the western United States. The work has been done with varieties of wheat on account of the great importance of that crop in the region indicated and because, being grown under a great diversity of conditions as regards climate and soil, wheat varieties would be: expected to differ much among themselves in their power to with- stand the effect of excessive amounts of salts in the soil, just as they differ widely in their capability of withstanding drought, cold, and parasites. The experiments were made with young seedlings, their roots being exposed for periods of twenty-four hours to the action of pure solu- tions of the salts used, the greatest strength of solution in which the root tips could survive being taken as representing the limit of endurance of each variety to each salt. The salts used were the car- bonate, bicarbonate, sulphate, and chlorid of sodium, and the sul- phate and chlorid of magnesium. These are salts that are generally present -in the largest quantity in alkali soils. Nine varieties of wheat, both from the Old World and the New, representing widely different climates and soils, were compared. It was found that the varieties differed greatly in their ability to withstand the poisonous action of the salts used. This was more strikingly brought out in the case of some salts than of others. To magnesium sulphate, for example, some varieties are three times as resistant as are others. Tables are given in the following paper showing the limit of concentration of each of the nine varieties for each of the six salts. It was also clearly:demonstrated that the dif- ferent individuals of each variety differ much in resistance, and the limits of the varieties as established are only the means of the limits for all the indivicluals tested. Analyses of the ash of each lot of seed used were obtained from the Bureau of Chemistry, but no correla- tion could be shown between ash composition and resistance to action of toxic salts. On the other hand, it was clearly demonstrated that 6 PREFACE. with few exceptions the varieties that have originated in arid regions, where the soils are usually more saline than in humid regions, are those that are most resistant to pure solutions of sodium and magne- sium salts. Three varieties of southeastern Russia, with one excep- tion, were found to be the most resistant of all those tested. It is believed that the laboratory work upon which this paper is based has a direct practical bearing, as it gives us an indication of — what varieties are most likely to succeed in arid regions where the soils are more or less salty. Furthermore, as some one salt—e. g., sodium chlorid—sometimes strongly .predominates in the soils of a particular region, and as these experiments show clearly that, while one variety may be more resistant than another to sodium chlorid, the second is often more resistant than the first to sodium’ carbonate or to magnesium sulphate, we can thus obtain information as to which of the many varieties of a great crop can be sown with the best chance of success upon a given type of alkali soil. In other words, a few weeks of simple laboratory experiment may save years of costly trial in the field, although, of course, the water-culture exper- iments can not be considered as giving more than an indication of what we can expect each variety to do, and the final test must be the growing of the crop upon a practical scale. The great individual variability in resistance brought out in these experiments shows that not merely have we found a guide as to which of existing varieties are best adapted to different types of saline soils, but that there is an excellent opportunity for increasing their resistance by selecting seed from the most resistant individuals. The present investigation affords further evidence that it is practi- cable to apply plant-breeding methods to the “ alkali problem ” and adapt crops by selection to the unfavorable conditions presented by soils that contain excessive amounts of soluble salts. A. F. Woops, Pathologist and Phystologist. OrricE oF VEGETABLE PATHOLOGICAL AND PrysroLoGicaL INVESTIGATIONS, Washington, D. C., April 26, 1905. : PGP ENT S.. ie ES aS a8 Chat... .- Ree Fe Py 3S ets 55 AS Sea iy Ee ee ae aap ens, 8 ae 2 Se es RM RSS 6 fof nS eae = arise Fe et selec 2 ee eee Wen eRHIELITEE NUS = 220 8) sek 8 te eee lle. Meniodsomestapiuishine the toxic limits _._.......--.....---.1--.------+.-- EE SS ee ee Sabet ne cium Stiphate) =) 952 = ee oe en eee NEM CMR TU CEIG ee ee oe Le Das ee UUs Zh LERETED, CON! 0 OPT GTC AN OS a Ss Se DUEUEMEINESLTIMMIALG = 9-2 Lets - ---- -- -s-- --- ese ee = EF CLEES IB al gs 0 re EMITEMCTNOTIG 94) Sans ee ee et oe re en ee ARIE SER SS SS ee ee Comparison.of results with different species __-..----------.-------------- PRRHAMUIYSOS == eee IT oS os eee Individual variability . swatn ste eltinl a = ee ae ae Neutralizing effect of the salts ee ed upon other toxic substances - #eiate solntions as stimulants -__.....__...-------- : US 5 8 cel ToS VEre OEP GRIST S| eee ee Se Lc 2 ee BAIN EU UNGG i)" Onis ee Ee ere B. P. I.—159. Vo, PY PL is THE VARIABILITY. OF WHEAT VARIETIES IN RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. INTRODUCTION. It has been shown quite conclusively in recent years that different species and genera differ very much in their ability to resist the influ- ence of toxic salt solutions. Numerous investigations of the action of acids and salts upon plants have been made, especially during the last four or five years. Investigations of this nature are not only of great scientific interest, but promise in some cases to be of consider- able practical importance. One phase of this subject which is espe- cially interesting from this latter point of view is that of the relation of plants, particularly cultivated plants, to the components of the saline or alkaline soils that are so common in the arid part of the United States and of many other parts of the world. A preliminary investigation of this phase of the subject was made by Messrs. Kearney and Cameron,* who showed by a large number of experiments on Lupinus albus and Medicago sativa that the death limit of the root tips was very different for different salts. For instance, the limit for Lupinus albus in sodium chlorid was found to be 0.02 of a normal solution, and in magnesium sulphate 0.00125. For Medicago sativa, in mixed solutions containing an excess of two calcium salts, the limit was 0.35 in magnesium sulphate and 0.20 in sodium chlorid.’ Much work has been done in comparing different botanical species as to their resistance to the effect of salt solutions,’ but the compara- @ Report No. 71, U. 8S. Dept. of Agriculture (1902). + Messrs. Kahlenberg and True, who have done considerable work along this line, particularly with salts and acids, give some very interesting results. They found (On the Toxic Action of Dissolved Salts and-Their Electrolytic Dissocia- tion, Bot. Gaz., 22:81, 1896) that Lupinus albus would just survive in x;h55 gram mol. per liter of copper salts. They found the same limits with ferrous sulphate (FeSO,), nickel sulphate (NiSO,), and cobalt sulphate (CoSO,), but for mercuric chlorid (IMgCl.) j;5)55, and mercuric cyanid (MHgCn,) only to2x07 Stam. 5 ¢ The experiments of Heald (On the Toxic Effect of Dilute Solutions of Acids and Salts upon Plants, Bot. Gaz., 22: 125, 1896), and later those of Moore and Kellerman, are among the most interesting in this connection. Heald, in a series of experiments resembling those of Kahlenberg and True, obtained some valuable results with Cucurbita pepo, Zea mays, and Pisum sati- 30012—No. 79—05 M 2 9 10 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. tive resistance of different varieties, or races, of a single species has received little attention.? During the autumn of 1903, and again in 1904, the writer had occa- sion to repeat, at the Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C.. the experiments previously conducted by Kearney and Cameron with cum. We found the limit of Piswn sativum to be ~;455 gram mol. per liter for copper sulphate (CuSO,) as the strength which will barely permit the roots to live, and that for Zea mays to be 55155. Ue obtained results with various salts, but this will suffice to show the variability between plants widely sep- arated in relationship. Moore and Kellerman (A Method of Destroying or Preventing the Growth of Algze and Certain Pathogenic Bacteria in Water Supplies, Bul. 64, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. 8S. Department of Agriculture, 1904) say : In dealing with algze the toxic concentration varies greatly for different gen- era, even for different species of the same genus. Niigeli demonstrated the extreme sensitiveness of Spirogyra nitida and SN. dubia to the presence of copper coins in the water. Oscillatoria, Cladophora, Gidogoniiwn, and the diatoms succumb in six hours to a copper-sulphate solution of 1 to 20,000 and in two te days to 1 to 50,000 according to Bokorny. * * * According to Ono, weak solutions of the salts of most of the metals encourage the growth of algee and fungi. Mercury and copper, however, at 0.06005 per cent and 0.00001 per cent, respectively, distinctly inhibit growth. This was the case with Stigeoclonium, Chroococcus, and Protococcus. Moore and Kellerman have obtained results with algee which serve very well to illustrate the variability of these organisms in the presence of the toxic cop- per sulphate. They found that with this salt 1 to 25,000, 1 to 75,000, and 1 to 100,000 were sufficient to kill Raphidiiun polymorphum in four days, Desmidiun swartzii in three days, and Navicula sp. in five days, respectively. One part of salt to 300,000 of water and 1 to 1,000,000 were fatal to Conferva bombycinum in three days and Synura wevella in a few minutes. Closterium moniliferum was killed in four days in a 1 to 500,000 solution, and Anabaena flos-aque in a 1 to %.000,000 solution in seventy-two hours. The most sensitive of ali was Uroglena americana, practically all of which were killed in a 1 to 10,000,000 selution in sixteen hours. aj. F. Breazeale informs the writer that in water-culture experiments in the laboratory of the Bureau of Soils, United States Department of Agriculture, he has found a very wide variation in the development of seedlings of different varieties of wheat when grown in the same artificial nutrient solutions and also aqueous extracts of soil, and W. TH. Heileman, in the same laboratory, has shown very similar results to those presented in this investigation when using different varieties of wheat in pot eultures of natural and artificial alkali soils. It has also been shown that the vigor and rate of germination of seeds of different varieties are very different when previously soaked in any given solution of an electrolyte. Cameron and Breazeale (The Toxic Action of Acids and Salts on Seedlings, Journal Phys. Chem., vol. 8, No. 1, p. 1, Jan., 1904) have shown a wide yaria- tion in the toxie action of different salts and acids on seedlings of plants widely separated in relationship. From certain points of view, especially as bearing on current chemical theo- ries, the paper of Dandeno (American Journal of Science, Vol. XVII, June, 1904) in this field is especially interesting, but a direct comparison of results in toxie salt solutions can not be made, owing to the fact that seedlings of differ- ent plants have been used. VARIETIES SELECTED. 1 Lupinus albus. Although the order of toxicity of the various salts remained the same in the three series of experiments, quite different Jimits of endurance were obtained, those in the first series made by the writer being much higher than those obtained by Kearney and Cameron and by the writer in his second series. The idea was at once suggested by these results that while possibly the second lot of seed may have differed only in being younger or otherwise more vigorous it was also possible that different varieties or even merely strains from different sources of the same species might differ con- siderably in their power to resist toxic salt solutions. It was there- fore with a view of determining whether or not this was true that the series of experiments which forms the subject of this paper was undertaken with different varieties of wheat. Attention should be directed at the outset to an important condi- tion under which this work was carried on. Most of the work of this kind has been conducted with comparatively few seedlings. But individual variation in resistance is well known to be exceedingly great, and enough seedlings must be tested to eliminate all such differ- ences. The average of the resistances of a large number of seedlings ‘must be ascertained. The writer has in every case used from 50 to 100 seedlings, and more in some cases, the number tested being con- sidered sufficiently large to eliminate individual variation and give fairly consistent results. The total number of seeds experimented with aggregated nearly 5,000. The work, the results of which are shown in this paper, was taken up at the suggestion of Mr. Thomas H. Kearney, Physiologist, of the Laboratory of Plant Breeding of the Department of Agriculture. SALTS USED. It was decided to employ the same salts used by Kearney and Cameron in their work with Lupinus albus, i. e., sodium chlorid (NaCl), sodium sulphate (Na.SO,), sodium carbonate (Na,CO,), sodium bicarbonate (Nal1CO,), magnesium sulphate (MgSO,), and magnesium chlorid (MgCl.). A basis for direct comparison is thus obtained. It was thought best to use these salts, also, because of their common occurrence in saline soils, and their tendency, in a greater or less degree, to inhibit vegetable growth. VARIETIES SELECTED. The selection of the varieties of wheat to be used in this work has not been an easy matter, there being a number of details to consider in making the choice. To prove whether there is a difference in the power of different varieties of the same species to resist the action of toxic salt solutions it was decided to use varieties representing very 19 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. different conditions of climate and soil, and selections were made, with the aid of Mr. M. A. Carleton, Cerealist of the Bureau of Plant Industry, with this end in view. All conditions under which wheat is grown are not, of course, represented. Wheat is raised in nearly every portion of the temperate zone and under as diverse conditions of soil and climate as could well be imagined. An attempt has been made, however, to obtain varieties representative of the regions presenting the greatest contrast in these respects. Cerealists have discovered that wheats well adapted to a humid region will not thrive in an arid or semiarid region, nor will varieties that are best adapted to the latter conditions thrive in a humid environment. Varieties representing each of these different climatic types were used in the experiments. Unquestionably the soils of the various regions from which the seeds were obtained differed chemically to a great extent, but in most cases data as to soil composition were not obtainable. The influence of climatic and soil factors is complicated by the fact that seeds are often transferred from one region to another. For example, a certain variety might have been grown for a number of years in strongly saline soil to which it has become thoroughly adapted, and then transferred to a semiarid region and a soil con- taining less salt. Were the seed procured from the new region soon after the transfer, while the variety was not yet adapted to the new conditions, probably it would still show the high degree of resistance acquired under the former conditions. In some cases it was possible to learn the exact history, for several generations, of the seed used, but in others it was impossible to obtain such definite information. To meet the conditions of the experiments it was thought advisable to select varieties from regions widely separated geographically. Therefore, one variety from Africa, two from Europe, one from Asia, and six from America were obtained. Two of the varieties are durum wheats and consequently of a different species; the rest are soft grained. The following descriptions of the individual varieties will render more intelligible the conditions under which they grew originally: PRESTON. The variety of wheat known as Preston (Triticum vulgare) is a hybrid, produced by Dr. William Saunders, of the agricultural ex- periment station at Ottawa, Canada. In the spring of 1888 Doctor Saunders crossed the varieties Red Fife and Ladoga, obtaining a new sort, which was called Preston. Red Fife was taken as the male and Ladoga as the female parent. The progeny, he says, resembles some- what both parents. The grain is very much like Red Fife. Both the parent varieties are well established in that part of Canada and were VARIETIES SELECTED. 13 grown there with great success for many years previous to the origin of this hybrid. Preston has proved to be a better variety than either of its parents, both in yield and in range of adaptability. The region in which its parent varieties grow is very humid. Doctor Saunders claims that Preston ripens its grain from three to four days earlier than either of its parents. In view of this fact it is reasonable to con- clude that it is better adapted to regions having diminished rainfall during the latter part of the season, and experience has justified the conclusion. Preston has given the best results of all the spring wheats introduced into the Northwest. It is to-day grown success- fully in the southern part of Canada and in a part of the United States that includes North Dakota, eastern Montana, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.¢ TURKEY. Turkey wheat (77iticuwm vulgare) is considered the hardiest vari- ety grown at the present time in the United States. It is a bearded sort, with white chaff, small head, and red grain. It is especially well adapted to semiarid regions, as is readily seen from the region in which it is grown. This variety was introduced into Kansas about twenty-five years ago. For a while it was confined to a small district of that State, but during the past twelve or fifteen years its excellent quality has become generally known, and consequently it is grown on a much larger area. It came originally from Crimea and other portions of Taurida, in southern Russia. That country does not differ greatly from the section of the United States in which the variety- has given such good results. Though it is not a variety giving unusually heavy yields, it is well adapted to resist droughts and may be depended upon for a greater average yield than any other variety grown in Kansas. It ripens rather early, and thus escapes the excessive droughts which frequently prevail during the latter part of the wheat season in that district. It is especially adapted to the Great Plains region, including, roughly, Kansas, Oklahoma, southern Nebraska, southern Iowa, northern Texas, and portions of Missouri and Arkansas.” . ZIMMERMAN. The variety known as Zimmerman (7riticum vulgare) is grown to some extent in the same region as the one just described. How- ever, it has a number of essential points of difference and some char- a—Dr. William Saunders, Cereals and Root Crops, Ottawa, Canada, 1902. b Carleton, M. A., Basis for the Improvement of American Wheats. Bul. 24, Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, U. 8. Department of Agricul- ture, 1900, 14 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. acteristics that make it preferable for the experiments described here. As a whole, it is inferior to the Turkey wheat, being less resistant to drought, and it is grown principally in regions which have a greater annual rainfall. Zimmerman wheat has two good qualities to rec- ommend it—it is beardless and ripens from four days to a week ear- lier than other varieties in the same locality. It is a fairly hardy sort, and is as resistant as the average variety to the cold of severe winters. It is best adapted for cultivation in southern Kansas, Oklahoma, northern Texas, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkan- sas, and farther southward. This region has a much larger annual rainfall than the one inhabited by the Turkey variety, with the exception of the States in common—Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. KHARKOF. The seed used of the Kharkof variety of wheat (77iticum vulgare) was obtained by the United States- Department of Agriculture from the Agricultural Society of Kharkof, Russia, in the Starobielskk district. Kharkof is in the southern part of Russia, about 500 miles north of the Black Sea and about 350 miles west of the Voiga River. The winters are very dry and at no season of the year is the rainfall great. Kharkof is a red-bearded, hardy winter wheat. The seed was obtained from the ‘crop grown in Russia during the season of 1902. PADUI. Seed of the Padui variety (77iticum vulgare) was obtained from Saratof, in eastern Russia. Saratof is located on the Volga River, about 400 miles from its outlet into the Caspian Sea. Padui is a soft or semihard winter wheat, and is adapted to all northern winter- wheat States from New York to Kansas and southward to the thirty- fifth parailel. The seed with which these tests have been made was imported directly from Russia. Padui is very resistant to drought, the rainfall in the region where it is grown falling as low as 12 to 15 inches per annum. This variety is cultivated to some extent in the same region as Kubanka (described later), and, therefore, is sub- jected to the same climate and probably to the same soil conditions. CHUL. Dr. EK. A. Bessey deseribes the conditions under which the Chul variety (Zriticum vulgare) is grown in Turkestan and in the south- ern part of central Asia, about Samarkand. It is found more or less in this whole steppe region, from which it derives its name, Chul meaning steppes. It isa hard grain and grows without irri- gation, yields two harvests, and can be sown as either winter or '- P VARIETIES SELECTED. 15 spring wheat. The seed for these experiments was obtained by Doctor Bessey for the Department of Agriculture from its native country, being taken from the crop of 1902. BUDAPEST. The variety known as Budapest (7riticum vulgare) is one of the hard winter wheats imported originally from Hungary. It is now grown in Michigan and adjoining States with great success. Of all the varieties imported from Hungary, Budapest has proved the best. It is well suited for cultivation in the North Central States, including Michigan, Lllinois, Indiana, Ohio, western New York, Kentucky, and perhaps farther south. It is a bearded wheat, with white chaff and red, medium hard grain. It is a success only in regions with a fairly large rainfall. KUBANKA. The two varieties of durum wheat (77iticum durum), Kubanka and Maraouani, were selected outside of the species vu/gare in order to find types grown under extremely arid conditions. The seed of Kubanka was obtained originally from Russia. The seed used was of the fourth generation grown in the United States and should show something of the effect of soil and ‘climatic conditions here, provided these differ essentially from those of the country where it criginated. Four years is doubtless sufficient time to acclimatize the variety fairly well. Kubanka is grown in an extensive area of eastern Europe and western Asia, especially along the Volga River. The best Kubanka is found east of the Volga, on the border of the Kirghiz Steppe. It is about the only variety found along the Sibe- rian border, where it is impossible to grow any ordinary sort because of drought, and is grown extensively by the Turgai-and Kirghiz people. The rainfall over this whole region often does not exceed 10 inches per annum. The Kubanka variety matures very quickly, an absolute necessity in a region where the rainfall is very slight and often confined to a small part of the year. Because it is drought- resistant and matures early it is now being grown throughout the Volga territory from Kazan to the Caspian Sea and east to the Kirghiz Steppe and Turkestan. It is a macaroni wheat, and takes its name from Kuban territory. In this country it is best adapted for the northern plains region as far south as Kansas. There is little doubt that the varieties Kubanka and Padui, in some regions at least, grow on soil containing considerable salt. Both varieties have become well adapted to the region just north of the Caspian Sea along the Volga River. Here salt abounds in great quantities. West of the Volga and about 100 miles from the Caspian 16 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. Sea is a great salt marsh covering a considerable area. On the other side of the river, for a couple of hundred miles along its course, there are both salt marshes and lakes. The great Khaki salt marsh along the borders of the Kirghiz Steppe covers several hundred square miles. Northward and westward from this marsh there is a series of small salt lakes, the largest of which is Elton Salt Lake. It would naturally be expected that in a region with such extensive salt marshes and lakes the arable soil would likewise contain a large proportion of salt. MARAOUANI. The Maraouani variety of durum winter wheat (77iticum durum) has been grown in northern Africa probably for centuries. As far as can be ascertained, it originated there and has long been one of the most valuable sorts of that country. The seed used in these experi- ments came directly from the Chéliff Valley, an arid region with very little rainfall, in the western part of Algeria. The wheat land there is cultivated for the most part without irrigation. The soil is largely a heavy clay loam, and probably contains in nearly all see- tions a more or less excessive amount of readily soluble salts. Mara- ouani is very hardy, is resistant to rusts, and has the reputation of being the best of the durum wheats now grown in that region. In the Department of Oran it is most successful when sown in Novem- ber; it then matures about June. It is thought by expert cerealists that this variety would succeed well in the spring-wheat regions of the northern United States and as a winter wheat in the Southwest. METHODS OF EXPERIMENTS. Wheat seeds are small compared with lupines, beans, peas, ete., with which most of the work of other experimenters has been done. The rootlets of the wheat seedlings are so small that at first it was feared that some difficulty would be experienced in marking off the rapidly growing zone with india ink, the readiest method for accu- rate determination of the death point. In view of this difficulty the work was begun without marking. It required but a few trials, how- ever, to prove that it would be practically impossible to obtain satis- factory results in such a way. Wheat rootlets have a hard stirface and do not become flaccid in salt solutions unless these are of a con-_ centration much beyond the toxic limit, in which case the roots be- come yellow and the cells somewhat broken down. However, one or two attempts at marking showed that with a little practice and care this could be effected without inflicting any injury. By ruptur- ing the epidermis very slightly a sufficiently conspicuous mark, which will last forty-eight to seventy-two heurs, can be made without injury to the roots. METHODS OF EXPERIMENTS. sy’ The seeds were put in sphagnum moss finely broken up and kept sufficiently moist to preclude lateral branching or superfluous devel- opment of root hairs. They germinate readily in about forty-eight to seventy-two hours at an ordinary room temperature. The rootlets and leaves make their appearance almost at the same time, The number of roots varies with the variety, but is usually from three to seven. Three is the average number, five is rather common, and seven not very rare. Only one root of each seedling was marked. The initial or central one was always preferred when otherwise fit for the purpose. However, it was found after a large number of tests that the central one was most likely to become deformed while in the sphagnum moss, the tips becoming enlarged and blunt, in which case the root soon ceases to grow. When this happened side roots were preferred for marking. Rootlets which are smooth and uniform in thickness, with a rather sharp point, are most vigorous and give best results. Only experience in this work can teach one which of several roots is preferable for marking. The seeds were taken from the moss, marked, and transferred quickly to the solution. Care was taken in every way possible to avoid change of conditions during the process of making. These details will be discussed more fully in another part of this paper. The solutions during the period of perenne were kept in the best nonsoluble beakers that could be obtained, each being large enough to hold about 300 c. c. After the solutions had been used once or twice“ the glassware was thoroughly rinsed in distilled water before being used for the next test. Nearly every other day the beakers were thoroughly sterilized by boiling in distilled water. The beaker used is about 64 cm. wide at the mouth, and was closed by a tight- fitting cork about 1 cm. in thickness. Each cork was perforated, and into the holes five small glass rods were inserted, bent at one end, and drawn to a sharp point. The rods were inserted with their hooked points on the inner side of the cork, and upon each a single seed was placed. The rods, as well as the corks, fit tightly and thus prevent any important amount of evaporation from the solution. They are free enough, however, to permit of the rods being raised or lowered in or out of the solution as occasion may demand. In no case were the glass rods allowed to come in contact with the solution. Normal solutions, made with Merck’s best chemically pure salts, were prepared under the supervision of Dr. F. K. Cameron, of the Bureau of Soils of the Department of Agriculture. From the nor- a Careful titration showed no appreciable change in the concentration of the solution after several seedlings had been kept in it for twenty-four hours, or even when the same volume was used during a second period of twenty-four hours. 30012—No. 79—05 3 18 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. mal solutions stock solutions were made up by dilution, and were kept for use as required. The solutions actually used in the experi- ments were made from the stock solutions by diluting with distilled water. It might seem at first that two successive dilutions would permit of an error. This, however, has been avoided in the case of chlorids and carbonates by titrating each stock solution before using. The concentration of the solutions of sulphates was fre- quently verified by analysis in the Bureau of Soils. Sodium car- bonate and sodium bicarbonate were both titrated against N/20 hydrogen potassium sulphate, using methyl orange as an indicator. In the case of the bicarbonate solutions it was necessary to charge them with an excess of carbon dioxid to prevent their becoming alkaline. The nonalkalinity of the bicarbonate solutions was often tested by the addition of a drop of alcoholic phenolphthalein, which would indicate the presence of alkalis by forming the well-known red color. Sodium chlorid and magnesium chlorid were titrated against N/10 of silver nitrate. Whenever, upon titration, any stock solu- tion was found to be either too dilute or too concentrated, it was cor- rected by the addition of more of the normal solution or by further dilution with distilled water. The water used in these experiments was distilled in the Laboratory of Plant Pathology, and near the close of the work was found by analysis in the Bureau of Chemistry to contain some slight amount of a toxic substance. That this was for all practical purposes neutralized and played no part in the toxic action of the solutions used is demonstrated in the fuller dis- cussion of this point on page 39 of this paper. All seeds for these experiments were germinated in sphagnum moss. After being finely broken up the moss was placed in a bucket and kept sufficiently moist for seed germination. It was found that the seedlings were injured if kept too moist, the roots showing an en- largement at the apex, developing into a very blunt tip, and when affected in this way they usually stopped growing and new roots were put forth. The initial radicle was more easily affected in this way. Only seedlings having healthy and vigorous rootlets were used in the experiments. The seeds were first soaked in hydrant water from four to six hours before being placed in the sphagnum moss. After about three days in the temperature of an ordinary room they were ready for use. They were most easily manipulated when the radicles were from three to four centimeters long. The root itself might well be longer, but the apical bud appears almost at the same time as the root, and when more than one or two centimeters long interferes with easy adjustment in the beakers. It was sometimes necessary to pinch off the ends of the leaves, a practice which in no way interfered with the development of the rootlets. When the radicles had reached the length mentioned above, the seedlings were taken out of the sphag- METHODS OF EXPERIMENTS. 19 num and placed in beakers containing the solution, the tips of the roots being immersed in the liquid. One rootlet of each seedling was marked with india ink 15 mm. from the apex, which should include practically all of the rapidly growing zone. The amount of elonga- tion during a given period could thus be determined, and this is the best means of knowing whether the root has been actually killed. Unless the concentration of the solution be far above the toxic limit the root does not become flaccid, as is the case with lupines and some other seedlings. After the roots were marked with india ink the seeds were carefully hooked on to the glass rods prepared for that purpose. As much of the root was immersed in the solution as was possible without allowing the seeds or rods to come in contact with the liquid. In all cases the entire length of the marked zone was immersed. The length of the portion of the root in the solution depended, of course, upon the total length of the root. It might at first glance seem that a variation in this respect could affect the result of the experiment, some roots having a larger surface exposed to the solution than others; but it is believed that the large number of seedlings used in each experi- ment practically eliminated this source of error. All cultures were left in the solution twenty-four hours, when they were taken up and the amount of elongation of the marked portion of the root was measured and recorded. They were then transferred to a beaker containing hydrant water and allowed to remain there for another twenty-four hours, when they were taken up and the elonga- tion again measured. The radicles which made an additional growth the second twenty-four hours in the hydrant water over the growth in the first twenty-four hours in the salt solution were considered to have survived in the solution and were thus recorded. Those making no additional growth the second twenty-four hours were considered dead and recorded in this way. Coupin and others have intimated that twenty-four hours is not sufficient to kill the plant. This objection is set aside by the consideration that only the death of the apex of the root is regarded in these experiments and not the point at which the whole plant succumbs. The object of this work is merely one of com- parison of the effect of a solution of given concentration, during « definite period of time, upon different varieties. Whether this effect is expressed in the death of the whole plant or only that of a single organ is immaterial. Control experiments were carried on every day, one in hydrant water and one in distilled water, both under conditions identical with those in the salt solutions. The results in hydrant water have been uniform from day to day and in only a few cases were they proved unsatisfactory. In such cases the whole series was disearded, the inference being that some unfavorable condition (of temperature, for example) had interfered. 20 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. A word as to the conditions of illumination and temperature during the experiments will not be out of place at this point. When in solutions the roots were exposed to the light during the day. When in the salt solutions during the first 24 hours they were kept on a shelf in the rear of a room with northern exposure only. When in hydrant water during the second 24 hours they were kept on a table at the window, under a moderately strong light. Preliminary experi- ments were made when commencing the work with lupines, which showed that the strength of the light, at least within the limits in- volved in these experiments, had no influence on the growth of the roots. Of three series of cultures, all in a solution of the same salt at the same concentration, one was placed in total darkness, another in subdued hght, and a third in bright light. Otherwise they were under the same conditions. The elongation of the roots was meas- ured at the end of 24 hours and there was no appreciable difference in the three sets of cultures. It was impossible to keep a uniform temperature in the laboratory during the winter months, though this factor did not vary enough in either direction to cause any injury in germination or to the roots in the solution. A thermograph was kept running in the room, and a review of the records shows no temperature below 18° or above 30° C. The average temperature during the experiments was about 23° C. When making the experiments with illumination referred to above, similar ones were made to determine the influence of tempera- ture upon the roots. The three different series of cultures (all in the same salt solution, at the same concentration) were exposed for 24 hours to temperatures of 10°, 20°, and 30° C., respectively. Results showed that the roots that had been exposed to a temperature of 20° and 30° C. showed about the same elongation, while the elonga- tion in a temperature of 10° C. was somewhat less. All solutions were made with water distilled from ordinary hydrant water. The receiver of the still is a porcelain tub and has been used for several years in the Laboratory of Plant Pathology of the Bureau of Plant Industry. At times the distilled water may have contained some slight traces.of ammonia and doubtless some other impurities. An analysis of the water was made in the Bureau of Chemistry, and it ~ was found to contain, in parts per million— Tin@.-) es oe Se es Se eee Trace. Free ammonia / > es ea eee 0. 125 AUER 1 Se . O14 Nitrates 2 =f sete be Se eee None. Nitrites) 225 4a9 see De eee 2, | ee ee Faint traces. Total solids (consisting of calcium, sodium, carbonates, sul- phates, nd: Ghlorius) Se. — == 2 = ee 7.4 A further discussion of the water used will be found on page 39. ESTABLISHING THE TOXIC LIMITS. 91 METHOD OF ESTABLISHING THE TOXIC LIMITS. Before going into details of the results obtained in the simple solutions, the methods of determining the limits of endurance of each variety to each salt will be explained. At one time the writer had thought of fixing the limit of endurance in toxic salt solutions at the concentration in which none of the marked radicles would survive at the end of twenty-four hours. A few experiments, however, showed that this was not the proper method, for occasionally one of the root- lets would be sound and healthy at the end of twenty-four hours in a concentration far above that which would permit the roots of a majority of the plants to survive. In other words, individual varia- tion plays’ such an important part that the strength of a solution which would permit no root tips to survive would be far above that representing the limit of endurance for the variety as a whole. Attention is thus once more directed to the fact that results obtained from a few individuals are as a rule very inaccurate and unreliable. The characters of a variety (and resistance to toxic effects is one of its characters) are the mean of those of the whole number of individuals composing it. Of course all the individuals of a variety can not be examined, but the number of seedlings experimented with should be large enough to overcome the effect of marked individual varia- tion. It was this consideration that urged the writer to make such a large number of tests. On the other hand, a concentration which would just permit all root tips to survive would not represent the general limit for the variety because of those few individuals which are far inferior to the average in their ability to resist toxic salt solutions. The limit of endurance for the mean of the largest pos- sible number of individuals is the end sought. After consideration, it seemed that the most perfect idea of the limit for each variety could be obtained by taking the concentration in which about half the seeds survived and about half died. For instance, if 60 seeds were tested in a 0.01 normal solution of magne- sium sulphate and 30 survived and 30 died, the toxic limit would be represented by that concentration. Of course it was seldom possible to secure such an equal division, but a slight excess one way or the other would not materially alter the results. In practice it was, furthermore, often found expedient to take the mean of the concen- trations actually tested as representing the toxic limit. To illustrate: The roots were often found dead in a 0.01 normal solution of magnesium chlorid, and alive in a 0.0075 normal. The approximate toxic limit was fixed at the concentration intermediate between these two, although no solutions intermediate in concentra- tion between 0.01 and 0.0075 of a normal solution were actually made up, 99 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. The writer does not claim that the limits thus fixed are absolute, but he believes that further experiments would change them very little. To obtain absolutely exact results it would be necessary to employ an indefinite number of solutions of intermediate concentra- tion, and to make tests with a very large number of seedlings. The results recorded here, it is safe to assume, will answer all practical purposes. The different strengths of solution of the same salt dif- fered from each other by 0.005 of a normal solution for sodium chlorid, sodium sulphate, and sodium bicarbonate, and by 0.0025 of a normal solution for sodium carbonate, magnesium sulphate, and mmagnesium chlorid. That is to say, experiments were made with solutions of a concentration of 0.015, 0.01, 0.005, ete., for sodipm chlorid, sodium sulphate, and sodium bicarbonate, and of a concen- tration of 0.01, 0.0075, 0.0025, ete., for magnesium chlorid, magne- sium sulphate, and sodium carbonate, intermediate concentrations being disregarded in practice. As mentioned earlier in this paper, the death point was determined largely by the elongation of the roots beyond the point 15 mm. from the tip, marked off by india ink. If the roots showed no additional elongation the second 24 hours in hydrant water, they were considered dead. In some cases, however, it has been possible to determine this point by other means. In the case of the two magnesium salts a solution of a concentra- tion considerably above the limit blackens about 1 or 2 millimeters of the root tip, and often causes the end of the root to bend in the shape of a hook. An appearance of this kind is conclusive evidence that the solution is much too concentrated. Both sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate in very strong solution cause a yellowing of the whole body of the root in the solution, and more or less loss of turgor, due, doubtless, to plasmolysis. It is very seldom that rootlets which show that condition at the end of twenty-four hours in the solution will revive when placed in hydrant water. To make the results herein contained exactly comparable with those furnished by Kearney and Cameron from their studies on Iupines, the toxic limits are given in this paper both in fractions of a normal solution and in parts of salt per 100,000 of solution. In addition, the mean of the limits of all the varieties is given under each salt, so that a glance will show how much above or below this point any particular variety may be in regard to each salt used. The salts have been found harmful in pure solutions in about the order in which they follow each other in the succeeding part of this report—that is, sodium sulphate is less harmful than sodium chlorid when both are in equivalent concentration, and magnesium sulphate is more harmful than sodium bicarbonate when in the same pro- RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. «98 ‘portion. A concentration of 0.0075 normal magnesium sulphate usually produces about the same effect as 0.025 sodium bicarbonate. Therefore one would say that magnesium sulphate is three times as injurious as sodium bicarbonate when in equivalent concentration. RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. RESULTS WITH MAGNESIUM SULPHATE. The results obtained for the different varieties with pure solutions of magnesium sulphate are shown by the following table: Maximum limit of | endurance. Name of wheat variety. Parts per Fractional 100,0000f | Part pbs solution, nezmal ; beeen: PUI eC IMA see se 42 0. 0075 Kharkof 225: 225. oe PP eee SS 25 . 00625 [ECGs Ine a Pe gs Oe 42 | 0075 Kenan alen 2-2 nee ee ee 42 | 0075 RESUS yan So ee eee oe 56 01 Marouani 5455's 52> ysl eee = 42 . 0075 Badapest) 5224 a) eee 56 OL RESTON ees eee 28 | . 005 (0) cir ERS ASS SS Seeere - hp Tai 28 005 Average for all varieties_- 40 | . 00736 A glance at the above table is sufficient to show the considerable difference between the varieties in their ability to resist the toxic influence of magnesium sulphate. The least resistant of all the varieties are Chul and Preston, of which about half the seedlings sur- vived in a 0.005 normal solution. Contrasted to these are the two mast resistant ones, viz, Budapest and Turkey, surviving equally well in a solution twice as concentrated. A comparison of these results with wheat with those obtained by Kearney and Cameron using Lupinus albus with the same salt will show the great diversity between these two plants. The toxic limit for lupines in a pure solution was found to be 0.00125 of a normal solution. Accepting the results shown by these figures, magnesium sulphate is four times as toxic to lupines as it is to the Chul and Pres- ton wheats, and eight times as toxic as for the Budapest and Turkey varieties. It may be said in this connection that from experiments made by Kearney ® with maize there is reason to believe that the Graminez as a family are much less sensitive to the effect of magne- sium salts than the Leguminose. Magnesium sulphate has been found in the course of these experiments with wheat to be on an a Science, N. S., 17: 386 (1903). 24 ' WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. average much the most toxic of the salts used. It was the most injuri- ous in every case except in two instances, in one of which sodium carbonate and in the other magnesium chlorid proved more toxic. It required a solution of magnesium sulphate twice as concentrated as that of sodium carbonate to be equally toxic to the Budapest variety, the limits in this case being 0.01 normal magnesium sulphate and 0.005 normal sodium carbonate. The other instance referred to is not so marked. Magnesium chlorid is found to be somewhat more toxic than magnesium sulphate for one variety—Turkey—the lmits being for magnesium chlorid 0.0075 normal and for magnesium sulphate 0.01 normal. Comparing the average toxic limit for each salt, as stated in the tables that follow, magnesium sulphate is one and two-sevenths times as injurious as magnesium chlorid, one and three-sevenths times as injurious as sodium carbonate, three and five-sevenths times as inju- rious as sodium bicarbonate, little more than six times as toxic as sodium sulphate, and seven and five-sevenths times as injurious as sodium chlorid. Magnesium sulphate in the soil is not considered injurious to any appreciable extent, but this is no doubt due to the neutralizing effect of other salts with which it is associated. Kearney and Cameron, in their experiments on Lupinus albus and Medicago sativa, found magnesium sulphate in pure solutions to be the most toxic of all the salts. The writer found the same true for the lupines. But when other salts are added to a solution cf magnesium sulphate, toxicity, both absolute and relative, is altered. Kearney and Cameron ¢ say: Addition of sodium sulphate, which itself is injurious in pure solution, raises the limit of magnesium sulphate three times, while the presence of calcium sul- phate allows a small proportion of the roots to barely survive during twenty- four hours in a solution of magnesium sulphate 480 times as concentrated as that which in pure solutions represents the limits of endurance. To lower classes of plant life magnesium sulphate is apparently much less toxic. Dr. B. M. Duggar”’ has made some experiments with marine alga to determine the nutrient value of the salts of some of the alkalis and alkali earths when added to sea water. He found that after the acids and some of the salts of the heavy metals the potassium phosphates proved most toxic. The least toxic were the salts of sodium and magnesium, while the sulphate of magnesium was the least injurious of all the salts used. The less injurious effect a@Some Mutual Relations Between Alkali Soils and Vegetation. Report No. 71, U. S. Department of Agriculture (1502). : b The Toxie Effect of Some Nutrient Salts on Certain Marine Allg. Science, S., 17: 459 (1903). RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. 95 of the magnesium salts is probably due to the presence of neutraliz- ing salts in the sea water to which he added the magnesium com- pounds, although we are not yet in a position to say that magnesium may not be far less toxic to the Algw than to the Leguminose or Graminee. To show the relative toxic effect of magnesium sulphate to some of the other salts, Loew * has made some interesting observations, and states that Spirogyra died within four or five days in a 1-per-mille solution of magnesium sulphate, but remained alive for a long time in corresponding solutions of the sulphates of sodium, potassium, and calcium. Upon the roots of some higher plants the same investiga- tor made similar observations, and says that Vicia and Pisum do not start lateral roots when kept in a solution of 0.5 per cent of mag- nesium sulphate or nitrate, and the root cap and epidermal cells die after a few days. Seedlings of Phaseolus placed in a solution of 0.1 per cent magnesium sulphate with 0.1 per cent of monopotassium phosphate showed injury to the roots after five days, and the entire plant succumbed soon afterwards. Coupin ” found during the course of some experiments with wheat that magnesium chlorid was more toxic than magnesium sulphate. He gives the limit for magnesium sulphate at 1 per cent and for mag- nesium chlorid at 0.8 per cent. RESULTS WITH MAGNESIUM CHLORID. The following table shows the results obtained for the different varieties with pure solutions of magnesium chlorid: | Maximum limit of endurance. (i See pee Name of wheat variety. arts per Fractional | jojodbor Part of a | Solution. solution. ee ae Bsr i ALMMOV Man. 5.25 Fe 72 0,015 PAST ROR 2 2 nee ee ee 48 Ol POAT Se eae ee 48 01 Penbanke:. 5222-2 28s eee 42 . OO8T5 PU Ke Si ee ee 36 . 0075 MaArAG IAS <6 Ae ioe 48 -O1 Budapest: 22. eee 60 0125 Preston. 2: 221 ee 24 005 Cb ets 25 See eee 24 005 Average for all varieties__| 40 . 00931 4The Physiological R6le of Mineral Nutrients in Plants. Bul. 45, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Department of Agriculture (1905). bSur la Toxicité du Chlorure de Sodium et de Eau de Mer a l’Egard des Végétaux. Revue Générale de Botanique, 10: 188 (1898). 26 WHEAT RESISTANCE-TO TOXIC SALTS. ; Magnesium chlorid, like the sulphate, seldom occurs alone in nature in sufficient quantity to be of very great consequence. It is nearly, if not always, associated in the soil with some other salts, such as those of sodium and calcium, which tend to neutralize its effect upon plants. In these experiments with wheat, as in those with lupines, | it was found to rank next to magnesium sulphate as a toxic agent when in pure solutions. The average limit of concentration of magnesium chlorid for wheat seedlings is 0.00931 of a normal solution, as against 0.00736 for magnesium sulphate. Again, referring to Kearney and Camer- on’s results with the same salts for lupines, we find some variations. As is easily seen with the writer’s results with wheat, magnesium sul- phate is only about one-third more toxic than magnesium chlorid, while Kearney and Cameron’s results show the sulphate twice as toxic as the chlorid. The investigators named found the roots of lupines to barely survive in 0.0025 of a normal solution of mag- nesium chlorid, while Kearney showed that Zea mays would live in a solution a little more than thirty times as concentrated. Magne- sium chlorid is twice as toxie to the white lupine as to the least resistant variety of wheat tested, and six times as toxic to the lupine as to the most resistant variety of wheat. It is a surprising fact that _ some varieties of wheat are six times as resistant and that maize is thirty times as resistant to this salt as Lupinus albus. It will be seen that the variation of the wheat varieties among themselves is more pronounced in the chlorid than in the sulphate. While the toxic limit for the least resistant of the varieties is the same (0.005 of a normal solution) for the two salts, that of the most resistant variety (0.015 normal) is much higher in magnesium chlorid than in the sulphate. The ratio of variation between the two ex- tremes of resistance with magnesium sulphate was 2 to 1, as against 3 to 1 with the chlorid. RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. 27 RESULTS WITH SODIUM CARBONATE. The following table gives the results with pure solutions of sodium earbonate: Maximum limit of endurance, Name of wheat variety. Parts per Fractional 100,000 of| Part of i solution. S GHOd: PRCT OT TVR, oes a eee ae 65 0.0125 Rens ko Ee ee REPRE a ot 78 -O15 LEUNG DRM Ee oe ey Se ae 52 OL Retebam eames tea SNe eee 39 0075 ALTE DUN ie Se coy ee a ee 78 O15 Misia aite et Se ee 41 008 PSG a OS yee ses soe oe ea 26 005 IP BetOniee a ee. ee 65 . 0125 (OUTED 2 Span i oe dee ma opi es 65 -O125 Average for all varieties. | 57 | 0109 The results shown by the above table are not materially different from those with magnesium chlorid. Sodium carbonate in pure solutions is slightly less harmful, as shown by the comparison of the average of all the varieties, being in the case of magnesium chlorid 0.0093 and for sodium carbonate 0.0109 of a normal solution. The extremes in both cases are the same, though there are two varieties with a resistance. of 0.015 for sodium carbonate as against one for magnesium chlorid. Five varieties in the case of sodium carbonate have a resistance above the average as against four in the case of magnesium chlorid. One variety alone, Budapest, has a resistance of only 0.005 as against two for magnesium chlorid. Of the three salts so far described, sodium carbonate is in the soil generally the most harmful, (1) because in excessive quantity it is more widely distributed, and (2) because it is less easily neutralized by other salts with which it is usually associated. The opinions of experimenters differ considerably as to the rela- tive toxic effect of this salt. Kearney and Cameron showed that, in the case of Lupinus albus at least, sodium carbonate is but little more injurious than sodium sulphate, the toxic limit in each case being 0.005 and 0.0075 of a normal solution, respectively. It will be seen that the limit for the lupine obtained by them with sodium car- bonate is the same as the resistance for Budapest wheat, but only one-third of that for the Turkey and Kharkof varieties. The limit of concentration for the lupine, as shown by their report, is about equivalent to one-half of the average for the several wheat varieties, in the same salt solution. Kearney found Zea mays to survive in the same salt at a concentration three times as great as that repre- 98 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. senting the limit for the lupine, and equal to that for the most resist- ant varieties of wheat. Coupin * found the toxic limit of wheat in sodium carbonate to be about 1.1 per cent. In view,of the fact, however, that he noted ‘the death of the whole plant and not the root tips, the limit of concen- tration as determined by him would necessarily be much higher. RESULTS WITH SODIUM BICARBONATE. The limits in pure solutions of sodium bicarbonate are shown in the following table: Maximum limit of endurance. Name of wheat variety. Partsper Fractional fe 100,000 | parts of a of solu- | normal so- tion. lution. TASNINORMAN pe 3 oe eee eee 234 0. 028 Kharkofee-202 2s See ee 251 08 Padus peres® 2625 28 2.) ee 230 0275 BCG vl os oul fez ms ee Mie iy Ses ene 2 209 . 025 Murkoy, sere t te ee eee 230 0275 Marnouantess ta 2% cote esrs cele 188 . 0225 , % Budapest. ones So es 209 025 IPreshOnt- ee 228, satan ee eee ae 209 025 CG) e170 ee See eee ee 209 O25 Average for all varieties__ 219 - 026 } Of all the salts used sodium bicarbonate seems to bring out the least variation in resistance so far as these experiments are concerned. ‘The least resistant variety was Maraouani and the most resistant Kharkof, which were able to survive in a 0.0225 and 0.03 normal solution, respectively. These results do not differ to an important extent from those of Kearney and Cameron for Lupinus albus, the toxic limit of which was slightly lower (0.02) than that for Maraouani wheat. The writer finds sodium carbonate to be about two and six-tenths times as injurious to wheat when in equivalent concentration as sodium bicarbonate. Kearney found the difference to be even greater in the case of maize, the ratio being about 4 to 1. Coupin ” reverses the relative toxic order of these two salts. This difference in the aSur la Toxicité du Chlorure de Sodium et de ’Eau de Mer a I’Egard des Végétaux. Reyue Générale de Botanique, 10: 180 (1898). > Sur la Toxicité des Composés de Potassium et de TAmmonium a I’ Pgard des Végétaux Supérieurs, Revue Générale de Botanique, 12; 180 (1900). RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. 99 criterion of toxic action, 1. e., the death of the whole plant rather than of the root tip alone, should not affect the relative toxic influence of the two salts. Coupin’s results showed that it required a 1.1 per cent solution of sodium carbonate to kill wheat seedlings, while only 0.6 per cent was necessary to produce the same effect when sodium bicar- bonate was employed. As to the relative toxic order of the carbonate and bicarbonate, the results recorded agree quite well with those of Sigmund,* who found that wheat development was retarded and germinating seeds of vetch and rape were killed in a 0.5 per cent solution of sodium carbonate, while the same concentration of sodium bicarbonate was quite harm- less. Kearney and Cameron found sodium bicarbonate somewhat less toxic than sodium chlorid for the lupine, and, further, that a 0.02 normal solution of sodium bicarbonate permits plants to survive in much better condition than in the corresponding concentration of the chlorid. Kearney has also shown by experiments that the bicar- bonate is less toxic to maize than is sodium chlorid, the death point for the bicarbonate being established at 0.05 and for the chlorid at 0.04 of a normal solution. In view of all these differences it will be no easy matter to decide the relative harmfulness of these sodium salts. Experiments will have to be performed on a large number of plants of widely different relationship before any definite conclusions can be reached. There is great probability that the order of their toxicity is not the same for all species of plants. This is very well demonstrated by a compari- son of the writer’s results with those of Kearney and Cameron, who found sodium sulphate more toxic to Lupinus albus than sodium bicarbonate, while the writer found the reverse to be true for wheat. There is a tendency among physiological experimenters to draw gen- eral conclusions for the whole plant kingdom from the results ob- tained for a few varieties, species, or genera, which is absolutely unjustifiable. Too much emphasis can not be used in condemning such inferences. The results here obtained, it is thought, will hold good for these particular varieties of wheat, but they are not indica- tive except within rather wide limits of what others show.’? They a4 Ueber die Einwirkung Chemischer Agentien auf die Keimung, Landw. Vers. Stat., 47: 2 (1896). 6 This point is brought out in a most marked way by the work of Cameron and Breazeale upon the effect of acids on wheat, maize, and clover, respectively. (The Toxic Action of Acids and Salts on Seedlings, Journal Phys. Chem., vol. &, No. 1, p. 1, Jan.,, 1904, ) 30 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. will serve for making comparisons, but not for drawing conclusions — as to the behavior of plants in general. o RESULTS WITH SODIUM SULPHATE. The comparative effect of pure solutions of sodium sulphate upon the different varieties is shown in the table which follows: Maximum limit of endurance. Name of wheat variety. Parts per Fractional 100,000 of Parts of a solution. S lenoat Zimmenmant © = 295.552 220 Sees 393 0.05 iRenarko fans 3a. a8 1a ase 300 > . 0425 leevolsht 9354 eae Pe eee ee 318 045 etiam ka tec Sa eee 353 . 05 Mumkevis SPs steer se Se see 300 0425 Man aouamiee 5:7: los 2e Soe. Sees 336 0475 bud apes tt ne nase eee eee 265 0875 IPR GST Ome. Sowers = eo ea eee 242 . 0B5 Chea Ste a eee 283 O04 Average for all varieties__ B05 0433 Tn sodium sulphate, as in sodium bicarbonate, the toxie limits for the different varieties show less variation than in the case of other salts used. The least resistant to this comparatively harmless salt, as to most of the others used in these experiments, is the Preston wheat. This variety has been grown for a number of years in a semihumid region where alkali soils do not occur. In view of these facts one would expect this variety to be somewhat less resistant to these salts. Since there is no excess of soluble salts in the soils of this region, Preston has had no opportunity to develop salt resist- ance. The varieties most resistant to sodium sulphate are Zimmer- man and Kubanka, both surviving as well in a 0.05 normal solution as Preston in 0.035. As to the origin of these varieties, also, it is just what would be expected from their resistance to salts. Both sorts ‘ame from arid or semiarid regions, where saline soils are abundant. Kubanka is grown in regions containing numerous salt marshes and lakes, and that it should have acquired ability to resist salts in the soil is only natural. Zimmerman likewise was obtained from a region having soils of more or less saline character, and to this is probably due its power of resistance in salt solutions. It is not unlikely that the soils from the regions from which the remaining varieties were obtained contain a less amount of sodium sulphate RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. on propertionate to their smaller resistance to this salt as shown in these water cultures. This can not definitely be known until experi- ments have been made correlating the amount of the different salts in the soil upon which the different varieties grew, with their resist- ance in pure solutions. Some interesting differences can be noted here between the resist- ance of wheat and of lupines to sodium sulphate. The Preston vari- ety is 43 times as resistant, and Zimmerman and Kubanka 62 times as resistant, as Lupinus albus, the toxic limit of the latter having been established by Kearney and Cameron at 0.0075. They found sodium sulphate more toxic to Lupinus than sodium bicarbonate, while for every variety of wheat in these experiments the reverse is true. With maize Kearney showed that the seedling would sur- vive equally well in both salts, and established the limit at 0.05 of a normal solution. Hilgard states that few plants can bear as much as 0.1 per cent in the soil of sodium carbonate, or about 3,500 pounds per acre to the depth of 1 foot. For sodium chlorid the limit in the soil is about 0.25 per cent. In the case of sodium sulphate, most plants can grow in the presence of 0.45 to 0.50 per cent in the soil. In view of this fact sodium chlorid under soil conditions would seem to be more toxic to most plants than the sulphate. Stewart “ has made a number of interesting tests on the power of seeds to germinate in the presence of sodium carbonate, sodium sul- phate, and sodium chlorid. He found the carbonate and the chlorid to be more injurious than the sulphate. With one exception (rye seeds in the presence of the chlorid), 0.50 per cent of either carbonate or chlorid proved fatal to germination. Stewart showed that sodium sulphate is far less injurious than either of the other salts. The character of his experiments indicates, however, that they are not directly comparable with such as are here described. His seeds were placed for germination in sand on tin plates and watered, the nature of the water used not being stated. Kearney and Cameron have shown that these salts are decidedly different in the degree to which their toxic effect can be neutralized by the addition of other salts, such as the chlorid or sulphate of calcium. It is possible that the sand or the water, or both, used by Stewart contained more or less calcium salts. The results of Kearney and Cameron, above referred to, show that the toxic effect of sodium carbonate, and next to it that of sodium chlorid, are neutralized far less effectively by calcium sul- a Effect of Alkali on Seed Germination. Ninth Annual Report, Utah Agricul- tural Experiment Station, p. 26 (1898). 32 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. phate than is sodium sulphate. They found that the resistance of sodium sulphate was raised 60 times by adding calcium sulphate. In the light of these facts it is easy to accept Stewart’s results. In fact, Kearney and Cameron showed that when other salts were added the mit for Lupinus albus in sodium sulphate could be raised to 0.30 of a normal solution, and that for sodium chlorid only to 0.20, while in pure solutions the limit for sodium sulphate was a concentra- tion of 0.0075 and for sodium chlorid 0.02. This also explains Hil- gard’s results as to the comparative harmlessness of sodium sulphate in the soil where other salts are always present. RESULTS WITH SODIUM CHLEORID. The results obtained by the writer with pure solutions of sodium chlorid are shown in the following table: Maximum limit of endurance. Name of wheat variety. ret ta ee of solu- | normal tion. solution. aa | PATIO RMA = f=). toee ese | BYws 0.065 Kharko fief. 2 23 2 oo ee 319 . 055 letvoloiteh. Bus Sie Seen ce Ae 333 0575 > Kubankageets- <= 5254 cco ee 333 0575 TRhurkey peewee kei esceeeep 290 | 05 Matdousmias se co tea. a eee | 319 . 055 IBudapes teens eee 275 0475 Precinct ner 2 Us Lisene 319 055 Chali ses ears oe eee | 261 . 045 Average for all varieties __| 314 | . 0542 : That sodium chlorid is the least toxic to wheat of all the salts used is evinced by the table above. Next to it, of course, is sodium sulphate. Comparing the results with those obtained by Kearney and Cameron for lupines, the varieties of wheat are two and one-half to three times as resistant. Coupin@ also found wheat more resist- ant to sodium chlorid than the white lupines. He has experimented with several species of plants and found the whole plant to be killed in the following concentrations: Wheat, 1.8 per cent; peas, 1.2 per aSur la Toxicité du Chlorure Sodium et de l’Eau de Mer a l’Egard des Végétaux. Revue Générale de Botanique, 10: 178 (1898). RESULTS OF EXPERIMENTS. oo cent; vetch, 1.1 per cent; maize, 1.4 per cent, and white lupine, 1.2 per.cent.* «Guthrie, F. B., and Holmes, R. (Roy. Soc. New South Wales, Oct. 8, 1902), conducted some experiments on wheats in two kinds of soils. To one of the soils was added a fertilizer consisting of a mixture of 15 grams of sulphate of ammonia, 6 grams of superphosphate, 4+ grams of sulphate of potash, and varying quantities of other substances. The composition of the first soil was as follows: Per cent. “DAS eo oe ee ee 3. 83 CSS) Me in Gael We yO ee De ee eee 13. 75 OTL Bi 0. es ee oe ga Oe ee . 208 Soluble in hydrochloric acid: EMR S). ou RAN se 2 ee ee ae Fee . 165 POURS et Se ea oe ee ee ee 22 . 065 ISTO ClO eennes sumac euomays i Se . 107 “ETSI EAS i Sah Ol A a op See Re eK aye The soil was found to contain 0.016 per cent of sodium chlorid in addition to the substances enumerated above. The composition of the second soil was as follows: Per cent. OL, OE oa se ee 2. 94 eC E SSE: TUDEA AACE) 2 Re Se ee ae 8. 33 PRntnd ors (iene Sk SCR ee ee go a . O70 Soluble in hydrochloric acid: VOTES cee RE ee oe ap ae . 440 HEETES SGD kg SSE eS ain Sa Lo 2 OTT amr ica AGG) Seok 2-2) eee ee ei ee ate 110 No fertilizer was added and the soil was originally free from chlorids. It was found that in the first soil the seeds germinated and grew well when enough sodium chlorid was added to the soil to give it a content of 0.066 per cent of that salt. Further, that in the second soil, to which no fertilizer was added, in the presence of 0.05 per cent of sodium chlorid, germination was slightly retarded, but the plants finally recovered and grew well. As to the results, these authors say: From 0.01 to 0.02 per cent of sodium chlorid is without effect on the wheat plant, the grain germinating well and the plant growing vigorously. With 0.05 to 0.10 per cent of sodium chlorid the germination is somewhat retarded, the plants are less vigorous, but recover and grow well. With 0.15 the germination is still more affected and the plants would probably not recover under less fa- vorable conditions than those of the experiment. Two-tenths per cent of sodium chlorid in the soil is fatal to the growth of wheat. An experiment performed by Messrs. E. Charabot and A. Hébert (Compt. Rend. Acad. Sci. Paris, 134: 181, 1902), which shows the chemical influence of sodium chlorid upon more mature plants, is a very interesting one, ‘These inves- tigators found that by adding sodium chlorid some chemical properties are decreased. The writer finds that a 2 per cent solution of sodium chlorid saturated with ‘alcium sulphate is sufficient to kill moss growing on the soil in two weeks’ time. At the end of one’ week no change is noticeable, except that growth is retarded. One week longer, however, suffices to kill the moss completely and turn it a brownish color. The solution was added to the pots on which the moss grew in the laboratory every other day for about that length of time. 34 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. SUMMARY OF TABLES. In order to make more easily comparable the differences of resist- ance of the several varieties to the various salts, the results as a whole have been brought together in the following table. At the bottom of the columns is given the average, for each salt, of the toxic limits of all the varieties; so it requires only a glance to see which varieties are above or below the average in their resistance to the toxic effect of each salt. Magne- | Magne- | Sodium | Sodium | Sodium Sodiuse Name of wheat variety. sium sul-| sium _ | carbon-|_bicar- sul- ahiond phate. | chlorid. ate. bonate. | phate. 7 Vimmenrman) sacs). ene eee a eee 0. 0075 0.015 0.0125 0.028 0.05 0. 065 Kin ankle ona ss eee ee eee - 00625 OL 015 - 03 - 0425 055 IPadiee eat vee eee Bi . 0075 OL OL . 0275 - 045 . 0575 Riu Dbari kar =e eee eee ee eee . 0075 . 00875 0075 . 025 «U5 . 0575 AM Sil (2h ae eee es Ee OL ae J ee ee -OL . 0075 015 0275 - 0425 05 Maraouani ------ BeNBEP NS 5 Be PRS 8 ALS . 0075 OL - 008 . 0225 0475 . 055 IBUGA DGS =o eee ee ee es eer eeenel) PaO) 0125 005 - 025 . OBT75 0475 Preston’ ae ee Be SS eee . 005 . 005 - 0125 025 : 085 . 055 CC} cir Ai ee Pees SE ee Ee ee ee - 005 . 005 . 0125 . 025 04 045 Avvelaee i 5 a eee 22.0 Lone | 00736}. 0098 0109 | 026 04383 0542 A glance at the above table shows that the Zimmerman variety 1s_ much the most resistant. This, however, does not necessarily mean that it is most resistant to every salt. On the contrary, Zimmerman is less resistant to magnesium sulphate than Budapest and Turkey, less resistant to sodium carbonate than Turkey and Kharkof, and less resistant to sodium bicarbonate than Kharkof. This same variety, however, is very resistant to the influence of sodium chlorid, sodium sulphate, and sodium carbonate, which brings up its average to a considerable extent. The least resistant variety is Chul, which runs Jow for all salts except sodium carbonate, in which its resistance is slightly above the average of the varieties with which experiments were made. The low resistance of this variety was unexpected, in view of the character of the country from which it came. > A further consideration of this table shows how nearly equal the Padui and Kubanka varieties are in their resistance. A comparison of the two varieties for the same salts shows but a slight variation. Taking into consideration the original habitat of the two varieties, we would expect very little difference. Both are Russian varieties and subjected to very similar climatic and soil conditions. Both varieties are very resistant to salt solutions, and in view of the fact that they both come from regions containing much saline soil their similarity in this respect is not surprising. Good examples for contrast to Padui and Kubanka are furnished in Budapest and Preston. Budapest is a naturalized Michigan vari- COMPARISON OF RESULTS. 35 ety and Preston a variety from Canada. The soil and climatic condi- tions are very similar. Both regions are comparatively humid, with little or no saline soil. Both of these varieties are low in resistance to salt solutions, just as would be expected. A comparison of the resistance of the different varieties with the region from which they came in respect to soil and climatic condi- tions shows that their resistance to saline solutions can probably be correlated with the natural habitat of the varieties; that is, the results herein obtained indicate that a variety grown in a locality having little or no excess of salts in the soil has a comparatively low resistance in saline water cultures. It further shows that varieties grown in regions having more saline soils have a much greater resist- ance in saline water cultures. COMPARISON OF RESULTS WITH DIFFERENT SPECIES. The results obtained for the lupines by Kearney and Cameron and those for maize by Kearney have frequently been referred to in the foregoing pages. It has been possible to compare them to the writer’s results with wheat only in a fragmentary way. Since there are some very surprising differences in the toxicity of the same salts to the three plants, the results have been brought together in one table for comparison. Kearney and Cameron used but one variety of the lupine and of maize, their results being shown in the follow- ing table. The writer in his experiments on wheat has used nine different varieties, but in the following table only the mean resistance of all the varieties has been taken. The limit of concentration of the salts which can be endured by wheat, lupine, and maize is as follows, the results being stated both in fractions of a normal solution and in parts of salt per 100,000 of solution : Degree of concentration. Wheat. pines Maize. Salt. |— | ee | Parts of ‘Par tsper, Par ts of [Par tsper Parts of Partsper a nor mal) 100,000 of ‘a normal 100,000 of a normal 100,000 of solution.| solution. solution. solution. solution. solution. Magnesium sulphate ----....-...-------- 0. 007 39 | 0.00125 i 0.25 1,400 Pessina CMIOTIC --.... -..--.-.--=---- 009 108 |. 0025 12 08 B84 Podium carbonate -.----...---.-..-=---- Ol | 52 005 26 O15 78 Sodium bicarbonate ------.------- eg eS 026 217 . 02 167 05 AIT BerinmSiinnate....._=-2------------.-- 043 302 0075 53 05 353 Sodium chlorid ----- atin eee ees O54 313 . 02 116 04 232 5 | It is remarkable that while magnesium sulphate is the most toxic to the wheat and the lupine of all the salts used it is the least injuri- ous to maize, being thirty-five times and two hundred times, respec- tively, more toxic to wheat or lupine than to maize. 36 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. Magnesium sulphate and magnesium chlorid differ but little in the concentration necessary to kill the root tips of wheat seedlings, while a solution of the former only half as strong as the latter is sufficient to kill the lupines in the same length of time. In contrast to this, a solution of magnesium chlorid only about one-third as concentrated as the critical solution of magnesium sulphate is the strongest that can be endured by the root tips of maize, the order of toxicity of the two salts being reversed. The root tips of the lupines have been killed by every salt used, at a less concentration than that which can be endured by wheat and maize, a solution of sodium carbonate one-half and one-third as concentrated as that necessary to kill wheat and maize, respectively, being fatal to the lupine. It will be noticed, however, that the least amount of diversity is evinced by the three plants in the presence of sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate. Wheat and maize show very little difference in resistance to sodium sulphate, but a solution about one-sixth as concentrated as that neces- sary to kill maize is toxic to the lupine. It is a very surprising fact that the variation between the three plants is so great. The salts of magnesium which are the most toxic to wheat and lupines are the least toxic to maize, the difference being as is 200 to 1. Maize is on the whole much more resistant to pure salt solutions than is wheat or the white lupine, while the root tips of the lupines are killed by each of the salts at a much Jess concentration than that necessary to destroy the root tips of wheat seedlings. Especially interesting results in this connection have been brought out by Cameron and Breazeale*® with some experiments concerning the action of acids and salts upon maize, wheat, and clover. The salts employed were not the same as those used by the writer, but the results for both the acids and salts are sufficient to show the difference in resistance between different species and also the different action of different salts and acids on the same species. Cameron and Breazeale found that N/850 and N/600 solutions of acetic and succinic acids, respectively, were the toxic limit for seed- lings of maize, but wheat and clover in the same acids would endure only N/20000. They found the variations in salt solutions to be equally as great, but in some ways reversed. In potassium chlorid the toxic limit for wheat and clover is the same, each having a greater con- centration than that necessary to kill seedlings of maize. In potassium oxalate, wheat was found to endure a concentration six times as great as that for clover. It is interesting to note here that the more toxic the acids the more uniform are the results, while for the salt solutions the reverse is true. The writer obtained similar results for the salts used in the experiments described in this paper. aThe Toxie Action of Acids and Salts on Seedlings, Journal Phys. Chem., vol. 8, No. 1, p. 1 (January, 1904). -. INDIVIDUAL VARIABILITY. ot ASH ANALYSES. To determine whether or not the amount or the composition of the ash in the seed could be correlated with the resistance of the seedlings to saline solutions, analyses of seeds of each variety used and of the same origin as those used in the culture experiments were obtained through the Bureau of Chemistry of the Department of Agriculture. The results fail to show any correlation between the ash constituents of the seeds and the resistance of the seedlings in water cultures. As the absence of such correlation is important, the table of analyses is inserted. It is a surprising fact that some of the ash constituents run very low for varieties such as Padui and Kharkof, in which one would expect them to be high. Table of analyses of the ash constituents of wheat seedlings. Variety. H,0. | Crude) ¢o,. | Mgo. | K.0. | NaO.| P.0;.] SOs. |» Cl | as Micriginet) | aa 8.34 | ie 0.080 0.22 0.45 0. 050 0.85 0. OB7 0. 054 Llioiiiod «a 8.25 1.35 066 18 41 . 050 .56 . 640 . 054 Dot 2 8.72 | 1.40] .048 .18 43] .052 257 | .040 042 Rnivivit 7.68} 1.93] .064 22 .53| .056 .93| 043 054 LIE i 7.54 1.78 O64 -20 51 |. .046 .78 O41 . O54. WMaraouanis___...-__.. ge. 9.70 1.66 . 028 oe bs) AT) be) eS .70 048 . 054 Boopcer Jor 8.38 | 1.91] .048 al .53| 042 94 | 040 . 054 Ener. er 8.48 | 1.35] .040 23 47| .045| .97] .057 054 (Cingl! | (a 7780/0" 1-98: |) 12088 52] ae 1 Ae .78| .042 054 | | INDIVIDUAL VARIABILITY. Individual variation within the different varieties is a subject deserving some attention in this connection. Some very striking instances have been noted during the course of these experiments. Since it has been demonstrated beyond dispute that the varieties differ one from another in resistance to toxic salts, it is only natural to suppose that the individuals of the same variety would show diversity in this respect. It is the existence of this individual varia- bility that has made it impossible to obtain reliable results without testing a large number of seedlings. As soon as this factor was eliminated it became comparatively easy to establish the toxic limit. In some instances it was more difficult than in others, and some varie- ties were especially troublesome in this respect. The reasons for this are difficult to determine. No experiments have been conducted for the exclusive purpose of demonstrating the range of individual variation, and only results are here recorded which have been brought out incidentally during the tests for varietal variation. The writer does not doubt that experiments with this end in view would bring out instances of indi- vidual variability much more striking than any so far obtained. Nearly all varieties, however, have shown exceeding diversity in the 38 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. = resistance of individual plants, and it will be interesting to mention a few of them. In the experiments to determine the toxic limits for the different varieties the results were based on averages, e. g., In a solution of sodium carbonate of a concentration that was taken .to represent the toxic limit 23 seeds were alive in a 0.01 solution and 27 dead. It is not known how many of those seedlings which were alive might have survived in a solution still more concentrated, perhaps of twice the strength, nor is it known how many of those that were killed would have been killed in a solution only half as concentrated.¢ Instead of making tables to show the individual variation, as was first suggested, only striking instances will be referred to under the names of the different varieties. A series of tables would require more space than can here be given to the subject. Budapest.—In connection with the experiments with the Budapest variety two striking instances have been noted, one with sodium bicarbonate and the other with magnesium sulphate. The toxic limits for these two salts are 0.025 and 0.01 of a normal solution, respectively. In one experiment, out of a number of seedlings in 0.015 normal sodium bicarbonate two died. In the case of magne- sium sulphate, in one experiment all the rootlets were dead in 0.015 normal except one, which survived. Here are two instances with remarkable extremes. In the former case the two seeds were of exceedingly low vitality, while in the latter instance one seed had remarkably great vitality. Chul.—No very marked individual variations presented them- selves during the experiments with the Chul variety. Turkey—Few remarkable variations were observed with the Tur- key variety. But one instance deserves special attention. The aver- age toxic limit in magnesium sulphate is 0.01 normal, but in a num- ber of tests a few seedlings were readily killed in a solution only half as concentrated as the solution in which one-half of the total number of individuals exposed to it survived. Preston.—The experiments with magnesium salts brought out two interesting cases with the Preston variety. The toxic limit for this @Moore and Kellerman (Bul. 64, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. 8. Dept. of Agriculture) have given some excellent instances of individual variability with respect to resistance to toxic agents. They have made numerous experiments with copper sulphate upon different algze which are found in water supplies. They found that 1 part of copper sulphate to 2,000 of water was sufficient to kill one-half of the individuals of Chlamydomonas piriformis exposed to it in two days, while the same concentration was sufficient to kill only one-tenth of the same form in three following days, and in three other days only one-fourth. With Desmidium swartzii 1 pact of copper to 100,000 was sufficient to destroy one-half and three-fourths, respectively, of the individuals involved in two different sets of experiments. Numerous other instances might be cited, but these will suffice to show that individual variation in this respect is not con- fined to wheat alone. NEUTRALIZING EFFECT OF SALTS EMPLOYED. 3 variety with both the chlorid and the sulphate of magnesium is 0.005 normal. In both salts, however, rootlets of some of the plants survived in solutions twice as concentrated. In the case of magne- sium chlorid, 8 out of 25 survived, while with the sulphate only 2 out of the same number survived. Lrharkof.—tIn solutions of sodium chlorid and sodium sulphate of a concentration of 0.045 and 0.035 normal, respectively, one seedling of the Kharkof variety was dead in each, the limits fixed for these two salts being 0.055 and 0.0425. The root tips of two seedlings were killed in 0,02 normal of sodium bicarbonate, for which the average toxic limit is 0.03. Zimmerman.—The Zimmerman variety, while the most: resistant of all, shows some very marked individual variation. A striking in- stance occurred with magnesium chlorid, the average toxic limit of which is 0.015 normal. In a solution one-third as concentrated (0.005 normal) 2 seedlings out of 20 could not survive. The limit of con- centration for this variety in sodium chlorid is 0.065 normal, but the rootlets of one seedling could not survive in 0.045. Similar to this are the results with sodium sulphate, the toxic limit being 0.05, but the root tips of two individuals did not survive in 0.035 normal solution. * Padui.—No variation of any importance. Maraouani—The rootlets of two seedlings of the Maraouani vari- ety were killed in 0.005 normal magnesium sulphate, while 3 out of 20 individuals survived in 0.015. The average toxic limit for this salt is 0.0075 of a normal solution. Kubanka—No important variations. NEUTRALIZING EFFECT OF THE SALTS EMPLOYED UPON OTHER TOXIC SUBSTANCES. Because of a discovery which was made when these experiments were almost completed it is necessary to add a few remarks upon the neutralizing effect upon other toxic substances of the salts of sodium end magnesium. During the whole course of the experiments the writer was unable to get seedlings to grow or even to live for twenty-four hours in the distilled water used. This seemed unac- countable, as it quite disagreed with the results of other experi- menters. Coupin found the roots of wheat seedlings to thrive well in perfectly distilled water, and Dehérain and Demoussy “ showed absolutely pure water to be perfectly harmless to root growth. Numerous experiments have been made to determine this point, with more or less varying results. Certain experimenters have held that distilled water was not conducive to good growth. «Sur la Germination dans VEau Distillé, Compt. Rend., Paris, 152: 5 (1901). oo =_) 40 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. This is probably an error so far as young seedlings are concerned. — The seed contains everything necessary for the early growth of the plant, and the absence of all minerals or other nutrient com- pounds in the surrounding solution should produce no bad effect during the earliest stages of growth. Those who claim that dis- tilled water is injurious will probably find, upon closer observa- tion, that it is some injurious substance in the water which is really toxic to the roots. In the case of many plants one of the most toxie substances known is copper, and it is more than likely that it is: present in much of the water which experimenters have found to be injurious. Coupin states that one part of copper to 700,000,000 of water is sufficient to retard the root growth of wheat seedlings. A mere trace of copper is sufficient to retard growth in many cases. As a result of an analysis made in the Bureau of Chemistry of the Department of Agriculture of the distilled water used in these experiments, it was found to contain a considerable quantity of zine, but no trace of copper. The harmful effect probably should be attributed to zine alone. The water used in these experiments was distilled but once, and was collected in a porcelain tub as x receiver. It was thought while the work with wheat seedlings was in prog- ress that copper or zine might be the cause of the injurious effects, but the writer used the water from the same still for all experiments with Lupinus albus, and no toxic effect of the distilled water was noticeable. Control checks with lupines were carried in both dis- tilled and hydrant water, and no difference was found in the rate of growth. It was this observation which at the outset of the work with wheat gave the writer confidence in the quality of the distilled water. This is apparently another indication that different species of plants vary greatly in their ability to resist the influence of toxic salts. Wheats are apparently much more sensitive than lupines to pure solutions of zine salts, although much less sensitive to pure solutions of sodium and magnesium salts. At first thought one would conclude that since the distilled water used contained harmful substances the experiments above described are practically without value; but such is not the case, as will be seen before this discussion is completed. In order to compare closely the water used during most of the experiments with absolutely pure water, some experiments were made. To secure absolute purity in the water a new still was made of the best nonsoluble glassware, hay- ing no metal in any of its parts. The same water that had been previously used was redistilled for the purpose. The wheat seedlings were treated in every way as before. A control was also carried in Potomac River water for comparison, and each lot of seed was taken up each day and the elongation of the roots measured and recorded for four consecutive days. In the twice-distilled water they grew ~ NEUTRALIZING EFFECT OF SALTS EMPLOYED. 4} about as well as in hydrant water. In order to show to what extent the impurity of the water used would affect former experiments, salt solutions of a dilution far below the toxic limits, as already estab- lished, were made, using the water which was but once distilled. The results showed that the toxic element in the water was effectively neutralized by the addition of even minute quantities of any one of the salts used in the experiments. For comparison equal numbers of ‘seeds were tested at the same time in the water distilled twice, in that distilled but once (that used throughout the above-described experi- ments), and in dilute salt solutions made up with the once-distilled water. The following table embodies the results obtained with very dilute solutions of the salts, with distilled water, and with hydrant water: | Elongation of roots at the end of a given time. Water or solution. | =a Pe a Se a First Second Third Fourth day. day. day. day. LL, nine. TnL, nin, Sermremrmmimiannca 225.27 68 he tt 2.2 2.2 2.2 | 2.2 OUT USED GOSUT ULES Ry re a rr rr ee ae ee 11.4 26. 2 33.7 | 36.3 Magnesium sulphate (0.001 normal): _.____._______.._-__.-- 10.6 21.2 27 27.6 Magnesium chlorid (0.001 normal)a________..___-_-_--..---- 16:8 30.8 37.6 35.2 Sodium carbonate (0.001 normal)a__________.______._.-.---- 11.3 14.5 | 16.8 17.8 Sodium bicarbonate (0.0075 normal) __________...-.-------- 10.6 a4 31 32.4 Pociumisnipnate (0:015 normal )@.:-.--...-_<-.22....---..--- 8.5 22 31.5 34.8 Sodium chlorid (0.015 normal)a _______._---__-.--- ates 7.8 15 “49 22 TEP RUSRUR STD 0Ere on De Ee ee 9.4 23.8 37.4 | 46 «The mean toxic limit of all varieties of wheat tested in the presence of the salts here employed is shown as follows: Parts of nor- mal solution. LOLS LUSwTn GUID TER Se eee eee 0. 00736 PETA TECH OTIC ee ee ee ee ee . 009381 Lolo 53h UScn ROTH i Ss ee ee 0 ee eee . 0109 TESTE DOTS ee eee . 026 IEEE I) ich kis See ee ee ere 2 . 0432 Soe ER ESCO) LSE a SE ee Ee Sg Ss ee . 0542 A comparison of these figures with the table above shows that from one-third to one- tenth the concentrations of the solutions which represent the limit of endurance of the wheat varieties is sufficient to neutralize the harmful effect of the zine present in the distilled water. The above table shows that after an elongation of 2.2 mm. during the first day in the water distilled once no further growth took place. A comparison of that with absolutely pure water (in this case redis- tilled) shows that there was some element in the first water which hindered growth and which was not found in the second. This, as the chemical analysis above referred to showed, is probably zine. The results in the dilute salt solutions which were made up with the injurious once-distilled water showed that there was no material dif- ference in the elongation made in them and in the checks in redis- tilled and hydrant water. It is not assumed that these dilute solu- 49? WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. tions were in the exact proportion that would have permitted the greatest elongation. -The object was merely to show that at the con- centrations used in these experiments the salts of magnesium and of sodium effectively neutralize the injurious element present in the once-distilled water. The only noticeable difference was in the case of sodium carbonate and sodium chlorid, in which the elongation was somewhat below the average in the pure-water check and in the solu- tions of other salts. The use of a more dilute or a more concentrated | solution would doubtless have removed this difference. On the other hand, a 0.001 normal magnesium chlorid was conducive to better development than any of the others, with the single exception of hydrant water. It will be noticed that at the end of the third day there was even a slight advantage in favor of magnesium chlorid over river water. The elongation the fourth day was but a slight increase over that at the end of the third, with the one exception of the seeds in the hydrant water. This is just what was to be expected. During these — four days the seeds were compelled to live on the nutriment stored up in the endosperm. This had been practically all used up at the end of the third day; hence the cessation of growth. With hydrant water the conditions were different. Certain nutritive substances are con- tained in this water upon which the roots can draw when those con- tained in the endosperm have been exhausted. In view of the experiments, small quantities of these sodium, and magnesium salts, instead of being injurious when present in the soil, might be actually beneficial in case the soil contains very toxic substances, e. g., zine or copper. In fact, these salts are injurious only when present in excessive quantities, as in the so-called “ alkali — soils ” of the West. DILUTE SOLUTIONS AS STIMULANTS. Incidentally, throughout these experiments, evidences of stimula- tion in dilute solutions were obtained. This has been shown to occur by many investigators with other salts and with some acids. Kearney and Cameron, who made similar observations when ex- perimenting with Lupinus albus, say: In the case of certain salts, when plants are exposed to pure solutions which are much too dilute to produce any toxic effect, there occurred a decidedly aSome fungi have been known to be stimulated by the presence of small quantities of poisons. Th? germination of spores has likewise been hastened when in the presence of acids or salts. Townsend (Bot. Gaz., 27: 458-466, 1899) found that the germination of various seeds and spores has been stimulated by the presence of traces of ether, and (Bot. Gaz., 81: 241-264, 1901) that the presence of hydrocyanic acid for a brief period of time accelerates germination and subsequent growth. -DILUTE SOLUTIONS AS STIMULANTS. 43 stimulating effect upon growth, as compared with that in the distilled water control during a corresponding period. This was shown to be the case for salts of calcium, both the chlorid and the sulphate acting as stimuli. These investigators found decisive evidence of such stimulating action with both the carbonate and the bicarbonate of sodium. Sodium sulphate and sodium chlorid gave purely negative results. Very marked results of this kind were observed by Cameron and Breazeale when working with acids. Hydrochloric, sulphuric, and nitric acids in concentrations but little below the toxic limit produced enormous stimulation, especl lally with wheat Copeland “ shows that zine and copper in water cultures accelerate growth when the solutions are not much more dilute than those that are distinctly toxic. Similar observations have been made by many earlier investigators. In the experiments with wheat all the salts were found to stimu- late growth except sodium chlorid and sodium carbonate, which were indifferent at the lowest concentration used. It is not unlikely, however, that if the proper dilution of the carbonate were employed it would be found to act as a stimulus with wheats just as it did with lupines. In fact, it was found that the same concentration of certain salts which was decidedly toxic for- some varieties of wheat wil! act as a stimulant to another variety. Especially is this true of the chlorid and sulphate of magnesium. In a 0.005 solution of each of these salts the elongation of the roots of Turkey wheat was equal to that in the control of hydrant water during the period of twenty- four hours. The toxic limits for this variety are 0.0075 normal for the chlorid and 0.01 normal for the sulphate. As will be seen, two- thirds and one-half the concentration of the toxic limit, respectively, not only were not toxic but actually acted as a stimulating influence. There is a possibility, in view of these results, that dilutions not very much below the toxic limit are more likely to have a stimulating effect than are much more dilute solutions. This, however, is not a question to be settled at this time, but will require to determine it a series of special experiments. A 0.015 normal solution of sodium sulphate caused an elongation about one and one-half times as great as that in hydrant water. The same dilution of sodium chlorid gave results somewhat less striking, but the elongation was well above the average of that in the hydrant- water checks. As before stated, it would seem that instead of being injurious, dilute solutions of -these salts might be decidedly advantageous, yet if they cause an unnatural growth their presence must be considered as detrimental rather than beneficial. Copeland calls attention to , aChemical Stimulation and the Evolution of Carbon Dioxide. Bot. Gaz., 35:81-98 (1903). 44 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. this fact, and is of the opinion that substances acting as stimulants are in the long run injurious. It is of course an established fact that certain of these salts are beneficial nnd even necessary in particular cases. It has been claimed that chlorids are indispensable to buckwheat. The plant thrives ~ well until it has passed the blooming stage, at a period when potas-— sium chlorid seems necessary to complete the fruiting stage. This — fact has apparently been demonstrated by experiment. Loew says that fungi grown in culture solutions containing only traces of — magnesia form no spores, but by increasing, the amount of lethicin — and thus adding more magnesium to the culture solution spores will be formed. Magnesium salts are as indispensable to fungi as to | higher plants, but an exceedingly small amount is sufficient when the — solution has an acid reaction. Plants are often benefited by sodium salts.’ While three of these — salts—the chlorid, bicarbonate, and carbonate—are not indispensable — to the plant, they accelerate ripening in some of the cereals. Loew asserts that sodium, manganese, and silicon are often bene- ficial but not indispensable to phanerogams. Sodium salts are not — essential in the physiological processes of plants, but are indispen- — sable to animals. PRACTICAL VALUE OF RESULTS. There is certainly a very practical lesson to be drawn from the results described in this paper. It has of course long been known that plants of different genera and species show very different aThe Physioloetee Role of Mineral Netrients in Plants. Bul. 45, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture (1905). + Chittenden and Wachsman are of the opinion that fet conversion of starch into dextrin and sugar (diastase) is more vigorous in the presence of small quantities of sodium chlorid (0.24 per cent). Several investigators, prominent among whom are Sprengel and Liebig, have shown that various crops, and more especially beans, are much benefited by the application of small quantities of common salt. : Pethybredge (Bot. Centralbl., No. 33, 1901) is authority for the statement that the color of wheat leaves is intensified when sodium chlorid is applied. S. Suzuki (Bul. Coll. Agric., Tokyo, 5: No. 2, p. 199) showed that potassium todid, even in very high dilutions, exerted a stimulating action on the growth of the pea: and (ibid., No. 4, p. 473) that dilute quantities of potassium iodid stimulated oats. In opposition to these stimulating effects the same investiga- jor has found (ibid., No. 4, p. 518) that vanadin sulphate, even in very dilute quantities, produced little or no stimulating action on barley, though he states that a very weak stimulating action on the roots seemed to have taken i:lace in a 0.01 per mille of vanadin sulphate. He further shows (ibid., No. 2) that potassium ferrocyanid acts as a poison on plants in water cultures even in very high dilutions. SUMMARY. 45 behavior when brought into relation with saline or alkaline soils. But the species itself may include a great number of different varie- ties or races, as in the case of wheat. It is not enough to know that wheat in general is better adapted to a certain region because of soil or climatic conditions than is Indian corn or cotton, but in addition it is necessary to know which of the many varieties of wheat is best suited to that region. Such knowledge might save many years of constant selection with a view to acclimatization. Soils are often known to contain sodium chlorid or magnesium sulphate or some other salt in such quantity as to be fatal to some varieties, while permitting others to flourish. Now, it has been pos- sible by these experiments to determine that some varieties of wheat are much more resistant to a particular salt than others, and they are the ones which would be expected a priori to thrive best in a region - where that salt predominates, other conditions being equal. By some of the experiments it was found that some varieties would thrive equally well in three times the concentration of sodium carbonate as others. A simple deduction from such results would be that for a region containing large quantities of “black alkali” the variety shown to have the greatest resisting power should be selected. A knowedge of the limits of individual variation within each variety is likewise very essential. Often the most resistant varieties ure not always the most desirable in other respects and a sort which is less resistant would be preferable. In case such a sort has a great individual variation in resistance to salts it should be compara- tively easy to introduce it by gradual selection of the most resistant individuals, though a little more time would naturally be required than in introducing a variety that is already more resistant, as a smaller percentage of the plants would survive to furnish seed for the next crop. It is believed, therefore, that the results of these experiments afford additional proof that the adaptation of useful cultivated plants to saline or alkaline soil conditions is one of the most promising of plant-breeding problems. SUMMARY. (1) The salts with which the experiments were made are injurious to wheat seedlings in the following order: Magnesium sulphate, magnesium chlorid, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium sulphate, and sodium chlorid. This is asserted as true only of wheat. and a quite different order might possibly be established for other plants. (2) The results obtained from a few individual seedlings are inaec- curate and unreliable. A large number must be tested in order that 46 WHEAT RESISTANCE TO TOXIC SALTS. individual variation may be eliminated. Usually about ten days of experiment and from 60 to 100 seedlings were employed to estab- lish the toxic limit for each variety in each salt. (3) Wheat is one’and a half to six times as resistant as white lupines, according to the salt used. In sodium bicarbonate the least and in magnesium sulphate and sodium carbonate the greatest differ-_ ence in resistance between these two plants is shown. . (4) Different varieties, representing the two extremes, vary in the ratio of 1 to 3 in their resistance to the toxic effect of different — salts. This is especially true for sodium carbonate and magnesium chlorid. In magnesium sulphate they vary in the ratio of 1 to 2. (5) The variety most resistant as a whole is not necessarily the most resistant to every salt. The variety that averages least in resistance may be twice as resistant to some one particular salt as that which averages highest. In this fact may be found the secret of selecting a variety for a locality where the soil contains an excess of some one salt. (6) The least resistant variety is not always the least resistant for every salt used. It may be exceedingly resistant to one or more salts — and yet have a very low sum total resistance. (7) It is not possible from the results with a few varieties to draw general conclusions for all sorts of wheat. Each will have to be worked out for itself. (S$) Varieties which come from localities where saline salts abound are the most resistant in water cultures to these toxic salts. Varie- ties from humid regions are less resistant. (9) In general, the more toxic the salt the greater is the ratio of resistance of one variety to another. The less toxic the salt the- smaller is the ratio. For sodium carbonate and magnesium chlorid the ratio of resistance is greatest, being as 1 to 3. For the remaining salts it is smaller. (10) Individual variation is more prevalent and makes the estab- lishment of the toxic limit much more difficult in some varieties than in others. (11) All the salts used act as stimulants in dilute solutions except sodium carbonate and sodium chlorid, which were neutral even in very dilute solutions. In some cases the elongation in dilute solutions was nearly twice that occurring in the controls of hydrant water. (12) Absolutely pure distilled water does not hinder development, but traces of zine are sufficient to kill the root tips in twenty-four hours. : (13) The economic importance of these results is based upon the fact that water-culture experiments may be a means for saving several years of selection by indicating whether a certain variety is adapted to soil conditions in a particular region. BIBLIOGRAPHY. CAMERON, F. K., and Breazeate, J. F. The toxic action of acids and salts on seedlings. Journal Phys. Chem., vol. 8, No. 1, p. 1 (Jan., 1904). CARLETON, M. A. Basis for the improvement of American wheats. Bul. 24, Diy. Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, U. 8. Dept. of Agriculture (1900). CHARABOT, E., and H&Bert, A. Contribution a letude des modifications cheim- iques chez la plante soumise a lVinfluence du chlorure de sodium. Compt. Rend., Paris, 154: 181 (1902). CopELAND, E. B. Chemical stimulation and the evolution of carbon dioxide. Bot. Gaz., 35: 81-98 (1903). Coupin, Henri. Sur la sensibilite des végétaux supérieurs 4 des doses tr¢s faibles de substances toxiques. Compt. Rend., Paris, 132:645 (1901). Sur la toxicité du chlorure de sodium et de l'eau de mer. a legard des végétaux. Revue Générale de Botanique, 10: 188 (1898). Sur la toxicité des composés de sodium, de potassium, et de l'ammo- ~ nium a l’égard des végétaux supérieurs. Revue Générale de Botanique, 12: 180 (1900). DANDENO, J. B. The relation of mass action and physical affinity to toxicity. with incidental discussion as to how far electrolytic dissociation may he involved. Amer. Journal of Science, vol. 17 (June, 1904). DEHERAIN and Demoussy. Sur la germination dans leau distillé. Compt. Rend., Paris, 132: 523 (1900). Duagar, B. M. ‘The toxic effect of some nutrient salts on certain marine alge. Science, 459 (1903). ESCHENHAGEN. Ueber den einfluss von lO6sungen verschiedener concentration auf den wachstum der schimmelpilze. Stolp (1889). GUTHRIE and Hetms. Vot experiments to determine the limits of endurance of different farm crops for certain injurious substances. Roy. Soc, New South Wales, 36: 191 (1902). Heap, F. D. On the toxic effect cof dilute solutions of acids and salts upon plants. Bot: Gasz., 22: 125 (1896). KAHLENBURG and TRUE. On the toxic action of dissolved salts and their elec- trolytic dissociation. Bot. Gaz., 22:81 (1896). KEARNEY and CAMERON. Some mutual relations between alkali soils and vege- tation. Rept. No. 71, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture (1902). Loew, Oscar. The physiological r6le of mineral nutrients in plants. Bul. 45, Bureau of Plant Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture (1903). Moore and KELLERMAN. dejan aeie's oe cls oe -- 2 2 AREELAREI TD VCD Ses I ED one eee reo ICTR COUN Soe Se a ee eb eee betes es Seu LD LE EIAE IPERS aR ae I eo ae ea eee SHLILS So OSo85 RESEDA SOE BOL bel Oe ae eee ene Sears ea ee ea eee ee: ee I eae Lol.) (eet lS Se Boe tee eas 282. 2S Sees ee 7 OE SN Ope eS ares InGHPi GOB so 88 Seat a5 SE Sho See See Senne iC SiS eESaaT ST CCS ee a. es Se an Si eins Sle Ber eenrc ania le VEN (eee eas 322 obs 2 owe 5 nase ne teste PO eee De iS oS arr mee, srr IIICRE OO ROUNOG = oe sean. ee Song pa eeas IPRS SICH Soe ee ee N.S. Dos oe ence nwec ee ees Loni!) pL UGS Goce eed eR aya Oe ee ee ee 8 Pond, WTOTD oot se ne ee ee Seer ee a meemicnne Of the native population..--_-----.---..----<-----+--0-s6-- PR OMINTC DAT ate oleae sw. ble lbs e ete nace eee MIE) ae ee nee. ean Swe Shee cotinine Titus Withee Span HO Se es oc i ho ae Sey I ee fe = ee... 8 a see ne eee ee MERCI THOULIGW SS o2 ut eee... = tno ws nh some a ake [Litho are Soe Das | rere ee =" Piles nit plain Zoller. 3.) eee. - --------- = = 2a seh ne ee Wham vial V0 Se eee eS nme rH, >, Bee eLerig FeriG@t es ee eee |... 2 ee ence te CITY Se DL ree... oe noc n ess enn < 7d Seen 8 - CONTENTS. Crops of the colony—Continued. Page. Principal crops ta etal. (9220-2. 2-2 Shae coe ee te ae ee 60 Prot Opa: sess. oe eS oe oa eee Sel a Pees sag BE = 60 Grapes 4.38. oc eee it ee 2 ee eee eee ee 60 — Wine pTapes.... 22245 228-1225 a ore eee eee 60 Table grapes: <= 25 .-2---0. 2: 2lse- eee oe see 64 Olives oi. g2csenteet he ee 2t - 32 ot Base a 64 Bigs . 2252322 Pees 2h ee - at 67 Citras froiis?- 22) S222 22 2. Si 2s eee eee 68 Dates 2s 4-enee ier 2). ooh eee So aen Re e e 69 Less important orchard crops... < 25 322 =. 336 a ee 70 Track -cropa. 320.220 Se tat oa eS ae See 71 Cereals wc se fois ooo as Fo so ae 73 Winter cereala;> 3020-5 .2 fs: ie pant sa oe ee 74 Wheat. 2025 oe ne eo he eh aoe a 74 Barleys So hee as. Soon Secs ee ae ee ee 75 Oats 22 - Sees res ate ko os Shs LEE ok ee ea ee 76 Summer cereals22 22 22-22-22" 2222 (SSS See 16248 Sorghum s"ta2-: = 2. 222 ora ee 76 Indianicormsss-5-=- - Las dos Set aee es ieee eee cee iia Rorage Chops 2 se aot sn see os) faa eee eee ee 77 Wild: forage 3232225 2 2 Sk be ris Fallow-land forage -....:.5.-22-222552255--52.2-- Ni Forage of natural meadows and prairies. .......----.------- i Cultivated: forage 22 -= =. - + 252 22 222625252522 222 eee - 79 Legummous crepe 2. 22 222... 22 2 Si ee 79a Alfalfaw or lucern o:) 2.22.5: -25) 822235 ee 793 Heorsei beans: 22 xs face. Se eee Se eee eee ,. So eee 83 Sully 2s 22225 2S else 83 Fenucresk 8: . 582: S52 Soaks es ot oe Sk eee 833 Berseem 22. 2 2 es be SS eee 83 — Vetchesese2 2 2. 23 (22h eae 83.9 Tree eropsa as forage :. =. S25... 2225 6 See 84 Carob, or-St; John’s bread £:-. 222522: 225 eee 84 Indian fies: 2222-22 2. gh saci coeks see 85 Miscellaneous rapss2-25522---)-s2-225 5225s 2ece6 See ee 85 ToPACCO sa 2e2 Sen eee ne = = oo See es Se ae Se es 85 Biber plants) st 52.82 (7. - 2 22 Soa ae ee 86 Perfume planie22o4- 46": - = 225. 262 Sue SSRs ee ee re Tave stock = 2 652 ob 2 ere: . cS eh ea Soe 87 Cattle’. <3 Seok See ee oo ee eee ee eee ee OS 88 Horses. 202 See en es «SS eee eer 88 Donkeys 2222 4 es | Se 89 Males -. 2:2 5 Sete e eae; eee eee 89 Camels‘... 3. 2 222 ee eens) ieee eee See 89 Sheep. 3. 2: beso sees a ae e ees < 2c SS Tee ere 89's Goats. 22... Sen ee ee ae ee |. ee ee eee 2 oe 90 Forestry 2.252205 es ee eee. > 2 Sates eee ee ee 90 General conditions <2." 2. 222-> -. 2 1-2: 2o See eee 90 Forest products’ -2*>2-2222-25. -°. -. .---2 "2S eee ee 93 Waellt 2 Ole oe eee Ss Lo Dee ee eee ae 93 Tim ber 5.2 ae oe eee Po este eke ee er 93 Conk ot a ee 2 i oe ee ee ee 94 <= Tan bark 5-2 S20e. 222 eee-. |. - 258 ses abee ese Seeks es 95 Alfa = 2o coc. ee eee ee .. .- e e 95 - Dwarf palo > 30 oe - - -. 2 2s Se Se ee 98 ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. PuiatE I. Oasis of Biskra, Algeria, showing date palms -_.........--- Frontispiece. II. Fig. 1.—Salt land near Relizane, in the coast region of Algeria. ' Fig. 2.—Vineyard of wine grapes, in the Mitidja plain, near «DETig 2p Bods Bes Vee SEE R200 lt 2a ere ae ane 98 Ill. Fig. 1.--Garden of the kaid, at Tougourt, showing cabbage, pep- pers, and other vegetables grown in the shade of the palms. Fig. 2.—Date palms planted in very salty land by a French company REAR RM LENG PANAPA See Se ie tee ee 98 IV. Fig. 1.—Valley of the Habra, below the reservoir dam, near Per- régaux, showing width of flood plain and small size of the stream in summer. A typical landscape in the coast region of western Algeria. Fig. 2.—Alkali-resistant alfalfa near Temacin, Algerian SRUGIED De Soe Se Se ee a ee ee ee ee 98 = B. P. I.—160. S. P. I. D.—49. AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. INTRODUCTION. The principal object of the writers’ visit to Algeria was to secure for trial in the “‘ alkali” lands of the western United States seed of such of the important field crops as might show indication of an unusual degree of resistance to salt in the soil. There was reason to believe that in northern Africa, if anywhere in the world, useful plants would be found to have developed such resistance through long cultivation in saline soils under a dry, hot climate. Agriculture is too new in the arid part of America to make it likely that races in which the quality of resistance to ‘‘alkali” has become fixed should as yet have arisen there without direct efforts to breed them. But in the Sahara Desert, and in adjacent regions, all the con- ditions are favorable to the production of such races through natural selection. There we find the greatest continuous body of desert land in the world. The cultivated soils and the water used in irrigation often contain an excess of soluble salts. Finally, agriculture has been practiced there for thousands of years, and well-marked varieties of various cultivated plants have been developed. As a matter of fact, it is already known to the Department of Agri- culture that such salt-resistant races exist in northern Africa. Sey- eral of the agricultural explorers sent out by the Department have reported this to be true of Algerian wheats and barleys. Mr. W. T. Swingle brought back with him from the oases of the Sahara seed of alfalfa that was growing in soils containing a high percentage of salt. It was desirable, however, to determine just how resistant this Alge- rian alfalfa is and to obtain a larger quantity of the Seed, in order that it could be fairly tested in the southwestern United States. It is believed that this object was accomplished. The fact that alfalfa in the oases withstands a greater amount of soluble salts in the soil than ordinary American alfalfa was established beyond reasonable question. A sufficient quantity of seed was obtained to insure a thorough trial of it in parts of our country where a similar climate ll 12 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. Z, prevails. At the same time a careful search was made in various parts of Algeria for such other cultivated plants as might proye useful for salt soils. Incidentally the writers procured all possible information as to the character of the saline soils of Algeria, the way in which they are handled, and such attempts as have been made bs reclaim them. The coast region of Algeria strikingly resembles the corresponding part of California in climate, in physiography, and in the crops grown. — The interior of California, and of the extreme southwestern United States generally, corresponds in many ways to the steppe and the desert regions of northern Africa. It is true that in some respects agricul-_ ture has reached a more advanced stage of development in California — than in Algeria; yet there are probably some matters in which the — French colony can give lessons to the American State. For this reason itseems advisable to present a sketch of Algerian agriculture as a whole, — in addition to a more detailed account of the special subjects which the — writers were sent out to investigate. The writers’ stay in Algeria was limited to one month, from July 20 to August 20, 1902. It is fully realized that this length of time was entirely inadequate for anything — like a thorough study of agriculture in the colony, especially as the— mild winter permits crops to be grown at all seasons of the year. The- date of the writers’ visit to Algeria was determined partly by the — necessity of reaching Egypt in time to study cotton at the height of E its development, and partly by their desire to visit the oases of the Sahara at the season when the seed crop of alfalfa is being made. The information they could obtain by direct observation was neces- sarily fragmentary in the extreme. To supplement this, recourse has — been had to the rather extensive literature of Algerian agriculture. — In the preparation of this report the excellent work of Battandier and Trabut, entitled ‘‘ L’Aleérie” (Paris, 1898), has been freely con- sulted. Much information has also been drawn from papers upon special subjects by Doctor Trabut and others,“ from the important ‘* Manuel Pratique de PAgriculteur Algérien” (Paris, 1900) of Riviere and Leeq, and from various other sources. TOPOGRAPHY. The French colony of Algeria is situated in northern Africa, between — Morocco on the west and Tunis on the east. In general outline it is a rectangle, of which the greatest length—that from east to west—is about 650 miles. The area of Algeria is about 230,000 square miles, of — which approximately 20,000,000 acres are under cultivation. The Medi tenraaienn forms the northern boundary, while on the south the ‘aPublished praene in tbe: iz Bulletin Kepeole de Algérie et de i Tunisie. TOPOGRAPHY. 13 frontier extends well into the great desert of Sahara, the present - outposts being from 300 to 500 miles from the coast. The vast desert to the southward cuts off Algeria physically as well as politically from tropical Africa. The influence of the sea upon its climate and the fact that almost unbroken overland communication with Europe by way of Morocco and Gibraltar has always been easy make Algeria rather an outpost of Europe than an integral part of Africa. In climate, physiography, flora, and agriculture Algeria is closely related to the countries that border the northern shore of the Mediterranean—Spain, southern France, and southern Italy. Indeed, geologists tell us that northern Africa was separated from southern Europe at only a comparatively recent period. The part of the United States which Algeria most nearly resembles is California. The climate, agriculture, and state of development of the two countries are remarkably similar. In their general aspects they are much alike. In both, the coast region, being limited to a narrow strip by a range of mountains that parallels the seashore, has a comparatively mild, equable climate. In both countries this zone is preeminently adapted to fruit growing. Citrus fruits, olives, figs, and vines flourish there. to T5~ F. for fifteen days or a month at a time are not of rare occurrence in winter. The temperature never descends much below freezing, and does not remain at that point for any length of time. Still, tempera- tures of 23° F., suchas are sometimes recorded by thermometers placed 4 inches above the surface of the ground, can do considerable damage 20 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. to the winter crops of garden vegetables, although the soil itself is never frozen to any considerable depth. The cold often seems more intense than is actually the case, because of the humidity of the atmosphere and the lack of facilities for heating the houses. A tem- perature of 45° F. is considered very disagreeable. A few miles back _ from the shore line, behind the first range of hills, for example, in the Mitidja plain, near Algiers, light frosts are frequent and have been known to occur as late as May. Snow, which has never remained on the ground for an entire day at Algiers, has lain for three days to a depth of 7.5 inches in the country only a few miles back from the coast. In summer, except during the sirocco, the shade temperature of the littoral zone rarely exceeds 86° F., but sometimes rises to 105° F. when the wind from the desert is blowing. At such times the nights are often as hot as the days. The moderate summer temperatures are largely due to the sea breeze, which rises every morning at about 10 o'clock. As far inland as the influence of this wind is felt compara- tively mild summer temperatures prevail. The climate of the littoral zone is much like that of the coast of southern Europe; but fall-sown crops mature even earlier than there, by reason of the milder winter and the higher temperatures in spring. — Hay is harvested in May and cereals in June in this zone. The valley and plain zone of the coast region has a more extreme — climate than the littoral zone. This difference has already been indi- — cated in comparing the Mitidja Valley with Algiers, on the neighbor- ing coast. The great Chéliff Valley, farther west, presents a still more marked contrast. Here, owing to the greater dryness of the atmosphere, frosts are more frequent and more severe in winter and spring than along the coast. On the other hand, in summer the hills which bound these valleys on the north shut off the sea breeze, and the heat is consequently more intense. Sunstroke and prostration from heat are by no means unknown in the Chéliff Valley. The sirocco, also, is more severely felt than in the littoral zone, which is partly protected against this south wind by the rampart of hills that rises a short distance back from the shore. More elevated places, like Sétif, have even severer winters, resembling those of the high plateau region. Sharp frosts are frequent as late as April and May. The summer temperatures are often very high in the daytime, but the air is fresher than in the valleys and the nights are nearly always cool. The mountain zone of the coast region is not dissimilar in climate to mountainous regions of southern Europe. The winter, especially at the higher altitudes, is much more severe than in the littoral zone. On the crest of the Djurdjura range, at 7,000 feet elevation, snow often reaches a depth of 33 feet and remains on the ground until the latter part of July. The summer temperatures are almost invariably moderate in the mountain region, except when the sirocco is blowing. “ee. CLIMATE. ot The smaller relative humidity also contributes toward making the summer climate an agreeable one. Springs with a mean annual temperature of 45° or 50° F. are not infrequent at high elevations in the Djurdjura range. TaBLeE 1.—Mean temperatures (in degrees Fahrenheit) of localities in the coast region of Algeria, as compared with the California coast. : | Algeria. California. Month. | Or- Fort Los San San | Beet |e | Oran.| léans- |Algiers. Nation-| Sétif. | Ange-| Luis | Fran- Fresno, 58¢ta- | Col- ville. al. les. |Obispo. cisco. cvs fax. | | | January ...--- 50.9 45.8 54.0 41.2 39.0 53.0 51.2 50. 1 45.2 45.2 | 44.3 February ..... |} o1.8 47.7 54.0 42.2 40.4 64.4| 5d.3 52.2 51.5 49.6 | 45.8 Maren t oo... =. 59. 4 53.1 56.5 46.8 46.0 56.4 52.2 53.6 54.0 54.3 | 49,1 LS 59. 2 55.8 59.5 50. 2 49.8 60.0 56.0 55.0 60.9 59.0 | 54.2 LC eo 64.0 63.5 64.6 55.9 56.7 62.0 57.6 57.0 67.3 64.54 61.7 WHNE.secoo. 2. 69.4 71.6 70.0 66.6 66.7 65.9 62.9 59. 0 74.6 70.0 | 71.4 JA =e 74.1) 80.1 73.4 74.7 74.8 70.8 66.2 58.8 82.1 73.6 76.1 ASP ESE . 5... BSA 7907, 76.1 7o.4 73.4 | 72.0 65. 0 59.3} 81.4 70.6 | 77.0 September... ae 7253 72.9 67.3 65.5 68.5 65.4 60.9 74.2 70.0 | 69.7 October..-.... 63.7 | 61.0 65.8 56.1 53.6 64.0 62.0 59.9] 63.4 60.0 59.8 November....| 57.2 53. 2 60.4 | *48.9 45.2 60.0 57.8 56.4 4. 7 | 53.4 51.4 December ....| 51.6 46.8 54.0 42.2 39.6 56.4 52.6 51.6 46.3 47.2 46.3 Gar: =". .| 62.0 | 60.9 63.6 5d. 6 54.2] 62.0 58.7 6. 2 63.0 59.7 | 58.8 | | } | A comparison of the temperatures of localities in Algeria and in California, as given in Table 1, is instructive. Of the Algerian stations, Oran and Algiers are situated on the seaboard, the first in western, the second in central Algeria. Data from these localities should be representative of conditions along the coast, except in the extreme eastern part of the colony. With them are to be compared San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, and Los Angeles, representing the coast of California. Orléansville is the metropolis of the great valley, or rather plain, of the Chéliff, the most important of the large inland valleys of the coast region in Algeria. Sétif, as has already been remarked, lies south of the mountain chain that bounds the coast region, and has an elevation of over 3,000 feet. Topographically, and in some of its climatic peculiarities, it belongs rather to the high plateau than to the coast region, although agriculturally it is more nearly related to the latter. Fresno and Sacramento are representa- tive points in the two great interior valleys of California—the San Joaquin and the Sacramento. They should afford an interesting com- parison, especially with Orléansville. Fort National, at an elevation of over 3,000 feet, in the heart of the most mountainous region of Algeria, is to be compared with Colfax, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, north of the center of California. Oran has the same mean yearly temperature as Los Angeles, but has higher mean temperatures for the summer and lower for the win- ter months, so that Los Angeles has the more equable climate. At Algiers the yearly mean temperature is not very different from that at Oran, but the mean temperatures for the winter months are gen- erally higher. San Francisco and San Luis Obispo fall considerably yay AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. below the Algerian coast towns in yearly mean temperature. The mean temperatures for the summer months also are decidedly lower at the California localities. The mean temperatures in winter cor- respond more closely. Orléansville shows a remarkable resemblance in distribution of tem- peratures to the similarly situated town of Fresno, in California, and in this repect somewhat less to Sacramento. In yearly mean tempera- ture, however, Orléansville is nearer Sacramento. Sétif, as would be expected, differs considerably from Orléansville, Fresno, and Sacra- mento in yearly and monthly means of temperature. Its resemblance to the high plateau is expressed in the fact that the nights are always cool in summer and the winter temperatures are low, falling at times to 12° F. The mountain stations, Fort National and Colfax, show a close approximation in monthly and yearly mean temperatures. HUMIDITY. The relative atmospheric humidity in the littoral zone is fairly uniform throughout the year. Owing to the proximity of the sea it is at all seasons considerable, the average for the year being 73 per cent. This condition of humidity is interrupted only when, generally in late summer and in early autumn, the sirocco blows for a day or more at a time. The humidity is far greater in the eastern than in the western part of the colony. The large percentage of moisture in the atmosphere causes the discomfort from cold in winter, and from heat in summer, to be out of all proportion to the actual temperature. The dry season, so far as the littoral zone is concerned, owes its character to the lack of actual precipitation rather than to the absence of humidity inthe air. Night fogs are frequent when east or northeast winds are blowing, and in August it is often 9 o’clock in the morning before they disappear. Dew is also copious at this season. Atmospheric humidity, like precipitation, decreases as one goes far- ther from the coast. It is already perceptibly less in the mountains and in the great valleys of the coast region than along the seaboard. PRECIPITATION. In Algeria precipitation is almost synonymous with rainfall, except in the higher mountains, for elsewhere the amount of precipitation in the form of snow is unimportant. Hailstorms are fairly frequent, occurring, on an average, seven times a vear. Market gardens of the littoral zone sometimes suffer severely from spring hailstorms, and, in exceptional localities, vineyards and orchards are occasionally dam- aged. Hail is more important for this reason than as contributing much to the total precipitation. In the coast region of Algeria, as in many warm temperate and tropical countries, the distribution of the rainfall is more important CLIMATE. 23 than that of heat in determining the characteristics of the principal seasons of the year. Its distribution is largely controlled by the direction of the prevailing winds. In winter strong northwest winds, blowing from the Mediterranean, are of frequent occurrence and bring most of the rainstorms. They begin in the autumn, sometimes as early as the first of September, and usually cease in May or June. Even in midwinter, however, a clear sky for fifteen or thirty days at a time is not a rare event. During the summer there is a light sea breeze during the day, but winds of greater violence come almost wholly from the south, and are dry and hot. More rain falls annually on the coast of Algeria, especially on the eastern coast between Algiers and Tunis, than in a great part of Europe. Notwithstanding this, Algeria has a decidedly more arid summer than any part of Europe, except, perhaps, extreme southern Italy and portions of Spain. This is due to the unequal distribution of the rain among the different seasons. In the littoral zone winter is a wet rather than a cold season. — It is then that most of the native vegetation, as well as crops that are not irrigated, must make their growth. The dry season is a period of rest for soils that are not artificially watered. Light showers of brief duration, such as occasionally fall during the summer, are of small importance in their effect upon the climate and vegetation. In the large inland valleys of the coast region the summer drought is still more pronounced than on the coast. In the mountain zone, particularly at the higher elevations, rain is more evenly distributed, and the seasons are more like those of middle Europe. The rainfall in March and April is particularly heavy. In Great Kabylia thunderstorms and hail, which in the littoral zone occur only in winter, are not infrequent throughout the summer. This, with the partial protection from the sirocco afforded by the higher ranges, makes the summer drought less pronounced than in the littoral zone and in the valley and plain zone. But the total amount of precipitation in summer is, after all, comparatively insignificant. Even in the mountains, summer retains its characteristics as the dry season of the year. In winter the rainfall is quite considerable. The northern slopes of the Djurdjura range receive the heaviest precipita- tion occurring in the country—over 40 inches a year. These high mountains form a barrier which intercepts most of the cloud-laden winds from the sea, so that the country immediately to the south of them is extremely arid. Rainfall is very unevenly distributed in different parts of the coast region and even of the littoral zone proper. One reason for this is the great difference in latitude—about two degrees—hetween the east- ernmost and the westernmost point of the Algerian coast. While the total annual precipitation on the coast near the Tunisian border 24 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. amounts to nearly 40 inches, on the frontier of Morocco it is less than 16 inches. From year to year, also, the total amount and the dis-— tribution vary enormously. TABLE 2.—Rainfall (in inches) of localities in the coast region of Algeria, as compared with the California coast. Algeria. California. Month. Or- Fort | San San Gael léans- |Algiers.| Na- | Sétif. be A Luis | Fran- Fresno. Lear Ce | Ville. | tional. g Obispo. cisco. fe | | | JANUSLY ...-=- 3:05 | 4273.4) Sa 350 eat: 58 1.62 | - 2.93 5.69 | 4.92 1.53 3.82 | 8.81 February ....- 2. 64 | 1.85 | 3.68 3.49 1.68 eel 1.55 3.49 | 1.33 2.80 | 6.89 Marehiea--22e" 2.42 2.28 | 3.42 6. 24 2.34 2.98 3.46] 3.22 1.74 2.86 | 6.78 Aprilice-.2 22 1567.1) 25151) essb 5.20 2.05 1.36 93 1.84 1.11). 2513 | 44s Malye s- 20 coe 1242) 1238))' — 240 2EOON) tbe 48 -30 B 50 1.01} 2.36 Wine! eee tee 29 | .55 57 1.13 | 1.08 .10 19 | .14 18 17, -62 inlivs sass cee .07 | 06 06 SEP 2 28 02 01 | .02 Trace. .02 . 03 Aurust.2. 25-2: . 08 08 | . 28 28 | .79 . 03 . 03 02 -O1 01 -O1 September....| .65 | .76 LA2 175) PL Ay . 08 36 322 | 26 32 -53 October....-.. GA St 778. 3.11 4.51 |. 1,44 .74 1.62 1.02 . 67 uPa wy 1.95 November ....} 2.38 | 2.29 4.37 4.99 1,52 1.38 1.16 2.12 Nc hoe 2.20 | 4.40 December ....| 2.90 2.48 5.49 7.30 2.05 | 3.98 3. 08 4.99} 1.78 3.69 | 8.70 Wears-3s< 19.18 | 17.39 30.21) 43.68 | 17.84 17.30| 18.43) 38.33 | 10.27 | 20.14 | 45. 56 | | | When we compare Algeria with California as to rainfall, we find that the annual total precipitation at the two coast towns, Oran and — San Luis Obispo, is very nearly the same. At Los Angeles it is some- what less. January is the month of greatest rainfall at Oran and San Luis Obispo, February at Los Angeles. July is the month when the least rain falls at all three points. The precipitation is much heavier, and nearly the same in total amount at Algiers and at San Francisco. There is also considerable similarity in the distribution during the- year of the rainfall at these two places. The rainfall at Orléansville greatly exceeds that at Fresno, but is somewhat less than that at Sacramento. Sétif agrees closely with Orléansville in yearly total and in distribution of the precipitation. | As for the mountainous districts of the two countries, as represented by Fort National and Colfax, there is a very close correspondence in yearly totals, but in respect to distribution the resemblance is less striking. The rainfall in summer at Fort National is greater and that in winter less than at Colfax. WIND. Winds from every point of the compass occur at different seasons in the coast region. As has already been mentioned, the characteristic winter wind is from the northwest, off the Mediterranean. This often rises to the height of a gale, and is of sufficient importance to decide the direction in which trees along the seashore are bent. West winds are also common in winter. In summer, the most violent wind is the occasional sirocco, from the Desert of Sahara, an extremely hot, dry wind, which sometimes blows day and night for several days at a time, CLIMATE. 25 filling the air with the fine dust it carries. It often does great harm to crops, vineyards and ripening grain being particularly liable to injury. The sirocco also blows in winter, but its violence is less at that season and it is cooler and moister. The regular summer wind is, however, the sea breeze from the northeast, which springs up every morning and is of great importance in moderating the temperature. East winds are also frequent in summer. At night, on the other hand, the prevailing wind is from the south. Absolute calm is not infrequent. In proportion as we travel farther from the coast, the effect of winds from the sea becomes less perceptible and that of the desert winds more pronounced. This difference becomes strongly marked after the northern mountain system is crossed. The sirocco is the most striking climatic feature in which Algeria differs from California. In southern California a wind from the des- ert, known as the ‘‘Santa Ana” wind, blows occasionally, but induration and severity it is not to be compared with the Algerian sirocco. HIGH PLATEAU REGION. The small agricultural importance of the high plateau region makes it unnecessary to discuss its climate at any great length. Owing to its greater elevation and distance from the sea, conditions are more extreme than in the coast region. The winters are colder and the summers hotter. Winter temperatures as low as 7° F. have been known, while in summer a temperature of 105° F. is often experi- enced. Daily variations amounting to 85 degrees have been recorded. In its severe winters the high plateau region resembles the highest alti- tudes of the mountain zone of the coast region, but differs in its hotter temperatures in the daytime in summer. In the latter respect it resembles the desert region, but there the nights are warmer in sum- mer and the winter is much milder. Battandier and Trabut “ mention one point in the high plateau region, at an elevation of about 4,700 feet, where the mean temperature for ten years was about 44.5° F. in winter, 55.5° F. in spring, 79° F. in summer, and 62” F. in autumn. The yearly mean temperature was 62° F. The rainfall is much less than in the coast region, but no exact data on this point are available. Rain falls usually in sudden and violent showers. Storms are more frequent during the summer than is the case along the coast. The amount of precipitation is trivial, although sometimes sufficient to moisten the ground. During the winter the soil, especially in depressions, contains enough water in occasional years to bring a crop of barley without irrigation. The atmospheric humidity is almost always very small. aL Algérie, p. 118. 26 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. DESERT REGION. TEMPERATURE, If we had no other data concerning the climate of the Sahara than the mean annual temperature, we should suppose it to be a very mild one. The variations from the yearly, monthly, and daily means are, however, enormous. Winter temperatures of 18° F. and summer temperatures of 112° F. are by no means uncommon. The daily range sometimes exceeds 86 degrees. The unshaded soil—sandy or rocky—becomes heated up to 160° F. At Biskra, which is by no means extreme in its summer climate, it is said to be possible some- times to cook an egg in the sand. In the Oued Rirh region, on the other hand, ice sometimes forms in winter in the irrigation ditches. Evaporation is undoubtedly very great, but no accurate records of this phenomenon have been kept in the Sahara. TABLE 3.— Mean temperatures (in «legrees Fahrenheit) of localities in the desert region of Algeria, as compared with similar localities in the southwestern United States. RORUIWO MARNE Algeria, United States. Month ; . Voleano 3 Tou- ones ee oats BOUL Yuma, Phoenix, Tucson, F gourt. | Biskra. | Quarzla. | Saada. Ariz. Ariz. Ariz. oe JANUARY £ 2-220 se-- o2 47.3 50.5 | 46.8 44.4 54.1 49.8 | 49.6 55. HEbLuanys assesses | 49.8 53. 2 51.8 45.8 58.6 54.3 53.6 60. Marche: sooee cece 54.9 | 58.3 | 59.9 51.1 63.9 53.9 59.4 68. (Avo ra ea ee. eae oe 64.0 | 63.1 66.4 56.8 69.9 67.0 | 65.6 “ios Matyoe nn = Se oe eee 74.8 71.8 73.6 65,1 76.9 74.4 74.5 87. JVUNEL LJ. 2 seee = 86.0 80.6 $2.4 75.0 84.4 83.9 84.0 96, DU eS See oe sei s7.1 90. 7 83.1 912 90. 2 87.7 as ANUS USEs he as a) t=cer 85.1 85.8 86.0 | 82.8 90. 4 88. 2 85.9 ae September .........- 83.7 78.8 78. 1 73.0 84.3 81.4 80.8 89. Octobers == te. 233 } 68.4 67.6 63.5 60.3 72.4 69.3 70.4 | 78. November ........-- 58.5 | 57.2 | 52.9 50.0 62.3 58.5 48.5 67. December.... ..-..| 48.9 Sisse 45.0 44.0 55.9 52.3 Pay 51.6 be 57. Wear 22a seece} 67.8 | 67.1 66.4 60.9 | 72.0 68.6 68.5] 78.5 Of the stations in the Algerian desert comprised in the accompanying table of temperatures, Bou Saada, at an elevation of 2,194 feet, belongs rather to the high plateau region, lying north of the mountain chain which forms the boundary of the Sahara. It is in a region, however, where the conditions are entirely desert-like, closely resembling those of the higher western part of the Sahara. The other three stations are in the low eastern part of the Sahara proper. Biskra can hardly be regarded as a typical locality, being just within the limits of the desert, only a few miles south of the mountains which form the north- ern boundary of the Sahara. Biskra is 407 feet above sea level. Tougourt, 120 miles farther south, in the Oued Rirh country, is the center of some 40 oases, where hundreds of thousands of date palms are grown. Its altitude above mean sea level is 226 feet. Ouargla, well into the Sahara, 120 miles still farther south, has the same elevation. CLIMATE. oT Among the localities in the extreme southwestern United States selected for comparison, Tucson, Ariz., with an elevation of 2,387 feet, resembles in situation Bou Saada. Phoenix (altitude, 1,100 feet) may be compared with Biskra. At Yuma (altitude, 137 feet), and still more at Voleano Springs (228 feet above sea level), conditions would be expected to resemble in many respects those prevailing at Tougourt and at Ouargla. A comparison of the figures in these tables shows that the Colorado Desert in southern California is warmer than the Saharain Algeria. Volcano Springs has an annual mean tempera- ture 10.7° F. higher than Tougourt, and in summer the maxima are higher. The extreme minimum temperatures in Arizona and Cali- fornia are lower than those in the Sahara. For example, the lowest recorded temperature at Biskra is 29.7° F., while at Phoenix, Ariz., the minimum frequently falls to 25° F., and has been as low as 12° F.4 HUMIDITY. While the actual amount of water vapor in the air is sometimes quite appreciable in the Sahara, the relative humidity is always low, because of the high temperatures. In summer the average relative humidity is only 28 per cent, and for this reason the excessive heat is less uncomfortable than would otherwise be the case. So extreme is the dryness of the atmosphere that one’s skin is seldom wet with per- spiration, even on the hottest days. Dew is rarely precipitated, and although freezing temperatures are by no means unknown in winter, white frost is not common. The sky over the Sahara is generally cloudless and very clear, particularly in the night time. TaBLe 4.—Mean relative humidity (in percentages) of localities in the desert region of Algeria, as compared with Yuma, Ariz. | United || ky sik saci | United Algeria. | States. || Algeria. States. Month. ee Month. % Guar aie Bou |e | - 1... | Ouar- | Bou ae e.. Biskra gla. | Saada.| Yuma. || Biskra.| gla. | Saada. Yuma. | | | | | DARUALY, S200 0c2.. 61.6 | 60.1 | 65.5 45.4 || August.......... 2 ODL b 25.3 26.4 47.7 February <...--.. Barolo, O%eb |) 6087)" 43-841) September —-- =: 44.1 28.6 39.1 | 44.7 Warch s2ve2222... 52:0] 55.0 507 | = <4850 i Octoben--22o-ee. 51.2 | +5210 47.6 | 16.2 1 Ue ere 48.2 47.0 46.9 | 35.1 || November ....-. 58.5 62.1 57.8 43.3 Wee ee esos 2. 42.9 | 37.3 | 42.0] 36.7 || December....... 62.5 | 66.4 64.8 51.4 CoC 36.4 35.6} 34.1 34.7 TIL Bea ates 32.6 299.4) 25.4] 42.8 Years as 48.4 i752 46.8 42.9 The three stations in the Algerian Sahara where records of relative atmospheric humidity have been kept all show an annual mean higher «For a detailed comparison of the climate of the Algerian Sahara with that of the extreme Southwestern States, see Bulletin No. 53 of the Bureau of Plant Industry, U.S. Department of Agriculture, The Date Palm and Its Utilization in the South- western States, by Walter T. Swingle, 1904, pp. 52-70. 28 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. than that of Yuma, the only locality in the desert region of the south- western United States where accurate records have been kept. But, while in winter the humidity is greater in the Algerian Sahara than in southwestern Arizona, in summer the reverse is true. PRECIPITATION. >a fea A widely received explanation of the peculiar conditions of the Sahara, as regards atmospheric water, is as follows: The central por- tion of the desert is sufficiently elevated to be considerably colder in winter than the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Mediterranean Sea northward. Consequently, the general direction of winds in winter is from the center toward the edge of the desert, which precludes the possibility of much rainfall at that season. In summer, on the other hand, the normal winds blow toward the highly heated center of the desert, although there are occasional siroccos in the contrary direction. These normal summer winds: from the Atlantic and Mediterranean would cause rainfall in summer were it not that physiographical con- ditions intervene to prevent this. Winds from the west encounter a cold current that follows the Atlantic coast of northern Africa, and the greater part of the moisture they carry is condensed before they reach the mainland. The high summits of the coastal mountain sys- tem of Algeria intercept and condense most of the water vapor that is brought in by winds from the Mediterranean. What little moisture escapes this barrier and crosses the high plateau is mostly given up when the mountains along the northern border of the Sahara are encountered. Furthermore, in the desert itself there are few moun- ains of sufficient elevation to condense what water vapor passes the second barrier. Notwithstanding these conditions, rain is by no means unknown in the Sahara. Heavy precipitation sometimes occurs, but its distribution is very irregular, both in point of time and of place. Localities in the desert are known which have received no appreciable amount of rain for ten years or more. At other times a cyclone may cause a sudden heavy downpour. Violent torrents are formed and a great amount of erosion is accomplished in a few hours. The higher elevations of the isolated mountain masses of the Sahara have a somewhat more regular rainfall, but it is believed that, on the whole, evaporation exceeds pre- cipitation in the Sahara, and that its aridity is steadily, although imperceptibly, increasing. IRRIGATION. 29 TaBLeE 5.—Rainfall (in inches) of localities in the desert region of Algeria, as compared with similar localities of the southwestern United States. Algeria. United States. Month. | > eI. Volean : Bou Yuma, | Phoenix,| Tucson, | {0 C20° emus Biskra. | Ouargla. Sanda me, | Ariz, |) Ariz. SpuneS | | | So Suis i 0.61 0. 67 0.50 0.79 0.48 | 0.80 | 0.79 0. 25 Pebruary: =-....----- 5d 68 -30 79 41 | .70 | 99 -39 Merehiest.—.------ | 80 69 88 IBY HOT} a8 aI 07 eae 44 83 36 1.56 | “08 “30 | "97 | ‘Prace. OG 2-2 .39 wee .13 1.55 03 | 13 | .14 Trace. Die oa 04 ol sili 67 00 10 26 | 00 Tun Se | -03 S15 00 OE 13 1.03 | 2.40 | 12 PR Ree se . 02 14 . 00 31 40°33 . 88 2.60 | 09 meptemper ....-...- 31 80 | - 00 91 15 . 64 | 1.16 00 Werober-~..-------- 43 .59 22 87 | 223 rota . 64 212 November ....-..--- 54 42 50 . 64 . 26 | 54 | .81 | .07 December...-....-.-- . 88 74 | 61 .88 46 86 1.00 aay? Dit Se 5. 01 6.73 3.61 10.61 | 2.83 6.93 11.74 | 1. 64 | ! A comparison of precipitation in the Algerian desert and that of the southwestern United States is instructive and interesting. Bou Saada has approximately the same annual total as Tucson, which it resembles in situation and elevation, but there is the same difference in distribu- tion as was noted in the case of atmospheric humidity. More rain falls in winter and less in summer at the Algerian than at the Arizona locality. At Biskra and Phoenix very nearly the same total amount of rain falls during the year, and the distribution at the two points corresponds more closely than as between Bou Saada and Tucson. At Ouargla and at Tougourt the rainfall is considerably greater in yearly total than at Yumaand at Volcano Springs. In distribution, however, these four stations resemble each other to a considerable degree. On the whole, if we consider only localities which represent the most extreme conditions in both great arid regions, it would appear that the desert country of the southwestern United States is decidedly drier than the Sahara of Algeria. IRRIGATION. Algeria is less fortunately endowed than Egypt as regards water supply. She has no large river like the Nile, containing even at its lowest stage a very considerable volume of water for irrigating pur- poses. On the contrary, the water courses of the French colony are of a torrential character, running high after heavy rains but dwin- dling to mere rivulets in summer. Most of them are short, rising in the mountain ranges of the coast region, and thus not draining a suf- ficiently large area to gather a great volume of water. Their fall is heavy, and they accomplish a vast amount of erosion, so that when high their waters carry a large amount of silt. Even the Cheliff, which has its source in the mountains that form the northern boundary of the Sahara and traverses the entire width of the high plateau, is 30 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. -but an insignificant stream in summer. Rainfall is too scanty, even at a short distance from the coast, to feed large rivers. For this reason irrigation in Algeria must necessarily be on a more modest scale than in Egypt. As a matter of fact, the area under irrigation at present is only a small fraction of the total area of the colony. The littoral zone of the coast region, particularly in the eastern part of the colony, receives quite enough precipitation in winter for the growing of most crops. In summer, however, there are very few parts of Algeria where field crops can be grown without irrigation, at least without a radical change in the methods of cultivation gener- ally followed in the colony. Orchards and vineyards, however, can be made to’pay in some places without artificial watering. This is notably the case in the mountain zone, where steep slopes, ill adapted to irrigation, are covered with fruit trees. In the valley and plain zone of the coast region irrigation is almost indispensable in summer, and even the winter cereal and forage crops are greatly benefited by an occasional watering. In the high plateau region nothing can be grown in summer without irrigation, and in winter it is only in an occasional depression that the natural moisture is sufficient to bring a crop. In the desert region artificial watering is at all times necessary for small crops, although sometimes it is of the simplest character. Thus, at the base of the mountains scanty crops of grains can be pro- duced by throwing up a series of ridges to retain the sheets of flood water that in winter occasionally sweep down over the land. There is no reason to believe that in ancient times, when north- ern Africa was the granary of the civilized world, conditions as to water supply were essentially different from those now prevailing, although there is evidence that, in eastern Algeria at least, crops were much more extensively grown without irrigation than is now the case. Under the Carthaginian régime, and later under the Roman rule, irri- gation works abounded in the country that is now Algeria and Tunis. The remains of such structures, sometimes utilized as foundations for modern works, are numerous, particularly in the Department of Con- stantine and in Tunis. Indeed, more than one region that is now a barren desert must have been well populated and in a high state of cultivation two thousand years ago. The works built at that period were generally of the simplest and rudest construction. Often merely a mass of earth or broken stone, held in place by a row of stakes, served to dam a small brook. For the most part these structures were evidently the work of the colo- nists who tilled the land under them, rather than of trained engineers. They were built sometimes by individuals, sometimes by associations. The plan usually followed was to dam up a mountain torrent near the point where it debouches upon the plain. In narrow ravines a succes- sion of rough dams was often constructed, thus allowing the stream IRRIGATION. 31 to drop from terrace to terrace, leaving a tiny reservoir at each stage, from which water could be taken at need for irrigating small gardens and orchards. At the mouth of the ravine was a larger distributing reservoir, with a dam of stone and masonry, for diverting water into the irrigation canals, which branched out over the lower lands beyond. The safety of the larger dam was assured by the presence of these smaller reservoirs farther up the stream. By this method not only was water secured for irrigation, but the force of the current in times of flood was effectually checked. For a roaring, muddy torrent, sweeping all before it and carrying away great masses of the soil, was substituted a gentle stream of clear water, incapable of destructive erosion. During the long centuries of Arab domination most of these irriga- tion works “ell into ruin. Some, however, were patched up from time to time, and were used by the Arabs to irrigate their small fields and gardens. Soon after the French conquest the all-importance of some provision for the artificial watering of the land was perceived, and the construction of large storage and diversion reservoirs along Algerian streams was begun. At first this work was done by the engineer service of the French army. COAST REGION. Irrigation in Algeria to-day reaches its maximum development in the larger valleys and plains of the coast region.’ A number of important irrigation districts have been established, and reservoirs and canals have been constructed. At Marengo, on the Meurad, the first storage reservoir constructed by the French was finished in 1857. The dam, built of earth, is 266 feet long and 90 feet high. The bar- rage of the Cheurfas is built across the Sig, a short distance south of St. Denis du Sig. It took the place of a Turkish dam which was washed out in 1858. The present reservoir stores 2,400 acre-feet and supplies water for the irrigation of 5,000 acres in winter and 2,000 acres insummer. A larger dam, 6 miles farther upstream, was com- pleted in 1884. This dam was of masonry, 98.4 feet high, 62.2 feet thick at the base, and 13.1 feet thick at the top. The capacity of the reservoir was calculated at 14.600 acre-feet. On February 8, 1885, the dam broke, carrying with it also that farther downstream. This break is said to have been caused by the infiltration of water through the rock around the dam. The foundation was of soft sandstone, in many places hardly sufficiently indurated to warrant its being called rock. The dam which was then built on the site of the older one is on the same general plan as its predecessor, but.instead of being built on a straight line, the new portion is at an angle of 128 degrees with the old work, the angle pointing downstream. The object of con- structing the-dami in this way was to obtain a better foundation. It 82 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. is reported that seepage around and under the walls of the structure still causes trouble, and some engineers question the permanent safety of the work. The largest storage dam in Algeria is that across the Habra River, 7 miles south of the town of Perrégaux. This structure, also, has been the scene of a catastrophe, and a much more serious one than that which occurred at St. Denis du Sig. The original dam, 1,506 feet long, was built in two sections at an angle of 30 degrees, with the angle pointing downstream. It was partly carried away on December 15, 1881, by excessive floods which overtopped the entire dam. This disaster is generally attributed to the giving way of the soft founda- tion material, and to water cutting around the east end through the soft material. As a result of the break in the eastern end of the dam 400 persons were drowned and immense damage was done to property. The work of reconstruction was finished in 1886. The dam, as it now exists, is essentially in three parts. The spillway on the west end has a length of about 410 feet. The center of the dam crosses an island which divides the stream into two channels. The portion of the dam across the east channel is 13 feet higher than that over the west channel. The reconstructed dam has a height of 131 feet, is 1,443 feet long, 131 feet thick at the base, and 14.7 feet thick at the top. The — highest part of the dam, in the eastern section, consists of a wall 7.9 feet high and 4.9 feet thick, resting upon the top of the dam proper. This was added to prevent overflow of the adjacent land by floods. The event has shown the wisdom of this precaution, for in 1900 water rose to within 2 feet of the top of the highest wall, and was 6 feet higher than the crest of the spillway. The total cost of the Habra dam, from the inception of the enterprise, has been about $1,080,000. The reservoir formed by this structure has a capacity of 30,800 acre- feet, and is intended to provide for the irrigation of about 100,000 acres, although so large an area has never been taken up under it. The water from the reservoir is taken out at the base of the high or eastern portion of thedam. A complicated apparatus has been devised by which water passing through the sluice furnishes power to pump water into a tank, which is situated upon a hill about 100 feet high at the east end of the dam. The water thus elevated furnishes stored power for the operation of the sluice gate. The gate is supposed to be automatically raised and lowered as the water rises and falls in the reservoir, but the mechanism has never proved altogether satisfactory. The Habra, with its tributaries, has a flow in summer of 18 second- feet, but during unusual floods the discharge has been known to exceed 25,000 cubic feet per second. Although the drainage basin above the Habra dam covers 3,859 square miles, the mean annual discharge of the stream is estimated to amount to only about three and one-half times the capacity of the reservoir. During the flood which occasioned the IRRIGATION. 33 breaking of the dam, caused by a 63-inch rain over a great part of the watershed, the run-off in one night was more than three times the capacity of the reservoir. Near the town of Relizane a small masonry dam has been built across the Mina River. This dam has a height of 45 feet above the the bottom of the rocky gorge in which it is built. It was originally planned to hold up a small storage reservoir, but this has become filled with sediment, and now the dam serves only for the direct diversion of the water of the stream. The discharge of the Mina is small. Though the canal system fed by this barrage covers an area of 20,000 acres, the land actually irrigated is not of large extent. The water of this stream, when examined toward the end of July, 1902, was found to carry 123 parts of soluble matter per 100,000 parts of water. Of this, 26 parts were bicarbonates, 1 part carbonate, 60 parts chlorids, and 36 parts sulphates. Another masonry work of importance is that across the Djidiouia River near St. Aimé, in western Algeria. It is 164 feet long, 55.8 feet high above the foundation, and 91.9 feet high, foundation included. The base has a thickness of 36.1 feet, and the top 13.1 feet. The reservoir has a capacity of 2,000 acre-feet, and is intended to irrigate from 7,500 to 10,000 acres. Since it was built this reservoir has become almost completely filled with silt. In all reservoirs in Algeria the accumulation of silt has given trouble, but only at St. Aimé have attempts been made to remedy the evil. M. Jaudin, a hydraulic engineer, has invented a machine for stirring up and removing the silt. His apparatus consists of a metal tube or conduit 20 inches in diameter, the lower end of which penetrates the dam near its bottom. The free portion is kept afloat by buoys and is attached by flexible joints to a floating scow. The connections are made so as to allow the scow to float from side to side of the reservoir, and the end of the pipe can be raised and low- ered as desired. The difference in level between the end of the pipe projecting through the dam and that attached to the scow pro- duces a strong current through the pipe. As the pipe is moved along the mud is sucked into it and is carried below the dam. The clay drawn into the pipe is found to be so well packed and so stiff that it has to be cut out by a special cutting apparatus built like a steam screw. In spite of the cutting apparatus, the water thus removed carried only from 4 to 5 per cent of silt. The inventor claims that under favorable conditions he can remove water containing 16 per cent of silt. The expense of operating the apparatus is estimated at $35,000 a year, and the cost of installation for a fairly large dam would be $540,000, The inventor was under contract to remove the silt from this reservoir at 20 cents per cubic meter (15.4 cents per cubic yard). 28932—No. 80—05——3 b+ AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. In the Mitidja Valley, near Algiers, there is a reservoir which is capable of holding about 11,340 acre-feet of water. This is sufficient to irrigate 75,000 acres, but the area actually under irrigation is only one-third as large. The irrigation works just described are more or less typical. Ata number of other places dams are either in actual use or are under con- struction. Algeria has been unfortunate in regard to disasters to her irrigation works. This has tended to create distrust of them among farmers who practice irrigation. There were lean years for people who tried to farm below the canals while new works were building, and the memory of those trying times is still vivid. It seems that in the early days of colonization too much land was covered by the irrigation works. Consequently, there are now large uncultivated areas across which the canals and laterals have to be *extended in order to reach land that is in crops. There is reason to believe, as an eminent authority upon agriculture in Algeria has remarked, that more good might result from the con- struction of series of irrigation works on a small scale, after the fash- ion of the Carthaginian and Roman colonists, than from the building of elaborate engineering works such as have just been described. The peculiar torrential character of Algerian streams and the great quan-_ tity of silt they carry make them ill adapted to large structures of this kind; but small diversion reservoirs, that afford water only in winter, are a valuable supplement to the natural rainfall, particularly in the drier western part of the coast region. There it is found that one or two irrigations during the winter will very materially increase the yields of cereals and forage crops. Handled thus, with two irriga- tions in winter, an acre of wheat in the Chéliff Valley can sometimes be made to yield 44 bushels. The most important direct diversion of water from a stream in Algeria is that on the Chéliff, 15 miles above Orléansville, where the irrigating water is taken from the west bank of the river by means of a canal with a capacity of about 50 cubic feet per second. One branch of this canal is carried across the river by a siphon to irrigate the right bank. On the left bank 6,000 acres, and 19,000 acres on the right bank, are irrigated by this canal. The entire system cost about 5480,000. Those who use the water are required to construct the secondary canals, pay a rental to the government, and keep the works in repair. Of the 50 cubic feet of water per second available under this system, 13 only have been subscribed for, on account of the excessively high water rent asked. Similar difficulty in inducing farmers to subscribe to water at the rates demanded has been encoun- tered elsewhere in the colony. In the mountain zone, notably in Great Kabylia, there are many small diversion dams, cheaply constructed in narrow ravines out of z f Ss IRRIGATION. 35 such materials as are ready to hand. By means of these, streams that in summer appear to be dry, but really carry subterranean water, are made to serve for irrigation at that season. The bed is dug out until rock bottom is reached. A dam is then roughly fashioned out of stones. The trunk of a tree is laid across the top, which is slightly higher than the general level of the stream bed, and clay and stones are piled up behind the dike; or, sometimes, a mere double row of stakes, filled in with clay and stones, is made to answer the purpose. Various devices are in use in Algeria for preventing water that falls upon cultivated hillsides from running off too rapidly. Particular attention has been paid to this question in vineyards. Sometimes shallow basins are dug in the center of each quadrangle formed by four vines. Another practice, which is also followed by the Kabyles in their orchards, is to run horizontal furrows or trenches across the hillside at regular intervals, throwing out the soil on the downhill side. It has been estimated that, at a cost of about $3, from 9,000 to 10,000 cubic feet of water, enough to cover the land toa depth of from 2 to 4 inches, can thus be saved annually in each acre of vineyard. In olive orchards, which cover steep hillsides in some parts of the colony, V-shaped trenches, pointing downhill, are dug so that the point of a trench is situated near the base of each tree. The soil around the tree is kept loose in order to facilitate absorption of the water thus carried to it. The market gardens of the littoral zone are generally irrigated by means of the ‘“noria,” a water-lifting machine that has been in use for ages in the Mediterranean region. It consists of a vertical wheel, to the rim of which buckets are attached, and which turns by inter- locking its cogs with those of a horizontal wheel. To the latter an animal, usually a horse or a donkey, is hitched, and is driven around inacircle. A second animal is kept to relieve the first, generally every two hours. By means of the noria one horse can raise 150 gallons of water 11 feet ina minute, which is equivalent to 0.33 second- foot. The water is collected in a basin that generally holds from 1,000 to 1,800 cubic feet. Even field crops and vineyards can be profitably irrigated with the noria if the water supply is ample and the lift does not exceed 40 feet. But its greatest usefulness is in conneec- tion with the intensively cultivated and very remunerative truck crops. The noria is said to be more economical for raising water than any hydraulic machine, only one-fifth of the total power expended being lost. Near Algiers, where the irrigation of gardens is most expensive, the annual cost of watering 1 acre with the noria is placed at $65. The water used for irrigation in the coast region, except in some of the valleys of western Algiera, is generally very good, ravely contain- inga harmful quantity of salts. However, no attention has been given to the matter of drainage of irrigated lands. Particularly in western 36 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. Algeria, large areas of once fertile soil have in consequence become subirrigated and salty. In many cases considerable tracts have had to be abandoned for this reason. HIGH PLATEAU REGION. A very insignificant area is irrigated in the high plateau region. There are almost no running streams, except after an occasional heavy rain in winter. The water of the chotts or lakes that fill the depres- sions is far too salty to be used for irrigating purposes. Here and there a small patch of grain, forage plants, or garden vegetables is watered from a well, but artesian water seems to be generally lacking. DESERT REGION. Oases of greater or less extent occur in all parts of the Sahara. They are particularly numerous, however, in the lower eastern portion. In the region known as the Oued Rirh, a larger percentage of the total area is occupied by cultures than anywhere else in the desert. The oases (see Pl. 1), almost without exception, are probably of artificial origin, The date palm, to which they owe their life, is believed to have been introduced into Algeria by man. In some places near the base of the mountains, as in the region of the Zibans, there is flowing water on the surface of the ground which can be diverted directly into canals. At most, a few rude dams are needed to raise its level a few inches. Elsewhere wells must be dug and the water must generally be raised by hand or by the noria in order to water the crops. The source of the water thus utilized is to be looked for in the high mountains adjacent to the Sahara, where the rainfall is much heavier than in the desert itself. This water flows down to the lower levels, at first over the surface of the ground, then beneath it. Subterranean streams of considerable volume must occur in the eastern part of the Sahara. There is no foundation for the idea sometimes entertained that the oases are nat- ural subirrigated spots in the desert. Most of the desert soils are too saline to permit of subirrigation without injury to the crops. As a matter of fact, agriculture would be almost impossible in the Sahara were not careful provision made for drainage. From very ancient times irrigation has been practiced in the desert. When the Romans governed northern Africa the area under cultiva- tion in the Sahara was much larger than it is to-day. By many centu- ries of practice the natives of the Sahara have acquired great skill in procuring and managing water for irrigation. The art of well boring, as originally practiced in the Oued Rirh, is a dangerous one. The work is begun by scooping out a hole in the sand, the sides of which are incased with wood as fast as the digging proceeds. Finally, a layer of rock or of stiff clay, overlying the sheet of water, is reached. IRRIGATION. of This is broken through with a few strokes of the pick, and if the water ascends with considerable force, as is sometimes the case, the well digger runs considerable risk of being drowned. In the more accessi- ble parts of the Sahara, modern well-boring machinery has largely replaced the ancient method. The natives are very jealous of the water that is obtained with so much difficulty, and numerous quarrels arise over its distribution. In the Zibans oases, where a system of canals exists, the water is con- trolled by an association which decides in what quantity and upon what days it shall be allotted to each person. It is measured by lay- ing the trunk of a date palm across the top of an earthen dam in the canal. Notches, corresponding to the width of the hand with the thumb closed, are cut into this trunk at intervals. The amount which passes each of these notches represents one share of water. In the Oued Rirh region, since the French occupation, a great many artesian wells have been bored, under the direction of M. Jus, who became famous through his connection with this work. The first was sunk in 1856. In 1898 there were 120 metal-cased artesian wells from 160 to 330 feet deep, in addition to 500 wells dug by natives. The total discharge of all these wells was about 140 cubic feet per second, yet so far the water supply has suffered no perceptible diminution. With the water thus obtained the area in date palms has been greatly extended during the past thirty years. It is estimated that during the last three decades the population of the Oued Rirh has doubled, and the wealth of the region has been increased tenfold. There are probably few other parts of the Sahara where such development is possible. . Unlike the irrigating water of the coast region, that used in the desert region generally carries a high percentage of salts in solution. In fact, the water with which various crops are grown in the Algerian Sahara appears to be saltier than that used for this purpose anywhere else in the world. So far as is known, 500 parts of salts per LOO,Q00 parts of water is the maximum concentration of water which is used with success in the United States, and, under ordinary circumstances, 300 parts is the limit for successful crop production. In the Sahara, however, water containing as much as 800 parts of salts (half of the total amount being sodium chlorid) per 100,000 parts of water is applied to soils that are themselves highly saline. A variety of culti- vated plants—various fruit trees, garden vegetables, and alfalfa— thrive under these conditions. It seems a fair inference that the maximum amount of soluble matter which can safely be allowed in irrigation water has been under- estimated by American writers. Where the soil is light and under- drainage is provided for, as is the case in the Algerian oases, it is 0d AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. - probable that many waters that have heretofore been condemned as too saline could safely be used in irrigating crops. The date palm is the most salt-resistant cultivated plant of the Sahara, — so far as is known. The maximum amount of salt in the irrigating water which this tree can endure without detriment to the crop has not been ascertained. It would appear, however, to be something less than 1,000 parts per 100,000, for water of a pond containing 1,044 parts per 100,000 of soluble salts, of which 1,036 parts was sodium chlorid, had been found to be too salty for irrigating a young date orchard. A number of samples of artesian water used in irrigating the oases near Tougourt, in the Oued Rirh region, were taken by the writers and were analyzed in the laboratory of the Bureau of Soils of the Department of Agriculture. The results are stated in the following table: Tasie 6.—Chemical analyses of artesian water used in irrigating gardens in Saharan oases, Algeria. 3 | Wellat Weli at . Wellatgar- Constituent. | Oasis Ta- | Oasis Kudi den of Ben bes-bes. Asli. Hadriah. Tons: Per cent. Per cent. Per cent. Waleinmnl(Ca) ass. Raseee cee ee ete s osc nce beac e eee See 9.92 | 4.19 9: Maonesini (Mp): sane se ae eee 6 - ofa a ee. + eee ene Me ee 28. 06 36. 21 27.05 Bicarboniciacid: (HCO; sss esse 8... 62 eee eee | 5. 02 1.32 | 24.34 Conventional combinations: Caleiumisul phate (GaSOs): -esecse. - J2-- = peso te eee esa eaaees 33. 04 14.23 24.90 Mapnesiumisnl phate (Mes Og) saene. 520 S22 tee nee meee 13. 63 | 24.29 (ANS Magnesium chlorid (MgC€ls)--.----..--::=---1-2:-- Suede Dee 7.23 | 4.41 16. 72 Potassium, ch] omdu(KiC))\- ss aeseeres - 2222 ee cee eee 8.12 | 4.48 5.19 Sodium:bicarbonate) (NUECO,)es--- - 2=---sc-4--22 ee ee 6.92 | 1.81 3. 54 Sodium: chilorid. (NaGl) 22s. -. s 0 eeie cose eee 31. 06 50. 78 12. 61 Potal'solids in. 100,000 parts watenses..--- 42. 9.2e2 eee ee eee 601. 50 408. 10 571. 90 These are fair average samples of the irrigation waters in use, and do not represent by any means the maximum of salinity. Field tests showed as high as 816 parts to 100,000 in water in actual use on soils where garden vegetables were growing, while French authorities report the use of waters carrying 842 parts per 100,000. SOILS. The soils of Algeria are of many varieties and types, varying from the coarsest sands to heavy clays. The differences are due chiefly to two causes-—the nature of the underlying rocks and the climatic con- ditions under which the soil was formed. Different classes of soils are> found in each physiographic region and there are few types which are common to all three regions. In the littoral zone of the coast region much of the soil is of the adobe type, containing a considerable quantity of clay. In the alluvial bottoms, however, we find extensive areas of other kinds of soil. In the mountain zone the soils are not DVL. Od for the most part adobe-like. On the high plateau the soils are largely colluvial. In the desert we encounter vast areas of light, sandy soils, but there are also extensive tracts of marls, clays, and alluvial soils. Very few samples of soil were collected, as no general investigation of the various types was attempted by the writers. It was observed, however, that in Algeria there appear to be no important soils which are not represented in California and Arizona by very similar types. Obse1 vations were largely directed toward the comparison of Algerian soils and their productivity with corresponding soils in America under similar climatic conditions. COAST REGION. LITTORAL ZONE. An important and characteristic soil of the littoral zone is a bright- red ‘*adobe,” very common in the vicinity of Algiers, near Oran, and elsewhere along the coast. It is sticky when wet and forms very hard clods when dry, cracking toa depth of from 12 to 24 inches. This soil is often naturally poor in phosphoric acid, nitrogen, and lime, but responds readily to treatment. Its potash content is generally ade- quate. It is an excellent soil for vineyards, except in cases where a lime ‘‘ hardpan” occurs too near the surface. Some of the best wines of Algeria are produced on soil of this type. The American soils which most nearly resemble it are the San Joaquin red adobe, as it occurs in the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys, and the Fullerton sandy adobe of the coast region of southern California. A mechanical analysis of one specimen of this soil is given on page 40, under No. 7663. This sample was collected a few miles south of Oran, and represents the heaviest phase of this red soil. We have not found in America a type of red adobe in which the average clay content is so high. The black adobes of the United States are some- times very clayey, but most American adobes contain more silt than clay. The same soil type was,also observed at Arzeu, in western Algeria, at various localities near Algiers, and, to a less extent, around Tizi Ouzou, in Great Kabylia. River bottoms in the littoral zone are characterized by soils that are quite different from the red, clayey type just described; and are, in fact, mere continuations of the soils of the next zone. ‘They are usually alluvial deposits, clayey or marly in texture, and are quite fertile. They contain an abundance of potash, though they are some- times deficient in phosphoric acid. VALLEY AND PLAIN ZONE. The large valleys, which in some cases are so extensive as to be virtually plains, contain a great variety of soils. The plains of the 40 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. 4 Mitidja, Chéliff, Mina, Habra, and Macta are typical of many other valleys and plains in Algeria. As before mentioned, they are similar in many ways to the interior valleys of California. The soils are mainly alluvial and are generally heavy. Around Relizane and Per- | régaux, where the writers made most of their studies, the soil is similar to the San Joaquin black adobe. In the Mitidja the heavier soils are well supplied with potash and are fairly well provided with | nitrogen and phosphoric acid. In the Chéliff Valley these elements are less abundant. Sample No. 7658, in the table given below, shows the results of a mechanical analysis of the heaviest of the valley adobes. This sample was collected from a field which was very fertile twenty years ago, but which has since been ruined by the rise of salts, and is to-day valueless. This soil, before it had become saline, had exhibited great — fertility during a long series of years. In former years it yielded grain of a superior grade and good crops of cotton. Sample No. 7660 represents a type of this adobe soil of medium heaviness. Soil of this kind is often planted to vines, fruits, and olives. The sample was collected near Perrégaux, at La Ferme Blanche, headquarters of one — of the largest vineyards in Algeria. A still lighter type, one closely approaching a sandy loam, is represented by sample No. 7661. This_ type is usually found in the higher portions of the valleys, and is planted to vines and alfalfa. MOUNTAIN ZONE. The soils of the mountain zone of the coast region can be divided into (1) valley soils and (2) soils of the hills and mountain slopes. The hills and mountains are covered with either residual or colluyial soils. Asa rule, these soils are more or less gravelly or stony, and are light and well drained. The lower slopes frequently have heavier adobe soils, similar in character to the adobes of the lower slopes of the Sierra Nevada and the coast range in California. The soils of valleys in the mountgin zone are generally alluvial, being composed of the waste from adjoining hills and mountains. The smaller valleys have light, usually well-drained, soils containing some gravel. TaBLe 7.—Mechanical analyses of coast region soils. = e Sl ecoel ee mee = a |. |G |g. | 28 |S.) see | 3) c A Soren Pat S 7 s i=] S S AE Fite hr, oat ag: | Se. ty No. Locality. & j}gh | % | "2 | 8 | ea | 88) 38 hee fe & o Heo Sp nr aS i) SS = | te a Helin. v2 Do ~ a Q. eb | a | ert a=) S KO _ 7 o =) | i | S| Ret s ss Lv Ss = a QA | © Oo oO a | & > Dn iS) a | ae ie | — 7608] Relizane ss. ...--2.s-e-=~ = -<-= 0-24 | 0.01 | meee 0.08 | 0.12] 0.66] 2.00) 40.22] 056.92 7660 | La Ferme Blanche, near Per- | | = répaux evan eeeee se - ae 0-24 ap ed eee eae Lit OS sl | 2.00 | 20.14 | 54.66} 22.94 7661 | Debrousseville....-......-.--- 0-12 1.34 0.16 1.08 | 3.06 | 28.60 | 30.62 | 20.40 16.08 7663 | 2 miles south of Misserghin. . 0-18 1.41 | 12 58 | 1.94} 6.60] 6.36 | 35.76} 48.64 7688)| 15 MVE easL Ob Bathe... 2. ccc|Serees.cloeeses = 32 28 -34| 1.74] 6.04 | 45.56 | 45.48 l SOILS. 41 HIGH PLATEAU REGION. . The soils of this region, derived largely from cretaceous and ter- tiary rocks, are in great part alluvial deposits washed down from the neighboring mountains. Particularly in eastern Algeria, soils very rich in phosphates occur. These would be extremely fertile if water wherewith fo irrigate them were available. Calcareous hardpan under- lies a great deal of the surface of the high plateau. Where this impervious layer is quite near the surface the vegetation is sparse and woody plants are absent. The high plateau soils grade from stony soils on the lower slopes of the mountains, through sandy loams and loams, to heavy clay loams and claysin the bottoms of the depressions. These depressions, known among the Arabs as ** chotts,” are a conspicuous feature of the steppes. While occasionally filled with water, the bottom is commonly dry and covered with a layer of salt. The chotts greatly resemble the ‘* playa” lakes of the Great Basin region in Utah and Nevada and of the ‘* bol- son” plains of the southwestern United States and Mexico. The soil in the bottom of the chotts is always heavy and impervious. DESERT REGION. The soils of the western part of the Algerian Sahara—which is of very little agricultural importance—more or less resemble those of the very arid parts of the high plateau. In the eastern part of the desert, where numerous oases occur, the character of the soil becomes a matter of greater practical interest. The combined area of all the oases amounts to but a small fraction of 1 per cent of the total surface of the desert. The limited localities where oases occur are determined by the presence of water rather than by any exceptional fertility of the soil. Asa matter of fact, there are vast tracts in the Sahara which are, probably, naturally more fertile than the oases and require only water to make them extremely productive. The field observations made by the writers were confined to a num- ber of typical areas in the Oued Rirh country. There are found the most important oases that are easily accessible from the Mediterranean coast. They are situated in what is probably the hottest part of the desert and their elevation above sea level is only a few feet. In fact, several of the oases occur in a part of the basin that is below sea level. Asa rule the soils of the oases in the eastern Sahara are light in texture. Sandy loams and sands predominate, though here and there are found soils heavy enough to be classed as true loams. Gypsumis an important constituent of nearly all the soils examined, in some cases the subsoil being practically pure gypsum. ‘This often acts as a cementing material, uniting the finer soil grains into aggregates which give the soil a much more sandy appearance than would be suspected 42 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. from the results of mechanical analyses. The data afforded by a num- ber of analyses are given below. The natural fertility of these sandy soils is not great. They are almost devoid of organic matter and after a few years of cultivation need fertilizing. This is supplied by the Arabs in the form of manure from donkeys, sheep, and camels. The soils of the date orchards that have been planted by the two French companies are also fertilized. The following table gives the results of mechanical analyses of a number of samples of soil collected in the Oued Rirh region of the eastern Sahara. Chemical analyses have not been carried further than a determination of the water-soluble material. TaBLe 8.— Mechanical analyses of soils from the Oued Rirh region in the Sahara Desert. ca = f= 5 = = Ss =) A g S| 8 )e lee) a lao teaate os S| 20> 8 128 leg) Saq eee = - =I ™ = nr ee 2 Ee : a ity = a ow | oF | cao | | - Soo Seas z eS: = |} 3] 4 || 82) .¢4) seq = io = | 3 > la ai ish a5 ae + “5 S Telaiel Wee oeel feet |= oO || aS | homes & z Ge |S SS a ey > wD oO 7686 | Ourir. Harderustamong palms... 0-12 | 0.76 0.52 | 1.76 | 3.74 | 21.02 | 18.98 | 21.98 | 31.26 708%) OUDSOLWOE (680522 222 ne eee a 12-26 34) .20] 1.88 | 1.84 | 29.52 | 21.42 | 15.48 | 25.40 7683 | Ourlana palm orchard.........-.- | 0-12] .50|] .54] .90] 1.14 | 17.46 | 49.80 | 11.64) 9.16 71684,| SUDSOMW OL 76832 se. 525 eens oe | 12-36] .08| .48] 1.64 | 3.70 | 36.84 | 29.30| 7.64] 9.92 1680: tee GO. 2 2555-5 seat ees ones See | 36-54 04 86 | 2.50 | 2.84 18.74 | 36.40 | 19.40] 9.14 7665 | Ourlana among 13-year-old palms.| 0-12] .14 | 2.46 | 3.96 | 8.06 32.52 | 38.56 | 5.42 | 14.02 7666,|| SUDSOIL OF 76602 ~ 52 coe sane ese | 12-36] .04] 1.10} 4.46 | 5.74 | 31.70 | 40.94 | 4.52 | 11.54 7667 | Tougourt amid good alfalfa.....-. 0-12 1.10] .20 | 1.32 | 3.98 ; 34.44 | 37.98 | 9.52 | 12.56 7668. |, SUbDSOMOF M6672 33-2522 -a-555--5552- 12-24 -59 | .16 | 1.30 | 3.06 | 28.58 | 45.92 | 8.72 | 12:12 7669 | Tougourt amid alfalfa ............ | O12] .73 15 | 1.98 | 4.63 | 27.71 | 33.59 | 7.98 | 24:01 76704 SUDSOILOL (669s eee oer = pr 12-24 ~62.)- . 739). 2.51 | 5.37) | 32.02 | sae 27 5.85 | 20.15 7671 | Tougourt amid alfalfa ......-...-- | 0-12 | 1.47 -26 | 2.01 | 4.98 | 28.22} 30.91 | 11-2) | 22°48 1622 | SUDSOIWLOL (6012 22.2 so Fe eee | 12-24 | 1.35 -12 | 1.41 | 4.07 | 28.33 | 29.82 | 7:54 | 28:7 7613 | ‘Ta-bes-bes Oasis... 2.2) se -eos- 0-12} .41 | 1.56 | 2.03 | 1.72 | 20.24 | 32.53 | 6.37 | 35.05 1674.| Subsorlof '1673-.- - 525525 face somes | 12-24] .16] .35 | 1.27 | 1.33 | 25.94 134.40] 6:57 | 3014 16/G) 3e0Ga NSH, OASIS= 322222 =e ener 0-12 | .66 | 1.12 | 4.76 | 6.75 | 28.58 | 32.60 | 7.97 | 18.22 167%:)\ Subsoil off 7676. -2-. 3.2 S52 52.5252 12-24 | .35) 1.39 | 3.27 | 4.39 | 20.38 | 26.42 | 15.76 | 28.39 7678 | Dunesand, border of Djadja Chott }........ .47| .00 | 5.08 [12.80 | 51.54 | 18.40] 1.22] 7.62 7679 Oasis of Zoia de Temacin .....--..-. 0-12 | 6.3 .86 | 4.60 | 4.66 | 22.50 | 17.48 | 26.90 | 9.04 7680 | ‘Subsoilor76792- 552-2) s-< a2 Jase 12-24 .27 , 1.50 | 5.14 | 5.90 | 19.60 | 20.24 | 25.88 | 8.82 7681 Oasis of Zoia de Temacin .....-.-- 0-12 | .44 | 1.54 | 6.16 | 4.24 | 22.70 | 39.10 | 14.50 | 5.76 7682; | Subsollof 7685-2 es oe ee = 12-24 21 . 60 | 4.54 | 2.60 | 19.12 | 30.94 | 20.78 | 10.60 SALINE SOILS. As in all arid countries, particularly where irrigation is practiced, saline soils are an important factor in the agriculture of Algeria. Extensive areas of the most fertile land of the colony have heen injured by an excess of salts, and the alkali problem is to-day one of the most serious which confronts the Algerian farmer. Drainage is not generally practiced by the colonists in their large irrigation dis- tricts, and the lack of it has been the cause of a great deal of damage. On the other hand, the natives of the Sahara show the utmost inge- nuity and skill in managing salty soils and in irrigating with saline waters. There is much in the methods practiced by these people that should interest the American farmer and that could be imitated by him with profit. OALINE SULLS, +0 COAST REGION. The littoral zone of the coast region comprises very little alkali or saline land. A few areas of salt marsh occur along the shore, but not much has been done toward their reclamation. The most extensive areas of salt soil in the coast region are those found in the great valleys and plains. Certain of these areas have existed for a long time. Others, including some of the most serious. have been developed under irrigation within the last fifty years. The most important tracts of salt land seen by the writers were near the towns of Relizane and Perrégaux, in the Department of Oran. At Relizane the area covered by the irrigation systems amounts to about 20,000 acres. As the water supply very frequently falls far short of the amount necessary for the irrigation of this large area, part of the land is ordinarily lying idle. The irrigation of surrounding fields, together with seepage from the canals and laterals, has so raised the water table in this uncultivated land as to permit a constant upward movement of the water by capillary force. The result has been that salts which were formerly confined largely to the subsoil, or which have been carried into the soil by subirrigation, have risen to the sur- face and have accumulated there. The same process of accumulation of salts in the upper layers of the soil has caused serious damage in many parts of western North America. Around Relizane the old story has been retold that land once fertile and producing luxuriant crops is to-day bare of everything but a few stunted salt-loving weeds. The remains of irrigating laterals, fences, and houses alone show that the land has ever been farmed. At Perrégaux a similar state of affairs prevails, but a much larger area is affected. The salt land covers an extensive tract in the lower part of the valley and includes fields that a few years ago were highly productive. A few attempts at reclamation have been made, anc some excellent fields were seen which were said to have been badly saline at one time; but no large areas have been improved. The soil and other conditions of saline areas in the irrigated districts of Algeria have no important peculiarities which distinguish them from similar localities in America. The salts are generally ** white alkali,” i. e., salts of sodium (other than the carbonate), magnesium, and lime. Chemical analyses of samples of these soils taken by the writers are given on page 46. The predominant salts are of the ** white alkali” type, common salt (sodium chlorid) being the most abundant. Very little ** black alkali” (sodium carbonate) has been found in the coast region of Algeria. The question of salt land in Algeria has been discussed in a recent publication by Dugast, who devotes particular attention to the damage that has been wrought in the vineyards of western Algeria by the rise 44 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. ¥ of salts in the soil. We may be excused for quoting at some length from this author.¢ It is sea salt—that is, true salt—that is generally found in Algeria, but magnesium salts have also been found in several vineyards. As for the alkali salts, or ‘‘ black — alkali,’’ we have not yet come across them. They probably appear, however, when circumstances fayorable to their formation exist. * * * But if their existence is transient, if washing does not take place to separate them from the other salts, it is difficult to determine their presence. In 1876 Pichard called attention to the presence of carbonate of sodium in several waters in Oran Department, accompanied by sulphates of sodium and calcium and chlorids of calcium and magnesium, sometimes by small quantities of alkali nitrates and traces of ammonium salts. These waters give an alkaline reaction and contain from 0.2 gram to 20 grams of sodium carbonate per liter. While the salt is directly harmful, it is also indirectly injurious by hindering the “nitrification of the nitrogenous matter existing in the soil or added to it by manure. Hence it interferes with the alimentation of plants. In vineyards salt manifests itself in spots which differ in aspect according as they are old or new. When the salt is in small quantities in the soil, or, rather, when the soil still contains a considerable proportion of water, or when, again, the salt reaches only a part of the zone of soil occupied by the roots, the spots are charac- terized by a simple wilting of the vegetation. At other times the damage caused by the salt is sudden and much more pro- nounced. The places attacked then take the form of circular spots. The branches of the vines that bear grapes lose their leaves and dry up, and the grapes do not reach complete maturity. In 1898 and in 1899, at the time of our visit [to the yineyards of Oran Department], — we saw numerous spots presenting these characteristics. Such spots were occupied by vines loaded with grapes, but the branches had completely lost their leaves. All around them the vines were green and were well loaded with a good crop of grapes. In the older spots, which are sometimes very extensive, most of the vines are dead. We find, however, here and there, some vines that have resisted the salt and have been able to put out badly developed branches bearing a few grapes of poor quality. These old spots, although due to salt, much resemble those caused by phylloxera. The reclaiming of salt land is difficult to accomplish in Algeria. The rainfall is always insufficient to bring about reclamation, and the supply of irrigation water is also scanty. For the present we must try to get along with the salt, doing our best to prevent its becoming too injurious. This can be done by working the soil to a depth of 20 - inches, so that the rain water can be stored in that depth of the soil. In this way the fresh water can be prevented from penetrating sufficiently deep to dissolve the salt and by its presence it restrains the salt from rising. It is necessary, of course, by superficial cultivation to break up the capillarity of the soil, so as to reduce evap- oration to a minimum. Drainage ditches can also be used in certain lands for carrying off the salty water of the lower depths of the soil. Ditches can also be used in certain cases to prevent the invasion of new land by the sheet of salt water. Saline soils of purely natural origin are found in and near the chotts which occupy depressions and receive the drainage of the surrounding land. In such places salt has been accumulating through long ages. 4 Agrologie de |’ Algérie, 1900, pp. 56, 58, 59, 7 7 1, 72, 77, 78, 80, 81, 89, 90. SALINE SOILS. 45 In the dry season the bottom of the basin is covered with a crust of salt, in some cases of sufficient thickness to make its exploitation profit- able. In the wet season this gives place to a shallow lake of salt water. A number of such chotts occur near the coast in western Algeria. The writers visited one large salt lake near Arzeu and another near Oran. At the Salines d’Arzeu great quantities of commercial salt are prepared. These chotts correspond to similar salt, soda, and ‘* playa” lakes of Utah, Nevada, and other western States. Many salt lakes also occur in the high plateau region. In the eastern part of the Sahara the chotts cover extensive areas south of Tunis and of the Department of Constantine. There they are below sea level, and the country around them is very hot and dry. DESERT REGION. The saline soils of the Oued Rirh region in the Sahara, so far as they were examined by the writers, generaily contain a large amount of gypsum. (See p.46.) Sodium chlorid and sodium sulphate are the next most abundant salts, while magnesium salts are present only in small quantities. The Saharan soils are usually of very light texture, and their proper irrigation demands large quantities of water. The water used contains a high percentage of soluble matter. Consequently, where proper drainage facilities have not been provided, the salt has accumulated in the soil to an injurious degree. Yet, by digging open drains 3 feet deep at frequent intervals and irrigating once a week or oftener, the natives of the Sahara are able to maintain gardens con- taining a variety of plants not particularly resistant to salts in the soil. More than this, using strongly saline water (see p. 38) they are able to reclaim land that contains an excessive amount of salts. The writers visited a garden which had been established on the slope of the bed of a salt lake, in which alfalfa, various garden vegetables, and a variety of young fruit trees were flourishing. The reclamation of this piece of land had been accomplished in three years by irrigating twice a week during that period. 46 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. . TABLE 9.—Chemical analyses of saline or “alkali” soils from Algeria. ABKRoevVaaseISREgs S8SR8R8 8S 4 a = of fs i rao z os = es Sd aee sale 2 | 263 ia | ae reg eee Saale LS | 3S % Locality. a = GeO | mis q a5 & | 28 pa ~2 3} cA hey, =I Aw 3 Hu ° 8 cS) bw | 5 = =o ) ke! S i Soa ae eS 3 | 35 | Spee A Q Oe ies a nD ne 1S) aa 7658 | (Relizane:/3 miles NIWs-2-5--2----4-244-— 0-24 | 7.28 | 4.53 | 3.08 | 18.48 | 27.31 | 34.22] 5. 4609) (2 Se-.2¢ O: assoc ese acne cee eee aeice 0-1 2.41 |12.15 | 1.10 | 15.83 | 9.70 | 56.86] 1. 7665 | Ourlana, among 13-year-old palms..... 0-12 | 23.27 | .91 | 1.92 | 4.77 | 39,135) Sasa ie we W6060\|22 25" OO USS ieee see eo eee aeeees 12-36 | 23.46 | .49 | 2.24) 4.33 | 65.30 |. 2.09] 2. 7667 | Tougourt Oasis. amid good alfalfa ...-. 0-12 | 23:81 | »89)) 1.82} 3252) 66922") 1587 ae OOS eaeee GO 52 Ee es eee seas 12-24 |} 25.23 | .66| 1.51 | 2.63] 65.96 | 1.87] 2. 7669 | Tougourt Oasis, amid poor alfalfa.....- 0-12 | 23.90 | .88 | 1.82 | 3.28 | 66.49 |= 17o4 5) R6TON seeee COG ee Oe ies tee Soe oe Se SEC 12-24 | 24.71 | .58/| 1.76 | 2.84 | 66.69 | 1.26) 2. 7671 | Tougourt Oasis, amid yellowing alfalfa.| 0-12 | 23.72) 1.18 | 1.68 | 3.90 | 61.85 | 6.46 | 1. 1Gi2) Sense Oi cemsscsea oe sen cee sens aaane eae eoceee 12-24 | 24.67 | .68 | 1.93 | 2.86] 66.28 | 1.76) LL 7673 | Ta-bes-bes Oasis, amid alfalfa ....-..... 0-12 | 20:27 | 1.41 | 2.10 | 1.34) 61.88) 4. 965\ea: AGUA a aes Ou Sew ate een te ene eale eee woe oe eee 12-24 | 19.11 | 1.55 | 1.94 | -7.84 | 61.13) 5.27) 93% (ipa) oud a Oasisic sg. coe eas ceeseae ease heen Crust. -06 | .66 | .29 | 37.03) 3.82 | 56.99 5 7676 | Kuda Asli Oasis, amid good alfalfa....- 0-12 | 16.03 | 3.27 | 4.47 | 6.86 | 56.18 | 7.96} 5. SHG Neanae OO whe S- CAS as eerie ee aes Soe 12-24 | 19.75 | 1.96 | 2.49 6.03 | 61.83) 4.79) 3. 7679 | Zoia de Temacin Oasis, amid good | J alfaliay Boe amenrne se eee nee eece cms 0-12 | 22.83 | 1.21 | 1.56] 4.51 | 63.90} 4.02) 7 7680 |....- OO a Seasonic Bete ee Seana ae 12-24 | 24.00 | 1.05 76| 3.92 | 65.30] 2.95 | 2 7681 Zoia de Temacin Oasis, amid yellow- ine alialia 2-2 eee: ose eeease sh eeen 0-12 | 22.72 97 | 1.94 | 4.90 | 61.66] 5.08) 2. WOS2) |ecise One eS SO eh See eae 12-24 | 24.01 | 1.17 | 1.48 | 3.33 | 64.79 | 3.60] 1. 7683 | Ourlana, among 20-year-old palms..... 0-12 | 23.38 | 1.04) .92]| 5.15 | 59.47] 8.54] 1. LOGAs | Seer AG Wn ae ES Sees sececeee 12-36 | 26.08 | .98| .85 | 2.15] 64.97 | 2.82] 2. WGS80) 552 GO Sane rota oneness Soe ene aes 36-54 | 23.06 | .99 | .99 | 4.92 | 638.74] 3.71 | 2 76560| OUnir anole palmsSeesses sesso ese see 0-12 | 16.73 | 4.11 | 1.77 | 10.89 | 24.13 | 41.35 | Te TOSTel eee GOS « a2.cacceeees eo Becine st ego aes 12-26 | 23.84 | 1.20 | 1.16 | 3.90] 62.10 | 5.81) FT TasBLE 10.—Conventional combinations of the data in Table 9. | | Mal ; 2 - Magne- | Magne- | Potas- . Sodium : | liNioscofa| wecocen eoleioE siumsul-| sium sium | 5°dium) picarbo- | odium |. Othes i soluble sulphate . ~4| chlorid sulphate constitu- sample. matter. | “CaS0,) phate ehlorid |chlorid (NaCl) nate (NasSO,).| ents =| = 47> | (MgSO4).| (MgGls). | (KCl). |S “| (NaHCOs). Pe aa Be 7658 2.47 | 24.78 12.31 7.93 5.99 41.95 7.04 7659 6.14 | 8.17 4.91 43.78 Sli 38. 36 2.67 7665 4.36 | 79. 23 | 4.03 .18 3. 67 10. 65 2.24 7666 4.02 | 79. 69 DAA Nios Seeks 4,23 15 2.88 | 7667 4.49 | 80.88 A ADTs ee 3. 56 3) 2.58 | 7668 4.48 | 85. 69 Bhai oveeenede 2.90 80 2.94 A | 7669 4.50 | 81.24 A389 nl ees PR Ti Ie cee psi | 7670 | 4. 43 | 84.39 2.89 2°66. oss eee ve ak He tera | 4.76 j 5! 3.19 8.19 2.43 | 672 4.62 3.4! BaW (Ne Inetesae a 2.50 7673 | 34, Te 4.03 5. 03 4.58 7674 | 3.¢ 7. 5& 3.71 0. 12 4.36 7675 92. 9% 3 .5D 93. 42 89 7676 1. 8 6.0: 8.50 6.43 7.19 7677 3. OF 9.6 4.72 4.20 4.33 | 7679 4.8 6. OF 2.95 4.35 2.71 | 7680 4.73 5. 1.43 3.76 2.78 | 7681 aoe 4, Bh Al 5.48 3.76 7682 4. Die 2.83 3. 69 2. 20 7683 4, 4.16 1.76 11. 73 2.05 7684 4, 4, 1.61 3.40 2.95 | 7685 4. 6: 4. 1.90 4. 62 3.54 | 7686 6. 3.01 26.55 1.40 | 7687 4. 2.20 | 7.85 2.74 a Potassium bicarbonate (KHCO,). bCaleium chlorid (CaCl). SOIL MANAGEMENT. ROTATIONS. In the grain-producing districts of Algeria the rotation—if it can be called such—-commonly followed consists of a year (winter) in a cereal crop followed by a year of fallow. In other words, the land lies idle SOIL MANAGEMENT. 47 for sixteen or eighteen months out of twenty-four. This system was followed by the ancient Greeks and Romans, and is still in vogue among their descendants in the Mediterranean region. It is to be recommended only for countries where the rainfall and the supply of irrigating water are too scanty to permit rotation with a soil-restoring erop and where manure can not be had in any considerable quantity. Such is the case in the most important cereal-growing districts of Algeria. A larger net profit is often obtained from 2 acres of grain managed in this way than from 1 acre that is heavily manured. If deep and thorough plowing is included in this method of handling the soil, the benefit to the land that would accrue from the use of another crop in rotation can be partly compensated for. No leguminous crop has yet been found which can be profitably grown on a large scale in Algeria in rotation with wheat and barley. The scarcity of irrigating water is chiefly responsible for this condi- tion, and wherever water is abundant the question of rotation ceases to be a troublesome one. In that case a crop of horse beans or veteh— or, if manure is obtainable, of beets, potatoes, or tobacco—followed by two crops of grain is found to make a satisfactory rotation. FERTILIZERS. Whatever may have been their natural condition, the cropping of Algerian soils for thousands of years, often without intelligent effort to conserye their fertility, has resulted in greatly impoverishing them. In large areas the soil is low in phosphates and, to a greater or lesser extent, in nitrogen. Potash, on the other hand, is generally sufti- ciently abundant. In the coast region much of the soil can be bene- fited by liming. During the first few years after the French conquest no particular attention was paid to questions of fertilizers and of rotation. Soon, however, under the influence of the more intensive farming practiced by Europeans, the yield of crops began to diminish, and it became necessary to look for a remedy. In the littoral zone of the coast region, where there is intensive cultivation of market gardens, orchards, and vineyards, the use of farm manure and of commercial fertilizers has become general. In 1896 the annual consumption of Algerian phosphates alone in the colony had reached 8,000 tons. In 1900 the total quantity of mineral fertilizers applied yearly to the soils of Algeria was estimated at 15,000 tons. The use of mineral fertilizers is limited almost entirely to the littoral zone. In the large valleys of the coast region, where vineyards and fields of grain cover extensive areas, it is estimated that not one-twentieth of the total amount of cultivated land is given any fertilizer whatever. The supply of farm manure is exceedingly scanty, as the absence of cultivated forage crops prevents the raising of many cattle. Where 48 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. farm manure is obtainable it is thought to be more beneficial than any commercial fertilizer, since Algerian soils are often deficient in organic matter and manure has a very beneficial physical effect upon them. It is considered good practice to apply manure in the autumn, after a year of fallow, thus obtaining an abundant crop of wild forage the following winter. Grain is then grown during the second and third winters after the application of manure. PREPARATION OF THE LAND. CLEARING AND LEVELING. In the coast region some of the best land is still covered with a dense growth of brush, comprising lentisk, jujube, heath, broom, and other characteristic shrubs of the Mediterranean region. This shrubby vegetation is luxuriant in proportion to the depth and fertility of the soil. Its removal generally costs about $16 an acre. In the neighbor-- hood of cities this expense can partly be met by the sale of the wood removed and of charcoal made from it. It costs still more, from $20 to $24 an acre, to clear land which bears a heavy growth of dwarf palm, a deep-rooted plant that still covers extensive areas in Algeria. The roots of the palms can be loosened by means of a steam plow, and then removed with a pick. In the work of clearing land, Spanish, Moroccan, and Kabyle laborers are most expert. Leveling is done with scrapers, which are generally drawn by horses. The average expense of leveling an acre, if two men and three animals are cmployed, is about 38. , PLOWING. The Arab plow, generally used in Algeria, has the forward part supported directly by the yoke or harness of the animal which draws it, while the working part is limited practically to the share. The Kabyle plow consists of two pieces of wood (often the forked branch of a tree) meeting at nearly a right angle, the upright piece being shaped so as to serve as a handle, while to the horizontal piece the iron share is fastened. Two wooden projections at the end of the horizontal piece, just above the share, serve to widen the furrow that is made. The beam is fastened, by means of a peg, into the angle made by the two pieces. One end of the beam is fastened by a strap directly to the wooden yoke of the animal which draws the plow. One man works the plow, driving the animal with one hand and holding the handle with the other. The instruments used by the natives break up the soil only to a very small depth. Among the European colonists improved modern plows are now coming into use. On the largest farms steam plows, operated by two 16-horsepower engines, are some- times used. In some of the larger towns steam plows can be hired. GENERAL ECONOMIC CONDITIONS. 49 For cultivating vineyards, American gang plows are preferred. The use of the disk harrow is widespread. In preparing for a crop of cereals the land is generally not plowed until fall. This is, however, a bad practice, for if there are heavy rains early in the autumn the land is sometimes too wet to permit of plowing before the first of the year. If, on the contrary, the rains are unusually late, the soil may be too dry and hard to make early plowing possible. In consequence, the crop is sown late and is often dried up by the hot winds of late spring and early summer. Spring plowing in preparation for a winter crop is therefore highly recommended by the best authorities. It is pointed out that as a result of this practice the soil loses less moisture during the summer fallow, besides being in excellent condition to absorb the first rain that falls upon it in the autumn. It is, indeed, advisable to keep the surface of the soil in a well-pulverized condition at all times when there is no crop in the land. Deep plowing is found to have, up to a certain point, the same effect as rotation and the use of fertilizers. Beyond that point, how- ever, the yield of crops will diminish, no matter how thoroughly the land is plowed, unless some other means is taken to restore the fertility of the soil. At Sétif good cultivation is made to take the place of irrigation, and excellent crops of cereals and of leguminous food and forage plants are produced without artificial watering. In preparing land that is comparatively flat, in order to establish market gardens, vineyards, and orchards, it has been found that a steam plow, turning the soil to a depth of from 20 to 24 inches, can be used to advantage. In lieu of this an ordinary plow, followed by a subsoiler, will answer the purpose. On hillsides that are too steep for the plow the soil is loosened with picks, usually to a depth of from 24 to 28 inches. The expense of preparing an acre in this way averages about $50. Sometimes the pick is also used for loosening the soil in orchards where the trees are set very close together and in market gardens. The plowused in market gardens is generally a very light one. GENERAL ECONOMIC CONDITIONS. HISTORICAL AND POLITICAL. According to the census of 1896, the population of Algeria, exclud- ing the army, was 4,360,000, of which 86 per cent was Mohammedan. The great importance of agriculture is shown by the fact that four- fifths of the inhabitants live by farming or by raising animals, almost the whole of the native population being thus employed. The total area now under French dominion is about 150,000 square miles, but a large proportion of this area is a barren desert, without water for 28932—No. 80—05 4 50 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. irrigation. An area of 3,460,000 acres, including most of the best arable land, is held by European colonists, while about 17,290,000 acres is still the property of natives. The remainder, including large forested areas and vast tracts of steppe covered with alfa grass, is government land. There is one inhabitant to every 173 acres of land belonging to Europeans, and one inhabitant to every 5 acres held by natives. California, with an area slightly exceeding that of Algeria (156,000 square miles), has a population of about 1,500,000. The combined populations of Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming about equal that of Algeria. The traveler in Algeria does not, how- ever, get the impression that the colony is well populated. On the contrary, it seems a new country, and capable of far greater agricul- tural development than has yet been attained. LAND VALUES. In a country like Algeria, where climate, soils, and crops, not to speak of means of communication and nearness to large commercial centers, vary so much in different regions, it is extremely difficult to generalize as to the value of the land. Within 20 miles of large towns, where there are good facilities for transportation by road or by rail-— way, the best land is worth from $25 to $70°an acre. In proportion as remoteness from important centers and difficulties of communication increase, the value diminishes to $16 or less. An acre in vines near Algiers, a region unaffected by phylloxera, is worth from $80 to $230. Orchard and truck land well supplied with artesian water sells for from $80 to $160, and the best market-garden land near Algiers at very much higher prices, sometimes as much as $230. Orange groves in full bearing are worth from $480 to $640 per acre. Olive orchards, in land of good quality but not capable of irri- gation, range in value from $80 to $240 per acre. An acre of fig trees is valued at $115 to $230. Facilities for irrigation, of course, enhance these values. FARM LABOR. The great bulk of the farm work in Algeria is done by the native population—Arabs and Kabyles—either in the employ of European colonists or working for themselves on land they own or rent. The Kabyles, among whom the native agriculture of Algeria has reached its highest development, are generally more industrious and more skillful laborers than the Arabs. . Particularly in the littoral zone of the coast region, where the Euro- GENERAL ECONOMIC CONDITIONS. 51 pean population is densest, much of the labor in vineyards, orchards, and market gardens is performed by immigrants from southern France, Spain, Italy, the Balearic Islands, and Malta. In all those countries agricultural conditions resemble to a greater or less extent those pre- vailing along the African shore of the Mediterranean. The wages paid native laborers vary according to the locality, the season, and the nature of the crop grown. Wages to natives are highest along the coast, where a day’s labor in summer commands from 28 to 38 cents. Farther inland the wage varies between 24 and 28 cents. Harvest labor performed in the usual fashion, with a sickle, is paid at the rate of about 45 cents a day. When the scythe is used from 65 to 75 cents a day is earned. Laborers are sometimes employed by the month, receiving, without board, $6.50 to $7.50. If somewhat more skilled than the average they are paid as much as $9.50 a month, or a smaller wage is given, together with a ration of about 2 pounds of bread daily, and each month 2 quarts of olive oil and a few pounds of dried figs and semolina. For tending small flocks owned by Euro- peans the native receives from $1.50 to $2.75 per month with food, or $2.75 to $4.75 without food. The employer always retains half of the wage agreed upon until the expiration of his contract with the shep- herd, as security for the proper care of his flock. Men whose families live in the neighborhood are found to be the most trustworthy laborers among the natives. European workmen are more intelligent and consequently better paid than natives. Their wages are higher in eastern Algeria and in the interior, where the conditions are less attractive to Europeans than in western Algeria. The heavier kinds of farm labor, if done by immi- grants, fall to the share of Spaniards and Italians. French laborers are generally engaged in such work about the orchards and vineyards as requires more intelligence, and as overseers and foremen. The market gardens of the littoral zone, where large quantities of vege- tables are grown not only for consumption in Algeria but for export to Europe, are rented and farmed for the most part by Mahonnais (natives of the Balearic Islands) and by Maltese. Unskilled Spanish and Italian laborers, working by the day and finding their own provisions, earn from 45 to 55 cents a day in winter and as much as 75 cents a day in summer. The day’s work in winter lasts nine or ten hours, with an hour’s rest at noon. In summer the workday is twelve or thirteen hours, but with two hours’ intermission at noon and a quarter of an hour for rest in the middle of the morning and again in the middle of the afternoon. The same kind of labor, if employed by the month, commands from $5.50 to $11.50, board included. The more intelligent French laborers naturally receive much higher wages. as ~ 52 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. AGRICULTURE OF THE NATIVE POPULATION. ° AMONG THE ARABS. The Arab, as a rule, is lazy and shows little skill and initiative in his farming. He works only to keep from starving, bis ambition being satisfied as soon as he has enough to keep body and soul together. The Arabs of the coast region are chiefly tillers of the soil, living in rude huts or **gourbis,” while those of the high plateau and desert regions are for the most part nomadic shepherds, dwelling in tents; but both pursuits—agriculture and stock raising in the same family. Agriculture, as practiced by the Arab who has not been influenced by European methods, is of the simplest description. His plow is made with a few strokes of a hatchet from the branch of a tree, and usually has no metal about it. Hitching to this rude instrument a horse, a camel, or, perchance, his wife, he merely scratches the soil in the autumn and scatters his wheat or barley seed. He then goes over the field a second time with a plow, covering the grain to a depth of 3 or4inches. After that is done he folds his hands and waits for the crop which may or may not come, satisfied that he can do no more and that the result is in the hands of Allah. In the spring, before the ground has dried out, he puts in sorghum or Indian corn in a simi- | lar fashion. The yields of grain thus obtained are naturally scanty at best, while in dry years the crops sometimes fail entirely and there is much suffering among the Arab population. In better soils, especially where a little water can be had without much labor, beans, chick-peas, and melons are grown. Near streams the Arab often has a small orchard of figs, pomegranates, oranges, and apricots, or a vegetable garden. None of these crops receive any particular attention, and the yield and quality of the product are gen- erally far inferior to those obtained by skillful European farmers. AMONG THE KABYLES. The Kabyles belong to the ancient Berber race that inhabited north- ern Africa before it was conquered by the Arabs—before even the Carthaginians and the Romans occupied the country. Nowadays they are confined chiefly to the mountainous districts. Their principal territory is the region known as Great Kabylia, lying between the Djurdjura range of mountains and the sea. Here a dense population is crowded into a comparatively small area, much of which is so mountain- ous and rugged that even these dauntless farmers can not make crops grow upon it. Since the French occupation of Algeria, however, large numbers of Kabyles have left their mountain fastnesses, seeking work as farm laborers in the valleys and plains, or as porters in cities. GENERAL ECONOMIC CON DITIONS. 53 Many of these emigrants, however, spend only a part of the year in the lowlands, returning home with their savings and putting in the rest of their time cultivating their own land. Unlike the Arab, the Kabyle is a patient and persistent workman. He is a true mountain- eer—frugal, temperate, and hardy. It is astonishing with how little the Kabyle can sustain life. He often inherits the merest patch of land, or only-a single tree—some- times only a branch of an olive tree that has its roots in another man’s land. With this slender patrimony and what he can make by hiring his labor to others, he supports himself and his family. Now that Kabylia is thoroughly pacified and the tribal wars that formerly waged between almost every two neighboring villages have ceased, there is a much larger acreage available for cultivation than was form- erly the case. Every inch of arable land is put into crops. Grain and forage plants are grown in the river valleys and lower slopes, figs and olives on the steeper hillsides. It is in horticulture, especially, that the Kabyles excel, the country they inhabit being better adapted to orchard than to field crops. They are expert in grafting and other horticultural processes. Olive culture is a specialty of these mountaineers. Every year they graft large numbers of scions of improved varieties upon wild trees, and thus con- stantly extend the area of their olive orchards. Fig trees are also planted yearly in large numbers. They are handled with great skill, caprification being carefully attended to. Of olive and fig trees, as well as of grapes and other kinds of fruit, there are a number of varieties that are more or less peculiar to Kabylia. The dried leaves of the fig and the twigs of the olive that are removed in pruning, as well as the leaves of the ash and the elm, are utilized by the Kabyles as forage for their domestic animals. It is said that two-thirds of the population of these mountains depend absolutely upon the olive and the fig for subsistence. Where these trees are present there are three or four inhabitants to every 5 acres, while in parts of Kabylia where they are wanting, from 5 to 7 acres of land are required to support each person. The Kabyles do not raise cereals in quantity suflicient to supply their own wants, and they must draw upon other parts of the colony for grain. Flour is made into semolina or baked in an earthenware tray into asort of unleavened bread. Flour made from beans, nuts, Indian corn, and sorghum is mixed by the poorer classes with barley flour. Often wheat, barley, beans, and other plants are grown together in the same field. Fruits, excepting olives, figs, and grapes, are gener- ally of poor quality, although apricots, pomegranates, peaches, pears, apples, and, in some sheltered valleys, oranges are grown, Wheat, barley, and beans are sown in the autumn, sorghum and Indian corn in the spring. Otherwise, all these crops are handled in er AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. about the same way. Plowing is done with oxen, hitched to a rude, homemade plow of very ancient pattern, which turns up the soil toa depth of about 5 inches. The yoke is so adjusted that the steepest slopes and even the soil about the roots of a tree can be plowed. A man follows the plow, breaking up the clods with a pick. Sowing is done by hand. The fields are kept very clean, the weeds that are removed being used as forage. Harvesting is done with the sickle or even by hand. Grain is thrashed by treading out beneath the hoofs of oxen on a floor of hardened clay. It is winnowed by tossing into the air, the wind carrying away the chaff. The valley lands are irrigated from the numerous streams that run bank full in the spring. The tiny garden, which every fairly well- to-do Kabyle possesses, is watered and manured with great care, and different vegetables follow one another in constant succession through- out the year. A plot of ground 40 by 80 feet is thus made to produce all the vegetables needed by a large family. Owing to the small area of land in the mountains that can be spared for forage crops, the Kabyles purchase in the lowlands most of the animals they use in their farm work, fattening and reselling them when the spring plowing is over. Donkeys are generally used for ‘arrying loads, and mules for riding. The Kabyle, unlike the Arab, takes the greatest care of his animals, stabling them at night in his own house and doing his best at all seasons to provide them with sufficient food. AMONG THE SAHARANS. The population of the oases in the eastern part of the Algerian Sahara, the only part of the desert that is of much agricultural inter- est, is of mixed origin. It combines strains of Berber, Sudanese, and Arab blood. In winter great numbers of nomadic Arabs descend into the Sahara with their flocks and herds, which range during the summer over the plains of the high plateau region. But there is also a resident population, which subsists entirely upon the products of the date palm and the various cultures that are grown in its shade. These, the true Saharans, are very skillful gardeners, understanding thoroughly the highly specialized culture of the date palm. They are adepts in the management of soils and irrigating waters that contain excessive amounts of salt. Despite these disadvantages, which are combined with the most unfavorable climatic conditions, they succeed in growing in the oases a variety of fruit trees, garden vegetables, forage plants, and cereals. Not only in their own gardens, but in the plantations of palms recently established by French capital, the labor is performed entirely by natives. The climatic conditions, together with the large quantity of more or less stagnant water that is always present, make the oasis environment, at least in summer, CROPS OF THE COLONY. 55 entirely unfit for European labor. Indeed, the Arabs of the coast and high plateau regions are hardly better inured to the summer con- ditions, which only the thoroughly acclimated natives of the Sahara can endure without suffering. CROPS OF THE COLONY. The greatest wealth-producing crop of Algeria is the vine. The climate anc soils of a great part of Algeria, as of California, are perfectly adapted to viticulture. The French colonists have put by far the greater share of their energy and capital into the growing of wine grapes. In 13808 the average annual value of the product of Algerian vineyards was estimated at $5,000,000. The red and the white table wines of the colony are steadily improving in quality and are coming more and more into favor among foreign consumers. There is also a considerable production of early table grapes for the markets of Europe. Various orchard crops are likewise a source of revenue. First and foremost stands the olive. Algeria is extending year by year the area planted to olives, a product for which northern Africa has always been famous. As the inability of Italy and Spain to supply the world’s demand becomes more and more evident, the export of olive oil from Algeria and Tunis will doubtless steadily increase. Citrus fruits, particularly mandarin and other oranges, are exported in con- siderable quantities. - In this industry, however, Algeria finds herself in competition with Spain, Sicily, and other countries which have the advantage of a larger or at least a better distributed rainfall. Figs are grown in most parts of the colony. In Kabylia they are dried and prepared for export, although the finest sorts of figs for drying are not grown in Algeria. A considerable variety of other fruits is grown, chiefly for domestic consumption, among which may be mentioned pomegranates, apricots, almonds, peaches, cherries, plums, apples, and pears. Tropical fruits, such as the banana, pineapple, guava, and avocado, can be produced in the open only in a very few localities along the coast, and can never become crops of the first rank. The kaki and the loquat are more promising. A restricted yet important industry in Algeria is the production of dates. Especially in the Sahara, dates form a staple food of the inhab- itants, who eat great quantities of the ordinary sorts. The finer varieties are now being grown 1n some quantity for export to Kurope, and a considerable amount of French capital has been invested in this enterprise. Market gardens occupy a considerable area near the sea. Large quantities of vegetables are grown, not only for the use of the home 56 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. population but for shipment to Europe to supply the winter and early spring markets. Of those which are exported, artichokes, pota- toes, beans, and peas are the most important. The consumption of melons and watermelons in Algeria is very large during the summer. The principal field crops of the colony are cereals. Wheat and bar- ley occupy about 7,000,000 acres annually and supply a large export trade. Indian corn oad sorghum are extensively grown by the natives. Cotton and sugar cane, crops to which Egypt owes so much of her wealth, are of small importance in Algeria. The only valuable ‘‘industrial” crops are tobacco and certain plants used in the manu- facture of perfumery. The cork oak and the grass known as alfa, which contribute largely to the prosperity of the colony, are never artificially planted anc hence are not, strictly speaking, agricultural products. The acreage in forage crops is limited, particularly in summer, by the scanty water supply. Alfalfa is grown generally in small patches, although on the larger estates good-sized fields are sometimes put into this crop. Sulla has been frequently recommended but has not come into general use. The pods of the carob tree, or St. John’s bread, are used for feeding stock. They are consumed in considerable quantities in the colony and are also exported. Sorghum is also grown exten- sively and affords a valuable supply of summer forage. In the autumn, in some localities, vetches are sown with oats or barley and — are harvested in the spring. This mixture, either green or cured, is an excellent food for cattle. Oats are grown for export only, barley being the grain commonly fed to horses. The greater number of the cattle and sheep of Algeria are raised upon the wild forage which covers the uncleared portion of the hills and plains or springs up in the cultivated fields after the crop of grain has been taken off. The supply of green pasturage is abundant dur- — ing the winter and spring, but the hot, dry summer soon burns it dry. As cultivated forage is scarce in summer animals often have great difficulty in obtaining feed at that season. ~GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION. COAST REGION. The great diversity which the coast region exhibits in respeco to climate, topography, and soils is paralleled by the great diversity of its agricultural conditions. A far greater variety of crops is grown there than in either of the other regions. The three zones—littoral, valley and plain, : are distinguished one from another by agricultural as well as by topographical and climatic peculiarities, so that it will be advisable to give a sketch of each-in turn. Roughly speaking, the first is a zone of orchards and market gardens, the second CROPS OF THE COLONY. 57 of grain fields and vineyards, and the third of tree crops at lower ele- vations, giving place to pasturage on the higher slopes and crests of the mountains. But this generalization must not be carried too far. The lines that separate the three zones are vague at best, and the indus- tries especially characteristic of each are shared to some extent by all. LITTORAL ZONE. 5 Along the shore of the Mediterranean is practiced the most intensive agriculture of the colony, if we except the oases of the eastern Sahara. The alluvial soils of the valleys, which usually expand into small deltas as they approach the sea, are largely occupied, especially in the neigh- borhood of the principal cities, by highly cultivated market gardens. The lower slopes of the hills and mountains that border the sea are occupied by orchards and vineyards. At slight elevations we find a great variety of fruits, every sort, in fact, that is commonly grown in warm temperate countries. In addition to the great vineyards of wine grapes, excellent table grapes are grown for European as well as for Algerian markets. Oranges of several kinds are produced in consid- erable quantity. Lemons, apricots, nectarines, and almonds thrive. The Japanese persimmon, the loquat, the pecan, and other tree crops not yet widely cultivated in that part of the world, promise to become a source of wealth. A few peculiarly favored situations, well sheltered from cold winds in winter and from the sirocco in summer, are adapted to fruits of a distinctly tropical character, such as bananas, guavas, and avocados. Attempts are being made to produce some of these fruits under glass in marketable quantity. It must not be supposed, however, that the littoral zone is devoted wholly to growing fruits and garden vegetables. Where sufticiently extensive areas of alluvial soil occur, cereals are grown, giving larger yields than elsewhere because of the abundant supply of water. For the same reason cultivated forage plants do better in this zone than in the others. Alfalfa is the most important perennial forage crop, while, for winter forage, barley, often sown with vetches, is much used. As is also the case to some extent in the other zones of the coast region, natural meadows, furnishing green pasturage all the year round, occupy marshy places. Where such meadows occur, live stock can be kept in good condition throughout the summer, which is seldom possible in the high plateau region. An industry of secondary importance, yet bringing a considerable yearly revenue into the colony, is that of growing plants used in the manufacture of perfumery, notably the rose geranium. VALLEY AND PLAIN ZONE. The large valleys of the coast region, especially in the western part of the colony, of which the Chéliff may be taken as a type, are given 58 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. up in great part to grain production. Of the 12,500,000 acres in Algeria which bear a cereal crop every one or two years, by far the largest part is situated in this zone. Wheat, barley, and oats are — grown, the last in much smaller quantity than the others and solely for export. The bulk of the wheat is of the hard or durum type, — although soft wheats are also produced. Where water for irrigation is to be had in summer—and this is the — ‘ase in only a small fraction of the whole area—alfalfa, sorghum, and other forage plants, as well as tobacco, melons, etc., are grown. Cot- ton was extensively planted in some of the valleys of western Algeria during the civil war in the United States, and proved very remunera- tive for a while. Under present market conditions, however, it can not be grown with profit in the colony. The wild forage that springs up on the extensive areas of grain land lying fallow every year is an important resource to the farmer, enabling him to keep his cattle in good condition during the winter. In sum- mer, however, unless a forage crop is grown under irrigation, the conditions for animals in this zone are unfavorable. MOUNTAIN ZONE. The only extensive district of high mountains in Algeria where | agriculture is highly developed is Kabylia. In discussing the agricul- ture of the ‘‘mountain zone” we are therefore, as a matter of fact, — describing that district. The lower elevations and the valleys of the larger streams present conditions not unlike those of the littoral zone. Even oranges can be grown in sheltered situations at low altitudes. On the higher slopes and the crests of the ridges, however, this is impossible. The nature of the surface is not adapted to large vineyards and grain fields; hence, agriculture becomes reduced to horticulture. “Orchards of figs and olives cover the middle elevations, often on the steepest hillsides. Olive oil is produced in large quantities in the éastern part of this mountain region. It is extensively used by the inhabitants and is also an important article of export from Bougie, the principal seaport of the district. Other agricultural products of the mountain region which contribute to the export trade of the colony are dried figs, the pods of the carob, or St. John’s bread, and capers. The last are not cultivated, but are gathered by women and children from the wild plants, the young flower buds being the part used in commerce. About 450,000 pounds of capers were exported in 1899. The mountaineers raise in small gardens such cereals, vegetables, and forage plants as they require for their own use. These gardens are generally situated — at the bottoms of valleys and ravines, where some alluvial soil has collected. CROPS OF THE COLONY. 2 Spe The highest elevations of the mountain zone are not suitable for any sort of agriculture, but are largely covered with grass, which affords abundant pasturage to flocks of sheep and goats. HIGH PLATEAU REGION. In the typical steppe region of central Algeria agriculture is limited to occasional low places where, by means of the natural moisture of the ground or by irrigation with the water of a well, a crop of barley ean be made in winter. If conditions are exceptionally favorable, a small garden can sometimes be established. At such points as Sétif and Batna, in the eastern part of the colony, there are extensive areas in winter cereals, where crops are produced without irrigation. But, us we have already seen, these places are not to be regarded as typical of the high plateau region. Agriculturally, they belong rather to the valley and plain zone of the coast region. The two great industries of the high plateau region are grazing and the collection of alfa. Vast numbers of sheep and goats, as well as horses and camels, are pastured, especially in summer, on these ele- vated grassy plains. It is estimated that from 6 to 10 million head of sheep and 3,500,000 goats range the high plateau. These animals are almost without exception the property of Arabs. Many of them are wintered in the Sahara, and in spring are driven by their owners up to the high plateau, where pasturage is more abundant and the heat less intense. The hides, meat, wool, and other products of these animals are a very material source of wealth to the colony. Cattle are not raised in any considerable number. Alfa, or esparto, covers vast areas of this region, often to the almost complete exclusion of other vegetation. The tough leaves of this grass form one of the most valuable exports of the colony, amounting annually to about $2,000,000. They are used in the manufacture of high grades of paper, basket ware, matting, hats, and cordage. The harvest takes place in the spring. Persistent exploitation is resulting in the rapid extermination of alfa grass, the more so because attempts to establish artificial plantations have so far been wholly unsuccessful. DESERT REGION. The oases of the Sahara, and particularly those of the depression known as the Oued Rirh, in the eastern part, are the only portion of the desert that 1s of much agricultural importance. There the presence of subterranean streams, carrying a considerable yolume of water, has made it possible to plant thousands of date palms in groves of greater or less size. Within the last three decades the sinking of a number of artesian wells in the Oued Rirh region has much increased the supply of water 60 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. for irrigating purposes. Consequently, it has been possible to create new oases and to extend greatly the area in date palms. Two French companies have set out many thousands of palms of the best varieties, especially the celebrated Deglet Noor, and have introduced improved methods of cultivation and management. Dates have always. been an important article of export from the Sahara to other parts of Africa. Recently a large export trade with Europe has been developed. A considerable variety of fruits, vegetubles, cereals, and forage crops is grown among the date palms in the oases. These, however, do not afford products for export to foreign countries, but serve merely to supply the wants of the local population. The area ayail- able is too small to allow these subordinate cultures to attain any considerable magnitude, even cereals and forage plants being grown in gardens rather than in fields. Oranges are grown in the oases at the foot of the mountains that border the desert, but do not succeed farther south because of the occa- sionally severe winter frosts. Olives for oil and the large sorts used for pickling, almonds, several kinds of figs and grapes, pomegranates, apricots, and other fruits are produced. The apricots grown are of a native type and are remarkable for the large size the trees sometimes attain. The different kinds of fruit trees are not set out in separate orchards, but are mingled together. The same system, or lack of system, is observed in the way garden vegetables are grown. Of these the more common are onions, broad beans, carrots, cabbage, tomatoes, okra, eggplant, pumpkins, cucumbers, melons, and peppers. Alfalfa is grown in small, carefully tended patches, and is cut many times during the year. The cereals chiefly grown are wheat and barley in winter, and sorghum and Indian corn in summer. On the northern edge of the Sahara, where the slope is considerable and occasional heavy rains in winter cause a sheet of flood water to sweep down over the land, this is taken advantage of in producing crops of grain in the open desert bordering the oases. Ridges of mud are thrown up at intervals, and are arranged so as to catch and retain for a while the flood water. PRINCIPAL CROPS IN DETAIL. FRUIT CROPS. GRAPES. Wine grapes.—Grapes have long been an important product of Algeria, for even before the French occupation about fifty varieties were known to the natives. In Kabylia particularly, well-defined local varieties had been developed. Some of these are grown only in that country, apparently, while others occur under different names in other parts of the Mediterranean region. Until within the last three * wien AIM Mr> fe hn Nee UR LTO ee RS eed 7 > a CROPS OF THE COLONY. 61 decades, grapes were grown chiefly for eating purposes, as the Moham- medan law forbids the use of wine. Since then, however, the planting of vineyards has made rapid progress amiong the colonists, and in 1900 nearly 350,000 acres, about one-tenth of the land owned by Europeans, was in vines. The estimated total value of Algerian vineyards is $114,000,000. Wine is now the most valuable product of the colony, the export amounting in 1899 to over 120,000,000 gallons. Most of the skill, energy, and capital of the French population is concentrated upon this crop. It has been computed that $6,650,000 is paid out annually in wages to the laborers in Algerian vineyards. Fine wines and dessert wines form but asmall part of the total yield, the Algerian product consisting chiefly of heavy-bodied and, in the case of red wines, deeply colored wines for blending purposes. These are being constantly improved in quality, and Algerian wines are now widely and favorably known in Europe—France, England, and Ger- many, especially, importing large quantities. The varieties of wine grapes chiefly grown by European colonists are those of southern France. Carignane, from which red wine is made, is at present the favorite, and is being planted more extensively than any other variety. Other highly esteemed varieties that furnish red wine are Mourvedre, Morastel, Aramon; Cinsault, and Ulliade (Oeillade). Carignane is notable for the rapidity with which it comes into bearing and for its large yields. At the same time it requires more care than some other varieties, and is subject to fungous diseases. Mourvédre and Morastel, hardier varieties, but slower in developing and somewhat irregular in yield, are not as extensively planted as formerly. Cinsault and Ulliade are hardy varieties, and endure the trying conditions that. prevail when the sirocco is blowing. The former, especially, is much grown. The latter is said to be very irregular in its yields. The variety known as ** Petit Bouschet” is used for giving a deeper color to certain French wines made from other varieties. White wines are made from the Clairette, Ugni Blanc, Semillon, and other varieties, while a native variety known as Feranah.is highly esteemed by some vineyardists. All these, however, give rather light yields, so that the making of white wines from grapes having a color- less juice is now much practiced, the skins being removed before fer- mentation begins. Cinsault, Aramon, and Mourvedre are especially used for this purpose. Excellent dessert wines are occasionally made from such varieties as Alicante and Muscat. Vines are grown in nearly all parts of the colony, even in the extremely mountainous districts and in the oases of the Sahara; but the most extensive vineyards have been established in the great plains and valleys of the coast region, where the largest profits from the 62 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. growing of wine grapes have been realized. Deep alluvial soils, con- taining a considerable amount of clay and of organic matter, are found to give the largest yields. ‘Fhese soils retain enough moisture during the summer to prevent much harm to the vines from the sirocco. The better qualities of wine are, however, commonly produced on hillside vineyards, at altitudes not exceeding 3,000 feet. Some districts that. are otherwise perfectly adapted to vineyards suffer so heavily from_ hailstorms in spring as to make them unprofitable for grape culture. The vines are planted to best advantage in squares or in a quincunx, i. e., in squares with one vine at each corner and one in the center. It is very important to arrange the vines so that the vineyard can be plowed in both directions. It is considered advisabie, under Algerian condi- tions, when planting in squares, to set the vines 5, or, for some varie- ties, 6 feet apart each way. ‘The vines are set out during the months of January, February, and March. Pruning is generally done in the latter part of the winter. The varieties most commonly grown by the colonists, such as Carignane, are trimmed back close to the stump, — leaving a circle of 5 to 8 spurs. When trimmed long, the canes are — trained on wire or are supported by forked sticks. Among the Kabyles, the vines are generally allowed to grow on trees. Close trimming is said to increase the ability of the vines to resist drought, which is an important matter in Algeria. Grafting is resorted to when it is desired to replace the varieties in a vineyard with better — varieties, and to render it more productive, March and April being — the best months for this operation. In Algeria vines generally begin to bear in their fourth year, although a full crop is not obtained until the sixth or seventh year. Late in the winter, after trimming is completed and before the buds _ have begun to start, the vineyards are plowed, usually to a depth of 6 inches. This should be done when the soil is fairly dry. Ocea- sionally the plow is followed by a subsoiler. Vines send their reots deep into the soil in Algeria, so that there is little danger of injuring them by this treatment. A hoe or pick is used to loosen the soil around the roots of the vines. In some vineyards, in order to cover the roots, a cross plowing is then given which, like all subsequent plowings, is shallower than the first. During the summer the vine- yard is given as many cultivyations with the hoe or the scarifier as are necessary to rid it of weeds and to preserve a loose mulch on the sur- face of the soil that will keep down evaporation. Bermuda grass is often a serious pest in Algerian vineyards. Although in vineyards careful cultivation will partly take the place of irrigation, the yield can almost always be increased by the judicious application of water. Irrigation in winter, so as to store up water in the soil, is recommended for such regions as the Chéliff Valley, CROPS OF THE COLONY. 63 where the rainfall is small. The first irrigation in summer generally takes place when the grapes begin to color, and the second about two weeks before the vintage. About 2 acre-inches of water is used in flood irrigation, but only about 13 acre-inches in furrow irriga- tion. It is desirable to follow each irrigation by a cultivation, in order to keep down weeds and prevent the surface of the soil from baking. Nitrogenous fertilizers are needed in maintaining the wood growth of Algerian vineyards, and phosphoric acid is also often required to promote productiveness. Farm manure is much used and is applied at the rate of 12 to 18 tons per acre. When wine making first began in the colony great difficulty was experienced in completing fermentation, and the quality of the wine was much impaired by the presence: of unfermented sugar. This was due to the high sugar content of the Algerian grapes and to the high temperatures prevailing during fermentation. These difl- culties have been largely overcome, however, by observing certain precautions. If the weather during the vintage is very hot, the grapes are gathered and put into the vats in the early morning while they are cool, and the temperature of the vats is kept down by causing cool water to circulate on the outside of them. The fungous diseases, such as anthracnose, oidium, and mildew, which attack vines in Algeria, have been more or less successfully kept in check by spraying. Not so, however, with phylloxera, which has wrought terrible havoc in the vineyards of Oran and Constantine departments since its first appearance in the colony in 1883. A very rigid inspection law has failed to put a complete stop to its ravages. The practice of flooding infected vineyards, which has given such happy results in southern France, can not be generally adopted in Algeria because of the scarcity of irrigating water. So far the vine- yards of the central department, that of Algiers, have escaped damage from this destructive insect. In the vineyards of western Algeria considerable losses have been sustained through the rise of salts in the soil. The effect of salt in the soil upon Algerian vineyards has been discussed by Dugast (see p. 44 of this report), who calls attention to the existence of occasional more resistant plants. In some districts the vines bave been killed, while in Jess extreme cases the quality of the wine has been much impaired by taking up more or less of the salt contained in the soil. A French law forbids the sale of wine containing more than one part per thousand of sodium chlorid, but in some of the wine produced in Oran Department this percentage has been exceeded. It 1s considered safe to plant vines in any soil that Is not too salty to permit a good growth of figs, pomegranates, alfalfa, or artichokes. 64 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. Tuble grapes.—Kixcellent table grapes are grown, some of which— the Cinsault, for example—are valuable also as wine grapes, while others, like the Golden Chasselas, are grown chiefly for the table. The latter is by far the most popular variety. It is an excellent grape, bearing shipment well. Grapes mature early enough for profit- able exportation in the littoral zone of the coast region only. Near Algiers the Chasselas ripens in the first part of July and reaches the French markets in advance of home-grown grapes. Vines of this _ variety generally begin to yield freely in their fifth year. Reeds are usually planted as a wind-break, the same as in market gardens. An average crop from an acre is 3 tons of fruit. The first Algerian grapes that reach the Paris markets are said to bring as much as $26 per L100 pounds. Table grapes grown elsewhere than along the coast ripen too late for export, but often find 2 good sale in local markets. The varieties peculiar to the colony are generally of inferior quality, although some | of them are not without value. Those grown in Kabylia are nearly all pruned to long canes, and often ascend to the tops of tall trees. It is difficult to gather the grapes from such vines or to spray them when infected with fungous diseases. Raisins are dried in small quantities by the Kabyles. Otherwise this industry has not developed in Algeria, although the climatic con- _ ditions would seem to be peculiarly favorable to raisin making. OLIVES. From the earliest times of which we have record the olive has been one of the most important products of northern Africa. The same varieties yield a higher percentage of oil in Algeria and Tunis than in southern Europe. The oil content varies greatly in different parts of the colony, but as high as 34 per cent has been obtained from olives grown in the oases of the Sahara. African oils have a higher mar- garin content and are more easily fixed at a temperature of 40° F. than oil made from European olives. The annual production of oil in Algeria is estimated at 13,200,000 gallons, the bulk of which is con- sumed in the colony. The export trade is as yet comparatively insig- nificant, amounting annually to only about $200,000. In fact, Algeria does not produce enough for home consumption, importing annually from 2,500,000 to 8,000,000 gallons of edible oils. The number of grafted olive trees in the colony is estimated at 4,500,000, the greater part of them being in Kabylia. Tunis, the olive-growing country par. excellence of northern Africa, is said to contain some 15,000,000 grafted trees, covering about 500,000 acres. The olive is thoroughly at home in Algeria, especially in the Kabyle mountain district, where several local varieties exist, some of which are of considerable value. CROPS OF THE COLONY. 65 Like some of the vines, some of the olive varieties are found only in the colony, while others, which have received local names in Algeria, are widely distributed in Mediterranean countries. The olive grows wild in almost every part of Algeria, here and there forming actual forests, some of which were formerly of much greater extent than they are to-day. The fruits of these wild trees are worthless, but the stocks are much used for grafting with improved varieties. In Kabylia especially, the area in olive orchards is being rapidly extended by grafting wild trees. The olive flourishes ina great variety of soils and is less sensitive than citrus fruits to cold and drought. Yet it has limitations, which must be considered when a new orchard is to be established. Well- drained soils, having a considerable slope, give the best results. The maximum oil production is said to be obtained from soils rich in lime. Sunny situations are to be preferred, although in districts subject. to frosts in spring it is desirable that the trees should not be in a position where the first rays of the sun can strike them in the morning. A paying crop can not be expected in districts where temperatures as low as 25° F. or exceeding 105° F. are frequent. In respect to elevation, olives will not thrive in Algeria at an alti- tude of much more than 3,000 feet, and appear to do best between 1,000 and 2,000 feet above sea level. In the immediate neighborhood of the sea the orchards suffer most from the ravages of certain insect enemies and of a bacterial disease. Olive orchards are particularly profitable in districts like the Chéliff Valley, where they can be irri- gated three or four times during the winter. If irrigation in summer is also possible, the yield can often be doubled. At each watering, from 1.5 to 2 acre-feet is applied. Where an orchard is to be started with young trees, these are set out in most parts of Algeria to best advantage at intervals of 30 feet, in rows 50 feet apart. Sometimes the quincunx plan is adopted. On irrigated land, about 40 trees to the acre is the proper number. Planting is done during the winter, preferably in December or January. After six or eight years an orchard started with trees 5 feet high and 2 or 3 inches in diameter will generally pay expenses, and in fifteen years it will be in full bearing. Other cultures are not permitted in the orchard, unless the water supply is ample and the soil is either naturally very fertile or is well manured. Cereals are often grown among the trees, but this tends to diminish the yield of fruit, and is generally discontinued after the trees begin to bear. On the other hand, where water is plentiful, the erowing of broad beans and similar leguminous crops in olive orchards is a good practice. 28932—No, 80—05 3) AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. Fertilizers, applied in alternate years when the trees are not bear- ing, largely increase the yields. A good tree, if furnished about 500 pounds of farm manure every other year, will yield 550 to 650 pounds of fruit every two years. The average yield from a tree 20 years old appears to be about 175 pounds, from 12 to 15 per cent of the weight being oil. The best method of keeping the soil of an olive orchard in first-class condition is to give it a good plowing as soon as the harvest is over. During the summer two or three cultivations are given, in order to keep the surface well mulched and thus reduce evaporation. The harvest begins in October, green olives, for pickling, being the first that are gathered. By far the greater part of the oil crop of the colony is obtained from fruit grown by the natives, who themselves manufacture two- thirds of the oil produced and also supply with fruit the oil mills that are operated by Europeans. European colonists have not, so far, devoted as much attention to olive growing as the importance of the crop would warrant. In western Algeria, however, in districts infected with phylloxera, olives are often planted in vineyards, so as to take the place of the vines in case the latter should be destroyed. Olive growing is the principal industry of Kabylia. Very little care is there given to the cultivation of orchards, this being generally limited to a single plowing in spring. The furrows are run horizon- tally along the hillside, so that as much rain water as possible can be retained in the soil. The trees are pruned with a hatchet while the fruit is being gathered. ‘The whole family—men, women, and chil- dren—take part in the harvest, which is a sort of festival, like the vintage in European countries. Hired pickers are paid with a certain proportion of the fruit they gather. A woman can earn, during the two months of the picking season, olives enough to yield about 15 gal- lons of oil, worth perhaps $6. . Europeans who manufacture olive oil purchase the fresh fruit from native growers, paying from 40 cents to $1 per 100 pounds. The fruit is brought to the mills in baskets made of reeds or of olive twigs. In every Kabyle village there is a small oil mill, the miller being paid for his work with the product of the second pressing. The strong flavor of the oil made by the natives, which is very unpalatable to Europeans, is due to the fact that the fruit is not pressed while fresh, but is spread out for several months after gathering on a surface of hardened clay, where it is exposed to the sun and weather. The Kabyles use oil almost wholly in place of butter and lard, frying food in it and eating it on bread and ‘‘ couscous.” Olives for pickling are grown in Algeria only in a small way, gen- erally in the gardens of natives. CROPS OF THE COLONY. 67 FIGS. The fig ranks next to the olive in importancé among the orchard crops of Algeria. Like the olive, it is most extensively grown in the mountain zone of the coast region, although common in every part of the colony. In Kabylia no less than two dozen varieties, some of them of excellent quality, are known. Figs, both fresh and dried, form a large part of the food of the Kabyles, who also export. to Europe a considerable quantity of the dried product. The finest varieties for drying, such as are grown near Smyrna, are not, however, grown in Algeria, except in an experimental way. Figs are cultivated in the shade of date palms in the oases of the Sahara; but neither in yield nor in quality do the desert-grown figs compare with those of the mountains. Fig trees do not endure well the severe climate of the high plateau. In the larger valleys of the coast region heavy yields can be obtained under irrigation. Some varieties grown in Algeria bear two crops a year; others, only one. In establishing a fig orchard, either nursery stock, budded from 2-year-old wood, or root shoots from good trees are used. Budding is generally done in February or March. Growth is rapid, amounting often to 5 feet during the first summer. The trees, when old enough for the orchard, are set out in winter, generally about 30 feet apart. The only pruning done consists in removing the dead wood and the shoots at the base of the trunk. The orchard is occasionally given a shallow plowing or cultivation. In most Algerian soils it is found that fertilizers containing phosphoric acid and potash, if applied in late winter, materially increase the yield of fig orchards. In Kabylia, where the acreage in figs is constantly being increased, this tree bears well up to an altitude of 4,000 feet. More care is given by the Kabyles to fig than to olive orchards. The trees are sometimes reproduced by cuttings, but preferably by root shoots. Pruning is done during the winter. In January or February the first plowing is given, and is followed by several others during the spring. Several varieties grown in that district require to be caprified. In other words, in order to set fruit, their flowers must receive pollen from those of the wild fig, and this is carried to them by a small insect (Blastophaga) which lays its eggs in the young flower clusters of the wild fig, or caprifig. The first caprification usually takes place in June, and the operation is sometimes repeated three or four times during the sum- mer. The method of the Kabyles is to thread together a few of the **male” figs or caprifigs and hang the chaplets thus made over the branches of the trees, the flowers of which are to be pollinated. Capri- figs sometimes sell for 6 cents a dozen among the natives. In fig orchards managed by Europeans the expense of caprification is esti- mated at about $5 per hundred trees. 68 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. In the mountains the harvest of figs for drying, although at its — height in September, covers a period of about three months, as the fruit does not all ripen at once. As fast as the fruit matures it is gathered and placed in shallow trays. These are spread out on the ground when the sun is shining, but are piled together in the evening and placed under shelter when it rains. The fruit is turned over from time to time until it is dry. Figs that are kept for home use or for shipment to other parts of the colony are split down the middle and pressed in a mortar into a compact mass. Those intended for export are packed at the seaports into crates holding 70 or 80 pounds, made of leafstalks of the dwarf palm. CITRUS FRUITS. Only a comparatively small portion of the total area of Algeria is suitable for citrus fruits. Even oranges can be grown successfully only in the coast region, up to an elevation of 1,700 feet or there- abouts, and in the northern oases of the eastern part of the Sahara, notably at Biskra. In the oases, however, they are not very satisfac- tory in yield or quality. The best orange-growing district is that around Blida, in the Mitidja Valley at the base of the Atlas Range. Here has been developed an excellent type of early-ripening, sweet orange, known as the ‘‘Blida,” the harvesting of which begins in — October. The Malta blood orange thrives both in the coast region — and in the oases. Brazil, Portugal, Jaffa, and other races are aiso grown in the colony. The natives grow oranges mostly from seeds, so that the quality of the fruit they produce is generally very infe- rior; yet some of the native varieties, notably in Kabylia and in the mountain ravines near Blida, are said to possess considerable merit. The expense of starting an orange grove in Algeria is sometimes — lessened by growing truck crops in the young orchard for the first six years. This practice, however, is not recommended by the best authorities. “A row of cypress trees is commonly planted as a wind- break around orange groves. The average profit from an acre of oranges is said to be only about $45 annually. The bitter orange (bigarade) is very hardy in the colony and is much used as a stock upon which to graft less resistant varieties. From its flowers perfumery is manufactured. Mandarins, which are extensively planted in Algeria, generally pay better than ordinary oranges. One authority estimates that an acre of these fruits gives an average net profit of $60 to $90. The harvest of mandarins at Blida begins in November. Lemons are less extensively planted, although they are quite hardy and yield well in the littoral Zone. For the irrigation of citrus fruits in the manner usually practiced in Algeria—by means of shallow basins around the base of each tree— CROPS OF THE COLONY. , 69 from 1.5 to 2 acre-inches of water is used at an application. If the soil is very permeable, as is the case in the Blida region, the orchard must be watered every week. Otherwise, an irrigation every two weeks suffices. As to cultivation, a plowing in March to a depth of 1 foot, a second plowing in May, and a cultivation in August are rec- ommended. DATES.“ Except in a single locality, where peculiar conditions exist, the date palm does not ripen its fruit freely in the coast region. Nor is the high plateau, with its cold winters, adapted to this tree. The true home of the palm is the desert region, particularly the low, eastern part. (See Pls. land III.) In the oases of the Oued Rirh district the finest varieties of dates—notably the celebrated Deglet Noor—reach the acme of their development. The environment in which the date flourishes is a peculiar one. It can not grow in the dry desert if the ground water is beyond the reach of its roots unless it is copiously irrigated. To ripen the fruit of the best varieties, frequent summer temperatures of 105” to 110° F., together with a very dry atmosphere and a very small rainfall, espe- cially in the autumn, appear to be necessary. It is obvious that this combination of conditions is not to be met with everywhere. The area which possesses the needed climatic requirements is almost limit- less, but an abundant supply of water for natural or artificial irriga- tion is of rare occurrence in the desert. There are a great number of varieties of the date palm in the oases of Algeria—probably at least 150. These are usually easily distinguished by the character of the fruit, whether long or short, thick or thin, light or dark, with a large or small stone, ete. One of the commonest types is Rhars, an early-ripening soft, sweet date not suitable for exportation, but very popular among the inhabitants of the Sahara. Dates of this kind are either eaten fresh or, pressed into a compact mass, are stored and carried from place to place, usually in leather bags. The Deglet Noor is the date which is most extensively grown for the European trade. Put up in small wooden boxes, with the dates attached to the branch upon which they grew, this fruit bears shipment admirably, retaining without difficulty its shape and firm texture. It is one of the finest of table dates, not only because of its flavor but for the reason. that it is clean and easily handled. The fine color and the transparency of the flesh add further to its attractive- ness. During the last two decades the two French companies that are a¥For a full discussion of this interesting subject by Mr. W. T. Swingle, see the Yearbook of the United States Department of Agriculture for 1900, p. 455, and Bulletin No. 53 of the Bureau of Plant Industry, 1904. 70 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. engaged in date growing in the Algerian Sahara have set out thou- sands of Deglet Noor trees. The natives also have planted them in large numbers. Of still another type are the dry dates which fur- nish a large part of the food of the population of the desert and are . transported by caravans to every part of northern Africa. They are not sirupy like the Rhars type nor richly flavored like the Deglet Noor, but are a wholesome food and can be kept for indefinite periods. The best sorts are eaten either fresh or dry, while from the starchy flesh of inferior kinds flour is made and baked into a sort of bread. In addition to dates, the natives of the Sahara obtain various other useful products from the palms. Trees of inferior value are made to yield *‘lagmi,” or palm wine, a sweet juice which is obtained in abun- dance by cutting the bud at the summit ef the stem. The wood of the palm is used for building houses, bridges, and dams, as well as for fuel. The leaves serve for thatching roofs, while from their fiber matting, baskets, hats, fans, and other articles are manufactured. LESS IMPORTANT ORCHARD CROPS. A great variety of other fruits characteristic of warm temperate and subtropical countries are grown with more or less success in Algeria, but their importance is not sufficient to warrant much more than an — enumeration. The peach is most at home in sheltered ravines of the mountain zone, where it makes a rapid growth and yields well. It is grafted upon Prunus mirobalan in deep, rich soils, and upon the almond in thinner, limy soils. The fruit is often of fine appearance, but gener- ally lacks flavor. The apricot is also grown most successfully in ravines and on shel-. tered slopes at low elevations in the mountain zone. In the oases of the northern part of the Sahara it becomes a large tree and yields heavily, but the fruit is poor in size and quality. Nevertheless, dried apricots are much in demand in the markets of the Sahara, The apricot in the coast region is sometimes grafted on the plum. The almond is one of the fruit trees that is best adapted to the drier parts of Algeria. Two principal types are cultivated—the thin-shelled Princesse, which is exported in some quantity as an early fruit, and varieties with harder shell, which are generally dried. The cherry is most at home in the mountain zone, doing well on a variety of soils. There are cherry orchards of considerable value in some parts of Algeria. The plum thrives in rather deep soils, especially in the mountainous parts of the colony. The Reine Claude gives excellent results under irrigation at moderate elevations in eastern Algeria. The growing of prunes has not become an industry in the colony. CROPS OF THE COLONY. Tr The pear grows vigorously in ravines and on shaded slopes in the mountain zone, especially in deep loamy and clayey soils. There are a number of native varieties of small value. Improved European varieties rarely give satisfactory results. The apple is even less successful in Algeria, save in a few excep- tional localities. Among fruits characteristic of warmer parts of the world, the pomegranate should be mentioned. It is very hardy as to climate, but needs a moist soil in order to give the best results. Under irriga- tion good yields can be obtained. A number of types are grown in Algeria, the best sweet fruit being exported and bringing a good price. The better sorts are propagated by cuttings. The spiny, unimproved type of pomegranate is much used as a hedge plant. The Indian fig, er prickly pear, is abundant in the coast region, where it is almost perfectly naturalized. It also occurs in some of the oases, but the high plateau region is generally too cold for it. There are several different races, some with yellow, some with red fruit. A white-fruited variety, of very limited cultivation, is said to be the finest of all. Indian figs are highly esteemed by the natives and by Spanish and Italian immigrants, but are rarely eaten by the French. Japanese (kaki) persimmons do well in most parts of the coast region and promise to become one of the important fruit crops of the colony. The loquat is more sensitive to cold, but thrives in the littoral zone. In a few sheltered places along the coast bananas can be successfully grown, the ‘* fig banana” being the type that yields best in Algeria. There is only a small area where the cultivation of such tropical fruits as the guava, avocado, cherimoya, and pineapple is possible. In the Aurés Mountains walnuts flourish. Plantations of chestnuts, established some years ago by the forestry service, are now bearing abundant crops. The acclimatization of the pecan is being attempted by the botanical service of the colony. TRUCK CROPS. A great many garden vegetables are grown in Algeria, among which may be enumerated artichokes, asparagus, beans (broad, kidney, and string), beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cardoon, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chick-peas, chicory, cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, lentils, let- tuce, melons, onions, peas, peppers, sorrel, spinach, squash, straw- berries, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips, and watermelons. Most of these are grown chiefly for the local markets. In the littoral zone, however, the production in winter of early vegetables for export to Europe is an industry of considerable importance, some 20,000 tons being shipped out of the country every year. Artichokes, potatoes, peas, and string beans are the most important of these. The growing of early tomatoes for export is also becoming a profitable industry. 72 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. 2 Near Algiers especially, market gardens abound. There the indus- | try is chiefly in the hands of natives of the Balearic Islands, while in- western Algeria the gardeners are generally Spanish, and in the eastern part of the colony Italians and Maltese. Neither the natives nor the French colonists have gone into the business of growing truck crops for export, although Arab and Kabyle families usually have small gar-_ dens in which they raise vegetables for their own use. There are a number of factors which combine to limit gardens as a commercial enterprise to the neighborhood of the seashore. Nowhere else, except in the Sahara, are the winters sufficiently warm to allow — Algerian vegetables to be put upon the markets of Europe early enough to insure a remunerative price. As it is, the competition of the Riviera, and other parts of the northern shore of the Mediterranean, has in recent years cut down by 40 or 50 per cent the prices formerly obtained. Facilities for rapid transportation by water, such as are obtainable near the coast, are essential to the success of this industry. An abun- dant supply of water for irrigation is indispensable. Finally, the large quantities of manure, sewage, etc., that are applied to the gar-_ dens can only be had in the large cities of the seaboard. At Tunis, Archimedean screws placed in the drains are said to be used for lifting — sewage on to the fields. Market gardens are generally irrigated by means of the noria. For — the first irrigation of the season about 2 acre-inches of water are applied, while in each subsequent irrigation about 1.5 acre inches are used. Except in the case of artichokes, which will stand heavy flood- ing, the irrigation of truck crops demands considerable skill. The — flow of the water should be gentle, and it should be allowed to stand — at only a small depth on the fields. By abundant watering and heavy manuring and fertilizing, crop is made to follow crop with hardly any intermission. From gardens thus managed the profits are very large. A high rent—often $75 or more an acre—is demanded for the best market-garden land in the vicinity of large cities. The gardener who leases the land usually lives upon it with his family. Each small plat into which the garden is divided is usually surrounded by a wind-break of reeds, either the liy- ing plants being set closely together to form a hedge or a fence being made of the dead stalks. Sorghum and Indian corn are also used for wind-breaks. Globe artichokes are the truck crop that is most largely grown for export. ‘Gros vert de Laon” (Large Green of Laon) and * Violet précoce de Provence,” or ‘* Violet hatif” (Early Violet of Provence), are the most popular varieties for this purpose. Artichokes are har- vested throughout the winter, from October until April, the same plant yielding several heads in succession. The average yield from an established field is about 30,000 marketable heads to the acre. \ CROPS OF THE COLONY. 73 The consumption of potatoes in the colony being larger than the quantity produced, there is a considerable importation of this vegetable. Yet the production of early potatoes, especially of the Holland or Royal Kidney variety, for export to European markets, is an important phase of Algerian truck growing. The largest tubers are shipped to England, while the Paris markets prefer those of medium size. The best prices are obtained for potatoes marketed during Lent, especially just before Easter, when from $2 to $3.50 per 100 pounds is paid in Paris for Algerian potatoes. Potatoes grown for consumption in the colony are sown in seed beds in January and February, and are set out about the end of April. Yields of 9,000 to 17,500 pounds per acre are obtained. The prices paid in Algerian markets for spring potatoes range from 50 to 85 cents per LOO pounds. CEREALS. The principal cereals of Algeria are wheat, barley, and oats, which are grown only as winter crops, and sorghum and Indian corn, which occupy the land in summer. Of these, wheat and barley are by far the most important. Algeria raises most of the grain needed for home consumption, importing only a relatively small quantity of soft wheat, used in bread making. The colony exports large quantities of wheat, barley, and oats. The area each year in cereal crops is esti- mated at 7,000,000 acres, which is about one-third of the entire culti- vated area; hence much more land is in cereals than in all other crops combined. The mean annual production in the years 1890-1895 was 64,331,000 bushels, and the total value of the annual product of cereals averages $45,000,000. While more or less grain is produced in every part of Algeria, the largest proportion is raised in the valleys of the coast region, notably in that of the Chéliff. Owing to the generally poor preparation of the land for cereals, the exhausted condition of much of the soil, and the fact that neither manuring nor rotation is generally practiced, the average yields are too low to make these crops as effective as they should be in contributing to the wealth of the colony. Much the greater part of the grain is grown by natives and gives yields aver- aging 30 per cent lower than those obtained by European colonists. In districts where improved methods of cultivation, notably in respect to deeper plowing, have been introduced by the colonists, yields much higher than the average are obtained. The country around Sidi bel Abbés, in extreme western Algeria, and Sétif, on the edge of the high plateau in the eastern part of the colony, is especially notable in this respect. The acreage in cereals that is in the hands of the natives, who depend for their crops entirely upon the rainfall and take no steps to conserve soil moisture, naturally varies much more from year to year than that farmed by Europeans. 74 AGRICULTURAL EXPLORATIONS IN ALGERIA. WINTER CEREALS. Wheat.—The average area in wheat during the ten years ended in 1893 was over 3,000,000 acres. Of this about three-fourths was owned and farmed by natives. The area in wheats of the hard or durum type, as compared with that in soft wheats, was as five to one. Less than 7 per cent of the area in wheat that is farmed by natives is devoted to soft wheats, while the European colonists grow hard and soft varieties in about equal proportion. Algeria possesses excellent races of durum wheat, for which this part of Africa was famous even in Roman times.“ Often several varieties are mixed together in one field, although the Arabs are generally acute in distinguishing the different types. Some of the most widely grown Algerian hard wheats have long, black beards. Some have short, others long heads. In some varieties the grain is short and thick, in others it is long and narrow. Types in which the orain is clear and amber colored are particularly valuable for making macaroni and semolina, considerable quantities of which are manu- factured in the colony. Semolina forms the basis of ** couscous,” the national dish of the Arabs. Large quantities of Algerian hard wheats are also used at Marseille in the manufacture of macaroni and similar products, for which they are considered nearly, if not quite, equal to any in the world. Authorities agree that the types of hard wheat already existing in the colony answer all requirements, and that it remains only to prac- tice careful seed selection in order to improve the yield and to secure pure strains. Several native races of soft wheats are also grown, including both bearded and beardless types. Soft wheats introduced from Europe_ have not, as a rule, proved a success. When grown near the coast they often fall a prey to rust, and are also liable to dry up without ripening when the hot weather begins in the spring. Recent experi- ments with the Richelle varieties, however, have indicated that this type is well adapted to Algerian conditions, giving good yields at several points. Wheat, which is commonly broadcasted, is always sown in the fall, generally in November, after the rains have begun. In very dry years the soil is sometimes not in a condition for plowing in preparation for a crop of grain until well into the winter. This entails late sowing, which often greatly diminishes the yield obtained. The harvest takes place in May or June, according to altitude, there being about four weeks’ difference in time between the earliest and the latest localities in the colony. A native takes from three to five “For descriptions and illustrations of the varieties of Algerian wheats, see C. 8. Scofield, Bulletin No. 7, Bureau of Plant Industry, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1902. CROPS OF THE COLONY. 75 days to harvest an acre of wheat with a sick!e, the implement that is still used in the greater part of Algeria. Recently, however, the com- bined reaper and binder has come into use in some places. Thrashing is done as soon as possible after the harvest and in a very primitive way. ‘The sheaves are spread out ona floor of hardened clay, which is unsheltered from the air and sunshine. They are placed in concen- tric circles, with the heads turned inward. Horses, mules, or some- times oxen, are then driven around on the floor, again and again, until the grain is beaten out. Sometimes the animals are hitched toa stone roller. Two men with three horses can thus thrash out 40 bushels of wheat a day, or if a roller is used, 70 bushels. About 5 cents a bushel is paid for thrashing wheat. The modern thrashing machines that are used in a few localities handle as much as 750 bushels in a day. On the large estates wheat is cleaned by means of fans. Generally, however, a method is used which has been practiced for ages in the Mediterranean countries—that of pitching into the air the mixture of grain and chaff, the wind carrying away most of the latter. This can be done to advantage only on days when the wind is favorable. The straw is carefully saved and stacked, to be used as fodder, the stack being usually protected by a covering of dried mud mixed with short straw. An ingenious contrivance for storing grain is in use among the Arabs.