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APPENDIX TO THE REPORT OF THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE

INTERIM REPORT

OF THE

EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

COVERING THE PERIOD FROM

DECEMBER J, 1905, TO MARCH 31, 1906

PRINTED BY ORDER OF PARLIAMENT

OTTAWA

PRINTED BY S. E. DAWSON, PRINTER TO THE KING'S MOST
EXCELLENT MAJESTY

1906
[No. 16—1907.]

6-7 EDWARD VII.

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

A. 1907

APPENDIX TO THE REPORT OF THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE

INTERIM REPORT

OP THE

EXPEEIMENTAL EARMS

COVERING THE PERIOD FROM

NEW YORK

BOTANICAL

GARDEN

DECEMBER J, 1905, TO MARCH 31, 1906

PrdNTED BY on D Eli OF PARLIAMENT

OTTAWA

PRINTED BY S. E. DAWSON, PRINTER TO THE KING'S MOST
EXCELLENT MAJESTY

1906

[No. 16—1907.]

6-7 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1907

APPENDIX

TO THE

REPORT OF THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE

ox

EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

Ottawa, March 31, 1906.

Sir. — I beg to submit for your approval an interim report for the four months
from December 1, 1905, to March 31, 1906, on the work in progress at the several
experimental farms.

This report rendered necessary by the change recently made by parliament in
the date of the closing of the fiscal year covers a period when outside farm operations
are nearly suspended, and when the energies of the farm staff are largely devoted to
correspondence with farmers, the attending of agriciiltural meetings in different parts
of the Dominion, and in preparatory work for the approaching spring.

Under these circumstances it has been thought best to devote a considerable portion

of the space available in this report to a review of past work and the presentation of

some facts regarding the progress of agriculture in Canada since the experimental

farms were established.

I have the honour to be, sir

Your obedient servant,

WM. SAUNDERS,
Director of Experimental Farms.
To the Honourable

The Minister of Agriculture,
Ottawa.

16-1^ . iii

6-7 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1S07

INTERIM REPORT

OF THE

EXPERIMENTAL EARMS

COVERING THE PERIOD EROM DECEMBER 1, 1905, TO MARCH 31, 1906.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR

WM. SAUNDERS, C.M.G., LL.D., F.R.S.C, F.L.S.

In presenting this interim report covering a period of four months only, — render-
ed necessary on account of the altering by parliament of the date of closing of the
financial year from June 30 to March 31, — it has been thought best to briefly review
the condition of agriculture in Canada at the time the experimental farms were estab-
lished and devote the space available chiefly to those portions of the work which have
engaged the attention of the officers of the farms, during the past twenty years and
which seem to have more immediate and practical bearing on farm life.

The system of experimental farms established by the Dominion Government for
the benefit of Canadian farmers was organized during the later months of 1886. The
Act giving the government the authority for the establishment of these farms was
passed almost unanimously in February of that year. The general popularity of this
measure was no doubt largely due to the strong feeling pervading the community
that such institutions were absolutely necessary to the prosperity of agriculture in
Canada.

There is probably no country in the world where nature has been more lavish in
the st-ores of fertility provided in the soil, or where the land has greater capacity for
the production of food for mankind than Canada. While the resources of the
Dominion in its minerals, its forests and its fisheries are very great, it is in the soil
that the greater wealth of the country lies. The immensity of the area of fertile land
in Canada is very imperfectly understood, even by those who have travelled through
the country, and but a very small proportion of the arable land has yet been brought
under cultivation.

The climatic conditions in Canada are very dissimilar in different parts and are
not favourable everywhere to the production of the same crops. Very large areas, par-
ticularly in the great plains of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta, are well adapted
for the production of cereals, especially of wheat of the highest quality. In other and
more limited districts conditions prevail which are very suitable for the growing of
fruits. Nearly all the arable lands of the Dominion offer advantages for mixed
farming, for the growing of different sorts of grain, grasses, roots and other forage
crops and for the raising of cattle, horses, swine, sheep and poultry, and for the pro-
duction of butter and cheese. About one-half of the entire population is engaged in

2 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

agricultural pursuits, but the people as yet are comparatively few and the area of unoc-
cupied land is so large that no adequate conception can yet be formed as to the vast
quantities of food products which Canada could produce were its inhabitants at all
proportionate to its resources.

Under such conditions, the fostering and developing of the agricultural interests
of the country are of pre-eminent importance to all classes of the people.

mo\t:ment looking to the improvement of agriculture.

The subject of the improvement of agriculture was brought prominently before
the people of Canada in 1884 when the House of Commons appointed a Select Com-
mittee to inquire into the best means of developing and encouraging the agricultural
interests of this country. This committee made a careful inquiry into the subject,
also as to the disadvantages and wants experienced by farmers in Canada, taking evi-
dence from many persons having experience or scientific knowledge bearing on this
subject. From the report of this committee subsequently submitted we learn that in*
the cultivation in Canada at that time of cereals, grasses and roots, there was very
little attention paid to the proper rotation of crops, to the selection of improved varie-
ties, or to the thorough tillage of the soil. There was very little knowledge among
farmers as to the value and snitability of manures, and their usefulness in supply-
ing fertility to the land was unheeded and much fertlizing power was lost from negli-
gent exposure of the material.

Very little attention was paid to the improvement of stock, to the selection of
milch cows or to the character and condition of pastures. In the making of butter
and cheese the quality of these products was inferior, due to want of skill in their
manufacture and the lack of improved appliances. In all the branches of agricul-
tural and horticultural work there was a deplorable want of knowledge.

The committee recommended that the government establish an expeiimental farm
or farms where experiments might be carried on in connection with ?-ll branches of
agriculture and horticulture, and that the results of the work conducted should be pub-
lished from time to time and disseminated fully among the farmers of the Dominion
for their information. No action was taken on this matter until November, 1885,
when on the accession of the Honourable (now Sir) John Carling to the position of
Minister of Agriculture for the Dominion, he instituted measures for the gathering
of further information regarding experimental stations then in operation in Europe
and America, and the methods pursued by them in their efforts to obtain information
valuable and helpful to the farmers, so that the fullest data might be available and the
experimental farms so much needed established on the most approved plans without
further delay.

establishment of experimental farms.

The Act already referred to as passed in February, 1886, provided for the estab-
lishment of a Central Experimental Farm and four branch farms. The central farm
was to be located at or near the capital, Ottawa, where it was to serve the purposes of
the two larger provinces, Ontario and Quebec. The branch farms were to be distri-
buted as follows, one for the maritime provinces jointly, one for the province of Mani-
toba, one for the Northwest Territories and one for British Columbia. The work to
be undertaken at these several experimental farms was duly set forth in the Act, and
covered many of the most important lines of experiments in agriculture, horticulture
and arboriculture.

Within two years the land for the several farms was secured, the necessary officers
appointed, most of the buildings erected and the farms put in practical operation.
The central farm was located near Ottawa, the branch farm for the three eastern
provinces at Nappan, Nova Scotia, that for Manitoba at Brandon, the farm for the

REPORT OP THE DIRECTOR 3

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Northwest Territories at Indian Head, in Saskatchewan, and that for British Colum-
bia at Agassiz, in the coast climate of that province.

In the choosing of these sites the purpose in view was to have them fairly repre-
sentative of the larger settled areas in the provinces or territories in which they were
placed both as to soil and climate. In the arrangement of the work, such experiments
as were most likely to be beneficial to the larger number of settlers we"e in each cato
among the first to engage the attention of the ofiicers in charge.

Nearly twenty years have passed since this work was begun, and during that time
agriculture in Canada has made imprecedented advancement. It is not claimed that
this progress has been wholly due to the influence and work of the Dominion experi-
mental farms. Much credit in this respect should be given to the various measures
carried on by other useful organizations established mainly by the several provinces.
Foremost among these is the Ontario College of Agriculture at Guelph, which is a well
equipped institution which has done noble work. Farmers' institutes and agricultui'al
circles, dairy associations, live stock associations, fruit growers' associations and agri-
cultural and horticultural societies have all been efficient helpers in this good cause.
The commissioner's branch of the Dominion Department of Agriculture has also been
an important factor. There is, however, no doubt that the experimental farms estab-
lished by the federal govement have contributed in large measure to the general up-
building of agriculture in Canada. The progress referred to has resulted in a general
improvement in the condition of the agricultural population all over the country, and
in a vast increase in the exports of agricultural products.

There is probably no employment which engages man's attention that requires
more skill and more general information to carry it on than farming. Competition
is keen throughout the civilized world, and the farmer must turn to practical account
every advantage within his reach, bearing on improvement in the quality of his pro-
ducts and in lessening the cost of their production, if he is to maintain and improve
his position. Investigations involving much experimental research have been conducted
slong almost every line bearing on agriculture, and a great mass of important facts
has been accumulated and given to the farming community in reports and bulletins.

EXPERIMENTAL FARMS BUREAUS OF INFORMATION.

Before the Experimental Farms were established there was no place to which the
farmer could apply for information to aid him in the solution of the many difficulties
which present themselves during the progress of farm work. When these farms were
planned, it was arranged that they should become bureaus of information available to
every fanner. Evidence of their usefulness in this way is furnished in the rapid
increase in the correspondence carried on with farmers in all parts of the Dominion.
In 1889, the year after tbe farms had become fairly organized, the number of letters'
received was in all about 8,000. Within five years they had increased to over 25,000,
and during the past seven years the average number received annually at all the
experimental farms was 68,797. In addition an average of about 300,000 reports,
bulletins, &c., have been sent out each year. There is thus a constant flow of informa-
tion going to Canadian farmers from all the. experimental farms.

It is, a.s a rule, a difficult matter to bring about rapid changes in the ideas and
practice of farmers, but as soon as they are convinced that experimental work with
the crops they are growing is carried on in a practical manner by persons competent
to give information, and that such work is imdertaken in their interest, and with the
special object of making farming more profitable, their sympathy and co-operation
are assured.

The experimental work which has been done at the Dominion Experimental Farms
since their organization covers so large a field that it would be impossible to present
it in the limited space aflForded by this report in anything like a complete manner.
We shall, however, endeavour to refer to some of the more important lines of investi-
gation which have been carried on in this large field of labour.

4 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907
PRINCIPLES WHICH UNDERLIE SUCCESSFUL CROP GROWING.

The principles which underlie successful crop growing may be thus summarized :
Maintaining the fertility of the soil, the adoption o'f a judicious system of rotation
of crops, following the best methods of preparing the land, the selection of plump and
well ripened seed, early sowing and choosing the best and most productive varieties.
Along all these lines many experiments have been conducted, under the different clima-
tic influences which prevail where the several experimental farms have been located.
Continued efforts have been made to gain knowledge as to the best methods of main-
taining and adding to the fertility of the land.

MAINTAINING THE FERTILITY OF THE SOIL.

In this connection, special attention has been given to investigations to determine
the best methods of handling and using barMyard manure, the universal fertilizer
which is everywhere more or less available to the farmer. Experiments continued for
eighteen years in succession with all the more important farm crops have shown that
a given weight of manure taken fresh from the barnyard is equal in crop-producing
power to the same weight of rotted manure. It has also been shown by repeated tests
that fresh manure loses in the process of rotting from fifty to sixty per cent of its
v; eight. The effective use of barnyard manure so as to obtain the best results with
the least waste is without doubt one of the most important problems connected with
successful agriculture, for on this material the farmer's hopes of maintaining the fer-
tility of his land, and thus providing for a succession of good crops, are mainly based.
It is estimated that the manure produced in the solid and liquid excreta of animals in
Canada amounts to about 100 millions of tons per annum. The fijiancial loss involved
in the wasteful handling of so large an amount of valuable fertilizing material should
impress every farmer with the importance of this subject.

Similar tests have been conducted for the same period with artificial manures to
gain information as to their relative value when used separately or in combination
on nearly all the more important farm crops. The results obtained from artificial
fertilizers used alone have been less satisfactory than those had from barnyard man-
ure, even when the fertilizer has been complete, that is, when it has contained in com-
bination all the more important elements required for plant growth. Better result?!
were expected considering the large proportion of available plant food which such
fertilizers contain. The reason why artificial fertilizers show a less crop-producing
power than barnyard manure lies probably in the fact that they contain no humus,
and that the proportion of vegetable matter in the soil has been much reduced by
frequent cropping, and the capacity of the soil for holding moisture lessened to the
detriment of its crop-producing power.

RESULTS OF TESTS CONDUCTED WITH DIFFERENT FERTILIZERS.

Tests have been made with many different sorts of fertilizers on spring wieat,
barley, oats, Indian corn, field roots and potatoes, and full particulars of these experi-
ments covering 105 plots of one tenth acre each have been published each year in the
Annual Eeport of the Experimental Farms, beginning in 1893, when the average of
the results of the first five years was given.

In the experiments with fertilizers on spring wheat the best results have been
had from the use of barnyard manure in its fresh condition. This has given an
average from 18 successive crops grown on the same land of 22 bushels, 46 lbs. of
grain per acre, with 3,969 lbs. of straw. The two unfertilized plots in this series have
given an average during the same period of 11 bushels, 14 lbs. per acre, with 1,892 lbs.
of straw. The best result obtained from artificial fertilizers was an average of 15
bushels, 33 lbs. per acre, with 2,658 lbs. of straw.

The heaviest crops of barley have been had from the use of rotted barn-yard
manure. This has given an average for 17 years of 37 bushels, 6 lbs. of grain per

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

acre, with 3,042 lbs. of straw, while the same weight of fresh manure has given for
the same period 37 bushels 4 lbs. of grain, with 3,187 lbs. of straw. The best result
obtained from the use of artificial fertilizers was 28 bushels, 42 lbs. of grain -per acre,
with 2,382 lbs. of straw. One of the plots devoted to barley has been treated with
common salt only, in the proportion of 300 lbs. per acre each year. This has given an
average crop of 28 bushels 7 lbs. of grain per acre with an average of 1,890 lbs. of
straw, while the two plots in this series on which this crop has been grown con-
tinuously for 17 years without any fertilizer whatever have given an average of 15
bushels, G lbs. of grain and 1,412 lbs. of straw, thus demonstrating the usefulness of
salt on a barley crop.

In the growing of oats the heaviest crop has been had from the plot treated with
fresh manure. This has given an average from seventeen years of continuous cropping
of 5G bushels, 4 lbs. per acre. It has also given the heaviest weight of straw 3,370 lbs.
per acre. The best result obtained from the use of artificial fertilizers was an average
of 49 bushels, 31 lbs. per acre, with 3,132 lbs. of straw. The two unfertilized plots
have averaged 29 bushels, 334 lbs. of grain and 1,608 lbs. of straw.

With Indian corn cut green for ensilage rotted manure has given the heaviest
crops. This, with continuous cropping for 14 years, has given an average of 16 tons,
1,070 lbs. per acre, while the plot to which fresh manure has been applied has given
16 tons, 809 lbs. per acre. With this crop artificial fertilizers have succeeded well, the
best results being an average of 16 tons, 545 lbs. per acre. The unfertilized plots have
given an average of 9 tons, 72 lbs. per acre.

In the growing of mangels the rotted manure has given an average in continuous
cropping for 14 years of 22 tons, 358 lbs., while the fresh manure has given for the
same period, 21 tons, 423 lbs. The best result obtained from artificial fertilizers was
an average for 14 years of 15 tons, 214 lbs. The two unfertilized plots have given an
average for the same period of 8 tons, 434 lbs. per acre.

With turnips the advantage has been with the plot treated with fresh manure,
this having given an average for 14 years of 15 tons, 1,467 lbs. of roots per acre, while
that to which the rotted manure was applied gave an average of 15 tons, 1,397 lbs.
per acre. The best result had with the artificial fertilizers with turnips was an average
of 12 tons, 299 lbs. The two unfertilized plots gave an average of 7 tons, 837 lbs.

CLOVER AS A FERTILIZER.

The ploughing under of clover has been most effective as an additional source of
fertility, as it increases the store of available plant food by the addition of nitrogen
taken directly from the atmosphere. The experiments undertaken by the experimental
farms to demonstrate the value of clover for this purpose were begun in 1894 and
have been continued up to the present time. The clover has been sown in the spring
with wheat, barley or oats, in the proportion of about lO^lbs. of clover seed to the acre.
This has almost invariably resulted in a good stand of clover before the close of the
season, as it grows rapidly after the grain is harvested. If it is intended to use the
land for growing spring grain the following season, the clover is ploughed under
about the middle of October, but if the land is to be used for growing potatoes or
Indian corn, the clover is left until the following spring, when by the second or third
week in May it will have made a heavy growth and will furnish a large amount of
material for turning under.

In addition to the nitrogen collected by the clover it also adds to the mineral plant
foods available by gathering these from depths in the soil not reached by the shallower
root systems of other farm crops. It also serves as a catch crop during the autumn
months, retaining fertilizing material brought down by the rain, much of which would
otherwise be lost. It also supplies the soil with a large addition of humus whereby
the land is innde more retentive of moisture, and results in a deepening and mellowing
of the soil. Humus also furnishes material in which those minute forms of life which
act beneficially on the soil can thrive and propagate freely.

6 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

In a series of experiments with 14 plots of oats, covering a period of five years
where clover was sown and ploughed under on alternate plots, those with clover gave an
average increased yield of grain of about nine bushels per acre, with a considerable
increase in the weight of straw when compared with those plots alongside on which no
clover had been sown. When these same plots were sown with barley the following sea-
son, the average increase was about eight bushels of that grain per acre. Thus the
ploughing under of a single crop of clover showed a large increase in the oat crop the
first year both in grain and straw, and almost as large an increase the second year in
the case of the barley.

In 18 experiments conducted with Indian corn on plots on which clover had been
grown,, with alternate plots alongside on which no clover had been sown, the average
gain in weight of green corn cut for ensilage was 3 tons 1,694 lbs. per acre. In a
similar series of plots on which potatoes were planted an average gain was had of
33 bushels, 20 lbs. per acre. Some experiments have been made by sowing crops on
some of these plots the third year after clover had been ploughed under when the
results showed a diminished but still a decided increase.

These results have been presented very fully to the farmers of the Dominion in the
annual reports of the experimental farms and also in special bulletins, and now the
practice is quite common to sow clover with spring grain and turn it under late in the
autumn with the object of adding to the fertility of the fields.

THE ROTATION OP CROPS.

Much more attention has been paid of late than formerly to the systematic rotation
of crops. Such a course it is claimed economises the use of the plant food in the soil,
since different crops take the elements of fertility from the land in different propor-
tions, hence a rotation helps to maintain a balance. Rotations of four and five years
are perhaps the most common, barnyard manure being applied with a hoed crop the
first year, such as field roots, potatoes or corn. Such crops require frequent cultivation
which eradicates any weeds which may be added to the soil with the manure and the
land is left in good condition for grain. If a four year rotation is followed clover and
timothy are usually sown with the grain the second year, a crop of hay taken off the
third year, and the fourth year the field is used as pasture and during the following
' winter is manured and the sod with the coating of manure placed on it turned under
the following spring and the four years' course begun again with the hoed crop.

Many experiments in connection with rotation have been tried on the several
branch farms also on the Central Experimental Farm. Fuller reference to these
latter will be found in the present report in that part written by the Agriculturist.

THE PREPARATION OF THE SOIL.

In preparing land for crops different methods are adopted in different parts of the
Dominion. In the eastern provinces, the fall ploughing of land is iiow generally fol-
lowed, as crops can be sown earlier in the spring by the adoption of this plan. On the
Northwest plains it has been found an advantage to summer-fallow a portion of the
land under cultivation each year. This practice conserves moisture, destroys weeds,
and brings the farmer much larger crops. The yield of wheat on land which has been
summer-fallowed will usually average one-third more than it will on land which has
been prepared by fall or spring ploughing,

IMPORTANCE OF EARLY SOWING.

That increased crops result from early sowing has been fully demonstrated by the
tests carried on at the Central Experimental Farm. Experiments with early, medium
arnd late sowings were conducted for ten years on plots of one-tenth acre each, sowing
two varieties each year of wheat, barley, oats and peas. The land was very uniform

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

and all tlic plots were similarly prepared. Six sowings were made in each case, the
first at the earliest time practicable, the second at the end of a week and others at the
end of each subsequent week until six successive sowings had been made. These plots
were all harvested and threshed separately, and the results recorded. The best crops
were had from the second sowings, made just one week after it was possible to get on
the land; beyond this delay has resulted in loss, which has become more serious as the
delay has been greater. The average of the ten years experiments shows that with
spring wheat a delay of one week after the period named has entailed a loss of over
thirty per cent, two weeks forty per cent, three weeks nearly fifty per cent and four
weeks fifty-six per cent of the crop.

With oats a delay of one week has caused an average loss of over fifteen per cent,
two weeks, twenty-seven per cent, three weeks thirty-two per cent and four weeks forty-
eight per cent.

In the case of barley a delay of one week has resulted in a loss of twenty-three per
cent, two weeks twenty-seven per cent, three weeks forty per cent, and four weeks
forty-six per cent.

With peas a delay of one week caused an average loss of four per cent, two weeks
twelve per cent, three weeks, twenty- two per cent, and four weeks thirty per cent.

The results of these experiments have been widely published and farmers in the
eastern provinces of Canada now pay general attention to early sowing. The early
sowing of grain in the Northwest provinces of Canada has also been shown to be
highly profitable to the farmer.

THE SELECTION OF PLUMP SEED.

The selection of plump and well ripened seed for sowing is also a great advantage.
In each seed is laid up a store of food to be used by the young plant in the early stages
of its growth. In a shrivelled seed the store which can be drawn on is very meagre and
the growth under such circumstances is slow, but in a well-developed and plump kernel
the supply is abundant and the plant starts out with a degree of vigour which is usually
maintained and the resulting crop, all other conditions being equal, is usually satis-
factory.

SELECTION OP THE BEST AND MOST PRODUCTIVE VARIETIES.

Another important consideration in connection with successful farming is the selec-
tion of the best varieties of seed for sowing, taking into consideration productiveness,
quality and earliness of maturing. That there are varieti3s more productive, of higher
quality or earlier in ripening than others has been abundantly proven, and the object
in view in experimental work along this line has been to introduce or to produce varie-
ties which combine these good qualities in the highest degree.

As to productiveness, a quality of the highest practical importance, in the tests con-
ducted at the Experimental Farms, the variation in different varieties has been very
great. In plots of oats adjoining each other and all sown on the same day, the yield has
ranged from 89 to 42 bushels per acre. In spring wheat under similar conditions from
31 to 16 bushels, and in barley from 58 to 33 bushels per acre. The experiments car-
ried on have shown also that this productiveness is in a large degree persistent. During •
a five years' trial 41 varieties of oats were sown every season at the same time and on
adjoining plots. Each year a select list was published of the twelve heaviest yielding
sorts. During the whole of the five years only 15 of the 41 varieties found their way into
the select list, and 9 of these appeared among the best 12 sorts every year.

Of spring wheat, 31 varieties were under trial for a like period. In this case
16 only of the 31 sorts have appeared among the twelve best yielding sorts during the
five years' test. The evidence obtained as to the persistent productiveness of certain
varieties of barley is also very striking.

8 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1S07

The importniice of growing sucli varieties as will give the largest crops is manifest
w^en we consider the very large areas under crop in -Canada. An increase of a single
bushel i>er acre in the oat crop alone would add to the annual profits of Canadian far-
mers nearly two millions of dollars, while a similar addition to the wheat crop would
amount to nearly double that sum.

The question may be asked, how can farmers procure these prolific strains of seed?
The following is the method pursued at the experimental farms. After careful and
continued experiments have shown that any variety is especially productive and promis-
ing, this is cultivated in large fields so as to admit of the free distribution of samples
among the farmers of the Dominion. The grain for this purpose is grown chiefly at
the branch experimental farms in the Northwest provinces and forwarded to the Central
Experimental Farm at Ottawa, where most of the samples are distributed and where
they can be sent free through the mail. They are sent out in strong cotton bags con-
taining in the case of wheat and barley five pounds, and of oats four pounds, suflicient
in each case to sow one-twentieth of an acre. These samples are sent only on personal
application, and only one variety can be had by an applicant each year. The interest
felt in this distribution is steadily increasing and the general introduction of these high-
class farm products into all parts of the country has resulted in improved quality and
increased quantity of the crops grown both for export and home consumption.

The grain sent out is not only of high quality but is thoroughly clean, and if a far-
mer takes reasonable care of the sample he receives, he can soon have sufficient seed to
sow a large area for himself, and have a surplus to sell to his neighbours. As examples
of reports received from farmers on this point regarding oats, the following will serve
as illustrations : —

' The sample bag of 4 pounds of oats sent me two years ago gave me tlie first year
5 bushels. This year we sowed these on two acres arnd we got 217 bushels.' ' We got a
sample of oats from you six years ago, and they gave us great satisfaction. The people
about here think very highly of them and there are thousands of bushels of them grown.
The farmers are coming here for seed for twenty miles around.'

' The oats I got from the experimental farm some years ago have been worth a great
deal of money to me in increased yield and increased price, as I have sold quite a quan-
tity for seed.'

' The oats of which a sample was received three ye<irs ago, proved an excellent var-
iety. I had 420 bushels last year. They yielded 74 bushels to the acre.'

Many similar appreciative lettere might be quoted in regard to samples of wheat,
oats, barley, «S:c.

It is thus apparent that with attention and care any farmer may in a very feAv
years provide himself under this liberal arrangement with the best and most productive
strains of seed, in sufiicient quantities for a large area at no cost to himself beyond that
of his own labour.

It is remarkable how rapidly a supply of grain may be built up from a single four
or five-pound sample. Take, for example, a four-pound sample of oats. This with
ordinary care will usually produce on the average about four bushels. This sown tlie
•next season on two acres of land will, at a very moderate estimate, give a hundred and
sometimes upwards of 200 bushels. Taking the lower figure as the basis for this cal-
culation the crop at the end of the second year would be sufficient to sow fifty acres,
which at the same moderate computation would furnish 2,500 bushels as available for
seed or sale at the end of the third year.

The critical point in these tests is the threshing of the q^'ain at the end of the
first season, and it is here that many fail to get the full advantage open to them. The
product of the one-twentieth of an acre plot which the 4-pound sample has produced
is frequently threshed with a large machine which it is difficult to get thoroughly
clean, and in this way the grain becomes mixed with other varieties and is practically
ruined. At the experimental farms we thresh the product from many of the small
plots of grain, by cutting off the heads, placing them in a sack and repeatedly beating

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR »

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

them with a stick and winnowing until most of the chaff is got rid of and the grain
made clean enough for sowing. Where the farmer is to use this seed for his own sow-
ing it is not necessary that the sample he ahsolutely free from chaff, it is, however,
most essential that the grain be kept free from all admixture with other sorts.

Farmers are expected to harvest the product of their experimental plot separately
and store it away carefully^ threshing the product by hand, either with a flail or in
such other manner as they may prefer. Cutting off the heads and placing them in
sacl^ may be a convenient method of harvesting in some cases; the results to be
gained will abundantly repay the careful handling of this first crop.

It is surprising how rapid has been the growth of the demand for these samples
for seed. The number sent out for the first year was 1,149, the second year it was
2,150, and the third year 2,760. By this time the work of the farms had become
more generally known and appreciated. A larger number of farmers were made
aware of the advantages awaiting them in these pure varieties of improved seed,
and in 1890, the fourth year of the existence of the farms, 15,532 applicants were
furnished with desired samples of seed. From this time onward the growth was
constant, and in 1895 the number reached was 30,553. For the past 10 years the
average annual output has been 38,280 sainple bags requiring from Y5 to 80 tons of
choice seed annually. During the spring of 1905, more than 42,000 farmers worked in
this co-operative test, and during the past season the number has increased to over
45,000. No such gigantic and practical co-operative work for the improvement of the
more important farm crops has ever been attempted before. Canadian farmers every-
where have gladly joined in this important work, and the benefit to Canadian agri-
culture has been enormous. In almost every part of the Dominion the reeults of this
work are manifest.

For four years (from 1899 to 1902 inclusive) the experiment was tried of sending
to a select list of farmers, a few in each agricultural constituency in the Dominion,
a double quantity of seed so that each might have enough for the sowing of one-tenth
of an acre. During this period more than 12,500 such samples were sent out; but it
was found impracticable to continue to send these larger samples to all who applied
for them, and as some dissatisfaction was felt among those who were unable to obtain
the larger quantities it was thought best to discontinue this special privilege and
henceforward to treat all applicants alike. Furthermore, every season after the regu-
lar distribution of 4 and 5-lb. samples has been provided for, the surplus grain not
required for seed at the ISTorth-western experimental farms, is sold to farmers for seed
purposes in quantities of from 2 to 10 bu.shels to each. In this way during the past
two years, 245 farmers have been supplied with these larger lots of grain from the
branch experimental farm at Indian Head, and 211 from the branch experimental
farm at Brandon, or 45G in all. Where these larger quantities of grain are supplied,
they are sold to the farmers at a small advance on the ordinary price of grain at the
time so as to cover cost of extra cleaning. The increase observed of late in the yearly
average of cereal crops in Canada, which is quite considerable, is no doubt due in
large measure to the more general cultivation of highly productive varieties brought
about by these annual distributions.

NEED OF EARLY RIPENING VARIETIES OF GRAIN.

The season for growth of crops in Canada is short, hence from the outset the im-
portance of securing early ripening varieties of cereals of high quality and productive-
ness for test in Canada was fully recognized, and inquiries were promptly made in
other countries for such material. The first importation made by the experimental
farms — within a few months of their organization — was of an early maturing wheat,
claimed to be one of the earliest and best sorts grown in Northern Russia. Of this
wheat known as Ladoga, 100 bushels were imported in the spring of 1887, when 667
samples were sent out for trial to leading farmers in Manitoba, the Northwest Terri-
tories and other parts of the Dominion. Other varieties of seed wheat were also obtain-

8 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1S07

The importar.ce of growing such varieties as will give the largest crops is manifest
vj\xen we consider the very large areas under crop in 'Canada. An increase of a single
bushel per acre in the oat crop alone would add to the annual profits of Canadian far-
mers nearly two millions of dollars, while a similar addition to the wheat crop would
amount to nearly double that sum.

The question may be asked, how can farmers procure these prolific strains of seed?
The following is the method pursued at the experimental farms. After careful and
continued experiments have shown that any variety is especially productive and promis-
ing, this is cultivated in large fields so as to admit of the free disitribution of samples
among the farmers of the Dominion. The grain for this purpose is grown chiefly at
the branch experimental farms in the Northwest provinces and forwarded to the Central
Experimental Farm at Ottawa, where most of the samples are distributed and where
they can be sent free through the mail. They are sent out in strong cotton bags con-
taining in the case of wheat and barley five pounds, and of oats four pounds, suflicient
in each case to sow one-twentieth of an acre. These samples are sent only on personal
application, and only one variety can be had by an applicant each year. The interest
felt in this distribution is steadily increasing and the general introduction of these high-
class farm products into all parts of the country has resulted in improved quality and
increased quantity of the crops grown both for export and home consumption.

The grain sent out is not only of high quality but is thoroughly clean, and if a far-
mer takes reasonable care of the sample he receives, he can soon have suflicient seed to
sow a large area for himself, and have a surplus to sell to his neighbours. As examples
of reports received from farmers on this point regarding oats, the following will serve
as illustrations : —

' The sample bag of 4 potmds of oats sent me two years ago gave me the first year
5 bushels. This year we sowed these on two acres and we got 217 bushels.' ' We got a
sample of oats from you six years ago, and they gave us great satisfaction. The people
about here think very highly of them and there are thousands of bushels of them grown.
The farmers are coming here for seed for twenty miles around.'

' The oats I got from the experimental farm some years ago have been worth a great
deal of money to me in increased yield and increased price, as I have sold quite a quan-
tity for seed.'

' The oats of which a sample was received three ye«rs ago, proved an excellent var-
iety. I had 420 bushels last year. They yielded 74 bushels to the acre.'

Many similar appreciative letters might be quoted in regard to samples of wheat,
oats, barley, &c.

It is thus apparent that with attention and care any farmer may in a very few
years provide himself under this liberal arrangement with the best and most productive
strains of seed, in sufficient quantities for a large area at no cost to himself beyond that
of his own labour.

It is remarkable how rapidly a supply of grain may be built up from a single four
or five-pound sample. Take, for example, a four-pound sample of oats. This with
ordinary care will usually produce on the average about four bushels. This sown the
next season on two acres of land will, at a very moderate estimate, give a hundred and
sometimes upwards of 200 bushels. Taking the lower figure as the basis for this cal-
culation the crop at the end of the second year would be sufficient to sow fifty acres,
which at the same, moderate computation w^ould furnish 2,500 bushels as available for
seed or sale at the end of the third year.

The critical point in these tests is the threshing of the (j'ain at the end of the
first season, and it is here that many fail to get the full advantage open to them. The
product of the one-twentieth of an acre plot which the 4-pound sample has produced
is frequently threshed with a large machine which it is difficult to get thoroughly
clean, and in this way the grain becomes mixed with other varieties and is practically
ruined. At the experimental farms we thresh the product from many of the small
plots of grain, by cutting off the heads, placing them in a sack and repeatedly beating

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR »

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

them with a stick and winnowing until most of the chaff is got rid of and the grain
made clean enough for sowing. Where the farmer is to use this seed for his own sow-
ing it is not necessary that the sample be absolutely free from chaff, it is, however,
most essential that the grain be kept free from all admixture with other sorts.

Farmers are expected to harvest the product of their experimental plot separately
and store it away carefully^ threshing the product by hand, either with a flail or in
such other manner as they may prefer. Cutting off the heads and placing them in
saclvs may be a convenient method of harvesting in some cases; the results to be
gained will abundantly repay the careful handling of this first crop.

It is surprising how rapid has been the growth of the demand for these samples
for seed. The number sent out for the first year was 1,149, the second year it was
2,150, and the third year 2,760. By this time the work of the farms had become
more generally known and appreciated. A larger number of farmers were made
aware of the advantages awaiting them in these pure varieties of improved seed,
and in 1890, the fourth year of the existence of the farms, 15,532 applicants were
furnished with desired samples of seed. From this time onward the growth was
constant, and in 1895 the number reached was 30,553. For the past 10 years the
average annual output has been 38,280 sainple bags requiring from 75 to 80 tons of
choice seed annually. During the spring of 1905, more than 42,000 farmers worked in
this co-operative test, and during the past season the number has increased to over
45,000. No such gigantic and practical co-operative work for the improvement of the
more important farm crops has ever been attempted before. Canadian farmers every-
where have gladly joined in this important work, and the benefit to Canadian agri-
culture has been enormous. In almost every part of the Dominion the results of this
work are manifest.

For four years (from 1899 to 1902 inclusive) the experiment was tried of sending
tp a select list of farmers, a few in each agricultural constituency in the Dominion,
a double quantity of seed so that each might have enough for the sowing of one-tenth
of an acre. During this period more than 12,500 such samples were sent out; but it
was found impracticable to continue to send these larger samples to all who applied
for them, and as some dissatisfaction was felt among those who were unable to obtain
the larger quantities it was thought best to discontinue this special privilege and
henceforward to treat all applicants alike. Furthermore, every season after the regu-
lar distribution of 4 and 5-lb. samples has been provided for, the surplus grain not
required for seed at the North-western experimental farms, is sold to farmers for seed
purposes in quantities of from 2 to 10 bushels to each. In this way during the past
two years, 245 farmers have been supplied with these larger lots of grain from the
branch experimental farm at Indian Head, and 211 from the branch experimental
farm at Brandon, or 45G in all. Where these larger quantities of grain are supplied,
they are sold to the farmers at a small ndvance on the ordinary price of grain at the
time so as to cover cost of extra cleaning. The increase observed of late in the yearly
average of cereal crops in Canada, which is quite considerable, is no doubt due in
large measure to the more general cultivation of highly productive varieties brought
about by these annual distributions.

NEED OF EARLY RIPENING VARIETIES OF GRAIN.

The season for growth of crops in Canada is short, hence from the outset the im-
portance of securing early ripening varieties of cereals of high quality and productive-
ness for test in Canada was fully recognized, and inquiries were promptly made in
other countries for such material. The first importation made by the experimental
farms — within a few months of their organization — was of an early maturing wheat,
claimed to be one of the earliest and best sorts grown in Northern Russia. Of this
wheat known as Ladoga, 100 bushels were imported in the spring of 1887, when 667
samples were sent out for trial to leading farmers in Manitoba, the Northwest Terri-
tories and other parts of the Dominion. Other varieties of seed wheat were also obtain-

12 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VU., A. 1907
AGRICULTURAL WORK.

The object lessons which have been given in the raising of fodder crops and con-
verting them into hay or into ensilage and thus providing succulent food for cattle
during the winter months, have given a stimulus to the dairy industry, especially to
the making of butter. It has also promoted the work of the fattening of steers, and
such industries have afforded profitable employment for farm labour during the winter
months. The experiments which have been conducted with reference to the economical
production of butter of the highest quality and the best management of milk to secure
the most complete separation of the butter fat have been beneficial to those engaged
in this special industry. The experience gained by the experiments tried in the feeding
of cattle and swine, with the view of producing the highest quality of beef and pork
at the lowest price has stimulated and aided the stock industries. Fuller details in
reference to the work of this division will be found in the report of the agriculturist.

HORTICULTURAL WORK.

Many instructive and valuable experiments have been carried on with many
varieties of large and small fruits to find out how far these different sorts can be
grown with profit in the different climates of the Dominion, and the localities where
they can be produced to the greatest advantage. The information thus gained has
been very helpful in extending and promoting fruit growing, and has resulted in the
morQ general production of fruits of high quality and in increased exports of these
products. The best methods of treatment of orchards have also been tried. New
seedling fruits found in different parts of the Dominion have been brought together
io be tested and compared, and varieties of merit have been thus introduced into more
general cultivation. New sorts have also been produced by cross-fertilization and
selection. The experiments carried on in the cultivation of vegetables to find out what
varieties are best suited to the different climates of the country have also proved of
much value and lists of varieties suitable for cultivation on the farm have been pub-
lished. Much information has also been gathered in reference to the cultivation of
the potato and the best and most productive sorts have been made known. Many
details of interest connected with the work of this division will be found in the report
of the horticulturist.

DIVISION OF ENTOMOLOGY AND BOTANY.

The practical help which has been rendered by the Division of Entomology and
Botany has been a source of much satisfaction to the public. The information given
by the officers of this division as to the best remedies for the destruction of noxious
insects which often rob the farmer of a large part of his profits has been most useful
in lessening the loss which would otherwise have occurred. The benefit derived by
treatment recommended for the various fungous diseases from which grain, fruit and
other crops occasionally suffer has been much appreciated by farmers and fruit-growers.
The subject of noxious weeds has also been fully investigated, and the best measures
to adopt for their control and subjugation pointed out. Large collections of Canadian
insects and plants have been brought together by the officers of this division, and these
collections are turned to good account by entomologists and botanists in different parts
of the country who desire to name their specimens.

Many native and foreign grasses have been tested in the large series of plots in
charge of this division, and their relative usefulness for fodder, pasturage, and lawns
ascertained. Further details in reference to the good work done by this division will
be found in the report of the entomologist and botanist.

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR 13

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

DIVISION OF CHEMISTRY.

The work of the officers of the Chemioal Division has covered a large field. In-
vestigations have been conducted to determine the nutritious constituents in many-
fodder plants, which have been analysed at dilfereut stages in their growth to ascertain
the period when these plants may be cut with the greatest advantage. The relative
value from the feeding standpoint of the larger number of the native and introduced
grasses has also been ascertained.

Many analyses have been made of Canadian grown cereals to ascertain their
quality and nutritive value. These have included many sorts of wheat, also oats, barley,
emmcr, spelt and rye. Analyses have been made of the straw of many of the more
important cereals to ascertain their relative value for feeding purposes.

Many investigations have been made as to the proportion of sugar in sugar beets
grown in different parts of the Dominion, and of the proportion of nutritive matter
contained in other sorts of field roots. Analyses have been made of soils received from
different parts of the Dominion, especially such as were representative of large areas.
The nature and amounts of fertilizing ingredients in manures have also been studied.
Many experiments have been conducted to throw light on the important subject of soil
moisture and means suggested whereby desired conditions of moisture may to a great
extent be obtained and controlled. Fuller particulars on many such subjects will be
found in the report of the chemist.

POULTRY DIA'ISION.

In the Poultry Division much useful work has also been done. The relative value
of the different breeds of fowls has been tested and the superiority shown for farmers'
use of the best of the utility breeds. The best methods to adopt in connection with
the raising of poultry have been demonstrated, and the best rations for the promotion
of egg-laying, also for the fattening of chickens made known. Recent experiments
with trap nests have shown great variations in the number of eggs laid by individual
fowls of the same age and breed, and it is hoped that by raising chickens from the
eggs of the best layers superior laying strains may be established. For fuller parti-
culars the reader is referred to the report of the poultry manager. There is no doubt
that the business in eggs and in dressed fowls for the table has been m^.terially adv:nc:d
by the publication of the results obtained from experiments conducted in the poultry
division.

BEANCH EXPERIMENTAL FARMS.

Important series of experiments have also bean conducted at each of the branch
experimental farms, varying in their nature and character as required by dif-
ferences in climate, &c. All the best varieties of the more important farm crops have
been tested each year side by side at all the experimental farms during the past twelve
years. Uniform trial plots have been conducted at each farm for the purpose of
gaining information as to the most productive and earliest ripening sorts, of grain,
fodder corn, field roots and potatoes. In arranging fur these plots the same varieties
have been grown at each of the farms, the seed being supplied at the outset from a com-
mon stock. In each case the seed has been sown enrly, and as a rule all the different
sorts of the same crop have been sown on the same day or within two days and on soil
as uniform in quality as could be found, so as to give to all an even start. A crop
bulletin is published at the close of each season giving the results of the test of all
these varieties at each of the experimental farms. The particulars published in this

16—2

14 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

bulletin showing as they do which are the best and most productive sorts, arranged in
the order of their merit, do much to influence farmers to make choice of the best
varieties, and thus the cultivation of the most productive sorts is rapidly extending.

At the branch farms many experiments have also been conducted in reference to
the best methods of preparing the land for crop, also in the testing of the best varieties
of cereals, &c., in fields and plots, the proper depth at which seed should be sown and the
quantity of seed needed per acre to produce the best results. The value of Indian corn
when used as ensilage for the feeding of cattle has been tested and the relative value
of the different sorts for his purpose carefully estimated. Indian corn has also been
sown in rows at different distances to ascertain which meihod of treatment would
produce the heaviest crops. Many experiments have been conducted with turnips,
mangolds, carrots and potatoes to ascertain their suitability as a crop in the different
provinces, also the best time for sowing, the best methods of treatment of the land and
the most profitable varieties to grow.

L'xperiments have been conducted with dairy cows to determine their relative
capacity to produce milk with a high percentage of butter fat, also in the fattening of
steers on such sorts of feed as are most abundant in the different localities where these
farms are situated. Their comparative gains on different rations have been shown and
the cost per pound of increase in weight. Many tests have also been made with swine
to find out how they may be most readily and economically prepared for market.

Experiments in the rotation of crops have also been carried on and the results
published in the annual reports of the farms. The relative usefulness of many of the
native and foreign grasses for hay and pasture has been studied. Clovers also of dif-
ferent sorts have been the subjects of many experiments. Many trials have also been
made with flax, millet, buckwheat, rye and other crops.

Experiments have also been conducted with poultry and with bees.

In the testing of fruits the experiments have covered a large field, all the varieties
likely to be useful of both large and small fruits have been tried and their suitability
or lack of suitability to each particular climate ascertained. In the eastern provinces
and in British Columbia there are large areas of land eminently .suitable for the grow-
ing of large fruits and many of the small fruits can be successfully cultivated in
nearly all the localities where settlements have been made throughout the Dominion.
After trials have been made lists of the best and most productive sorts have been pub-
lished and much information of practical value has been given.

In most parts of the Canadian JSTorthwest, the efforts made to grow the varieties
of apples cultivated elsewhere have failed owing to an unfavourable climate. To meet
this contingency, new and hardier varieties have been produced by crossing a small,
but very hardy Siberian crab known as Pyrus baccata with some of the best sorts of
apples grown in Ontario. This work was begun in 1894 and since then more than 1,000
crosses have been produced. A large proportion of those which have fruited have
proved inferior ; but among them there are twenty varieties which, from their superior
size and quality, may be regarded as useful for domestic purposes and deserving of
general cultivation in those districts where the standard apples will not grow. These
cross-bred apples are now being tested at more than three hundred different points in
the Xorthwest, at altitudes varying from 750 to 4.200 feet, and from accounts received
they seem to be quite hardy. The success thus achieved is most encouraging.

THE cnOWING OF VEGETABLES, ORNAMENTAL TREES AND FLOWERS.

Many experiments have been conducted with nearly, all sorts of garden vegetables,
many varieties of the same sort being grown side by side to determine their relative
liardiness, earliness in maturing and productiveness. A large number of ornamental
t^-ees and shrubs have been tested on each farm and their hardiness and suitability to
ihe different climates of the Dominion ascetained. A number of varieties of flowers

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR ^ 15

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

have also been tried, so that the superintendents of the several branch farms might be
jn a position to give information regarding all these things to the public when
required. Much success has attended these experiments, and the flower beds on the
several {firms are most attractive to visitors during most of the summer and during
the autumn the seeds of many of the best sorts are saved and distributed to those who
take si^ecial interest in the work of home adornment.

TREE PLANTING.

Experiments in tree planting were begun at all the Experimental Earms as soon
as practicable after their organization. At the Central Earm twenty acres are devoted
to forest experiments to determine the relative growth of the more important timber
trees under different conditions. Sixty-five acres of the same farm are used as an
arboretum, where trees and shrubs from many countries are under test to determine
how far they are suitable for growth in eastern Canada. Smaller areas are devoted
ti. the same purpose on the branch Experimental Farms. As the need for forest shelter
on the open plains in the Northwest country is very great, special attention has been
given to the encouraging of tree planting for shelter in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and
Alberta. From sixty to seventy thousand trees have been planted on the experi-
mental farm at Brandon, and more than one hundred thousand on that at Indian
Head, in shelter belts, avenues and hedges, furnishing examples as to the best methods
of planting, and at the same time giving information as to the cost of such planta-
tions.

To aid others in starting this useful work, there have been distributed among the
settlers during the past eighteen years a vast quantity of young forest trees, with some
ten to twelve tons of tree seeds. These have been sent .free to all aplicants. The
results of this work are now everywhere apparent. On homesteads in almost every
part of the Northwest plains there are plantations of forest trees, which aiford shelter
for buildings and stock as well as for the growing of garden vegetables, small fruits
and flowers. Thus the dwellings of the settlers are made more attractive, bare and
uninviting surroundings being converted into pleasant, sheltered homes.

DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.

Many thousands of farmers visit the Experimental Earms every year to inspect
the work in progress, and those who are not able to do this receive, on application,
the reports and bulletins issued from the farms, giving an ax-count of the work done
and the results achieved.

The officers of all the farms attend meetings of farmers in different parts of the
country, where opportunities are afl'orded of giving fuller explanations concerning all
branches of the work in progress.

AGRICULTURAL ADVANCEMENT.

In the meantime the upbuilding of agriculture has progressed rapidly and the
occupation of farming has been elevated in the estimation of the community. It l.<^
no longer looked upon as a drudgery in which the dull and slow-going may eke out
a laborious existence; on the contrary, it is now recognized as a suitable field for the
exercise of the higher intelligence of cultivated minds, and as a calling requiring much
skill to conduct successfully.

While the demands of the home market for the chief food products are immensely
greater than they were twenty years ago, the requirements are fully met, and, at the

16—2^

16 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

same time, the exports of farm products have greatly increased. In wheat, flour^
cheese, butter, pork, fat cattle, fruit and many other lines, the increases have been
enormous.

With the rapid settlement of the large areas of rich lands now open to settlers
in all parts of the country, the food products available for home use and export will
rapidly increase in volume, and some of the wealth laid up in the soil will find its
way into commerce and enrich the community. There is no pursuit more noble than
that of the advanced agriculturist, who endeavours, by the exercise of skill, to improve
the condition of his fellow-men, and add to their happiness by making the earth to
yield bountifully and to produce food in larger quantity and of better quality, to sus-
tain the teeming millions now occupying the surface of our globe.

6-7 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1907

REPORT OF THE AGRICULTURIST.

J. II. GRISDALE, B. Agr.

Ottawa, March 31, 1906.
Dr. "Wm. Saunders, C.M.G.,

Director Dominion Experimental Farms,
Ottawa, Out.

Sir, — I have the honour to submit herewith my report for the period of four months
from December 1 to March 31, which consists chiefly of a brief review of some of the
conchisions drawn or information gained from some of the most important work that
has been carried on in this department since the inception of work here in 1887. The
amount of work to be considered prevents anything more than bare conclusions or very
succinct summaries being presented in the space at my disposal.

I have the honour to be, sir.

Your obedient servant,

J. H. GRISDALE,

Agriculturist.

Results obtained or conclusions reached in field or cultural as well as in live
stock work must necessarily be subject to continuous revision. Where factors so vary-
ing as soil peculiarities, climatic vagaries and animal individuality are to be reckoned
with it is only from the average results of long series of experiments that any really
safe conclusions may be drawn. The field work and the live stock work here must
therefore be looked upon by farmers seeking for guidance as being approximately rather
than absolutely correct. Further, each farmer who would benefit must be prepared to
modify methods to suit his own conditions.

SOIL AXD SOIL CULTIVATION.

The soil on that part of the Central Experimental Farm devoted to the growing of
general farm crops varies from clayey ha/rdpan to yellow sand including black muck
or peaty soils of various degrees of peatiness. While such variety of character in the soil
adds to its value as an experimental farm area by permitting a study of methods of
cultivation and of systems of rotation best suited for the various soils, it also detracts
somewhat from the value of most crop growing and cultivation experiments by render-
ing results always or practically always subject to an uncontrollable and a not easily
to be eliminated factor, that is, very varying areas as to character of soil. No two
fields, one might even say no two adjacent acres on the farm may be said to be quite
similar in character.

Since, however, very few farms consist of soils quite uniform in character, our
results obtained on large areas of such varied soils as are included in this farm may
be held to be fairly comparable with those obtained on the average farm. Further,
since it would be folly for any farmer to try to crop or cultivate according to the varj'-
ing character of his soil where from 3 to 10 distinct varieties of soil may be found in
a 10 acre field, it is evident that any work that goes to determine what system of rota-
tion or cultivation gives the best average results on all soils is of no small value. For
the above reasons results obtained here as to cost of crops, amount of labour required
for different crops, yields to be anticipated and rotations to be followed may be con-
sidered valuable, and even more valuable for the reason that they are average results.

17

18

EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A, 1907

FIELD WORK.

The varioTss lines of work carried on here on the area devoted to field crops may
be summarizeci as follows : —

1. Exjoeriments to determine best methods of growing various crops.

2. Cost of production experiments.

3. Stock bearing capacity of land, ' The 40-acre lot.'

4. ' The 200-acre farm.'

5. Rotations,

On account of lack of space only the very briefest kind of a summary of the
conclusions drawn or the results obtained in each line may be given.

1. As to methods of growing crops our work points to the absolute necessity of (1)
early seeding, (2) thorough cultivation, (3) sufficient and good seed (4) not growing
similar crops many years in succession on same area, (5) barnyard manure, (C)
clover as a fertilizer if good results are to be obtained.

2. As to cost of production the average of a few results show the cost per acre
of various crops including rent of land at $3 per acre, manure at $3 per acre, manual
labour $1.50 per day, teams $3 per day, and single horses $2 per day, to be as follows : —

COST OF PRODUCTION.

Crops.

Corn for ensilage

Roots

Oats

Barley

Peas

Horse besms

Rape

Pumpkins

Hay (average of all sorts of hay)

Mixed grain for hay

Rye for green feed

Sunflower ...

Cost per Ton
of Feed.

$ cts.

1 50

1 69
12 03
11 95
16 51

2 21

0 93

1 43

3 52
6 46
3 13
6 30

Cost per Acre

stored ready for

Consumption

in

each case.

$ cts.

25 53
41 68
13 53
13 45
13 85
25 16
12 71
25 50
9 23
16 20
15 65
23 59

3. An experiment to determine the possibilities in the way of keeping cattle on a
given area of land was carried on for five years, from July 8, 1891, to July, 1896.
This was known as the ' Forty-acre lot experiment.'

The results obtained show that sufficient food was grown on the forty acres during
the course of the experiments to carry stock as follows : —

For the first year, 1891-92 14 cows.

" second year, 1892-93 23 "

" third year, 1893-94 (Experiment interrupted)

" fourth year, 1894-95 25 cows.

" fifth year, 1895-96 24 "

The straw used for bedding was not grown on the ' Forty-acre lot.'

4. In 1899 about 200 acres of land was taken to be used as a farm, and a five-year
rotation introduced thereon as well as a system of shallow cultivation.

The rotation introduced was as follows : —

REPORT OF THE AORICUTVRIST 19

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

1st year. — Hay or pasture ploughed shallow early in August, ridged up into
ridges 8 inches high, 2 feet apart in October, subsoil having previously been stirred
by means of a stiff toothed cultivator.

2nd year. — Oats or other cereals, 10 lbs. clover sown for fertilizer.

3rd year. — Corn or roots, green barnyard manure applied in winter 15 to 20 tons
jKjr acre.

4th year. — Cereal crop, 10 lbs. clover, 12 lbs. timothy.

5th year. — Hay — mostly clover.

The results have been as indicated next page.

The variety of crops grown and the varying areas under each crop each year
Fender it quite difficult to make a comparison of the returns of the different years, so
to simplify matters I would suggest that a fixed valuation be put upon the products,
and the returns of each year valued accordingly.

Fixing prices as follows : Grain, $1 per hundred lbs.; roots and ensilage $2 per
ton; hay $7 per ton; summering cattle, $8 per season; and an area used as pasture
for pigs, $15 per acre; the returns from the ' 200-acre farm' for the years mentioned
may be said to have been worth $2,7T6.GG in 1899; $4,110.21 in 1900; $4,434.72 in
1901; $4,787.14 in 1902; $1,148.19 in 1903; $4,741.09 in 1904; $5,714.32 in 1905.

Rotation Experiments.

5. The results of the work with the 5-year rotation on the 200-acre farm led to the
inception in 1904 of an experiment to test the value of different rotations. The 200-
acre farm was accordingly divided into 39 different lots of varying size, shape and
soil characteristics. These were then grouped as follows : — 7 of 3 lots each, 2 of
4 lots each, and 2 of 5 lots each, in addition a bit of rather broken land
used for sheep was divided into 4 lots, so making up another group. It was attempted
to so select the lots going to make up each group as to include considerable areas of
each grade of soil.

Each group was then put under a certain rotation, as follows : —

Eotation A. — Five years, clover hay, timothy hay, grain, corn, grain.

Eotation B.- — Five years, clover hay, grain, clover hay, corn, grain.

Rotation E. — Three years, pasture, corn, grain.

Rotation Z. — Three years, clover hay, corn, grain.

Rotation S. — Four years (shallow ploughing), clover hay, timothy hay, roots,
grain.

Rotation D.^ — Four years (deep ploughing), clover hay, timothy hay, roots,
grain.

Rotation H. — Three years, hog pasture, roots, grain or soiling crop.

Rotation T. — Four years, sheep pasture, roots and soiling crop, grain clover hay.

Rotation M. — Six years, grain, grain, clover hay, timothy hay for three years.

Rotation N. — Six years, grain, grain, timothy hay for four years.

Rotation O. — Three years, grain, timothy hay, timothy hay.

Rotation P. — Three years, grain, clover hay, timothy hay.

Since this experiment has lasted two years only, it is too early to attempt to draw
any conclusions or to summarize. •

LIVE STOCK.

Working horses were of course introduced on the farm at a very early date in its
history. On the establishment of Le Haras National some stallions were located
here, but no breeding operations of any note have ever been carried on.

The breeding work with live stock began in 18H9 when some 44 head of cattle
were purchased. This purchase included Shorthorns, Ayrshires, FTolsteins, Jerseys
and Polled Angus. Since 1889 Holsteins, Jerseys and Polled Angus have been
dropped from the list, and Guernseys and Canadians added, so that now the herd in-
cludes Shortihoms, Ayrshires, Guernseys and Canadians.

20

EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

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REPORT OF THE AORIGVTURIST 21

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

In 1890 pigs were introduced, the breeds represented being Yorkshires, Berkshires,
and Essex. Since then several other breeds have been experimented with, but a few
years ago it was decided to abandon all but Yorksires, Tamworths and Berkshires,
small herds of each breed being at present on hand.

It was not till 1899 that small flocks of sheeij were secured. Leicesters and
Shropshires were the breeds selected.

HORSES.

As indicated, practically no work in breeding has been carried on with horses.
The experimental work has been confined to determining the relative values of differ-
ent kinds of feed, both rough and concentrated. The results show that not infre-
quently horses are fed at a greater cost than necessary since a considerable propor-
tion of the grain, usually oats, might be replaced by bran wtich, generally speaking,
costs from 20 to 40 per cent less than oats.

Ensilage and roots (carrots) have been found particularly valuable for idle or
lightly worked horses.

CATTLE.

^Naturally work with cattle must be divided into (1) beef production and (2) milk
production.

Beef Production.

Under this heading some of the work carried on has been along the lines of: —

(1) Breeding.

(2) Testing various feeds as to their value for beef production.

(3) Testing values of rations.

(4) Studying influence of age on cost of beef.

(5) Studying influence of methods cf stabling on cost of beef.

(6) Baby beef.

(7) Length of feeding period.

(8) Influence of quality or breeding on possibilities of profit in feeding opera-
tions.

(9) Methods of feeding,

1. Our work goes to show that breeding affects very materially the chances of
profit from feeding steers. The more typically beef type the breeding stock, the more
certain and greater are the profits on the progeny.

2. Practically every available feed, both rough and concentrated, has been
experimented with, but space will not permit of giving results save in a general way.

For roughage. — Corn ensilage, mangels and turnips are about equally valuable
as the succulent part of the ration; clover hay and alfalfa rank first as dry coarse
feeds.

For concentrates. — Corn ranks very high, although gluten meal is probably its
equal, mixed meals give excellent results. Oats 100, bran 100, oil meal 100 consti-
tutes a very excellent meal mixture.

3. Much has been done by way of testing the value of various rations for beef
production. Not to enter into details it may be said that for a 1,000-lb steer under

22 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

full feed the following ration lias never been surpassed here either as to palatability or

fatting qualities.

Lbs.

Com ensilage 50

Roots (turnips) 20

Cut straw (oat) 2

Clover hay (well cured) 6

Bran 2

Corn (ground) 4

Oil meal. . . . , 2

The ensilage, pulped roots, chopped straw and meal all mixed together and fed in
equal portions night and morning, part of the hay following each feed of chopped
forage.

4. For a number of years a study of the influence of age on the cost of making
gains or increasing the weights of steers has been under investigation. Our experi-
ments show a fairly regular gradation of cost according to age, that is, the older the
animal and the longer on feed the more expensive to make a pound of increase in
weight.

Average results show :

Cost per 100 lbs.
Increase in live weight.

Steers from birth to 6 montlis $2 24

" 6 to 12 months 4 11

" 1 to 2 years 5 49

" 2^ to 3 years 6 17

" 3i to 4 years 7 98

In the fattening period early gains are always very much more cheaply put on
than later gains. First month gains with 3-year-olds are not infrequently made at
as low a cost as 4 cents per pound while later gains with the same animal may cost
from 15 to 20 cents per pound.

5. Comparing steers fed loose in box stalls with similar steers fed tied in stalls,
and making a study of the number that may best be fed together loose in box stalls,
our rasults would indicate that : — ■

(1) Steers fed in box stalls loose do better than similar steers fed tied on similar
feed.

(2) From eight to ten in a box give better results than a larger number. Steers
fed loose together must be fairly uniform as to size and quiet as to disposition.

6. Experiments in baby beef production show a decided advantage in getting steers
ready for the block at as early an age as possible rather than in letting them go till
three or four years old before having them ready to kill. Steers' fed here and got
ready for the block under two years old have always 1-cft a good profit. Steers kept
after that age have shown a loss.

7. Experiments in feeding for a long period compared as to profits with feeding
for a short period have shown that if roughage be relatively more plentiful and cheaper
than meal, then the ' long feed ' is the more profitable, but where meal is plentiful
and roughage scarce, then the ' short feed ' is likely to be the more profitable.

8. Experiments in feeding lots of an inferior class of steer in comparison with lots
of a medium class of steer and lots of a superior class of steer go to show that the
superior class give greater returns for feed fed, make greater gains in a given time,
and sell for a higher price than do the inferior class.

9. Feeding steers twice a day rather than more frequently has been found advis-
able. Fe<?ding a succulent ration has been found to be cheaper and more wholesome
than an "all dry feed ration. Mixing roughage and meal seems to give better results
than feeding them separately. It is advisable to feed some long hay after each
chopped feed portion.

REPORT OF TUB AGRICUTURIST 23

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Clipping, dipping or washing steers on entering stables in autumn is profitable.
Brushing steers down frequently pays.

DAIUY CATTLE.

Some lines of work conducted with dairy cattle have been as follows: —

1. Breeding.

2. Economy of production of milk.

3. Values of different feeds, both rough and concentrated.

4. Influence of feeds on quality and quantity of milk.

5. Individual records.

6. Influence of hours of milking on quantity and quality of milk.
7 Cost of feeding

1. Work in breeding for milk production here seems to show that: (a) superior
dairy cows may be found in all breeds, (b) Pure bred females are not essential to
success in daii-y farming, but a pure bred bull should always be used.

2. 'Cheap millv production is assured by the use of succulent or juicy feeds, such as
mangels, sugar beets and ensilage, and nitrogenous or flesh and milk forming feeds
such as clover and alfalfa hay, bran, oats and oil meal on well bred stock in well lighted,
well ventilated, comfortably bedded stables.

3. Sugar beets probably rank first as a succulent feed, mangels and ensilage being
however, very excellent. Bran, oil meal, ground oats, shorts and gluten are the best
concentrates.

4. Feeds do not affect the. quality of the milk produced so far as percent of fat is
concerned, biit may affect the flavour of the milk or the character of the butter. They
will also affect the total quantity of fat produced in a given time as well as the quan-
tity of milk produced in the same given time.

5. Individual records have been found to be very valuable as a guide in breeding
and feeding. Weighing the milk night and morning from each cow serves not only to
show what a cow is at the end of the year, but is sure to make each cow do better on
the average, for the milker cannot help taking an interest in her record and so do his
best by her as to feed and care.

6. Whether milking be performed at equal or uiiequal intervals does not seem to
affect the quantities of either the milk or butterfat yielded by a cow, but does affect
the character of the milk after each milking. The smaller quantity and the higher
percentage of fat being obtained after the shorter interval. Regularity in hours of
milking is essential.

7. Cost of feeding should be carefully studied as our experience shows savings
or improvement frequently possible, individuals being often fed too heavy or too
lig'ht a ration for the milk being produced or that might be produced at a given time.

SHEEP.

Sheep have been kept here for a short time and but little experimental work has
been carried on.

SWINE.

Bacon for the English market bsing the important consideration in pork produc-
tion, work to determine best methods of breeding and feeding to produce suitable hogs
at lowest cost are continually under way.

Since a very full review of this work ' B.icon Pigs in Canada,' Bulletin No. 51,
appeared only a few months ago, further remarks thereon seem unnecessary.

6-7 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1907

REPORT OF THE HORTICULTURIST.

W. T. MACOHN".

Ottawa, March 31, 1906.
Dr. Wm. Saunders, C.M.G.,

Director, Dominion Experimental Farms,
Ottawa.

Sir, — I have the honour to submit herewith an interim report of this division
In this report will be found a summary of the results of some of the most important
experiments conducted by the Horticultural Division, but as few experiments are car-
ried on during the winter months it has been thought best to present at this time a
resume of the more important experiments conducted since 1887, together with an
account of other work of this division during the past nineteen years.

I havo the honour to be, sir, •*

Your obedient servant,

W. T. MACOUN,

Horticulturist.

INTEODUCTOKY.

The Horticultural Division of the Central Experimental Farm, Otta'^ta, was organ-
ized in the spring of 1887, when experimental work was begun there. Up to that time
the experimental work in horticulture which had been done in the provinces of Ontario
and Quebec had been confined mainly to unaided individual effort, and too much
praise cannot be given to those pioneers of Canadian horticulture who did so much
to encourage fruit growing in Canada and who, many of them, to-day are continuing
the good work. An experimental orchard had been established by the provincial
government in connection with the Ontario Agricultural College, Guelph, but previous
to 1887 little information had been published regarding the work there. The chief
means of disseminating information regarding fruit growing were through the reports
of the Ontario Fruit Growers' Association, The Canadian Horticulturist, and the
reports of the Montreal Horticultural Society, and much valuable information regard-
ing the experiences of individual workers reached, and continues to reach, the public
in this way.

The need of systematic experimental work in horticulture was keenly felt at that
time as the fruit industry was developing very rapidly, and with this development in-
sect pests and fungous diseases were increasing also, and experiments were very neces-
sary to find the most economical way of controlling them. While varieties of fruits had
been discussed at fruit growers' meetings for years, no permanent experimental station
had been established for the testing of old and new varieties, except at Guelph, and
the experience of the individual grower with, of necessity, a limited area for experi-
mental purposes, had mainly to be taken as a rule in the planting of orchards. The
origination of new varieties more suitable to the climate of Canada than those which
had originated further south was a line of work which a few enthusiastic horticul-
turists had undertaken with gratifying results, and which offered a field for valuable
work at an experimental station. The fine exhibit of Canadian fruit at the Colonial

25

26 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

Exhibition in 1886 had demonstrated the possibility of carrying tender fruit success-
fully in cold storage across the Atlantic, but further experimental work was necessary.
The field for experimental work in different methods of culture for orchards, small
fruit plantations, and vegetables, was large. There were many other lines of investi-
gation in horticulture which seemed to demand attention at an experimental station.
The dissemination of definite information to the public regarding fruit growing
by reports and bulletins was a necessary outcome of the establishment of an experi-
mental station and experimental work in horticulture

THE HORTICULTUKAL DIVISION.

The work of the Horticultural Division has been supervised by three different
officers since 1887, viz.: By Mr. W. W. Hilborn, horticulturist from 1886 bo 1889 ;
Mr. John Craig, horticulturist from 1890 to 1897; and by the writer from 1898 to the
present time.

The original area of land in the Horticultural Division was 40 acres, which has
been devoted to experiments with fruits and ves-etables. In 1898 the forest belts, com-
prising about 21 acres, were added to the horticultural department, and in the same
year, the writer being appointed Curator of the Arboretum and Botanic Garden, as well
as Horticulturist, the Arboretum and Botanic Garden comprising 65 acres of land, was
included in the Horticultural Division, making the total area of land over which the
horticulturist has had charge since 1898 about 126 acres. At the present time this
area is occupied as follows : —

Orchard Enclosure and Vineyard. — Apples, 23^ acres; plums, 2J acres; Cherries,
1 1-7 acres; grapes, 2 acres; raspberries, 1 acre; blackberries, J acre; currants, ^ acre;
gooseberries, 1-7 acre; strawberries, \ acre; vegetables, 5 ecres; miscellaneous, 3§
Ecres ; total, 40 acres.

Arhoretum and Botanic Garden, 65 acres.

Forest Belts, 21 acres.

Total, 126 acres.

EXPERIMENTS WITH LARGE FRIHTS, 1887-1906.

APPLES.

Varieties. — One of the most important lines of experimental work of the Horticul-
tural Division during the past nineteen years has been the testing of varieties. The
variety is at the basis of successful horticulture, for without the most suitable varie-
ties the grower cannot compete favourably with his fellow fruit growers. Varieties
Avere sought for in many quarters, and when the first plantation was made in the
autumn of 1887 and spring of 1888, there had been gathered together 297 named sorts.
This number gradually increased, and the named varieties which have been tested up
to the present time number 569, as near as has been estimated, and 40 varieties of crab
apples.

Among these have been many Russian apples, which it was thought might be hardier
than those of American origin.

ConcJiLsions Regarding Named Varieties. — After nineteen years' experiments in
testing the named varieties on the market the following conclusions have been reached:

1. The summer and autumn apples have proven to be the hardiest. These include
most of the Russian varieties.

2. No winter variety which is equal to such commercial sorts as Greening, King,
Baldwin and Northern Spy, has as yet been found hardy enough at Ottawa. Some
good winter sorts will, however, live and bear fruit for several years, but most of them
will eventually be killed by a severe winter.

REPORT OF THE EORTICUTIBI^T 27

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

3. The chief cause of late-keeping varieties being tendes is believed to be that
■;he wood does not ripen thoroughly in the autumn. An early ripening apple means an
early ripening tree, and a late keeping apple usually indicates a tree which does not

.mature its wood early, and in places where the climate is si:*iilar to what it is at
Ottawa, does not ripen its wood sufficiently to withstand the severe weather.

4. There are some trees, the wood of which ripens early and the fruit is ready for
use early in the winter, but keeps all winter. We believe that it is varieties such as
these which will give the best satisfaction as winter apples in the colder parts of
Ontario and Quebec. The Milwaukee is an apple of this class, and while the quality
of this variety is much like Duchess and more suitable for cooking than for eating,
we see no reason why other hardy varieties of the best dessert quality which will keep
all winter should not be produced from trees originated in Canada.

' Some of the Russian apples appear to be hardier than any apples of American
origii'i, and have been the means of extending the culture of this fruit to Southern
Manitboa. They are mostly summer and fall varieties, but a few of them will keep
well into the winter. Some of the hardiest Eussi an apples tested in this country, in
order of ripening, are: Blushed Calville, Lowland Raspberry, Beautiful Arcade
(sweet), Charlamoff, Duchess, Antonovka, Anis, Anisim, Hibernal. Other useful
kinds, though not quite so hardy as the above, are Yellow Transparent, Red Astrachan,
Alexander.

VARIETIES OF APPLES RECOMMENDED FOR THE PROVINCES OF ONTARIO AND QUEBEC.

The following varieties of apples are recommended for the provinces of Ontario
and Quebec : This list is based on the experience at Ottawa during the past nineteen
years, and the information obtained by visiting orchards in various parts of the country
and by correspondence. This list is substantially the same as that recommended in
the Bulletin on Apple Culture, published by the writer : —

Recommended for the Milder Parts of Ontario.

Summer. — Yellow Transparent, Red Astrachan, Duchess.

Autumn. — Gravenstein, Wealthy, Alexander.

Early Winter. — Fameuse, Mcintosh, Blenheim, King, Hubbardston, Greening.

Winter. — Baldwin, Northern Spy, Ontario, Stark.

Additional Varieties Suggested for Home Use.

Summer. — Primate, Sweet Bough.

Autumn. — Chenango.

Winter. — Wagener, Swayzie, Tolman.

Recommended for the Colder Parts of Ontario South of Latitude 1^6°, and for Quehec

South of Latitude 46°.

Summer. — Yellow Transparent, Duchess.
Autumn. — Wealthy, Alexander.
Early Winter. — Fameuse, Mcintosh, Wolf River.

Winter. — Scott Winter, Milwaukee, North-western (Greening), Baxter, Canada
Baldwin, La Victoire, and in the more favoured localities, American Golden Russet.

Additional Varieties Suggested for Home Use.

Summer. — Lowland Raspberry, Early Joe, Laugiord Beauty, Dyer (Pomme
Boyale.)

Autumn. — St. Lawrence.

Winter. — Swayzie, Grimes (Golden.')

28 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907
Hardiest Varieties Be commended for Districts North of Latitude JtG°

Summer. — Yellow Transparent, Blushed Calville, Lowland Raspberry, Duchess,
Charlamoff.

Autumn and Early Winter. — Anis, Anisim, Antonovka, Patten, Wealthy, Ostra-
koff. Hibernal. Peerless and Okabena are promising.

Crah Apples Suitable for all Districts.

Wliitney, Martha, Transcendent, Hyslop. Together with the new cross-bred apples
recently produced at the Central Farm by the Director, and which are proving hardy
in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

There are a number of new varieties growing at the Central Experimental Farm
whicli, though promising, have not been tested long enough to warrant their being
recommended.

SEEDLIXG APPLES.

Believing that desirable varieties of apples are more likely to be obtained from
trees originated in Canada or some colder climate, much attention has been paid to
the growing of seedlings in the hope of obtaining some better varieties than those
already on the market. Persons who have originated seedlings were invited to send
specimens of the fruit for examination and if the variety was thought promising,
scions were asked for. By this means a collection of 83 varieties of very promising
seedlings has been made. In 1890, there were 3,000 seedlings raised from apple seed
imported from north of Riga, Russia, planted at Ottawa. These have been gradually
reduced, by cutting out the poorer ones and by blight and winter killing, to 75 trees.
Out of this number there are a few which may prove superior to some named varieties
of the same season, and a large proportion of them is equal to the named Russian
apples which have been introduced. Twenty-five of these Russian seedlings have been
sent to Manitoba and the Northwest for test there, as they are very hardy.

A new lot of seedlings is beginning to fruit, from which it is hoped that something
good will be obtained. A hardy, productive red winter apple of the best dessert quality
would be a great acquisition in Eastern Ontario, the province of Quebec and other
colder parts of Canada, and in planting these seedlings it was thought the chances were
good of obtaining a few superior varieties. Seed was saved of some of the hardiest
and best autumn, early winter and winter apples fruiting at the Central Experimental
Farm, including St. Lawrence, Wealthy, Mcintosh, Shiawassee, Fameuse, Swayzie,
Scott Winter, Winter St. Lawrence, Northern Spy, American Golden Russet, Gano,
Salome, Edgehill. The first planting of these seedlings was done in 1901 and the
number has gradually been increased until there are 1,969 trees now growing. The
growing and thorough testing of seedlings takes time and the Horticulturist has been
very careful not to recommend a new variety until it has been well tested and thought
to be superior in some particular to some other variety of the same season already on
the market. Hence the number of seedlings so far recommended has been very few.

Cross-hred Varieties of Apples.

In addition to the work done by Dr. Wm. Saunders, Director, in originating
apples for Manitoba and the Northwest provinces by cross-breeding, there has been
some work done in this direction by the Horticulturist with a view to obtaining hardier
winter varieties for Ontario and the province of Quebec. This work was begun by
Mr. John Craig, and continued by the writer, the varieties used by the former being
Scott Winter, Walbridge, Northern Spy, and McMahan, and by the writer, Mcintosh,
Lawver, Northern Spy, North Western (Greening), Milwaukee, and Newton. There
are at present 217 trees representing these crosses in the Horticultural Department.
A few of those which have fruited are promising, but have not been tested sufficiently
to recommend.

REPORT OF THE HORTICVWR!ST 29

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

INDIVIDUALITY IN APPLE TREES.

Records are kept of the yields from each individual tree in the orchard at the
Central Experimental Farm, hence it is known what each tree produces. It has been
found that there is a marked variation in trees of the same age planted at the same
time and growing under very similar conditions. It is now recognized by some of the
best authorities that each bud of a tree has individual characteristics which separate
it from all other buds, and although the diflirences in buds are in most cases so slight
that it is impossible to detect them, yet in some instances they may be quite marked.
Fruit growers have noticed that one tree or bush is more productive than another or
bears larger, more highly coloured or better flavoured fruit than other trees of the
same variety, but few persons have recorded the yields from different trees, and little
definite information has been published on the subject. From the records at the
Central Experimental Farm published in the reports for 1903 and 1905, it is shown
that some trees have yielded from two to four times as much as others. Scions have
been taken from these trees and have been both top grafted and root grafted to learn
if this individuality is perpetuated, as it is important to learn if the tendency towards
heavy or light bearing is continued when scions are taken from these trees and
grafted.

EVAPORATING APPLES.

In 1896 an experiment was tried in evaporating apples, 46 varieties being used in
the test. A table was published of the varieties, showing the weight of apples when
pared and cored, weight when dried, length of time drying, percentage of water
evaporated, weight of dried product per bushel of 50 lbs., and notes were made on the
appearance and character of the product. _

STORING APPLES.

Notes have been made on the relative keeping qualities of different varieties of
apples, but no extensive experiments have been made on account of not having a
proper place for storing the fruit.

EXPERIMENTAL SHIPMENTS OF APPLES.

Experimental shipments of apples were made to Great Britain from the experi-
mental farm in 1902, 1903, 1904 and 1905, sometimes with cold storage and sometimes
without. The results showed that apples will reach the other side of the Atlantic in
good order if properly picked, packed and shipped. Experiments in shipping fruit
in cold storage were also superintended by the horticulturist in 1894 and 1895.

CULTURAL EXPERIMENTS WITH APPLES.

It is impossible in a summary report of this kind to mention all the cultural ex-
periments which have been tried, but the following, with the results and conclusions,
seem among the most important: —

Fall versus Spring Planting. — An experiment was tried in the autumn of 1887
for the purpose of comparing fall with spring planting of trees at Ottawa. The
results were unfavourable to fall planting, and experience during later years confirms
this. There appears to be three chief disadvantages of planting in the fall at Ottawa
or where the climate is similar. Trees planted in the autumn are not sufiiciently
charged with moisture to withstand the winter and are killed by drying out. Trees
planted in the autumn are more liable to sunscald the following spring than those
which are planted in the spring and have had a season's growth. Ti'ees planted in
the autumn are more likely to heave during the winter than if planted in the spring.

16—3

30 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

Root-l-illing of apple trees. — The root-killing of apple trees is a serious drawback
to growing apples in a severe climate. When there is a good covering of snow the
roots are sufficiently protected, but if the ground is bare in winter the roots are liable
to be killed. There are two preventives of root-killing, namely, propagating trees on
hardy roots, and protecting the trees in winter by a mulch, which is obtained in the
best form by means of a cover crop. Many trees which are bought have been propa-
gated on stocks which have not been selected with a view to hardiness, and hence may
be too tender for some districts. At tire Central Experimenal Farm trees have for
the past ten years been propagated on seedlings of some of the hardier crabs or on
Pyrus haccata, and these have so far given good satisfaction.

Cover Crops. — In the winter of 1895-6 root-killing of fruit trees was very wide-
spread in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec, owing to the scarcity of snow and to
alternate thawing and freezing, and since 'that time cover croi)s have received much at-
tention in the horticultural department, and experiments have been conducted every
year since with the object of finding a plant or combination of plants that would give
the desired winter protection, add a fair amount of humus to the soil and be easy to
handle in the orchard in the spring. Crimson clover, Mammoth Red clover. Common
Red clover. Alfalfa, Soy beans. Cow Peas, English Horse beans. Hairy Vetch, Summer
Vetch, Buckwheat and Rape, have all been tried for this purpose.

Crimson clover has been found too uncertain in tliis district, the plant not making
sufficient growth before winter. In some districts it does well.

Mammoth Red clover and Common Red clover sown about the middle of July and
earlier at the rate of about 12 poimds to the acre, make good cover crops, the Mam-
moth Red giving a little the better results.

AlfaKa is not as satisfactory as Mammoth Red clover, being more exhaustive of
soil moisture and more difficult to handle in the- spring.

Soy beans sown in drills 28 inches apart at the rate of 37| pounds per acre on June
IS. 'nade a good growth, but are killed by the first frost, and are hence not satisfactory.

Cow Peas are too tender.

English Horse beans, sown in drills 28 inches apart at the rate of one bushel per
acre have done well and continue growing till severe frosts. They hold the snow well in
winter, as they do not break down easily. They are rolled in the spring and work into
the ground easily. Rape, sown broadcast among the Horse beans, makes a good bottom
cover.

Hairy Vetch, is a good cover crop, making strong gi-owth late in the season. It
may be sown broadcast or in drills. It is somewhat difficult to plough under in the
spring.

Summer Vetch or Tares. — The Summer Vetch js much cheaper than the Hairy
Vetch, and is a rapid grower. It kills out in the winter, but furnishes a good cover.

Buckwheat is not a good cover crop, as it adds no plant food to the soil, and the
leaves are killed by the first frost, but it is better than nothing and sometimes proves
useful for late food for bees, at the same time helping to hold the snow.

Rape grows rapidly in the autumn and makes a good ground cover. It does not
add any plant food to the soil, but it is easy to plough under in the spring, as it is
killed by winter. Of the non-leguminous plants, or those which do not add nitrogen to
the soil, it is one of the best.

Cover Crops and Conservation of Moisture.— As some plants exhaust tlie soil more
rapidly of soil moisture than others, experiments have been conducted in the orchard
with cover crops and chemical analyses have been made by the Chemist, Mr. Franlc T.
Shutt, to determine the percentage of moisture in the soil under different cover crops
at different dates, the results of which have api>eared from time to time in the Chemist's
report.

Cover Crops and Plant Food. — In addition to their use in holding snow in winter
and protecting the roots of trees, cover crops have a vahie in that they furnish vege-

REPORT OF THE EORTICUTVRIST 31

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

table matter to plough under in the spring for the purpose of obtaining humus, and,
in the case of leguminous plants, nitrogen. In the autumn they act as catch crops,
preventing plant food from leaching. Experiments have been conducted to determine
the yields from the various cover crops, and, analyses have been made of the same.
The former have been reported on by the Horticulturist, and the latter by the Chemist.

Mulching the Soil rvith Green Clover.— From 1898 to 1902 the system of cover
crops was changed in part of the orchard. Seed for the cover crop was sown in May
and the clover was allowed to grow during that season and to remain and protect the
ground the following winter. The second season, instead of ploughing under the
clover in the spring, it was allowed to grow and was cut at intervals during the summer
and was not ploughed up until the next spring. By cutting the clover when the flower
heads were just beginning to show, when it was from 18 to 20 inches in height, it was
found that from four to five good cuttings could be made, and by weighing some of
the material at each cutting it was found that about 25 tons of green clover was cut
during the season. The clover from each cutting was left to rot on the soil and acted
as a partial mulch. The trees did well under this treatment, but this system had to be
discontinued for a time on account of the increase of couch grass in the land. Wlien
an orchard soil is wet or so moist that drought is not feared this method will give good
satisfaction, but we do not advise it for most situations, as conservation of moisture
is usually a most important consideration, and this^san be brought about best by
thorough cultivation.

Conclusions Reached Regarding Cover Crops. — Cover crops nrc valuable for pro-
tecting the roots of trees in winter, folding the snow, adding humus and plant food
to the soil when ploughed under, and acting as a catch crop in autumn to prevent
leaching of available plant food. In western Ontario, soil should be kept thoroughly
cultivated from early in the spring until about the middle of July. In eastern On-
tario and the province of Quebec cultivation may cease as early as July 1, as thorough
ripening of the wood is more important than conservation of moisture. The cover
crop should be turned under in the spring and cultivation begun as early as possible.

Top Grafting Apples. — It has been known for many years that trees having poor
trunks are much more satisfactory when top grafted on hardy trunks and will bear
sooner, and it was generally supposed that trees top grafted on hardy stocl^s would be
decidedly hardier in the wood than when grown in the ordinary way. As none of the
best winter apples had been found hardy enough at Ottawa when grown as standard
trees it was decided to try top grafting. From 1898 to 1903 ninety varieties of apples
were top grafted. After top grafting, some of the varieties which had been too tender
gave promise of succeeding, but the severe winter of 190-3-4 killed practically all those
which had proven tender when tried as standard trees. A Northern Spy which had
been top grafted on Duchess for thirteen years was killed completely back to the stock
which was as healthy as ever. From this experience with top grafting tender varieties
on hardy stocks it seems conclusive that top grafting will not make a variety suffi-
ciently hardy to withstand the winter wiere the climate is similar to that at Ottawa,
if it is tender when grown as a standard. Top grafting will, however, bring a tree
into bearing sooner and will permit of growing varieties which sun-scald on the trunk
or are weak in the trunk in other respects.

Sun-scald. — There is much injury to apple trees from sun-scald in the northern and
eastern parts of Ontario and the province of Quebec, and many a grower has been
discouraged on account of the injurj' to his trees by it, trees frequei^tly being killed
outright by it. Newly planted trees are, as a rule, more seriously affected by it than
older ones, but both often suffer badly. The unhealthy appearance of the bark on
the south and southw.est sides of the trunk of the tree and on the larger branches is
the first indication of this injury. Afterwards the bark dries up and falls away.
The injury occurs during the latter part of winter or very early in the spring when
there are warm days and cold nights. It has been found at the Experimental Farm

16— 3J

32 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

that this can be prevented to a very large extent. One of the best means of preven-
tion is a wooden veneer vs'hich encircles the trunk, thus preventing the rays of the
sun from striking the trunk. It is better loose so that there will be an air space
between it and the tree. Building paper, com stalks, boards, sacking or almost any-
thing else which will shade the trunk may be used. Black substances, such as tar
paper, should be avoided. The protection should be given in autumn. Nothing,
however, that will be likely to harbour mice should be used.

Mice. — Some winters great injury to apple trees is done by mice, hundreds of
trees having in some places been girdled and destroyed. When a yovuig orchard is
just coming into bearing the disappointment is very great when after the snow dis-
appears in the spring the trees are found girdled and the prospective returns from tlie
orchard are destroyed. The following recommendations are made after nineteen
years' experience: All rubbish which will harbour mice should be removed from or
near the orchard in autumn. The trunks of trees should be wrapped with building
paper in autumn. After wrapping thousands of trees in this way with practically no
injury from mice this method is confidently recommended as the simplest and best.
Tar paper is also satisfactory, but injury to trees has occurred in places where tar
paper has been used, and it is not recommended. The wooden veneer used for pre-
venting sunscald is also an excellent means of preventing the depredations of mice.
Banking up the earth about the base of the tree to the height of about one foot is also
a fairly good plan, and even tramping the snow about the base of the trees will answer
a similar purpose. If a tree is girdled by mice it usually dies the same year or tte
year following. If the girdle is narrow the tree may be saved by bandaging to pre-
vent the wood from drying out, and this method may be adopted when the tree is only
partly girdled. When a tree has been injured by mice it has been found a good prac-
tice to cut or scrape away the injured part and cover the wound with grafting wax
or paint. Girdled trees may also be saved by bridge grafting or connecting the bark
above and below the girdle with scions.

Close Planting of Apple Trees. — In the spring of 1896 there were 144 Wealthy
trees set out 10 by 10 feet apart, or at the rate of 435 trees to the acre. The expenses
and receipts from this orchard have been kept and published from time to time in
the annual reports. In the report for 1905, when the last statement was published,
it was shown that the average net profit per acre per year from 1896 to 1905 was at
the rate of $59.03, and the average net profit per acre from 1899 to 1905, or since the
trees began to fruit, was at the rate of $105.75. There is a good crop of fruit in
1906, and the average profit will probably be increased. This method of planting
apple trees is only suitable to a few varieties which begin to bear early, and is not
reconmaended for general practice, but the experiment is interesting and suggestive.
The trees havp so far been kept in bounds by pruning, but eventually some of the
trees will be removed.

Each year we are more convinced that apple trees will not be long lived in the
colder parts of Ontario and Quebec, and that the most profitable method of planting
will be that by which one will get the largest returns from his land in the shortest
time.

PLUMS.

Varieties. — During the past nineteen years 253 named varieties of plums have
been tested at the Central Experimental Farm, including most of the European,
Japanese, Americana, Nigra, Miner and Hybrid varieties. Briefly stated, it may be
said that none of the European and Japanese plums have proven satisfactory, being
either too tender in fruit bud or wood, or both. Some of the European varieties are
a little hardier in the fruit bud than others, among which are some of the Russian
importations and some seedlings originated on the Island of Montreal. The winter

REPORT OF THE EORTICUTURIST 33

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

killing of the fruit buds appears to bo due more to dryness of atmosphere with cold
weather than low temperatures, merely, the European varieties which will not fruit at
Ottawa being grown very successfully along the lower St. Lawrence where the river is
open during the winter. The Miner plums are also too tender in the fruit bud at
Ottawa. Some of the hybrids between Japaneses and Americana varieties are promis-
ing, but for eastern and north central Ontario and the great part of the province of
Quebec, the main reliance must be on the Americana and Nigra varieties.

Americana and Nigra plums. — The Americana and "Nigi'a plums are improved
forms of the wild species of the northern parts of the United States and of Canada.
It is only about 50 years since the Americana plums were thought worthy of culti-
vation and improvement, and it is only during quite recent years that many varieties
have been propagated and named. The size, appearance and quality have already been
much improved and the pos.sibility for future improvement is great. The appearance
of the plums is all that could be desired, and the best varieties are almost large enough
but there is great room for improvement in the character of the skin and the flavour
of the fruit, although the latter is good. The skin of the Nigra plums, derived from
the Canadian species, is thinner than that of the Americana and breaks up easier
when cooked.

VARIETIES OF PLUMS RECOMMENDED FOR THE PROnNCES OF ONTARIO AND QUEBEC.

While the experience at Ottawa would not be a guide as to the varieties of plums
most suited to the warmer parts of Ontario, the writer has had a good opportunity to
learn by correspondence and by visiting the orchards of plum growers which are the
best kinds to plant. The following list is very similar to that published in Bulletin
No. 43, on Plum Culture, by the writer.

Americana and Nigra. — Aitkin, Bixby, Mankato, Cheney, WoK, Hawkeye, Stod-
dard. Other promising kinds are Admiral Schley, Bomberger, Smith, Lottie, U.S.,
Terry, Atkins, Bouncer.

European. — Bradshaw, Imperial Gage, Gueii, Shippers' Pride, Lombard, Quack-
enboss, Yellow Egg, Grand Duke, Golden Drop, Bavay (Reine Claude). The Shrop-
shire Damson is one of the best of the Damsons.

Japanese. — Eed June, Abundance, Burbank, Chabot. The Satsuma is a red-
fleshed variety desirable for canning.

Hardiest varieties of European plums. — Early Red (Russian), Mount Royal,
Raynes, Richland, Glass, Montmorency, Perdrigon, Ungarish.

Canning and Preserving Plums. — As the Americana and Nigra plums vary much
in quality, experiments have been conducted to determine which kinds were best when
preserved. The result of these tests were published in the bulletin on Plum Culture in
which are also given recipes.

Sand Cherry as a Stock for Plums. — Experiments have been conducted with dif-
ferent stocks for grafting plums. The most interesting stock has proven to be the sand
clierry. Trees of Americana plums grafted 13 years ago are still in good condition and
bearing well. The trees are considerably dwarfed by this stock. The sand cherry may
prove useful where close planting is adopted, as many more trees could be planted on
an acre when dwarfed by this stock. Trees grafted on this stock are not, however, as
firm in the ground as they might be, as the Sand Cherry has not many root fibres. This
m.'iy be a disadvantage as the trees get older, as winds may loosen them too much.

3i EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VIU A. 1907
PEAES.

Pears have not proven a success at Ottawa. Most of tlie named varieties on the
market in this country have been tested, but none of the better kinds have survived.
The Flemish {Beauty) has proved the hardiest good pear, but the tre3 blights and it d .ei
not live long at Ottawa. At Oka, further down the Ottawa, it has done well, and also
succeeds fairly well at Montreal. Some of the Russian varieties are very hardy, but are
inferior in quality and very subject to blight. Seedling pears are being grown in the
hope of getting some hardier sorts.

The following list of pears, recommended in Bulletin No. 147, of the Ontario De-
partment of Agriculture, by the Board of Control of the Ontario Fruit Experiment
Stations, of which the writer is a member, is given as the best list for Ontario where
pears succeed. It is only in the mildest parts of the province of Quebec where pears
are profitably grown, and Flemish is the most desirable variety to plant.

VARIETIES OF PEARS RECOMMENDED FOE THE PRO\aNCE OF ONTARIO.

Commercial. — Giffard, Clapp, Bartlett, Boussock, Flemish, Howell, Louise,
Duchess, Bosc, Clairgeau, Anjou, Kieffer.

Domestic. — Summer Doyenne, GifFard, Bartlett, Flemish, Sheldon, Seckel, Bosc,
Anjou, Lawrence, Josephine, Winter Nelis.

PEACHES.

Peaches and apricots have both been tested at the Experimental Farm, but neither
have been found hardy enough. The peach being tender both in wood and fruit bud,
and the apricot in fruit bud, and to some extent in the wood. The so-called Russian
apricots were not found to be sufficiently hardy. Seedling peaches produced at the nor-
thern limit of the production of this fruit are being tested.

Peach culture in Ontario was looked into very thoroughly by Mr. John 'Craig when
horticulturist, and a biilletin was published on this subject in 1898. The list of
varieties recommended in that bulletin needs to be changed somewhat as newer kinds
have been more thoroughly tested since that time. The following is the list recom-
mended and published by the Board of Control of the Ontario Fruit Experiment
Stations, which the writer considers the best list for Ontario : —

Commercial. — Sneed, Alexander, Hynes, St. John, Mountain Rose, Early Crawford,
Champion, Brigdon, Fitzgerald. Reeves, Elberta, Oldmixon, Stevens, Smock.

Domestic. — Hynes, St. John, Early Crawford, Oldmixon, Longhurst, Stevens.

CHERRIES.

Cherries have been thoroughly tested at Ottawa and after nineteen years' experi-
enoe no cultivated variety of cherry has been found which is profitable to grow at Ot-
tawa. The Morello cherries are the hardiest, but as a rule the fruit buds of these are
winter killed. The same fact is observed 'with cherries as with European plums,
namely, ihat when the air is comparatively moist even if the temperature is low,
cherries will succeed better than they do where the air is dry and cold. Thus, cherries
succeed much better along the lower St. Lawrence than they do at Ottawa.

Among cherries introduced from Russia are some of the hardiest kinds. Orel 25,
Vladimir, Minnesota Ostheim, and Cerise d'Ostheim are the four hardiest.

In 1890 the Ontario Fruit Growers' Association received a number of seedling
cherry trees from Russia under the name of Ivoslov Morello. Twenty-one of these were
sent to the Central Experimental Farm for test. They were slow in coming into bear-

REPORT OF THE HORTICUTURIST 35

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

ing and eight years after planting averaged only 5 feet 6 inches in height. Most of
these trees produced fruit of inferior quality, some being bitter, and others very acid.
Two, however, were quite, promising and have been propagated, but are very slow in
growing. These low growing cherries may prove very useful in the north as they are
jTrotected to some extent with snow. When there is little snow the fruit buds arc
killed as is the case with other cherries.

VARIETIES OP MORELLO CHERRIES RECOMMENDED FOR THE PROVINCES OF ONTARIO AND QUEBEC.

For the colder parts of Ontario and for Quebec: Orel 25, Vladimir, Minnesota
Ostheim, Cerise d'Ostheim.

For Ontario except the colder parts: Orel 25, Orel 2-i, Early Richmond, Mont-
morency, English Morello.

PROPAGATING CHERRIES ON HARDY STOCK.

It was soon found that the Mazzard and Mahaleb stocks used in the trade for
cherries are too tender for the Ottawa district as many trees were root-killed, hence
hardier stocks were tried, the Bird or Pin Cherry — Prunus pennsylvanica—hcing used
for this purpose. Experiments with Bird Cherry were begun in 1892 and have been
continued since. It has been found that the cultivated cherries will make a good
union with Bird Cherry. Better results are obtained from budding than from grafting,
and crown grafting has given better results than root grafting. The Bird Cherry
starts growth very early in the spring and if grafted the work must be done early.
The Bird Cherry may not be a desirable stock in commercial work as not as large a
percentage of buds or grafts take as on Mazzard or Mahaleb stock, but where hardy
roots are desired it is a good stock to use.

Sand Cherry has also been tried as a stock for the cultivated cherry, but the union
proved poor and it is of no value for this purpose.

Whitewashing Cherry Trees to Frotecl Fruit Buds.

As the fruit buds of cherries were so frequently destroyed, an experiment was tried
in April, 1899, by whitewashing the trees to retard the swelling of the buds, as it had
been found by other experimenters that whitewash would retard the swelling of peach
buds and prevent injury to the bud by spring frosts. There was a decided retarda-
tion of the buds due to the whitewiash, but there was no blossom on either sprayed or
unsprayed trees, showing that the' injury to the buds was done before they were sprayed
and before they started to swell, as the buds were still dormant when sprayed.

GRAPES.

Grapes are grown with good success at Ottawa, although all the varieties which
ripen in the best grape districts do not mature here. There are 260 named varieties
growing in the vineyard at the Central Experimental Farm, and the largest number of
kinds which have ripened in any one year is 130. In the most unfavourable seasons
about 30 varieties ripen, and if growers in districts where the climate is similar to
that at Ottawa would limit themselves to the earliest kinds they could have ripe grapes
every year. A number of seedlings originated at the Central Experimental Farm are
fruiting and a few of them are promising.

The following named varieties of grapes are recommended for the provinces of
Ontario and Quebec :

For Best Grape Districts of Ontario.

Black. — Moore, Campbell, Worden, Wilder, Concord.
Bed. — Delaware, Lindley, Agawam, Vergennes, Catawba.
White. — Niagara, Diamond.

36 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

For more Northerly Districts with Low Elevations where Climate is much like that

at Ottawa.

Black. — Champion, Manito, Early Daisy, Moore, Campbell, Worden, Wilder.

Bed. — Moyer, Brighton, Delaware, Lindley.

White. — Golden Drop, Winchell, Diamond. t

For Districts where only the Earliest Kinds will Ripen,

Black. — Champion, Manito, Early Daisy, Moore, Campbell.

Bed. — Moyer.

White. — Golden Drop.

EXPEESMENTS EST GRAPE CULTURE AT OTTAWA.

System of Training. — Most of the vines in the vineyard at the Experimental
Farm are planted in rows 10 feet apart, with the vines 10 feet apart in the rows. In
part of the vineyard 148 vines were planted in rows 4 feet apart, with the vines 3 feet
apart in the rows. These vines were trained according to the Post or French method,
stakes being driven down and the vines tied to them. After a thorough test it may
be said that this method is quite unsuited to a climate where it is important for the
grapes to get as much light and sunshine as possible, as the foliage is very dense wdien
the vine is confined to a single post. It was found that the grapes ripened about a
week later and not so thoroughly when grown by this system than by the more open
methods.

Some vines were planted with a view to forming an arbour, but it was soon found
that the need of winter protection rendered this system unsatisfactory. The Fan and
Horizontal methods have also been tried, but it was found for a climate such as there
is at Ottawa where the vines have to be covered with soil every winter a method had
to be adopted which would reduce the labour of covering to a minimum. It was found
that when trained by the Horizontal Arm system the arms, which are i)ermanent, get
stiff and are difiicult to bend down and cover with soil. A better method was found in
a modification of the High Renewal system, the only important difference being that
instead of renewing every year, the arms are left on for at least two years to insure
having ripe wood and reduce the danger from winter killing. The two arms may be
renewed in alternate years if considered necessary. By this method the arms, which
start from a head near the ground, are always supple and easily bent down and covered
with soil. In the report for 1901 the method adopted at the Central Experimental
Farm is more fully described. In the report for 1896- full particulars are given of the
planting and care of vineyards and the methods of training the vines for the best
grape districts.

Protecting Vines During Winter and Spring. — It has been found that in order
to insure the vines coming through the winter in good condition it is necessary to
bend them down and cover them lightly, soil being found to be the best material for
this purpose. This covering has not so much value as a means of protecting the vines
from low temperatues as in protecting them from sudden changes of temperature.
This was well shown this year when there was little snow and the vines thus much more
exposed than usual to low temjDeratures, and when the vines came through in fine
condition.

The soil should be left on the vines as late in the spring as possible without injury
to the swelling buds, as a few degrees of frost after the vines have been uncovered are
sufficient to destroy the crop for that season. At Ottawa the vines are not uncovered
until the second week of May.

Experiments to Preserve Grape Juice. — From 1893 to 1896 and 1897 experiments
were conducted with different formulas for the preservation of grape juice. Twenty-
three different methods were tried. The conclusions reached were ' as follows : —

REPORT OF THE nORTICUTURIST 37

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

* It would appear from the foregoing (experiments) that the natural flavour of
the grape juice may be preserved intact by raising the temperature of the juice gradu-
ally to 170 degrees Fahr., keeping it at this point for ten minutes, and then quickly
bottling it, taking care to use absolutely air-tight and thoroughly sterilized vessels.
These vessels should be taken from a tank or kettle of boiling water, immediately
filled and corked or covered, with the least possible delay. The addition of sugar in
the projiortion of four ounces to each quart of liquid will improve the quality and
palatability of the juices o'f the more acid varieties, such as Clinton, Bacchus and
Marion.'

The following deductions were also drawn : —

1. Formalin, while a proved ferment arrester, imparts such a disagreeable flavour
to the juice that it cannot be used, at least as strong as in the proportion of i per cent.

2. Sugar added to the grape juice with formalin masked the flavour of the latter
somewhat, but did not obliterate it entirely.

3. Salicyclic acid, 175 grammes with 2 ounces of sugar to each pint, produced the
most palatable beverage (but the use of antiseptics is not recommended nor encour-
aged) .

4. Samples were successfully preserved when heated for 10 minutes at 160° F. with
sugar at the rate of 2 ounces to each pint of juice. Duplicate samples without sugar
were also successfully preserved, but were not generally as palatable as the former.

5. 160° F. seems to be the lowest temperature that may be used in the preservation
of grape juice. The juice may be held at this temperature for 15 or 20 minutes with-
out imparting to it any unpleasant boiled flavour.'

RASPBEEEIES.

There have been 103 named varieties of raspberries tested at the Central Experi-
mental Farm, including red, white, purple and black. Some of the red varieties give
very satisfactory results. The white varieties are a little too tender; the purple and
black caps are very uncertain, being also not so hardy as the red. As information has
been obtained from various sovirces regarding the varieties which succeed best in other
parts of the provinces of Ontario and Quebec, a list is also published fcrr the districts
where the climate is warmer than it is at Ottawa.

VARIETIES OF RASPBERRIES RECOMMENDED FOR ONTARIO AND QUEBEC.

For the milder parts of Ontario —

Black. — Hilborn, Older, Gregg, Smith Giant.
Purple. — Columbian, Shaffer.
Eed. — 'Marlboro, Herbert, Cuthbert.
White. — Golden Queen.

For the Colder Parts of Ontario and Quebec —
Bktch.—mihoni, Older.
Purple. — Columbian, Shaffer.
Bed. — Marlboro, Herbert.
White. — Golden Queen.

SEEDLING AND CROSS-BRED VARIETIES OF RASPBERRIES.

"When Dr. Wm. Saunders, the Director of the Dominion Experimental Farms,
came to Ottawa he brought with him from London, Ont., about 200 unnamed seedling
find hybrid raspberries. As reliable information regarding these was obtained the
less promising ones were discarded, the number now having been reduced to twenty-
two. Of these the best are Sarah, Brighton, Count and Sir John. All of these are
very hardy. The Sarah is of very fine quality, and the last three very productive.

38 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907
LAYING DOWN RASPBERRIES FOR WINTER PROTECTION.

An experiment was tried in 1894, 1895 and 1896 to determine if it were profitable
to bend down the canes of raspberries and cover the tips with soil for better protection
in winter. This experiment showed that the canes bent down were less injured by-
winter and that it paid to protect the canes in this way, at Ottawa, the protected plants
out yielding the unprotected in almost every case.

SUMMER PRUNING.

An experiment was tried in 1894, 1895 and 1896 to determine if better results
would be obtained by pinching off the tips of the raspberry canes in summer when
15 to 20 inches in height than by leaving them grow to their full height. Other plants
were left unpruned. The unpruned plants yielded best.

BLACKBEKRIES.

Most of the varieties of blackberries which are offered for sale have been tested at
Ottawa, but few of them are sufficiently hardy to produce much fruit. The two hardi-
est varieties tested are Agawam and Snyder. Eldorado is abo a fairly hardy variety.
Eor south-western Ontario the Kittatinny is one of the best sorts to plant.

CURRANTS.

Erom experience with 110 varieties of currants at the experimental farm, the fol-
lowing are recommended for general planting : —

Black. — Saunders, Victoria.

Bed. — Wilder, Pomona, Victoria, Cherry, Eay.

White. — White Grape.

The Wilder, Cherry and Eay, although the largest currants, are rather tender in
fruit bud, but the Wilder is the hardiest.

SEEDLING VARIETIES.

When Dr. Wm. Saunders removed to Ottawa from London, Ont., in 18S7 he
brought to the experimental farm about 150 promising seedling currants, most of
which were black varieties. These have been gradually reduced in number, the best
29 now remaining. Of these the most promising black varieties are : Saunders, which
is now sold by the nurserymen; Ogden, Kerry, Ontario, Eclipse, Magnus, Ethel,
Climax, Success, Clipper, Winona and Topsy. Descriptions of these were published
in the annual report for 1905.

GOOSEBERRIES.

Gooseberries have been given a thorough test, and 97 named varieties have been
tested, including many of the English sorts. It has been found that the latter are
quite unsuitable for general culture, owing to their being so badly affected by mildew,
which has not yet been satisfactorily controlled by spraying. Those which have
proved freest from mildew are Riccardo, Alcock's King, Yellow Criterion, Glenton
Green, Triumph, Snowball, Antagonist and Queen of Trumps. In some parts of
Canada Wliitesmith and Industry have proved comparatively free of mildew, but these
have not been among the least affected at Ottawa. The best success with English
gooseberries is obtained in gardens and in clay soil.

REPORT OF THE HORTICVTVRIST 39

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Of gooseberries originated in America, the following have given the best results
.and are recommended: —

Varieties of gooseberries recommended for general planting. — Pearl, Downing,
Red Jacket.

STRAWBERRIES.

The named varieties of strawberries have been very thoroughly tested at Ottawa,
and since 1887 there have been 513 kinds under trial. There are so many new varie-
ties of strawberries introduced each year that the list of those recommended has to be
changed from time to time as those of superior merilrare found.

The following are those which are recommended at the present time: —

Commercial. — Splendid (perfect), Beder Wood (perfect), Warfield (imperfect) —
not suited to light soil, Williams (perfect), Greenville (imperfect). Sample (imperfect)
Buster (imperfect). Pocomoke and Parsons Beauty are also very good commercial
berries.

Domestic. — Excelsior (perfect). Splendid (perfect), Senator Danlap (perfect),
Lovett (perfect), Bubach (imperfect), Wm. Belt (perfect).

SEEDLING STRAWBERRIES.

Considerable work has been done in testing seedling strawberries, but as yet no
variety has been produced which was thought Worthy of introduction. Of 650 seed-
lings which fruited in 1889, 40 were saved. These have been gradually reduced in
number and of this lot only 6 are still being tested. Most of these are of very good
quality, but lack other characteristics desirable in a commercial berry. In 1897
about 1,400 seedlings were raised from some of the best named varieties. These were
gradually reduced to 34, among which were some of great promise. Last winter these
were practically all v/inter killed. Another lot of seedlings has been. raised and set
out, in the hope of better success.

CULTURAL EXPERIMEXTS WITH STRAWBERRIES.

Experiments have been conducted with strawberries in various methods of planting
and in different systems of culture. It has been found that the matted row system is
more suited to the climatic conditions of Eastern Canada than the hill system, although
by mulching good results may be obtained by growing them in the latter way. The
hill system may be adopted where strawbe^rrics are grown for home use if the plants
are properly looked after, as the fruit is larger when grown in this way. Two bulletins
on the strawberry — No. 5, and No. 27 — have been published, but owing to the demand
for information regarding the strawberry both of these are now out of print.

BLOSSOMING RECORDS OE FRUIT.

The various causes of unfruitfulness in trees has been discussed for many years,
but it is only during recent years that much attention has been given to th^ relation
of the blossoming season of different varieties of fruits to the setting of the fruit-
It had been observed that where varieties were intermingled in an orchard th^re was
generally a better crop than where certain varieties were grown by themselves. In
order to learn the varieties of fruit which blossomed at the sam.e time, so as to furnish
information to intending planters, the following circular was sent to a number of the
leading fruit growers of Canada in 1895 : —

' Dear Sirs — The cause of the unfruitfulness of some varieties of large and small
fruits when planted in large blocks by themselves is now understood to be due to self-

40 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

sterility, complete or partial, causing imperfect pollination and fertilization. Tho
remedy is the intermingling of varieties in the orchard 'for the purpose of securng
cross-fertilization. To obtain the best results the varieties adjacent to each o'.her
should blossom at, or about the same time.

Accurate information with regard to the time of blossoming of the different varie-
ties of fruits is much needed. , Will you assist in securing data on this important
subject ? '

Small pass books, ruled and headed, were sent to each person.

These records were made fcr five consecutive years, and are still being made at
the Experimental Farm. The average result for apples was published in Bulletin No.
37, and for American plums in Bulletin 43. The value of thc?se records can be appre-
ciated when it \* stated that experiments elsewhere covering five years work have shown
that with one exception the American plums were all found to be self-sterile. The
blossoming records, showing that varieties bloom at different times, together with the
fact that some varieties are self -sterile, show the importance of planting near each other
those kinds which bloom at the eame time, in order that maximum crops may be pro-
duced.

VEGETABLES.

Vegetables have received much attention in the Horticultural Division from the
time the work was organized, in 1887, to the present time. Hundreds of varieties
offered for sale by seedsmen have been tested during the past nineteen years, with the
result that it has been possible to recommend concise lists of best vegetables for farm-
ers. The last list was published in the report for 1905, and as there are practically no
changes to make this year it need not be repeated here. Varieties of vegetables are
still tested, but for the most part these consist of the few sorts recommended in the
list of best varieties, with any new ones which are offered for sale.

Following are some of the principal facts recorded regarding different vegetables :

Beans. — Notes have been taken on the time when different varieties were ready
for use; the quality of the beans, and productiveness.

Beets. — Notes have been made on the relative earliness, shape, and colour of flesh
of the different varieties.

Cabhage. — The time when each variety was ready for use, the weight of average
heads, the proportion of plants which headed, the relative freedom from disease are
the principal records which have been made.

Cauliflower. — The cauliflower has received considerable attention. After a
thorough test of most of the varieties offered for sale it was found that more satis-
factory results were obtained from successive sowings of the Extra Early Dwarf
Erfurt than from later varieties. The root maggot is very troublesome in the early
part of the season and often causes the almost total destruction of early cauliflower
plants. Two good methods of protecting the plants have been found. First, by means
of small, tar paper discs which, when carefully put on, lie close to the ground and
prevent the insect from laying her eggs, or prevent them from hatching. Good results
have been obtained by this method, but the disc must be put on well and closely en-
circle the stem. A surer method, and one which may be used by amateurs, both in
growing cauliflower and other crops, is to grow the plants inside a cheesecloth en-
closure. Very good results have been obtained when cauliflowers were grown in this
way.

Carrots. — Notes have been taken on the time when ready for use, and the shape
and general appearance of the variety.

Celery. — Experiments have been tried in growing celery in beds versus rows;
and in hotbeds versus cold frames. While celery may be grown successfully and

REPORT OF THE HORTICUTURIST 41

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

blanched by these special methods, the most economical method under most circum-
stances is growing the celery in rows. The keeping properties of the different varieties
have boon tested, also the quality of the same.

Corn. — The date when ready for use, size of ear, quality, and productiveness have
been the principal notes taken.

Cucumbers. — Notes have been taken on dates when ready for use, length of time
the cucumbers will remain green, yield, and general appearance.

Lettuce. — Different varieties have been tried for forcing in hotbeds, but special
attention has been paid to field culture and notes taken on the time when ready for
use, length of time which the different varieties remained in use, tenderness, and
general characteristics of the variety.

Melons. — Experiments have been tried both in growing melons by planting seed in
the open ground and not using glass; by growing the plants in hotbeds and trans-
planting to the open field, after which no glass was used; by using small frames with
glass, and by using ordinary hotbed sash. While some seasons melons will ripen at
Ottawa if grown in the open air without glass, it is so late that they are not in great
demand. Other years they will not ripen at all. The most satisfactory method is to
sow the seed or plant young plants in the open in hills with hot manure beneath and
keep the plants under glass until July.

Pease. — Notes have been made on the time of being ready for use of the different
varieties, the height of the plants, the length of pods, quality of the peas, and pro-
ductiveness of the different varieties.

Potatoes. — Experiments with potatoes have been numerous, and the results of
these were summed up in Bulletin No. 49 on Potato Culture, by the writer, published
in 1905.

Radishes. — The time of being ready for use, length of time remaining in use,
quality r.nd general appearance of the different kinds have been recorded.

Tomatoes.— The tomato has received much attention owing to its importance and
popularity. Notes on the time of maturing, appearance and productiveness have been
made. Experiments have been tried in pruning, and it has been found that the most
satisfactory method of pruning yet found is pinching out the terminal buds when
tlie young plants have about six leaves, giving the plants more room so that the axil-
lary shoots will develop, and pinching again about a month after setting in the field.

All the other common vegetables have been tested and notes taken on the charac-
teristics of the different varieties.

EXPERIMENTS IN GROWING VEGETABLES IN A CHEESECLOTH ENCLOSURE.

For four seasons experiments have been tried to learn with what success vegetables
could be grown in an inclosure made of cheesecloth, the top, sides and ends of the
framework being completely covered with cheesecloth. It has been found that lettuce,
radish, beans and cauliflower succeed best inside the enclosure and are earlier and
more tender than outside.

The enclosure prevents cauliflowers and radishes from being injured by the root
maggot. The cheesecloth enclosure should be of use in cities and towns where it
is difficult to have a garden owing to the injury done by cats, dogs and even young
children. Vegetables are tenderer, as a rule, than those grown outside. Where the
root maggot is bad the enclosure may be used profitably for growing early cauliflowers.

42 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907
SELECTION OF PEAS, BEANS AND TOMATOES.

During the past seven years an experiment lias been in progress in selecting
garden peas with the object of developing, if possible, earlier and more productive
strains. The results are very encouraging and the effect of selection in regard to in-
crease in yield and ear+iness is quite marked in some cases. A similar experiment
has been carried on with beans for six years, and with tomatoes for three years, with
good results. The quantity of seed from these selections has not been increased much
yet, as the object is to carry on as rigid a selection as possible for several years longer,
and this is best done from single plants. The value of selected seed was especially
marked in tomatoes in 1905, when the Sparks Earliana from seed selected from the
earliest fruit in 1904 yielded more than two and one-half times as much ripe fruit
before August 10, as plants grown from imported seed.

The importance of using homegrown seed if properly ripened, selected and stored,
has been well shown in these selections of peas, beans, and tomatoes.

TOBACCO.

Tobacco has been grown in the Horticultural Division since 1S93, and most of
the varieties offered for sale by American seed houses have been tested. Notes have
been taken on the time of maturing of the different kinds, as it is important to know
those which mature early. Experiments have been conducted in ' topping ' and ' prim-
ing ' and comparisons made between transplanted and not transplanted plants. To-
bacco has also been sent to experts for manufacturing, and the results of these tests
have been published in the Annual Reports.

FUNGOUS DISEASES.

The fungous diseases relating to fruits and vegetables are dealt with by the Horti-
culturist. Many specimens of affected fruits or fruit trees are sent in each year for
identification and for recommendations for treatment, and as far as possible reliable
information has been given. Descriptions of many of the fungous diseases affecting,
fruits and vegetables have been published in the report of the Horticulturist and in
bulletins.

SPRAYT^G.

The spraying of fruits and vegetables to prevent the ravages of insect pests and
fungous diseases has been one of the strong features of the work of the Horti-
cultural Division and from 1890 to the present time every annual report except
one contains th? results of some experimental work in spraying. The principal experi-
ments are herewith summarized: —

1890, experiments with copper carbonate, copper sulphate, and hypo-sulphite of
soda to prevent Apple Spot. The same year 14 combinations of fungicides were tried
to learn what strength could be used without injury to foliage.

1891, experiments to determine the relative efficacy of copper carbonate in suspen-
sion and solution, and an unwashed solution, and the possibility and effect of using
Paris green with these mixtures.

1S92, comparing the efficacy and cost of ammoniaeai copper carbonate and dilute
Bordeaux mixture. Experiments, to prevent Grape Mildew and Anthracnose. Experi-
ments to prevent Gooseberry Mildew, also to prevent the Spot or Blight on the native
plum.

1893, experiments with Bordeaux mixture and ammoniaeai copper carbonate to
prevent Apple Spot. Experiments to try the effect of dilute sulphuric acid on foliage.

1894. experiments were conducted at seven places in Ontario for the prevention
of Apple Spot.

REPORT OF THE EOR'ICUTURIST 43

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

1895, practical demonstrations in spraying were given in tlie province of Quebec,
and experiments against Apple Spot were conducted at two places in Ontario under
the direction of the Horticulturist. Experiments were conducted to determine the
effect of Lysol in preventing Peach Curl.

1896, experiments with various combinations of leading fungicides and insecti-
cides with a view to preventing the cracking of pears, Apple Spot, and the late brood
of Codling Moth.

1897, experiments with Lysol were continued. Use of arsenate of lead against
Codling Moth. Paris green with Bordeaux mixture found as effective as when used
alone. Experiments for the prevention of Peach Leaf Curl, Emit Kot, and Orange
Eust of quince. Various formulas tried to destroy aphis.

1899 — An experiment was tried to prevent the swelling of the buds of apples,
plums, and cherries by spraying the trees with a lime-wash. The effect of this wash
on the oyster shell bark-louse was also noted. In this year the horticulturist assisted
the chemist in an experiment to destroy mustard by spraying with solutions of sulphate
of iron and sulphate of copper.

1900 — Experiments with different formulas of lime-wash were made to test their
effect in eradicating Oyster-shell Bark-louse and San Jose Scale.

1901 — Further experiments in the eradication of Oyster-shell Bark-louse with
lime-washes. Experiments with Bordeaux mixture for the prevention of potato blight.

1902 — Experiments with potassium sulphide to check gooseberry mildew. Spray-
ing potatoes with Bug Death, wet and dry, and with Bordeaux mixture for the pre-
vention of blight.

1903 — Test of dust sprayer. Experiments with different fungicides for potatoes
continued.

1904 — Experiments with Bordeaux mixture, Bordeaux mixture and Bug Death
and Soda Bordeaux, to control potato blight.

1905 — The same fungicides were used for potatoes as in 1904. An experiment
was made in conjunction with the Chemist in making kerosene emulsion with lime
and with flour instead of soap, and trying the effect of these emulsions on foliage
and on aphis.

Spraying calendars prepared by the Horticultvirist and the Entomologist were pub-
lished in 1895, 1897, 1899, and 1904, in which directions are given for making the
different formulas recommended, and the time of spraying for each important disease
and insect pest.

FORESTRY.

The forest belts at the Central Experimental Farm, comprising about 21 acres,
are in the Horticultural Department. In these belts, which contain most of the best
native species used for timber, are growing about 23,000 trees. The trees are in blocks
of single species and in mixed plantations. The first planting was done in 1887.
Measurements are taken each year of the growth and height of certain average trees,
and tables showing these have been pviblished from time to time in the reports of the
horticulturist.

Until the last few years the trees in the mixed plantations were making the most
satisfactory growth, and are still making better growth than some of the trees in
clumps of single species, but the rapid growing kinds are developing so fast in the
mixed belt that they are overshadowing some of the more valuable trees, and those
which cannot endure shade are being killed. To some extent this over shadowing is
prevented by clearing the side branches and letting in more light, and by heading back
some of the trees of less value. In nature the proper proportion of fast and slow
growing shade-enduring and light-needing trees is gradually adjusted as the trees
develop, but in artificial planting it is very difficult to arrange them in proper pro-
portion, especially where a large number of species are used. The fewer kinds that

EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

are used the easier it is to plant the trees in the best proportion of each kind of
tree.

In some of the clumps of single species the disadvantage of not having two or
more kinds mixed is quite as apparent as the disadvantage of having so many kinds
nlixed in the mixed belt. Ash, butternut, black walnut, and elm, which have thin
foliage, do not kill the sod when young, and the growth on this account is checked.
If other heavy foliaged kinds, such as larch, spruce, pine, or box elder, had been mixed
with these the results would almost certainly have been much better.

The forest belts afford many interesting studies of the relative shade-endurance
of different species.

From 1890 to 1894 the distribution of young forest trees, cuttings and scions to
the Western provinces was made through the Horticultural Division, and during that
time 7,213 packages in which were nearly half a million trees and cuttings were dis-
tributed.

ARBORETUM AND BOTANIC GARDEN.

The Arboretum and Botanic Garden which occupies 65 acres of land, has been in
charge of the writer since 1895. In 1898 when he became Horticulturist he was
appointed Curator of it, since which time it has been included in the Horticultural
Division. Previous to 1895 the Arboretum and Botanic Garden had been in charge
of Dr. Jas. Fletcher, Botanist and Entomologist of the Dominion Experimental Farms.
The collection of trees, shrubs, and herbaceous plants is now very large. In the
autumn of 19Q5 there were 3,229 species and varieties of trees and shrubs, represented
by 5,010 specimens ; and 2,041 species and varieties of herbaceous perennials. A num-
ber of these have doubtless been killed by the winter of 1905-06, but the additions
which will be made in 1906, will probably make the number aboiit equal to what it
was in the autumn of 1905. This large collection of plants from many parts of the
world furnishes a valuable object lesson as to the species which will endure the climate
at Ottawa, and also gives a good opportunity for the study of the different species and
varieties.

Notes are recorded annually on the hardiness and vigour of the plants, and in
the case of the herbaceous perennials their time of blooming, continuity of bloom,
colour of flowers and height of plants.

A catalogue of the trees and shrubs in the Arboretum was published conjointly
by the Director and the Horticulturist, in which the scientific names of the trees and
shrubs are arranged alphabetically with many of the common names, and notes on
the relative hardiness of the most of the speciments given. The countries of which
the trees and shrubs are native are also published in this bulletin.

The following articles relating to the plants growing in the Arboretum and Botanic
Garden have been published in the Annual Reports of the Horticulturist.

1898, List of Additional Herbaceous Perennials, (a list of one hundred of the best
had been published in the Annual Report for 1897).

1899, List of Additional Good Perennials. The best low growing shrubs.

1900, A Descriptive List of the Best Woody Climbers.

1901, A Descriptive List of the Different Species and Varieties of Lilacs.

1902, A list of Best Spring Flowering Perennials.

1903, A List of Deciduous Trees, Shrubs and Climbers with Attractive Foliage,
Bark and Fruit.

1904, A List of the Genera of Trees and Shrubs in the Arboretum, with the Num-
ber of Species of each.

REPORT OF TUE HORTICLTURIST 45

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

MEETINGS.

Every year th.^ Horticulturist attends such meetings and exhibitions as are thought
desirable, and during the past nineteen years a large number of places have been visit-
ed in this way. These meetings not only give the Horticulturist an opportunity of
bringing before farmers and fruit growers the results of experiments carried on at
the E.tperimental Farm, but bring him in contact with practical men from whom much
information is obtained which is suggestive for future horticultural work. Covering,
as they do, a wide range of country these ineetings also give the Horticulturist an
excellent idea of the horticultural conditions in different parts of Canada which enables
him to use better judgment than he otherwise would do in assisting fruit growers by
the various means in his power.

Correspondence. — The correspondence of the Horticultural Division, which is
growing steadily, takes considerable time. The fruit growers of Canada are recogniz-
ing more and more every year that the Experimental Farm is a bureau where free infor-
mation can be obtained, hence questions relating to many branches of horticultural
work are received which are dealt with as promptly as possible. The answers to these
questions mean much to many fruit growers, and the information thus made avail-
able free of cost is much appreciated by them, as frequently expressed in letters of
thanks.

PUBLICATIONS OF THE HORTICULTURAL DIVISION.

In addition to the nineteen annual reports by the horticulturist which have been
issued, the following bulletins have been prepared since 1887 : —

No. 5, 'Strawberry Culture,' August, 1889, by W. W. Hilborn (out of print).

No. 10, ' Treatment of Apple Scab, Grape and Gooseberry Mildew,' April, 1891,
by John Craig.

No. 17, ' Cherries,' November, 1892, by John Craig.

No. 22, ' Raspberries,' March, 1895, by John Craig.

No. 23, ' Spraying for the Prevention of Fungous Diseases, Black Knot of the
Plum and Cherry,' April, 1895, by John Craig (out of print).

No. 27, ' Strawberries,' June, 1897, by John Craig (out of print).

No. 37, ' Apple Culture,' April, 1901, by W. T. Macoun (out of print).

No. 43, ' Plum Culture,' July, 1903, by W. T. Macoun.

No. 49, ' The Potato and Its Culture,' April, 1905, by W. T. Macoun.

Bulletin No. 1 (second series), 'Peach Culture in Canada,' by John Craig.

Bulletin No. 2 (second series), 'Catalogue of the Trees and Shrubs in the
Arboretum and Botanic Garden at the Central Experimental Farm,' June, 1899, by
Dr. Wm. Saunders and W. T. Macoun.

16—4

46 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907
MISCELLANEOUS PUBLICATIONS.

Note ISTo. 3, ' Black Knot of the Plum and Cherry.'
Note No. 5, ' Pear Blight'

Note No. 6, ' Spot or Blight of the Native Plum.'
Note No. 7, ' Tomatoes.'
Note No. 8. ' Top Grafting.'

Spraying calendars in 1895, 189Y, 1899 and 1904 by the Horticulturist and thp
Entomologist.

6-7 EDWARD VII.

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

A. 1907

REPORT OF THE CHEMIST.

FRANK T. SHUTT, M.A., F.I.C., F.C.S., F.R.S.C.

Dr. \tM. Saunders, C.M.G.,

Director Dominion Experimental Farms,
Ottawa.

Ottawa, March 31, 1906.

Sin, — I have the honour to submit the accompanying report on the character and
scope of the work of the Chemical Division. It is to be regarded as a brief and popu-
lar account of the various ways in which it has been sought to assist Canadian Agri-
culture by chemical investigation during the past 19 years. The writer has purposely
omitted data and matter of technical character, desiring merely to point out the nature
of the researches undertaken and adding a few illustrations to bring home the practical
value of the work.

I have the honour to be, sir,

Your obedient servant

FRANK T. SHUTT,
Chemist, Dominion Experimental Farms.

THE CHEMICAL DIYISION.

The work in the Chemical Division was begun in the autumn of 1887, soon after
the establishment of the Experimental Farm system. As at first there was no accom-
modation suitable for laboratory purposes at the Central Farm, temporary quarters
were procured and fitted up in the city of Ottawa, and there chemical work was carried
on by iho v.ritcr until June, 1SS9, Vi^hen a removal was made to new laboratories erected
at the Farm. These laboratories occupied, practically, one-half of the general office
and museum building and furnished substantial accommodation for the chemical
work. Experience proved them to be well designed as to convenience, light, etc., for
the class of work intended to be undertaken.

An unfortunate accident, resulting in a disastrous fire, occurred in these
laboratories in July, 1896. The laboratories were completely gutted and, practically,
all the apparatus, tables, etc., destroyed. The most serious loss, however, was in the
records and data in connection with investigations in progress and in the samples of
Canadian soils and agricultural products, the accumulation of nine years. The
laboratories were temporarily fitted up and equipped and work resumed within a few
weeks of the fire, but it was thought desirable to erect a separate and fire-proof build-
ing which would give still better facilities for chemical work, rather than to per-
manently refit the disabled laboratory.

Such a building was finally decided upon and built in 1898. It was ready for
occupation in August, 1899, and since that date has been in use. The building is of
brick with stone basement and trimmings and with pressed brick for the interior
finish. It contains on the main floor two laboratories and offices for the chemist and

16— 4i

47

48 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

assistants; rooms for the storage of samples, and for photographic purposes, on the
second floor, and store rooms for chemicals and apparatus and grinding and milling
rooms in the basement. This building has proved very satisfactory and has, no doubt,
been an important factor in facilitating the work of the Division.

The Staff. — For the past seven years the staff has consisted of the chemist, two
assistant chemists, an assistant in connection with the clerical work of the Division —
acting also as secretary — and a laboratory man to do the grinding, sampling, washing,
etc., and who acts as caretaker of the building.

Both in research work and that done more directly for farmers by analysis and
correspondence, there has been a continued and marked increase since the establish-
ment of the Division. It is due to this fact that it has not been possible for a number
of years to undertake all the investigations thrust upon us. The need for more export
assistance in the laboratory is now very keenly felt and must shortly be supplied
unless we are to very materially restrict our field of usefulness,

THE KELATIONSHIP OF CHEMISTRY TO AGRICULTUEE.

The relationship that exists between chemistry and agriculture is a very intimate
and important one. Modern and progressive agriculture implies and compels the
application of certain principles which have chemistry for their basis. So close, indeed,
is this relationship that some have said that ' up-to-date farming is merely putting
into practice tie teachings of agricultural chemistry.' This does not mean that the
farmer must be a chemist; any intelligent man can understand the application of these
principles without a special study of chemistry. But to-day it is well nigh impossible
to carry on successfully any branch of agriculture, — e.g., stock raising, dairying, fruit-
growing— without an application of that knowledge regarding soils and animals
and plants which chemistry alone furnishes. The requirements of crops and animals,
the constitution and the needs of soils, the most economical means whereby soil fertility
may be maintained, the nature and amounts of fertilizing ingredients in manures, the
relative nutritive value of forage crops and cattle foods, the composition of dairy
products, the constitution and preparation of fungicides and insecticides, and a host
of similar and equally important questions can only be satisfactorily answered through
the aid of chemistry.

THE CHARACTER AND SCOPE OF THE WORK.

In order the better to aid Canadian farming it has been the studied policy from
the outset in all the departments of the Experimental Farm system to keep in touch
with the farmer. By so doing we have had an opportunity not only of rendering im-
mediate and direct assistance^ but also of learning, at first hand, those problems that
are confronting the agriculturist in different parts of the Dominion and which require
what might be termed scientific aid for their solution.

Our work may, therefore, be said to fall under two great subdivisions: education
and investigation, though between these there is naturally no sharp line of demarc-
ation. The channels through which information is chiefly disseminated are as fol-
lows.

CORRESPONDENCE.

Letters are received daily in which questions are asked relating 1o soils and their
treatment; manures and fertilizers, their composition and use; cattle foods; insecti-
cides, dairy products, &c., &c. This branch of our work has steadily grown, and this
fact betokens, I believe, an increasing and fuller appreciation on the part of the prac-
tical farmer of the value of chemical knowledge. The education of the individual is

REPORT OP TEE CHEMIST 49

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

often the necessary preparatory step towards the education of the community, and it is
this belief that has led us to encourage this branch of our work, though frequently it
must be prosecuted at the expense of investigation and research. There is undoubtedly
a keen and widespread desire for accurate information on farming matters and
the Experimental Farm strives to furnish it.

^ LECTURES AXD ADDRESSES.

Undoubtedly a most important part of our work is in the giving of addresses at
agricultural conventions and meetings of farmers. By this means not only is know
ledge disseminated, but we come into personal contact with many of the best farmers,
dairymen, fruit growers, in the Dominion, thus enlisting their co-operation, which is
so necessary for the furtherance of our work. At the same time we have an oppor-
tunity of learning, as we could in no other way, the peculiarities, and possibly the
special difficulties, that may prevail in different parts of the country and which sub-
sequently furnish material for research.

PUBLICATIONS.

A concise account of each year's work, written in language understandable by the
farmer, appears in the Annual Report, nineteen of which have now been issued and dis-
tributed throughout the Dominion. Many of the special investigations are written up
and sent out in bulletin form. These bulletins are issued from time to time as the
researches are completed or brought to such a stage that the results obtained arc
of value to agriculturists. Reference to several of those written by this Division will
be made later when speaking more particularly of the original research we have under-
taken.

Evidence is given yearly before the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Col-
onization of the House of Commons on the work of the Division, and this receives a
limited distribution through the members of the House and is also widely copied by the
press.

In this connection, mention should not be omitted of the valuable agency of the
Canadian press, and especially that devoted to agriculture. The use of their columns
has always been available to us, and this opportunity of quickly reaching the reading
farmer has frequently afforded a valuable means for disseminating knowledge of a
timely character.

SAMPLES SENT IN BY FARMERS FOR EXAMINATION.

In order to make the Division as practically useful as possible we have examined
and reported upon samples of an agricultural nature forwarded by farmers. These
are received from all parts of Canada, and include soils, naturally-occurring fertilizers
--6uch as mucks, marls, seaweed, &c. — forage plants and cattle foods, well waters,
dairy products and insecticides. As far as time permits and occasion demands,
these are examined chemically and microscopically. The greater number of these
can only receive a partial analysis, but in every case we endeavour to make such
determinations as will furnish useful information to the sender. Between 500 and
700 of such samples are received yearly, and an account of those which afford infor-
mation of general interest is given in the annual report.

INVESTIGATIONS AND RESEARCHES.

Naturally, out chief and most important work is in carrying out by the aid of
chemistry such investigations as may serve to solve those problems in Canadian agri-
culture which more or less affect the country in general. In the limited space allotted
to this report it would be quite impossible to mention even briefly the many researches

50 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

that have heen undertaken, much less to state in any detail the results obtained there-
from. All that can be attempted here, therefore, will be an outline of some of the
more important pieces of work completed and in hand that may serve as illustrations,
referring the reader to the various publications of the farm for fuller particulars.

CANADIAN SOILS.

There is probably no factor that plays a more important part towards profitable
farming than a productive soil, and all will admit that the agricultural wealth of a dis-
trict is very largely measured by the nature of its predominating soil. It is obvious,
therefore, that the determination of the agricultural value of a soil (as far as may be
obtained from chemical analysis), and especially of soils from new areas and
those about to be settled, is often a matter of the greatest importance. It is this view
that has led us to examine certain typical and virgin (uncropped and unmanured)
soils of Canada, collecting the samples carefully and as far as possible having them
representative of large areas, so that the results could be made widely useful.

Since 1887 over 200 such samples, comprising surface and subsoils, have been
submitted to complete analysis. Among these are soils from every province in the
Dominion, though naturally the greater number are from Manitoba, Saskatchewan,
Alberta and British Columbia. The results from the first ten years' work in this
matter were incorporated in a paper presented to the meeting of the British Associa-
tion for the Advancement of Science, held in Toronto in August, 1897, and subsequ-
ently printed m extenso in the Experimental Farm Report for that year. From that
date on the work has been published as finished in the report of this Division.

The \vriter is well awa.re that a soil's fertility consists in something more than
its plant food, and has never claimed that a chemical analysis is all that is sufficent
for making a cerrect diagnosis of a soil's crop-producing power. Nevertheless, such
an examination as furnishes the percentage of nitrogen, phosphoric acid, potash and
lime present would show what deficiencies, if any, in the soil elements essential for
plant growth, existed, afford valuable information regarding the suitability of the soil
for various farm crops and indicate the direction in which fertilization may be profit-
ably carried on.

In addition to the usual ' complete soil analysis,' using strong, hot hydrochloric
acid as a solvent, we have since 1894 adopted the Dyer process (solvent: 1 per cent
citric acid) for estimating available plant food. By this method it has been shown
jjossible to obtain, approximately, the proportions of the mineral constituents that
are more or less immediately available for crop growth. The results thus obtained
have been foimd of particular value in diagnosis, especially as regards the immediate
needs of the soil.

As it is quite impossible here to review this work on Canadian virgin soils without
omitting very much that is essential to a correct judgment of their value, it must suffice
to record the fact that we have obtained ample proof that large areas are to be found
in almost every province covered with virgin soil containing an abundance of those
materials which crops draw upon directly, and farm animals indirectly, for their
sustenance and growth. This is particularly the case in the provinces constituting
what is known as the great Northwest of Canada, where undoubtedly exist some of
the richest soils in the world. It would seem that thousands upon thousands of acres
of magnificent soil yet await the husbandman in that part of the Dominion.

Naturally, there are many classes or types of soils in Canada. Among them, of
course, some that are of medium fertility, some poor, others very poor. Perhaps
it is to those occupying' lands of only moderate productiveness that our work in this
connection has been the most useful, since we have always laid special stress upon
the most economical means of increasing soil fertility.

REPORT OF THE CHEMIST 51

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

THE IMPROVEMENT OP MUCK SOILS.

Large deposits of swamp or black muck occur in Ontario and the eastern pro-
vinces, as well as in British Columbia. The reclamation of these swamps and the
conversion of the muck into a fertile soil are consequently matters of considerable
importance, though not infrequently found to be problems of great difficulty.
Thorough drainage is, of course, necessary at the outset to get rid of the excess of
water and allow aeration, indispensable for correcting the sourness so characteristic
of the native muck. The settling also that follows drainage vastly improves its
mechanical condition.

For the past twelve years experiments ha.-e been conducted in connection with
the improvement of such soils, and our experience goes to show that while
the same general principles are applicable to all, a considerable amount of experi-
mental or trial work must be done on the area about to be reclaimed before the most
effective method can be ascertained. Our experiments have included : (1) the addi-
tion of sand and clay, singly and together. Many mucks by this treatment have been
converted into excellent loams, the improvement apparently being largely due to
the mechanical alteration of the soil ; (2) The addition of the mineral constituents of
plant food — potash, phosphoric acid and lime. These have been applied in the form
of potash salts (muriate, &c.) and phosphates, separately and in admixtures. Wood
ashes also have been tried, as well as simple dressings of lime. Most encouraging
results in the majority of instances have been obtained from thus supplying the lack-
ing mineral elements, and especially from the application of those mixtures which by
their alkalinity serve to neutralize the muck's acidity; (3) An application of stable
manure or good loam. Although muck is practically organic matter and is rich in
nitrogen, it has been found that at the outset (and after the drainage and settling of
the muck) such an application has proved very beneficial. This, we conclude, is due
rather to the introduction of desirable soil bacteria than to the small amounts of
plant food thus supplied.

THE VALUE OF LEGUMES FOE THE IMPROVEMENT OF SOILS.

If the crop-producing power of a soil is to be maintained or increased, due regard
must be given to cultivation, rotation and manuring. These are the means whereby
a favourable physical texture is assured and a supply of immediately assimilable
plant food is obtained. In connection with the last mentioned of these factors, this
Division has been specially engaged for the past fifteen years on the study of the
legumes- as soil enrichers. Almost every possible phase of the subject has been in-
veetigated.

The particular value of the legumes (clover, alfalfa, peas, beans, &c.), for
manurial purposes lies in the fact that they are able to appropriate and store up free
nitrogen from the atmosphere. This they are enabled to do through the agency or
co-operation of certain germs or bacteria present in the soil, and which attaching
themselves to the roots of the legumes form thereon nodules or tubercles in which they
subsequently reside. The nitrogen of the air in the soil is absorbed by these germs,
elaborated into nitrogenous compounds and passed on to the circulation and tissues of
the host plant — the legume. On turning the crop under, the natural decomposition
that follows enriches the soil in compounds that will, under favourable climatic in-
fluences, subsequently furnish nitrogen in forms available for plant growth, and thus
increase in the yield of succeeding crops. The benefit to be derived from green
manuring ' (as this use of the crop is termed) is not confined to this addition to the
soil's nitrogen content — there is the production of a large amount of humus-forming
material with all its valuable functions, chemical and physical, and the setting free in
a pre-digested form of considerable amounts of the mineral constituents of plant food.

52 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

Voluminous data Lave been obtained as to tbe relative values of the more com-
monly grown legumes as fertilizers from the standpoint of their nitrogen-content.
The list includes Common Ked Clover, Crimson Clover, Alfalfa, Hairy Vetch or Sand
Vetch, Peas, Soja Beans and English Horse Beans. In this work, in addition to the
analyses, the weights per acre were also taken of the foliage and of the roots (to a
depth usually of 9 inches) separately, so that the manurial value of the roots could
be estimated when the crop was cut and cured. The reader is referred to the reports
of this Division and to a bulletin issued in 1902 by the Director and the writer entitled
' Clov*3r as a Fertilizer,' for further details of this valuable research. It may be briefly
stated, however, that the evidence shows that from 75 to 150 lbs. of nitrogen per acre
can be added to the soil by this means of ' green manuring.'

Experiments of a somewhat more direct nature than the foregoing have a^so been
made, viz. : the analysis of the soil before and after the growing of clover. The results
are of a very satisfactory character, indicating that a very large proportion of the
nitrogen-holding organic matter from the turned under clover becomes part and parcel
of the soil.

The value of clover as a fertilizer has also been ascertained by determining the
increase of yield of various farm crops following the growth and turning under
of clover. Many series of such experiments have been made during the past fourteen
years under the immediate supervision of the Director. These field tests have confirmed
in the most emphatic manner the results obtained by chemical research and have
proved beyond dispute the great benefit to be derived from the legumes as soil enrichers.

INOCULx\TION FOR THE GROWTH OF LEGUMES.

For several years we carried on experiments, both in pots and in the field, with
cultures or preparations of these nitrogen-fi:sing bacteria, using both seed and soil
inoculation. At first the cultures prepared in Germany, and known as Nitragin, were
tested. It was shown that in certain instances the cultures had distinctly favoured
the growth of the legumes, but their action was more or l^s uncertain, and we con-
cluded that there was not sufiicient evidence to justify us in recommending this pre-
paration for general use. These cultures (there being at that time 17 in all upon the
market) were found particularly susceptible to light and heat, and under the best con-
ditions of preservation their vitality could only be guaranteed for six weeks from the
date of preparation. It was felt, therefore, that the matter was still in the experi-
mental stage and that further investigation and more satisfactory results would be
necessary before the process could be considered one of practical utility.

More recently, the new cultures of Dr. George T. Moore, of the Bureau of Plant
Industry, "Washington, D.C., U.S., have been tried. These it was claimed were more
potent and less susceptible to unfavourable conditions than the German cultures by
reason of special modification in the method employed in their preparation. Our
results were not, on the whole, satisfactory, and though in certain instances larger
yields were obtained from the inoculated crop than from the untreated crop grown
under similar conditions of soil and climate, the effect was either so uncertain or so
slight that we did not feel justified in reporting favourably on the cultures for general
use. It is quite possible, however, that in eertain isolated areas inoculation is valuable
in inducing a more vigorous growth of clover and alfalfa. For such areas we believe
that the most direct and surest plan is to secure soil containing the bacteria, i.e.,
from a field that has recently grown clover or alfalfa, and either to broadcast it oni
the field to be treated, and thoroughly harrow in, or to place the bacteria-holding soil
in a vessel (tub or barrel) and pour on water. After stirring and allowing to stand
a little time, decant the supernatant soil extract and thoroughly moisten therewith
the seed of the legume. This treated seed should be sown as soon as it is sufficiently
dried.

REPORT OF THE CHEMIST 53

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Experience and observation have led us to conclude that inoculation is not so
generally necessary as is claimed by some authorities. If we may judge from the
occurrence of nodules, it is certain that the nitrogen-fixing bacteria are by no means
restricted to small or isolated areas. In the eastern provinces and in Ontario and
British Columbia, at all events, we believe that failures to obtain a good catch of
clover have been due rather to deficiency of moisture, poverty in humus, sourness,
insufficient drainage or an unsuitable mechanical condition of the soil, than to the
absence of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria.

CONSERVATION OF SOIL MOISTURE.

Concurrently with much of the experimental work in connection with the value
of legumes for soil enrichment, the effect of various methods of cultivation upon the
soil's moisture content has been ascertained. The determinations have been carried
on with several classes of soil and under various conditions of season on the Experi-
mental Farms, Ottawa, Ont. ; Nappan, N.S.; Brandon, Man.; and Indian Head, Sask.
The experiifients in the North-west demonstrated the value of summer-fallowing in
conserving moisture for the succeeding crop, and those conducted in Ontario a^f^ the
eastern provinces have given data of particular value for the management of orchard
soils.

NATURALLY-OCCURRING FERTILIZERS.

The reports of this Division abound in analyses of muck, marls, river and tidal
deposits, sea-weed, and many other materials of fertilizing yalue found in various
parts of Canada. The information furnished with regard to their value and rational
uses has, we believe, assisted many farmers in the economical improvement of their
land.

PRESERVATION OF BARNYARD MANURE.

We have undertaken to estimate the losses that follow upon various methods of
preserving manure, under summer and winter conditions respectively. These losses
may arise from two causes, fermentation — which means destruction of organic matter
and dissipation of nitrogen — and leaching, whereby the stores of soluble plant food,
both organic and mineral, are materially lessened by drainage.

The details of the first series of experiments were published in the report of this
Division for 1898 and in Bulletin No. 31. The extent of the loss was found to be
dependent upon the conditions of rotting the manure and the degree and the length
of time in rotting. Undoubtedly, if manure cannot be put while fresh into the soil
the ideal arrangement is to keep it in a moist, compact pile, protected from rain.
Thus, in an open shed, mixed horse and cow manure, lost during three months exposure
60 per cent of its total organic matter (humus-forming material), 30 per cent of its
total nitrogen, and 22 per cent of its total potash, and 8 i)er cent of its total phosphoric
acid. Similar manure, but protected by being kept in a roofed shed, lost during the
same period 50 per cent of its total organic matter and 15 per cent of its total nitrogen,
the phosphoric acid and potash suffering no loss, as there was no leaching. Though for
certain specific purposes rotted manure has undoubtedly advantages over fresh manure,
it must be pointed out that for general farm purposes the losses in rotting outweigh
the benefits therefrom. The safest storehouse for manure is the soil, and we, there-
fore, unhesitatingly say that the farmer who gets his manure while still fresh into
the soil returns to it for the future use of his crops much more plant food than he

54 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD Vll., A. 1907

■would if he allowed the manure to accumulate in piles that receive little or no care
and which, therefore, must waste by excessive fermentation or leaching, or both.

While ground gypsum (land plaster) can undoubtedly be used with benefit in the
stable to absorb or fix the ammonia so readily and rapidly formed from the urine, our
experiments would make it apparent that when added directly to the manure pile, its
action in preventing loss of nitrogen is extremely feeble.

The question is frequently asked: if manure spread upon the field dries before it
is ploughed under, what loss, if any, is there of its nitrogen? Experiments conducted
to ascertain information on this point showed conclusively that when manure is
spread in thin layers and allowed to dry out, fermentation is rapidly arrested, and that
the loss from volatilization of the ammonia is very small and may be disregarded unless
the manure is in a state of exceedingly active fermentation when spread upon the field.

The most recent experiments in the preservation of manure have been those under-
taken to learn what changes or losses occur during the winter months when manure
is piled in, large heaps (about 12 tons) and small heaps (about 600 lbs.) respectively.
The results from this series are not yet ready for publication, but it may be stated that
the data furnish most satisfactory evidence that there is no appreciable loss so long
as the method of piling and the temperature ensure that the manure remains frozen
Under ihe climatic conditions prevailing at the time when the experiment was begun
(January) the fermentation of the manure in the smaller heaps was immediately
arrested, the manure freezing solid within 24 hours. In the larger heaps, however,
fermentation was only temporarily checked on the outside, and after a few days pro-
ceeded with vigour, resulting in great loss of humus and nitrogen.

If, on the other hand, when the large heap is made by daily additions, and the
temperature is such that each application of manure is frozen before the succeeding
one is put on, no fermentation ensues. The frost gradually left the heap as spring
advanced, but at the time when it was considered desirable to spread the manure there
had been no heating.

FOKAGE CEOP: GRASSES, RAPE, INDIAN CORN, ETC.

The relative value from the feeding standpoint, of the larger number of the
native and introduced grasses has been ascertained. The analyses, in all about 200,
have enabled us also to advise as to the stage of growth or period at which grasses
should be cut for hay, for we have traced by chemical means the general changes
that take place in their composition as they approach maturity. In the majority
of instances the fact was well brought out that there was a serious deteriora-
tion during the latter stages of the plant's life, pointing to the desirability of cutting
before the seed has been fully ripened. Examination of many native grasses from
the prairies of Manitoba and the Northwest showed that they were highly nutritious
and that the naturally cured grasses possessed valuable feeding qualities.

A very thorough study of the chemistry of the Indian corn plant as grown for
the silo has been made. This work extended over several seasons and included the
examination of several varieties (both Dent and Flint), the determination of the
changes in food value at several stages in the plant's growth, ^d the effect of sowing
broadcast, and in drills and in hills. Many lessons of practical value are to be learnt
from the results of this investigation, e.g., the desirability of planting varieties that
will siifficiently mature before frost; the necessity of plenty of room, both above and
beiow ground,- for the steady, vigorous development of the plant — and hence the folly
of sowing broadcast; the benefit to be derived by allowing the corn to come to the
'glazing' stage before cutting. These, and many other points of practical interest,
were brought out by this research.

In much the same way the life history of rape, sugar beets and other crops has
been followed up, sometimes with the view of tracing the feeding value at various

REPORT OF THE CHEMIST 55

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Stages of growth; at others, to ascertain the extent to which the crop exhausted the
land and afford data for a rational treatment of the soil with manures and fertilizers.

SUGAE BEETS.

Since the establishment of the Experimental Farms we have, season by season, esti-
mated the sugar content and "purity" of varieties of sugar beet specially grown for fac-
tory purposes. The examination has included beets grown in every province in the
Dominion. It is impossible to generalize in a sentence or two the voluminous data we
have accumulated — the season, the seed, the soil, and the culture, each has its marked
effect on the richness and purity of the beet. It may be stated, however, that ample
evidence, has been placed on record that beets eminently suited for factory purposes
can.be grown in many parts of Canada.

CANADIAN CEREALS.

The growth of Red Eife in the Canadian Northwest has earned for the Domin-
ion the enviable reputation of being one of the finest wheat-producing countries
in the world. Admitting the very high quality of the flour from the Fife wheats,
both red and white, there remains an important field for experimentation in the pro-
duction of earlier ripening varieties, better suited to northern portions characterized
by a short season. This, and similar problems, led to a large amount of careful woit
being done in the breeding of wheats, work commenced in the early days of the experi-
mental farm by Dr. Wm. Saunders and his associates, and in later years continued
imder the charge of Dr. C. E. Saunders, Cerealist. Concurrently with this research
chemical and physical analyses have been made of the cross-bred wheats so originated,
principally with the view of tracing from the composition of the wheat the effect of
cross-breeding and of environment or soil and climatic conditions. The results have
proved of considerable assistance in discriminating "between the many wheats pro-
duced from the work of hybridization.

There has also been a hope that the investigations with wheats and flours in the
laboratory might lead to the establishment of some chemical basis for determining
the bread-making value of a flour that might accord more closely than is now possible
with the results from milling and baking tests. The publications of this Division show
that certain data of an encouraging nature have been obtained, but it must be admitted
that this difficult problem has not yet been satisfactorily solved.

The occurrence or dtive'opment of soft or piibald wheat in ceitain dis!r!cts of the
Northwest, and more particularly on new land recently cleared of scrub, is a matter
regarding which there has been much controversy. The cause of this development of
starchy grains is not at present understood, and many theories have been advocated
to account for this deterioration. It seems in some way to be the result of environ-
ment, i.e., soil and climatic influences, and connected with the growth and riponing of
the wheat plant. A series of experiments has been instituted (and is now in progress)
in the hope of obtaining some light upon the peculiar conditions that bring about the
changes, and already results of great interest have been secured, indicating that a
large supply of soil moisture, especially when associated with an abundance of
available food, is an important factor in producing this piebald wheat.

THE INFLUENCE OF SMUT PREVENTIVES ON THE WHEAT GERM.

With a view to determining the relative feeding value of Canadian grown cereals,
inimerous analyses of oats, barley, emmer, spelts, rye, and buckwheat have been made,
and in this connection it may be mentioned that the composition of a large number of

56 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

milling by-products has been determined — there being a great demand on the part of
dairymen and farmers for information on this subject. The number of such feeds
upon the market is constantly on the increase — some are valuable, and again others are
worthless. The chief difficulty lies in that a mere inspection very frequently can give
no indication of their value.

The action of smut preventives, chiefly solutions of copper sulphate and formalin,
on the vitality of wheat has been investigated. This is a matter of great interest and
importance to the farmer in the Northwest, who is very anxious to have his seed grain
clean and free from smut without having its vitality to any extent impaired. It would
seem that of the many solutions, of varying strength, experimented with, the two
following are best worthy of recommendation: Copper sulphate 1 lb. to 8 gallons, and
formalin 4| ozs. to 10 gallons, the treatment being thorough sprinkling or immersion
for five minutes, drying the grain and sowing as soon as possible.

INVESTIGATIONS EELATING TO DAIRYING.

These have included chiefly examinations of butter-making processes, of apparatus
for the testing of milk and butter, and the analysis of Canadian cheese and creamei^y
butter.

Illustrations of the application of chemistry to dairying are given in the follow-
ing recent bulletins by this Division and issued from the Dairy Commissioner's Branch:
Bulletin No. 4, giving the analysis of 105 samples of Canadian creamery butter .and
furnishing evidence that as regards percentage of water such butters are well within
the limit allowed by English and Canadian law.

Bulletin No. 6, containing the results of investigations as follows : The examina-
tion of milk preserved by hydrogen peroxide; a critical study of the butter-making
process of James Estep ; the composition of ' milk powder ' from the evaporation of
whey; the volatile acid content of fat from 2-year old cheese, and the testing of
recently devised apparatus for the determination of water in butter.

Bulletin No. 8, in which are given the data from a series of experiments under-
taken to determine the principal factors that control the water-content of butter.

The enumeration of these titles may serve to make clear the character of this
work and the many and important ways in which chemistry has assisted Canadian
dairying.

THE CHARACTEK AND CAUSES OF SOFT PORK.

Of the qualities necessary for first class export bacon, firmness is the highest in
importance. A tendency to softness seriously reduces the price in the English market,
and if pronounced may altogether make the bacon unsaleable at a profit. As a certain
proportion of the pigs received at the Canadian packing houses produced ' soft '
bacon, it became highly desirable some years ago to investigate the cause and, if pos-
sible, suggest a remedy. An investigation was, therefore, undertaken which lasted
three years. It was made as comprehensive as possible, and included a large
number of feeding tests. The bacon from these pigs (in all, over 300) was criti-
cally examined and subsequently submitted to analysis— it having been shown at an
early stage in the research that chemical analysis furnished data of a very satisfactory
nature as to the character of the fat. The softer the bacon the larger proportion of
olein in its fat. Bulletin No. 38 (Experimental Farm Series) gives an exhaustive
account of these experiments and the results obtained, and it will, therefore, only be
necessary here to say that it was found that the one great controlling factor in the
quality of the finished pork lies in the character of the food employed; that Indian
corn meal and bean meal cannot be fed in large proportions without injuring the
quality of the pork, i.e., increasing the softness of the fat; and thirdly, no better*

REPORT OF TEE CHEMIST 57

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

corrective for softness was found than skim milk, the addition of which to the grain
ration also tended to thriftiness and rapid growth.

The results of this research cannot be condensed into a few paragraphs and, there-
fore those interested in the subject are referred to the publication above mentioned.
It is gratifying to know that the packers state that the percentage of ^ soft ' hogs has
materially decreased since the dissemination of the results of this investigation.

INVESTIGATIONS KELATIVE TO FEUIT GROWING.

In this field the work has been exceedingly varied. Thus, we have fully studied
the chemistry of the apple, strawberry, and some other fruits with a view of learning
their particular needs and the rate at which they may exhaust the soil of plant food.
Again, much time has been given to the matter of fungicides and insecticides — their
preparation and safe application. Finally, in the management of orchard soils much
information of value has resulted from experiments with cover crops as to enrich-
ment of the soil and the conservation or dissipation of its moisture.

WELL WATERS FROM FARM HOMESTEADS, CREAMERIES AND

CHEESE FACTORIES.

Samples of this character have been analys2d free of charge (*) with the object
of awakening an interest in pure water. The importance, indeed the necessity, of a
good supply of wholesome water has been annually urged upon the farming community
and the danger, both to the family and the stock, from polluted water repeatedly
pointed out. As a result of this campaign there is now-a-days much greater care and
attention given to the rural water supply, and ba kdoor and barnyard wells are being
abandoned for more distant and purer sources. More than two thousand samples have
been analysed since the opening of the laboratories, and though the results may have
little scientific value, the work has been of great practical importance and benefit.

In bringing to a conclusion this hasty view of the work of the Chemical Division
during the past nineteen years, the reader is again reminded that this is not a con-
densed or concise report of all that has been accomplished, it is rather to be considered
as a presentation of certain illustrations which should be representative of the charac-
ter and scope of the chemical work. There seems to be no branch of agriculture that
cannot be assisted by chemistry and the aim has constantly been to attack those practi-
cal problems which appeared most pressing, leaving aside for the time those researches
of more purely scientific interest. The field has been found to be wide and varied and
though much has been done, much more remains to do. It has been, and is, a work of
national importance and we venture to say that the progress of Canadian agriculture
will in a large measure be proportionate to the continued aid given by the chemical
and other scientific branches of the agricultural reseach institutions of the Domiuicn.

* Certain directions (supplied on application) must be followed in the collection and ship-
ment of the sample and express charges prepaid.

6-7 EDWARD VII. SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 A. 1907

REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST.

James Fletcher, LL.D., F.K.S.C, F.L.S.

Ottawa, April 1, 1906.
Dn. William Saunders, C.M.G.,

Director of the Dominion Experimental Farms,
Ottawa.

Sir, — I have the honour to hand you herewith an interim report for the four
months which have passed since the date of my last annual report, until the beginning
of the present new fiscal year.

The time of the officials in the Division of Insects and Plants was given, neces-
sarily at that time of the year, to office work and addressing agricultural meetings. The
first thing to be attended to was the preparation of the annual report for the year end-
ing November 30, 1905. This together with the correspondence took the whole time of
tlic staff until the Christmas holidays. Subsequent to that time the usual routine of
the Division for that season of the year was carried on vigorously. This is the time
of the year when the collections of the previous season and specimens received from
correspondents and other outside sources have to be mounted and arranged.

COLLECTIONS.

The collections in the Division, both of insects and plants, have been considerably
increased, and during the past winter many additions have been put in place. Th^
botanical collections are in the charge of Mr. J. A. Guignard and Mr. Arthur Gibson
is the curator of the entomological specimens.

1.. Insects. — Much progress has been made in arranging the entomological cabinets.
The large and important family of Noctuidae, the caterpillars of many of which are
the injurious cutworms, so well known to farmers, is now very well represented in our
cabinets, and with the assistance of correspondents in all parts of Canada, added to
special efforts of the officers, this collection is now a most valuable source of reference
to those who wish to know the appearance of the moths which produce these caterpillars
which every year in some part of Canada are the cause of so much loss to farmers and
gardeners. This collection too is rendered very much more serviceable for this purpose
by the large number of larvs) it now contains skilfully inflated by Mr. Arthur Gibson.
Frequent reference is also made to the collections by students, more of whom every
day arc becoming interested in the important study of insects, a knowledge of which
has saved so much to growers of crops and flowers. As in previous years many speci-
mens of insects have been sent in by students for identification. This is a useful part
of our work by v.'hich not only is the study of entomology h-?lped, but much useful
information is gained as to the distribution of species, and many acceptable specimens
are secured for our cabinets.

2. Plants. — A large number of new sheets of mounted specimens of plants havo
lieen put into their places in the Herbarium, and good progress has been made in push-
ing forward a card index of the collection, in which each specimen is recorded, giving
t«ie name, the place and date of collection, and the name of the collector, or contri-
butor. A separate collection has also been made, for use at farmers' institute meetings
or for easy reference by visitors, of the weeds and weedy plants of" Canada. The col-
lection of weed seeds has also been re-arranged and although the cabinet in

69

60 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

whicli they are contained is a small one, the collection is now fairly com-
plete and of great value in the work of the Division. There are represented the
seeds of nearly all the Canadian we^ds which are troublesome in crops and also of
those plants which it is thought may at some time become so. In addition we have a
good representation of those seeds of dangerous plants which are occasionally found
in crop seeds imported into the country through the regular channels of commerce,
either with other seeds, in packing used for merchandise, or even intentionally as plants
to be cultivated for the beauty of their flowers, or for food. These two last named
classes are by no means unimportant as will be amply illustrated by the fact that
Piirslane (Portulaca oleracea, L.) is extensively used in France as a pot herb, as well
Crantz) is much used in Germany for the sake of the copious mucilage on the seeds,
as the Dandelion {Taraxacum officinale, Weber), and False Flax {Gamelina saliva.
The seeds of all of these plants have been imported into this country for domestic
use; while the Orange Hawkweed (Hieracium aurantiacum, L.), the Cypress Spurge
(Euphorhia Cyparissias, L.) and the Cow Cockle (Saponaria Vaccaria, L.) have all
been grown as garden plants, the first two being commonly planted in cemeteries from
which they have escaped and become very troublesome weeds in some districts. The
last named is an abundant and troublesome weed in the grain fields of the prairie
provinces to which it was probably introduced, mixed with flax seeds. This collection
of weed seeds has been of frequent use in the Division in showing visitors the appear-
ance of weed seeds with which they were not familiar, and also to the ofiicials of the
Division in identifying the very large number of weed seeds which are sent in for
identification and report by seedsmen, farmers, and others. The seeds of each separate
species are cleaned and placed in 8 oz. screw-necked bottles, together with some of the
perfect and unbroken pods or seed heads as they occur in nature. Care is also taken
to have in each sample, seeds in various stages of ripeness, so as to show the difference
between plump, mature seeds and shrivelled unripe ones. Wliere seeds vary consider-
ably in appearance, two or more bottles are given to a species and each bottle is label-
led with the name of the plant represented, the locality and date where collected and
also the name of the collector, or the origin of the seeds. The various species are
arranged alphabetically by their botanical names in the various natural orders of
plants.

CORRESPONDENCE.

The correspondence of the Division during the four months covered by this report
shows that from December 1, 1905, to March 31, 1906, the number of letters, exclusive
of circulars, was as follows : Received 990, and despatched, 895.

MEETINGS.

December 14, 1905 : Richmond, Que. — The Pomological and Fruit-growing Society
of the Province of Quebec held their annual meeting on the above date, and the
Entomologist attended and delivered two addresses on ' The Injurious Insects of 1905
in the Province of Quebec,' and ' House Plants, their care and propagation.'

January 5, 1906 : Lindsay, Ont. — Collegiate Institute lecture course : ' Nature
Study and Natural Histor3\'

January 10 to 12. — Ottawa, the Dominion Forestry Convention. This important
and successful meeting was attended by the officers of the Division, and a plea made
for the study of forest entomology.

January 14 to March Y. — The Entomologist and Botanist left Ottawa immediately
after the Forestry Convention, and took part in the work of the Seed Selection Special
train, which traversed all the lines of railway in Manitoba and the Northwest Pro-
vinces, holding one-hour meetings at all the more important wheaT-.shippiug points.
The lecturers treated of those subjects which it was thought would be of the greatest
use in helping farmers to overcom.e some of the obstacles which had prevented them

REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 61

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

from getting the fullest returns for their labours from the bounteous crops of the past
few years. This subject is treated of more fully further on in this report.

APIARY.

There is little work to be done in the apiary during the period covered by this
report, as the bees are hibernating in their winter quarters. The work is still in the
hands o'f J\rr. John Fixter, who gives much information to visitors who come to the
Central Experimental Farm for advice concerning all matters conected with the keep-
ing of bees.

NEW FISCAL YEAR.

It is now almost twenty years since the Dominion Experimental Farms were
established, and as the change in the dates of the limits of the fiscal year will for the
future agree with the summer or working season for out-door investigation, the obser-
vations of the tcurrent season will be reported upon in the next report. For the above
reason the present time would seem a convenient occasion to look back over the work
which has been done in this Division since its organization. I therefore submit here-
with a short resume of what has been done since the Division was entrusted to me- on
July 1, 1887. Great progress has been made in the practical application of the sciences
cf entomology and botany to the requirements of the agriculturist and fruit-grower
in these two decades, and I trust that it may be considered by Canadians that the
results obtained in the Division of Entomology and Botany of the Dominion Experi-
mental Farms may compare favourably with those secured at similar institutions in
other parts of the world.

I have the honour to be, sir, your obedient servant,

JAMES FLETCHER,

Entomologist and Botanist.

DIVISION OF ENTOMOLOGY AND BOTANY.

THE PROGRESS OF PRACTICAL ENTOMOLOGY IN CANADi

The first record we have of a systematic effort in Canada to make known the
habits of injurious insacts was in 1856, when the Bureau of Agriculture for Upper
and Lower Canada offered three prizes of £40, £25 and £15 for the best essays on the
' Origin, Nature and Habits, the History of the Progress from Time to Time, and the
Cause of the Progress of the Weevil, Hessian Fly, Midge and such other insects as
have made ravages on the wheat crops in Canada; also on such diseases as the wheat
crops have been subjected to, and on the best means of evading or guarding against
them.' Twenty-two essays were submitte<l, and the first prize was awarded to Prof.
H. Youle Hind, of Trinity College, Toronto, and the second to the Pev. George Hill,
of Markham, Ontario. These essays were published by the government and widely
distributed.

Practicnl or applied ciituniulogy, as a recognized branch of agriiculture and horti-
culture, may be said only to have had its beginning in Canada in 18G5, when the Hon.
George Brown engaged the Rev. C. J. S. Bethune to write a series of articles on
insects for regular publication in The Canada Farmer, a paper publi.shed in Toronto.
This scries was continued for eight years, and gave a large amo\int of information
upon noxious and beneficial insects to the farmers and fruit growers of the countrj'.
In 1868 appeared the first number of the Canadian Entomologist, now so well known

16—5

62 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

G-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1£07

all over the world as a carefully edited magazine of accurate information on scientific
end economic entomology. Ever since that date it has been issued regularly under
the able editorship of the Rev. C. J. S. Bethune, or Dr. William Saunders, now the
Director of the Dominion Experimental Farms system.

The next conspicuous landmark in the progress of applied entomology was in
1870 when the Agricultural and Arts Association of Ontario voted a sum of $400 to the
Entomological Society of Ontario, which had been founded in 1S62, on the condition
that they would ' Publish an annual report and form a cabinet of insects useful or
prejudical to agriculture and horticulture, to be placed at the disposal of the Asso-
ciation.' The Entomological Society of Ontario accepted the grant and has since
that time faitlifvilly carried out the conditions, and has continued the work in a most
successful manner in tracing out the life-histories of noxious and beneficial insects
and devising and making known practical remedies for the former. It has also pub-
lished every year from 1871 an mvaluable report upon occurrences of the injurious
insects which were of most importance as affecting the welfare of the province. The
first of these reports entitled ' The Eirst Annual Report on the Noxious Insects of the
Province of Ontario,' was prepared by Rev. C. J. S. Bethune, Mr. William Saunders,
then of London, and Mr. E. Bayiies Reed. All of these investigators have from
that time to the present day continued their useful labours on behalf of the society
and the country at large.

In 1883, Dr. William Saunders's useful work on ' Insects Injurious to Fruits ' was
published and from that time to the present it has held the first place as a iiseful
manual of accurate scientific information and practical advice to all who may require
to know about the insects which attack fruits of all kinds. This work is a model of
simply expressed facts prepared for the use of those who have no special scientific
training. A second edition appeared in 1892.

Up to 1883, there was no official entomologist connected with the Federal Govern-
ment, but in that year, the writer was requested by the Minister of Agriculture, the
ITonoi;rable J. IT. Pope, to examine for the department a large collection of seeds and
other produce which had been returned from the Philadelphia Exhibition. These were
found to be infested by weevils and other insects which it was thought might be intro-
duced into the country in that way. In the same year the writer was asked to act as
honorary entomologist to the department. In 1884 the title of Dominion Entomologist
was conferred on him and a short report was published on the investigations of ravages
committed by insects among farm and garden crops and on fruit and forest trees.
In 1884 the Dominion Entomologist made, at the instance of the Minister of Agricul-
ture, a visit to the ISI'orthwest Territories, to examine into the condition of the crops
and to note any injuries by insects. In 1885, the following year, he also went to British
Columbia and spent two months on Vancouver Island investigating injurious insects.

While there he met farmers and fruit growers and addressed them upon the
insect enemies of their crops. The work of this season was published as a separate
report of 51 pages. This report was drawn tip in much the same form as those which
the writer has had the honour of submitting year by year since that time, as Ento-
mologist and Botanist to the Dominion Experimental Farms, a position to which he
was transferred from the Library of Parliament on July 1, 1887.

Since the time of that appointment there has been a remarkable advance in flie
knowledge, not only of the scientific study of insects, but in its practical application
to the requirements of all lines of business ; but most particularly to horticulture, and
agriculture, which latter has been styled ' the oldest of the arts and the most recent of
the sciences.' At the present day it may be said that any farmer, M'hatever his special
line of work may be, who knows nothing of the sciences which deal with insects and
plants, is very poorly equipped to make a success of his calling. It is not suggested
that it would be well for a farmer or fruitgrower to be a scientific entomologist or
botanist unless he had a special bent of mind in that direction; but it is claimed that
an accurate knowledge of the nature and habits, including the time of development

REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AXD BOTANIST 63

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

through their various stages, both of the common noxious insects and of plants which
may become weeds, is a specially valuable equipment for every one engaged in the
cultivation of crops of all kinds.

GEXKIJAI, WORK OF THE DIAISIOX.

Ever since the organization of the Division of Entomology and Botany, an object
of special effort has been to convey in the simplest and plainest language to farmers
and others for whose benefit all of the investigations are carried on, such results of
our work as are considered valuable and worthy of publication. In order that these
results and any suggestions made might be practical, no opportunity has been lost of
testing personally any remedy or implement recommended for use, and a special feature
from which such success as has been attained is largely due, has been the enlisting of
the empathies and securing the co-operation of practical farmers and horticulturists
all over the country. It is manifest that none are so likely to take notice of the results
of any treatment suggested as those who are actually concerned in a monetary way,
in the success or failure of experiments. Many original investigations into the life-
histories of injurious insects have been carried on every year since the work began,
and much of value has undoubtedly been learnt; but what is perhaps of more value is
that concise accoxnits of the various insect pests and of the best treatment for noxious
weeds and fungous diseases have been published, at the time of their injurious occur-
rence, of such pests as have made themselves noticeable by their sudden appearance ii.
injurious numbers. This has been either through the annual reports of the Experi-
mental Farms, or of the Agricultural Committee of the House of Commons, in bul-
letins, or through the daily and agricultural press.

PUBLICATIONS.

The annual reports of the Division now contain fairly complete articles giving the
history to date, with the remedies which have been found most effective, of many of the
injurious insects of Canada.

Special bulletins also have been issued on the following siibjects :
1888, Xo. 3. — The Smuts Affecting Wheat. In addition to this bulletin, further
articles have appeared in more recent annual reports of the Experimental Farms.

1891, No. 11. — Eecommendations for the Prevention of Damage by some Common
Insects of the Farm, the Orchard, and the Garden. In this bulletin 37 of the worst
pests are treated of.

1892, No. 14. — The Horn Fly, issued immediately on the first appearance of the
insect in Canada.

1893, No. 19. — Grasses: their uses and composition, written jointly with Mr. F.
T. Shutt.

1895, No. 23. — Fungous Diseases and Injurious Insects, written jointly with Mr.
John Craig.

1897, No. 28. — Weeds : 164 troublesome plants are mentioned and described,
together with the best way of fighting them.

1901, No. 37. — Apple In.seets, a part of a bulletin on apple culture, by Mr. W. T.
Macoun.

1903, No. 43.— Plum Insects, in Bulletin on Plum Culture by Mr. W. T. Macoun.

1904, No. 46. — Alfalfa or Lucerne : its culture, use and value, written jointly with
Messrs. J: II. Grisdale and F. T. Shutt.

1905, No. 52. — Insects Injurious to Grain and Fodder Crops, Boot Crops and
Vegetables. Forty-five of the worst enemies of these crops are dealt with, and many
are illustrated.

In addition to the above, two small bulletins for limited circulation, entitled,
* Experimental Farm Notes, No. 2, Potato Blights,' and No. 4, ' The Russian Thistle,'
were issued from this Division in 1S94. In 1895 reports on the Hop Aphis, the San

16—51

64 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

Jose Scale, and ' Investigations in Manitoba and British Columbia as Entomologist
and Botanist,' were printed in the annual report of the Hon. Minister of Agriculture
for 1895.

Since 1884, when the Select Committee appointed by the House of Commons to
obtain information as to the agricultural interests of Canada met, the Entomologist has
been invited annually to give evidence before the Committee on Agriculture and Col-
onization of the House of Commons, upon the most important occurrences of insects
i}ijurious to crops and the most recent developments in methods of fighting them, and
also upon recent work with regard to grasses and other useful fodder plants. Reports
of this evidence have been published regularly, and through the generosity of the Print-
ing Committee have been supplied in such number, both in French and English, as
to allow of their being sent to all of the regular correspondents of the Division. In
this way a good opportunity has frequently been afforded of getting useful suggestions
into the hands of 'farmers sooner than would be possible through the annual reports
at the time they are usually issued.

USEFUL INVESTIGATIOKS.

Among the investigations which have claimed the attention of the officials and
with regard to which it is hoped that useful advice has been given to the farmers of
Canada, mention may be made of the following subjects which have been studied for
several years, and concerning which from time to time reports have been published.
No lengthy reference is here made to those insects wdiich have recently been treated
of in Bulletin 52 on Insects which cause injury to Grain Crops, Boots and Vege-
tables. It may, however, be thought justifiable to point out, that through the persist-
ent recommendations of this Division remedies for some of these which have saved
many thousands of dollars to the farmers of Canada, have been made widely known and
have been more generally used than might otherwise have been 'the case. In this cate-
gory are the following which it is believed are, all things considerd, the best remedies
for the different insects named: —

The Hessian Ely. — Late sowing, the burning of refuse from the threshing mills,,
and the burning over or deep ploughing down of stubbles.

The Joint-worms. — The burning over or deep ploughing of stubbles, burning
refuse, and a regular rotation of crops.

The Greater Wheat-stem Maggot. — Late sowing. Trap crops sown in Julj' and
ploughed down in August.

Cutworms. — Clean farming, so as to destroy all weeds in autumn when the moths
of many species lay their eggs. Poisoned bran-mash and poisoned baits. Special
mention may be made of the former, a most useful remedy.

Grasshoppers or Locusts. — The Criddle mixture of fresh horse droppings poisoned
with Paris green.

The Pea-weevil. — Systematic fumigation of all seed pease with bi-sulphide of car-
bon ; treating the seed with coal-oil ; holding over seed for two years.

The Clover-seed Midge. — Cutting or feeding off the first crop of clover to be
saved for seed, by June 20.

Small White Cabbage Butterfly, the parent of the ' Cabbage-worm.' — Dusting
cabbages, as soon as the caterpillars are seen to be destructive, with pyrethrum insect
powder, 1 lb. in 4 lbs of flour or some other perfectly dry powder as a diluent.

Root Maggots of Radish and Onion. — Watering the young plants once a week
from the time they appear above the ground with the Cook Carbolic wash. Dusting
once a week with white hellebore or insect powder.

Root Maggots of the Cabbage. — Dusting or watering around the roots after un-
covering them, with an infusion of pyrethrum or white hellebore, 1 oz. in a gallon of
water, at time of transplanting and aa-ain a week later.

REPORT OF THE EXTOMOLOGIST AXD BOTANIST 65

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

The Colorado Potato Beetle. — Spraying with the poisoned Bordeaux mixture for
this insect, and for the Potato Hot at the same time, beginning in the first week of
July and repeating three or four times.

The Cucumber and Potato Flea-beetle. — Spraying with the poisoned Bordeaux
mixture.

The Turnip Aphis. — Hoeing out the colonies or spraying them as soon as they
appear with Kerosene Emulsion.

The Turnip Flea-beetle. — Dusting the young plants when the beetles are seen to
be abundant, with Paris Green 1 lb. in 50 lbs. of land plaster or sonie other dry powdery
diluent. Deferring sowing turnips until the 15th or i!Oth June.

HISTORICAL RESUME.

At tlie time the Division of Entomology and Botany was organized it was thought
wise, for a short time at any rate, that the two subjects of Entomology and Botany
should be entrusted to a single officer and the writer of this report was appointed to
take charge of the work. As soon as circumstances allowed, a beginning was made in
forming reference collections of insects and plants and the present collections of the
Division have been gradually accumulated since that time. As a nucleus to both of
these collections, the above named presented his private collections consisting of about
three thousand species of Canadian plants and a general collection in all orders of
insects. A beginning was made in preparing the Arboretum and Botanic Garden, at
that time connected with this Division, for i:)lanting out, and also the land was got reads'
for the Experimental Grass Plots, which are now such an interesting feature of the
Central Experimental Farm. During 18S8 a large number of native plants and grasses
were collected in the Ottawa District, seeds were procured from botanical gardens,
botanists and seedsmen in all parts of the world, from which such were obtain-
able, and these were grown in seed beds for subsequent removal to the botanical
garden or the ornamental grounds. In 1895 the practical work of the Arboretum
and Botanic Garden was, at the request of the Entomologist and Botanist, trans-
ferred to the Horticultural Division, as was originally intended, and which was
a much more convenient arrangement because Mr. W. T. Macoun, who was then Fore-
man of Forestry, had men under his control and was in a better position to look after
the iH^cessary labour, such as cultivating, planting, tidying up, &c., than was the case
with the Botanist who had only one man whose time was fully occupied with the grass
and fodder experiments.

In the first years of the farm work the insect enemies of the small grains demanded
much attention and a great deal of work in connection with the life-histories of these
insects was carried on and published in the annual reports. The enemies of fodder
crops were also studied at that time and good service was done in making known the
practical remedies for the Clover Seed Midge, the Pea Weevil, &c. Many growers
followed the instructions given and reaped great advantage. The Turnip Flea-beetle
was for a few years from 18S7 till about 1890, a very serious pest of the turnip grower,
two or three sowings being often necessary. After many experiments it was found
that the loss could be saved by what have now become the standard remedies for this
insect, viz.: dusting the young plants just after they come up with one pound of
Paris green in 50 lbs. of land plaster, and the agricultural remedy of sowing at such
date, about the middle of June, as will enable the young plant to make its true leaves
in between the broods of the beetle. When sown too early or too late the seed leaves
are destroyed to the great detriment of the crop.

Insects of the vegetable garden were also studied on account of the great losses
due to the attacks of the White Cabbage Butterfly, root maggots, and various kinds
of cutworms. Practical remedies for all of these by which enormous savings may be
made have now been devised and are the common property of all who will consult the
reports of the Experimental Farms and make use of the suggestions there given.

66 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1S07

In 1SS9 the Mediterranean Flour Motli (Ephesiia Iciihniellaj Zell.) first appeared
in. Canada, the life history was worked out and the advantage of freezing the insects
by opening the mills to the winter cold was pointed out among other remedies. This
oppoi'tunity was made use of for publishing aiccounts of the other granary pests. In
the same year Fuller's Rose Beetle {Aramigus fallen, Horn.) was first discovered as a
troublesome greenhouse pest in Canada.

In 1890 the present Experimental Plots for Grasses and Fodder-plants were laid
out and all varieties of which the seeds were obtainable by collection, by correspondence,
or by purchase, have been tested carefully as to their hardiness, crop-producing power,
nutritive value and palatabilty to stock. Many hundreds of different fodder plants
have been experimented with, and much valuable information has been given to the
country through these experiments. The plots themselves are a constant source of
interest to all visitors, and we are in a position from the results of our experience to
give advice as to the best mixtures for hay, pasture and all other purposes for which
jirasses are grown.

In 1S92 the Hop-vine Borer (Goriyna Immanis, Gn.) did much harm in the hop
fields of Prince Edward county, Ontario. The habits of the insect were worked out
and published the same year, as well as those of the Red Turnip Beetle (Entomoscelis
adonidis, Fab), which every year docs some harm to cruciferous crops in the Prairie
Provinces. The Birch Skeletonizer {Buccidatrix Canadensisella, Chamb.) was a
conspicuous enemy of the birches all through Ontario for two or three years from 1892,
and injured the trees considerably by destroying their foliage. About this time the
imported Larch Saw-fly (Nernadns erichsonii, Hartig.), whiich had appeared as a des-
tructive forest insect in Canada in 1882, practically disappeared, from the fact that
it had destroyed all the tamaracs of large size. In 1902 it again showed up, but in
very small numbers, and has been noted every year since that date. In 1893 a collec-
tion of twenty cases of insects was sent from the Entomological Division to the World's
Columbian Exhibition at Chicago, and attracted much attention. In the same year
the first notable outbreak of the Black Vine-weevil as a crop pest in Canada occurred
in British Columbia. This beetle (Oiiorlnjnchns sidcatus. Fab.) seems to be a mari-
time species, as it has since that time been found a rather troublesome enemy of straw-
berries on our Pacific coast, and also in Nova Scotia. . Kecently the Sleepy Weevil
(Otiorhynchus ovatus, L.) has added its injuries of the same plant to those of
the above, attacking the roots in the same way. The Cattle Horn-fly, which showed
itself first in Canada in 1892, was very detrimental to stock in Ontario in 1893.

In 1894 another change was made in the work of the Division by which the work
on Fungous Diseases v/as transferred, in a large measure, to the Florticultural Division.
As many experiments had been carried on by the Botanist in treating the destructive
disease known as Potato Eot, this for a time was left with the Botanist, who demon-
strated conclusively in exhibition plots at the Central Experimental Farm, that this
disease could he practically prevented by spraying with the Bordeaux mixture, now in
such general use for this purpose. This year saw also an outbreak of the Army-worm
in northern Ontario. Severe attacks by some fruit insects also called 'for attention.
The San Jcse Scale was this year detected in British Columbia, but the occurrences
were entirely wiped out by the destruction of the infested trees. The Cigar Case-
bearer of the Apple (Coleopliora fletcherella, Fernald) was studied and the species
described. The Pear-tree Psylla (Psylla pyricola, Foer.ster) was destructive in the
Hamilton district of Ontario, and the Peach Bark-borer .(P^''^<^oirihi(s liminaris,
Harr.) in the Niagara district.

In 1894 the Apiary, which has been ably managed by Mr. John Fixter since it
was instituted, was established, and from that time has been of much interest to bee-
keepers, many of whom visit the Central Farm to consult Mr. Fixter.

Outbreaks of special note in 1895 were by the Cabbage and Turnip Aphis (A.
Irassicce, Bouche), the Carrot Maggot (Psila rosce. Fab.), which every year is destruc-
tive in the maritime provinces, and sometimes extends its work as far west as Ottawa,
and the Joint-worm (Isosoma hordei, Harr.) iir western Ontario. The Cottony Grass-

REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 67

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Scale (ErlopeUis festncce, Fouse.) was abundant in Nova Scotia. The Carpet Beetle
or 'Buifalo Moth' (Anthrenus scrophularice, L.) called for nttcntion as a household
pest. It was first reported in this role in Canada in 1889.

1896 was another Army-worm year, this time in western Ontario. There were
also widespread depredations on fodder crops by locusts or grasshoppers in many parts
of the Dominion. Similar outbreaks had occurred in western Ontario in 1893, and
on Sable Island in 1895. The injurious species were in each case the Red-legged-
Locust {Melanoplus femur-i-uhrum, DeG.), the Lesser Migratory Locust {M. atlanis,
Riley), and the Two-striped Locust {A[. hivitlatus, Say.).

The first record of the Apple Maggot in Canada was made in this year at Adol-
phuritown in Lennox county, Ontario, and an insect which injures the apple in a very
similar manner (Argyrestliia conjugella, Z.) was abundant in Vancouver island and
the lower mainland of British Columbia.

In 1897 fruit insects were the chief objects of study. The San Jose Scale may
be said to have begun its injurious work in Ontario orchards in this year, and great
efforts were made to prepare our fruit-growers to recognize it, to appreciate the danger
of neglecting it, and in pointing out the best known means of control. The Currant
Maggot (Epochra Canadensis, Loew.) was also dealt with.

1898 was marked as the first year of a rather serious outbreak of the Rocky Moun-
tain Locust in Manitoba, which lasted until 1904, and was the cause of much loss in
central Manitoba. The outcome of this occurrencCj however, was the discovery of
the useful Criddle mixture by Mr. Norman Criddle, of Aweme, Man., which has been
of great use in controlling these very destructive insects. The Lesser Apple-worm
(Enannonia prunlvora, Walsh) was destructive in British Columbia orchards, and
much harm was done by the two common species of Tent Caterpillars in Ontario.
This was chiefly to forest trees.

The season of 1899 was signalized by an extensive destruction of the pea crops
all through the older provinces by the Destructive Pea Aphis (NectaropJwra destruc-
tor, Jnsn.) This is supposed to be identical with a species which sometimes attacks
clover. The Asparagus beetles (Crioceris asparagi,, L., and C. IS-piinctata, L.) also
added themselves to the pests of the Canadian market gardener in this year. They
have done some harm in the south-western counties of Ontario ever since.

In 1900 began a period of very severe injury to the fall wheat crop of western
Ontario by the Hessian Fly, which lasted for two years, and another old-time enemy,
the Pea-weevil (Bruchii-s pisorum, L.) was so abundant as to cause some growers to
relinquish the cultivation of this useful pulse. The attacks of this latter were much
intensified by extensive injury by the Pea Moth (Semasia nigricana, Steph.) Per-
haps the most remarkable outbreaks of the year were by two cutworms, the Variegated
Cutworm (Pcridroma saitcia, Hbn.) in British Columbia, and the Spotted Cutworm
(Nfictna c-nigrum L.) in Ontario.

In 1901 two new enemies, the Potato-stalk Weevil (Trichoharis trinotata. Say.)
and the Grape-vine Colaspis (Colaspis hrunnea. Fab.) were added to the Canadian
list, but the injury was not serious by either of them.

In 1902 the first serious injury by the Hessian Fly to spring wheat in Manitoba
cccurrcd, but the same season saw its almost entire disappearance from the fall wheat
crop of Ontario. Injury by the Pea-weevil was again excessive in Ontario and special
efforts were made by the Division to stir up pea-growers to imited action in fighting
this destructive enemy. The seed pease were fumigated by all the leading seedsmen
and in 1903 there was a most noticeable diminution in the numbers of the Pea-weevil.
This improvement has continued up to the present time.

In 1904 there were no new attacks of importance. The cause of the greatest loss
to farmers, brought to the notice of the Division was by. a widespread epidemic of the
Black Stem-Rust in the large wheat crop of the Prairie Provinces. There were also
more severe losses frcra cutworms in some districts than is usually the case. The
efficacy of the Poisoned Bran-mash for field practice on a large scale was amply proved.

68 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

The Wheat Midge (Diplosis tritic'i, Kirby) destroyed much of the wheat crop of
the lower Fraser country in British Columbia; but wheat is not an important crop in
that district.

The Plum Curculio (Conotrachelus nenuphar, Hbst.) made serious inroads into
the sparse crop of plums of Ontario. A firmly established colony of the Apple JMaggof
was found in the important apple-growing locality of Como in the province of Que-
bec. The most effective treatment to control this insect was made kno'nii to the grow-
ers, and it is hoped that before long a decided improvement in conditions may be
noted.

On Vancouver Island, the Vancouver Island Oak-Looper (Therina somniaria,
Hulst), an insect of periodic occurrence did much harm to the beautiful oaks around
Victoria.

In 1905 the most important reduction to the crops of the Dominion was in the
enormous wheat crop of the west. This was due to a severe outbreak of Bunt or
Stinking Smut. In the eastern provinces some injury was caused to various crops
by the caterpillar of a noctuid moth, called in my last report, the Armed Rustic
(Barathra occidentaia, 3rt.) I am told, however, by Sir George TIampson, of the
British Museum, that the species is really B. curialis, Sm.

There were a few instances of injurious presence of insect enemies of forest and
shade trees in 1905. In the Ottawa district the native Arbor-vitses or AVhite Cedars
were much disfigured by the minute larva; of a species of Tineid moth (Argyresthia
thuiella, Busck) which bore in the tips of the twigs and cause them to die and turn
brown. The Spruce Gall-louse (Chennes abietis, L.) was frequently complained of
from many points in Ontario, and the first Canadian specimens of the Larch Case-
bearer (Coleophora laricella, Hbn.), which often does much harm in Germany, were
found at Ottawa.

In the Division of Botany the most important work of the officers has been in
connection with testing the suitability of various fodder plants for profitable cultivation
in Canada, and in giving information concerning noxious weeds. The most valuable
outcome of the first line of this work, has iindoubtedly been the introduction into
American agriculture of the two valuable grasses, the Awnless Brome-grass (Bromus
inermis. Leyss.) from Russia, and the Western Rye-grass (Agropyrum teneriim,
Vasey), a native Canadian grass first cultivated as a crop by Mr. K. Mclver, of Virden,
Man.

Noxious weeds have been made a subject of special study by the Botanist for
many years, and the excefttional opportunities he has had of visiting all parts of Can-
ada, attending meetings and of spending several weeks in the West for many years,
driving through the country, holding meetings and visiting farmers, have enabled him
to learn much of the nature and distribution of most of the different weeds which give
farmers trouble in the various parts of the Dominion. Several articles on weeds have
from time to time been printed in the reports, and a large correspondence on the sub-
ject is constantly carried on as to the best way to treat these pests of the farm, and
also as to the names of strange seeds found in samples of crop seeds sold by seedsmen
or saved by farmers themselves. "Wlien the Seed Selection Special train, which for two
months traversed all the western lines of railways in the winter of 1905-6. was planned,
the Botanist was invited to take part in this work. This he was able to do, and
delivered 145 addresses upon the subjects of weeds and their eradication, and on the
smuts of the small grains. The following notice was prepared for The Fanners'
Advocate, and appeared in their issue of April 12, 1906: —

' THE WORK OF THE "SEED SELECTION SPECIAL TRAIX.

^During January and February of this year an important experiment was tried
in the prairie provinces, the results of which must surely bring great benefit to the
farmers of the west. For many yeai-^ it has been known that smut was causing con-
siderable loss among the small grain crops in that part of Canada, and although some
of the more advanced farmers every year treated their grain to protect themselves
against this loss, many others did not. As the crop of 1905 came under inspection in

REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 69

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Winnipeg on its wny to the lake front for shipment, it was found th.it an iilarnaing
amount of the wheat was contaminated with smut, or with the seeds of weeds. In
lOOo the ixTcentage of dockage and rejection was only o per cent; in 190i this hatl
run up to 5i per cent, or nearly double; but in the crop of 1905 a far worse state of
r.tfairs was manifested, and it is probable tliat upwards of 20 per cent of the enormous
i-ro]) for the year, of nearly 90 million bushels of wheat, will be graded as "rejected''
by the official inspectors. It was thought that something could and should at once
be done to improve this state of aifaii-s. The Canadian Pacific Railway and the
Dominion Department of Agriculture consulted together, and invited other influential
bodies to join them in a special campaign, the aim of which was to remind farmers
liefore the spring wuik began, that more care was necessary than had evidently been
shown in preparing their seed grain and caring for the resulting crop. Mr. W. B.
Lanigan, of the Canadian Pacific Hallway, and Mr. G. H. Clark, of the Dominion
Seed Branch of the Department of Agriculture, were the two leading spirits in this
v>-ork. The Canadian Pacific Eailway provided the train, in which the speakers lived
entirely during the two months of the campaign, and hauled it over all their lines.
The Canadian Northern co-operated with the Canadian Pacific, and all the chief
places along both of these railways in the West were visited.

' The lecturers were for the most part officials of the Dominion Department of
Agriculture, and all were under the direction of Mr, Clark, the energetic Chief of
tlie Seed Division at Ottawa. Mr. Angus Mackay and Mr. S. A. Bedford, of Bran-
uont, the well-known and highly esteemed Superintendents of the W^estern Experi-
mental Farms, gave most valuable assistance, as also did Mr. T. N. Willing, the Chief
Weed Inspector for the province of Saskatchewan, who probably has a wider and more
exact knowledge of the weeds of the West than any one else. Messrs. James Murray,
W. C. ]\IcKillican and the writer, all members of the Dominion Department of Agri-
culture, also took part in this important work.

' The Grain Growers' Association of Manitoba and the Northwest Territories
^^ere represented by their head offieials. The Hon. W. R. Motherwell, the Minister of
Agriculture for Saskatchewan, who is also president of the Northwest Grain Growers'
Association, and Messrs. McCuaig, Henders and McKenzie, of the Manitoba Grain
Growers' A.ssociatiou, showed their sympathy with the movement, by accompanying
th<> train for the greater part of the time, and delivered many valuable addresses. Mr.
John Mooney, of Valley River^ Man., a practical farmer and an expert breeder of pure
grain, and Mr. A. Mitchell, Weed Inspector for the province of Alberta, spoke on seed
selection and seed testing.

' The campaign lasted for two months, in which time 20(3 meetings were held,
wliieh were attended in all by 28,910 people. A noticeable feature of this campaign
was that the railways did their work well, arriving at the advertised points promptly
in almost every instance. The speakers showed that they knew thoroiu'hly the sub-
jects they were dealing with, and the audiences were invariably appreciative and sym-
l)athetic, listening patiently and asking many useful qiiestions concerning those sub-
jects of the greatest local interest. Notwithstanding the low temperatTircs which pre-
vailed during part of January, the lecture cai-s were always well filled, many farmers
driving in to the meetings from ten to twenty miles. The audiences frequently
expressed their satisfaction with what they had heard, and the only regrets voiced
were that the meetings could not be longer, and that more places could not be visited.
For the most part there were two lecturers in each car, and the subjects dealt with
W( re practically the same at each place visited, except that prominence was given to
the subjects or the weeds which were known to be of greatest int^^rest in each place.
At the close of ea;ch meeting the visitors were handed some specially-prepared pamph-
lets, in which the subjects dealt with by the lecturers were also treat*>d of in a concise
way, and they were requested to take these home and to discuss them with their friends.

'It was distinctly stated that no effort was being made to teach i"h<j farmers of
the West anything new, but simply to remind them that the public records which were
appearing in the daily newspapers of the inspections of the wheat going forward

70 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

showed the existence of an alarming state of affairs, from the number of cars
v.-hich were being maiked " rejected," and further, that this was from causes which
could to a large measure be prevented. These causes suggested the subjects treated
of, which were as follows : —

' 1. Seed Selection by Fanning Mills. — It was pointed out how much could be
cicne by using the fanning mill thoroughly, to blow out all small and broken grains
which produce weak, late-maturing plants, and that good plump seed would give strong
plants, which would produce a regular and uniform crop. Lack of vigour in the plants
made them susceptible to injtiry from fungous diseases and insect pests.

' 2. Seed Selection in the Field. — It was advised to select every year some large
heads of grain from fully-ripened plants, true to a desired type' and variety, and to
use these for a breeding plot or base of supply for pure seed, thus increasing the yield
and improving the quality of the grain. As illustrating the practicability of this
measure, it w^as pointed out that all the millions of bushels of Red Fife wheat now cul-
tivated in the West originated from a single plant found by Mr. David Fife in a field
of wheat near Jermyn, Peterborough county, Ontario, in 1842, and also that during
the present year a farmer at Moose Jaw had offered for sale 3,000 bushels of a selected
strain of wheat, all of which was the product of a single head of wheat selected five
years ago.

' 3. Seed-testing 'for Vitality. — Many samples were exhibited, showing how diffi-
cult it is to luiow from the appearance of grain what its germinating value is. Some
samples, which looked very nearly as good as others which germinated 100 per cent,
when tested showed only a germinating power of from 50 to 60 per cent, proving con-
clusively that if a farmer were to sow such grain without testing it for vitality, he
would require to sow nearly double the amovmt of seed to get a stand for a crop. The
simplicity with which grain could be tested was shown by samples of grain which had
been sprouted between the folds of a damp cloth placed between two tin dishes to retain
the moisture. It was advised to pick out at random just 100 grains from the seed
which had been put by for sowing. The cleanness and fascination of this work com-
mended itself particularly to the wives and the children o'f farmers, who could thus,
while contributing to their own pleasure, also do something of great benefit to the
whole family.

' An equally simple and rather better experiment was also shown, of placing the
hundred grains in a box of soil, which could be kept in any warm room in the house,
and would in a few days show not only how. many seeds would germinate, but also the
comparative vigour of the young plants.

' 4. Treatment of Seed Grain to Prevent Smut. — Smut, the fungous disease which
is responsible for hy far the greater proportion of loss in last year's crop, was specially
dealt with. The nature of the disease was explained and the remedies which had
given the best results were recommended, together with the simplest way of applying
them. It is well known by farmers in the West that bluestone or formalin are practi-
cal remedies for treating seed grain before sowing, so as to destroy the adhering smut
spores. This may be done by dipping seed in asolution of 1 lb. of bluestone in 8
gallons of rain water, or by sprinkling the same over the grain and turning it over
thoroughly with a shovel until every grain is wet. It is best to sow as soon as con-
venient after the seed is dry, but the work may be done at any time when con-
venient after the middle of March. Ten gallons of solution will treat 8 bushels of
oats or 10 bushels of wheat. Instead of the above, commercial formalin may be used,
l oz. in each gallon of water; 1 lb. of formalin in 32 gallons of water will treat 27
bushels of oats or 32 bushels of wheat. Bluestone and formalin are equally good for
wheat, but formalin is much better for oats and barley. After treating with formalin,
the seed grain should be heaped up and covered for a few hours with sacks or blankets,
to keep the fumes in.

' Some of the worst weeds were dealt with in detail, and it was pointed out that
even the worst weeds could be controlled if their nature were considered. Farmers
were recommended to give this matter special consideration. It was claimed that

1
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REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 71

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

thcro were only eight or ten weeds which were noticeably destructive In any one
locality, and that if the nature of these were borne in mind the work of destroying
tliem would be much simpler.

' Special instructions were given for the eradication of wild oats, stinkweed, per-
ennial oi: field sow thistle and Canada thistle. Particular stress was laid on the value
of harrowing-, or using a weedcr on growing crops for the destruction of the seedlings
of all annual weeds while they were small and easily killed. . Grain crops should only
be harrowed when the land is in proper condition for harrowing, and not before the
young grain is three inches high.

Jas. Fletcher,

'Entomologist and BotanisL'

Officials of the Divisiox.

The staff of the Division of Entomology and Botany consists of the following in
addition to the writer, who has held office since July 1, 1887.

J. A. Guignard, B.A., Assistant Entomologist and Botanist, and Curator of the
Botanical Collections; appointed April 11, 1892.

Arthur Gibson, Assistant Entomologist and Curator of Insects; appointed April
1, 1893.

Berthold Nothnagel, in charge of the Experimental Grass Plots since 1800.

Spraying w^th Arsenites.

At the time the Experimental Farm system was organized, the words ' spraying '
and ' spraying pump ' were actually unknown as the names of a method and implement
for distributing poisonous liquids in a fine state of division to protect plants 'against
parasitic enemies. Largely through the work of this Division, the benefits of this work
have been made known and insisted upon, even at times against outspoken and inex-
plicable opposition by men holding prominent places among fr\iit-growers and farmers.
The only explanation which can be offered is that such opposition was simply a protest
against adopting any new method, as a regular part of the annual work, which involves
so much extra labour beyond what up to that time had been found necessary. Un-
doubtedly one of the most important discoveries which has ever been made in practi-
cal entomology and horticulture is the utility of the arsenites as destroyers of leaf-
eating insects. This, added to the invention of the spraying nozzle, largely through
the skill of Dr. Riley and his assistants in the Division of Entomology of the United
States Department of Agriculture at Washington, have provided fruit-growers and
others with a reliable remedy, and an implement with w^hich to apply it, in the most
economical and at the same time sa'fe manner. Of recent years there have been many
variations and some improvements in the remedies suggested for injurious insects, and
tdso in the manufacture of spraying pumps and nozzlce^, hut on the whole, if used with
proper care, nothing has been yet brought forward of greater general utility and safety
than Paris green. Similarly, the Riley Cyclone nozzle, with the Vermorel improvement
of a disgorger to clear any obstruction from the orifice, is to-day the best nozzle obtain-
able to produce what this operation demands, the breaking up of the liquid to be
applied into such a fine state of division as to be an actual spray. It cannot be in-
sisted on too strongly that, to get the best results in spraying, such force and such
nozzles must be used as will break up the liquid so thoroughly that it falls upon the
plants treated as an actual mist. Such terms as 'sprinkling' and 'showering' are
inaccurate for the operation here intended. Unfortunately much of the so-called
spraying as usually carried out could more accurately be designated by these terms,
which describe a much less careful and less even distribution of the liquids, and con-
sequently one which is far less effective in attaining the ends aimed at in spraying.
The chief factors which affect the utility of spraying as an agricultural and horti-
cultural operation are (1) lack of knowledge on the part of the operator as to what is

72 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

required; (2) lack of pressure or too large an orifice in the nozzle used, so that the
liquid is not broken up into a mist; (3) badly working pumps, which increase the
labour so that the work becomes irksome, and is done in a sloVenly manner, and (4)
lack of care in doing the work thoroughly and in following instructions as to mc^thods
and formulis given by those who have made a business of testing the best remedies
for the pests to be controlled. The efforts of specialists have been directed towards
one or two main objects in devising formulie to be used against injurious insects and
fungi. In the first place, the remedy must be effective so as to destroy the pest with-
out injuring the crop; it must be easy of application and manufacture, or the work
will be done improperly, and it must be economical so that the cost and labour involved
Tn using it may be commensurate with the increased profits secured by the operation.

During the last twenty years so much excellent work has been done in studying
the life-histories of injurious insects and fungous diseases, that at the present time
any farmer in Canada or the United States who finds his crops being injured by pests
of any kind, can within a short time, by applying to the government bureaiis of infor-
mation, get at once advice by which in almost every instance he can prevent a very
large and paying percentage of loss. Of recent years it has been found that some of
the standard remedies for both plants and insects may be combined and applied at
the same time. A notable instance of this is found in the poisoned Bordeaux mixture,
made of the two standard remedies for leaf-eating insects and surface fungous dis-
eases, viz. : Paris green and Bordeaux mixture. Very soon after this remedy was
made known, experiments were tried, in 1887, by the Entomologist and Botanist as to
its efiicacy in destroying insect enemies of potatoes and at the same time the destruc-
tive fungous disease, Potato Rot. This whole matter was treated at length, after seve-
ral careful experiments, in the annual report of the Entomologist and Botanist for
1892, and since that time has been found by all who have tried it and have done the
work carefully, to be a paying and reliable means of protecting their crop against
considerable loss, and also of increasing the yields to a remarkable extent. This
work is now :carried on every year on an extended scale by the Horticulturist of the
Central Experimental Farm, who has of recent years published many convincing
proofs of its utility.

Spraying fruit trees and potato crops with the poisoned Bordeaux mixture three
or four times every year at stated times, varying slightly according to the species for
which remedies are required, should now be recognized as part of the regular routine
of the season. This is being done by all leading growers who have recognized that it
ife a paying operation, and have made provision for it in counting the cost of growing
their crops. Spraying, properly done, is the most effective and economical method of
applying remedies, but to do the work well it is neither easy nor is it a cheap opera-
tion, but in every instance where done as recommended through the publications of
the Experimental Farms, it is an operation which pays handsomely, and is therefore
worthy of attention by all who grow crops for profit. Spraying carelessly done is
gross extravagance. It is an expensive operation both in labour and in materials.
The decided increase in quantity and quality of the crop reaped make this expendi-
ture worth while; but if the work is done improperly, little or no results follow, and
much additional expense has been incurred. A very marked result of careful spraying
practised for several years, is the cumulative effect of this continued protection of the
crops. Of later years it has been a rare occurrence to find in the regularly sprayed
fruit orchard at the Central Experimental Farm any serious injury by insects or.
fungous diseases, while in an orchard of seedlings where little spraying is done, Codling]
moth. Borers and Bud-moth occur sometimes abundantly.

Of the active poisons whi?h are used as insecticides and which can be distributed'
over trees and crops by moans of a spraying pump, the various compounds containing
arsenic have by far the widest range of usefulness.

Arsenites. — The best known of these are Paris green. Arsenate of lead and Arsenitel
of lime with soda, which has lately come into very much more general use.

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REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 73

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

In all these poisons, arsenic is the essential ingredient, and other chemicals are
mixed with the arsenic for the purpose of preventing it from injuring vegetation.
There are many spraying compounds which contain arsenic, some of which are sold
ready-made, and many others are made at home by combining the necessary ingre-
dients.

Paris Green. — Undoubtedly the best known, and in many respects the safest,
I'o'son to use is Paris green. It has passed through many years of trial, is well
known, has a distinctive colour, and is a definite chemical compound containing 58 'BS
per cent of arscnious oxide, 31*29 per cent of copper oxide, and 10 "06 per cent of
acetic acid. It is, therefore, an aceto-arsenite of copper. It is soluble in ammonia.
Paris green, if demanded, is now obtainable pure in all parts of Canada; but, as there
is sometimes an adulterated article found in the market, it is wisest always to add an
tqual amount, with the Paris green, of freshly slaked lime, when the free arsenic will
combine with the lime, and it can then be used safely at the rate of one pound of Paris
^rocn in IGO gallons of water on all vegetation, and, for a dry application, 1 pound
of Paris green in 50 pounds of flour, land-plaster, slaked lime or some other perfectly
dry powder.

As a general i)rineiple, lime should be always used with Paris green whenever it
is applied in a liquid insecticide. Paris green is very heavy, and the particles quickly
sink to the bottom of any liquid with which it is mixed. This makes constant stirring
necessary. Paris green does no"t dissolve in water, and is merely mixed with water
to facilitate its even distribution on vegetation in the very small quantities that are
necessary to destroy insects. The finer the poison is ground the quicker its effect
on the insects which eat it, because the minute crystals are more rapidly dissolved
by the digestive juices in the stomachs of the insects. The finer it Is ground the better
also it will remain suspended in a liquid application. Por most insects, one ounce of
Paris green in 10 gallons of water is the standard strength; but some plants with
coarse "foliage, such as the potato, will stand double that strength.

Arsenate of Lead.— A poison which has come into much notice since the work of
the Massachusetts Gypsy Moth Commission is Arsenate of Lead, which has been placed
on the market in a very convenient form under the name of Bowker's Disparene and of
Swift's Arsenate of Lead. The chief advantages of Arsenate of Lead are that it can
be applied to all kinds of foliage with less danger of injury than is the case with Paris
green ; and, on account of its fine state of division, it lasts longer on the foliage,
because it does not wash off so easily. The cost of using it is about the same as that
of Paris green, because, although cheaper, pound for pound, it is necessary to use three
times the amovmt of it to get the same results. Arsenate of Lead may be made at home.
Pormute for its preparation vary slightly; but in the United States Division of Ento-
mology, Bulletin No. 41, the following instructions are given for making the Arsenate
of Lead wash ready for use : —

Arsenate of soda 10 ounces.

Acetate of lead 24 "

Water 150 to 200 gallons.

The arsenate of soda and acetate of lead should be dissolved separately and then
I ourc'l into a tank containing the required amount of water. These chemicals unite
readily, forming a white flocculent precipitate of lead arsenate, which is easily kept in
suspension and can be used in excessive strengths on delicate plants without the addi-
tion of lime. When sprayed upon the foliage, it forms a filmy adhering coat, which
is but little affected by ordinary rains.

Another formula for making Arsenate of Lead is that recommended by Prof. TI.
T. Fernald, and is :

Arsenate of soda, 50 per cent, strength 4 ounces.

Acetate of lead 11 "

Water 150 gallons.

n^

74 EXPERnIE^TAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD V!i., A, 1907

Put the arsenate of soda in two quarts of water in a wooden pail, and the acetate
of lead in four quarts of water in another wooden pail. When both are dissolved, mix
with the rest of the water. Warm water in the pails will hasten the process. Prof.
Pernald recommends that in mixinir this with Bordeaux mixture one gallon of the
above should be mixed with fifty gallons of the mixture.

' Arsenite of Lime and Soda: —

White arsenic 1 pound.

Sal soda (crystal) 4 pounds.

Water 1 gallon.

' The ingredients are boiled in the required amount of water nntil dissolved, which
will take place in a comparatively few minutes, after which the water lost by evapora-
tion is replaced. To every 40 or 50 gallons of water, a pint of this stock solution and
from 2 to 4 pounds of fresh slaked lime are added. The chemical compound derived
from the combination of the sal soda and the white arsenic is arsenite of soda. In
the presence of lime this breaks down and arsenite of lime is formed. It requires 4-4
pounds of crystal sal soda, or 1 -G pounds of dry sal soda to combine with one pound of
arsenic, and 2 pounds of freshly slaked lime to combine with one pound of arsenic to
form arsenite of lime. It is always desirable to. have an excess of lime present, in
arder to prevent all danger of burning; furthermore, this excess is a convenience to
fruit growers, because they can see by the distribution and amount of lime on the
foliage how well the spraying has been done. The formula, which is the Kedzie for-
mula with a few minor changes, has been used" in many different sections of the coun-
try with unvarying success. In all of the practical tests under the advice of the writer,
this solution is used and is found to be, not only as efficient as other solutions, but far
3heaper.

' When it is desired to use Bordeaux mixture with this solution, it is added to the
lime Bordeaux mixture in the same proportion as to a similar quantity of water.' —
(C. B. Simpson, Bull. J^l, U.S. Div. Ent.)

Some Best Eemedies.

The large amount of attention which of recent years has been given to insects
ivhich attack crops of various kinds has led to mi;ch experimenting as to the best
remedies. What the best remedies are will vary to a certain extent with local con-
litious and the financial circumstances of the operator. Upon crops of small area
it is not always expedient to purchase expensive implements, although these are nearly
ilways the best, and all that is aimed at in the follow'ing notes is to give in concise
[LTm those remedies which we have found most effective and the most practical for
general recommendatioH. Large commercial fruit growers and agriculturists have,
)f necessity, learnt in carrying on their business, which machines give the best
'esults ; but there is a constant demand from fruit growers and farmers of small hold-
ngs for informat'on as to what we have found to be the best remedies. It must be
•emembered, however, that what may be the best remedy with some operators is not
aecessarily so wnth others. Care in carrying out instructions, in making up formulae,
md in applying remedies, vary so much with different individuals, that care is one of
:he most important factors in deciding which remedy is the best under special cir-
aimstanccs.

As stated above, the insects which attack field crops and vegetables have recently
jeen treated of in Bulletin 52, issued in June, 1905. The following references are to
nsects which do harm to other crops.

The CoDLixG MoTii (Carpocapsa pomonclla, L.). — This well known insect which
;very year reduces so materially the profits of those apple growers who do not spray
•egularly, is now found in almost every part of the world where the apple is culti-
vated. The perfect insect, a beautiful little brown and gray moth, barely half an inch
,n length by tVth of an inch in width when the wings are closed, is very seldom seen

REPORT OF THE EXTOMOLOGISr AXD BOTANIST 75

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

on account o^* its uoctunial and secretive habits. The white or pinkish caterpillars,
f of an inch in length, which feed in the heart of apples of all kinds are far better
known, and under the name of ' Apple worm ' are recognized by all fruit growers.
The eggs are laid upon the outside of young apples about a week after the blossoms
fall and also upon the foliage. These eggs arc flat, like a very small fish's scale, and
are very inconspicuous. The eggs hatch in about a week and the young caterpillars
find their way into the fruit .through the calyx or upper end. They feed for a few
days on the outside of the apple or inside the calyx. This gives an apportunity of
destroying them by spraying the trees with poisonous mixtures. In Canada east of a
ixiiut about Toronto there is only one regular annual brood of the Codling moth, and
the insect can then be controlled almost entirely with c ireful and regular spraying with
the poisoned Bordeaux mixture. West of Toronto there are two broods, the second of
which is by far the more destructive and dilficult to cope with. It has been found
that in this latter district it is necessary to supplement the spring spraying by wrap-
ping the trees with loose bands of burlap or some other material which will serve as
a refuge in which the caterpillars will spin their cocoons, these to be removed at short
intervals after the middle of July, when the caterpillars begin to spin up. Care must
be taken to scrape or brush the bark beneath these bands w-ith a stiff brush or some
other implement so as to remove all of the cocoons which are frequently sunk into the
substance of the bark by the caterpillars gnawing away the surface. The insects in
the bands may be killed by dropping the latter into boiling water or by crushing the
cocoons. The poisoned Bordeaux mixture made with 4 lbs. of fresh lime, 4 lbs. blue-
stone and 4 ounces of Paris green, in 40 gallons of water, we have foimd to be a sure
remedy against the Codling moth, if applied every year. Three applications are neces-
sary, the first one applied a week after the blo.ssoms have fallen, and the others after-
wards at intervals of fifteen days. In orchards which have not been previously treated
for a year or two, four sprayings should be given.

The Plum Curculio (Conotrachelus nenuphar, Herbst.). — One of the worst ene-
mies of the fruit-grower is only too well known under the name of the Plum Curculio.
The female lays her eggs in the flesh of plums and apples when these are about as large
ae pease. The female makes a characteristic mark, which is shaped like a crescent,
and almost surrounds a little flap cut out of the side of the fruit, and in which the
single egg will be found. Although called the Plum Curculio this insect is frequently
n serious enemy of the apple, particularly in orchards which are grown in sod. Occa-
sionally whole crops will be ruined and drop from the trees in the end of June. Owing
to what is knovv'n as the June drop, by which the overplus of young apples beyond
what the trees can mature properly, drop from the trees in the end of June or the
beginning of July, this' injury to apples is frequently overlooked by fruit-growers, but
by cutting into the apple the inside will be found to be burrowed in every direction and
to contain two or three dirty white grubs with brown heads, about a quarter of an
inch in length. The perfect beetle is a weevil with its mouth parts at the end of an
elongated beak. It is less than a quarter of an inch in length, brown and rough with
black and grey mottlings, which give it a remarkable resemblance to a small piece of
bark and make it difiicult to distinguish. There is only one brood in the y^ar, but
perfect beetles may be found at all times. Tbe beetles of the summer brood emerge
during August or September of one year, pass the winter as perfect insects under dead
leaves, &c., and feed on the leaves and buds of plum trees early in spring. Later in
tlie year they attack the leaves and fruits of various kinds, and the old insects of the
year before may often be collected with tbose of the newly-emerged brood. The peach,
apricot, cherry, apple and pear are all injured by the Plum Curculio. The injury
1o plums is most conspicuous because they fall from the trees soon after the grub
begins to bore through them. Apples also fall in large numbers when there are seve-
ral grubs. The peach, apricot and cherry do not fall to any extent. By midsummer
the grubs are full grown and then burrow a short distance into the ground, where they
turn to pupa?.

76 EXPElilMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD Vl|., A. 1907

Eemedies. — The remedies for tlie Plum Curculio are as follows: (1.) Spraying the
trees early in the season so a,s to destroy the beetles which for some time feed upon
the buds and opening leaves of plum trees. The second spraying, with poisoned Bor-
deaux mixture, should be made when the plums are about as large as pease. This will
coat the young fruit so that the beetles are destroyed when they feed on the "fruit or cut
the crescents for egg laying. (2.) The destruction of all windfalls or injured fruit
that drops, so as to clear away all fruit before the larvgp emerge and enter the grouiid
to pupate. Poultry, pigs and sheep help well in this work. (3.) The ploughing up
and cultivation of orchards so as to remove grass and other vegetation which, besides
weakening the trees, gives places for the insects to hide in. The depth at which the
larva; pupate is about an inch beneath the surface, and the pupation in this part of
Canada takes place during July; therefore cultivation during that month will destroy
many of the pupa\ and this has been found the remedy which has given the best results
in old orchards which had been in sod for many years and in which the fruit had been
seriously injured year after year. (4.) The jarring of plum trees, which is much
written about and highly recommended, will certainly destroy many of the beetles, but
costs too much for labour when comp'ared with spraying with insecticides, which give
more certain results in my experience. As the plum and peach are rather easily
injured by some ai'senical poisons, arsenate of lead, 1 lb. to 50 gallons, is preferable
to Paris green for these trees.

The Apple Magc^iot (Rhagioletis pomonella, Walsh). — This insect, also known as
-the railroad worm,' has been the cause of much loss in the apple orchards of Ver-
mont, Maine, and parts of New York (State, just south of our borders. There have
also been one or two rather serious outbreaks in Canada. The injury is caused by
slender white maggots about a quarter of an inch in length, which burrow in all direc-
tions through the flesh of the apple, feeding upon the pulp and leaving discoloured
channels. There are sometimes as many as a dozen maggots in a single apple, but
even a single one is sufficient to render it worthless for the market. The eggs are
inserted beneath the skin of the fruit by prettily marked little black and white flies
with shining golden eyes. They are less than half the size of the ordinary housefly,
and are very active. There is only one brood in the year, but the flies appear very
irregularly, being found on the trees laying their eggs from the beginning of July
until autumn. The young maggots become full-grown in about six weeks, and their
presence as a rule causes early fruit to ripen prematurely and fall to the ground when
the maggots leave it and enter the soil for a short distance. There they change to white
puparia, inside which they remain as maggots until the next summer. The pupa forms
only a short time before the perfect insect appears. The maggots of late-laid eggs are
frequently inside the fruit at the time it is picked, and these go on developing and
destroying the fruit more and more as they grow. Apples, apparently sound when
gathered, may afterwards become perfectly useless. All varieties of apple are liable
to attack, but early varieties seem to be preferred by this insect.

Remedies. — The only practical remedy so far known, but one which has given
excellent results, is to destroy all infested fruit as soon as this fact is discernible.
Wind-falls particularly should be carefully gathered up during the summer and fed
to stock or destroyed in some other way. The most economical raid effective v;ay of
doing this is, perhaps, to allow pigs to run in the orchard from July ^vhen early
apples, which are specially susceptible to attack, begin to fall, and till all fruit is
gathered. Sheep will eat apples if there is not too much grass on the ground, but are
less useful for this purpose than p'igs. Chickens and other poultry are likewise of
service. The ground under apple trees in districts where the apple maggot is known
te occur should not be left in sod, but should bo cultivated regularly. The fruit of
seedlings, crabs and lightly esteemed varieties which are sometimes left unpicked in
an orchard should all be attended to and either picked or threshed from the trees and
destroyed. If there is no stock available to which this fruit can be fed, it should be
buried in a deep hole and then covered up with no less than two or three feet of earth.

REPORT OF THE ENTOMOLOGIST AND BOTANIST 77

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

There is no spraying mixture which can be used against this pest because the eggs
are inserted into the flesh of the fruit by the females with their sharp ovipositors.

Sax Jose Scale (Aspidiotus perniciosus, Comstk.) . — There are few insects which
have caused so much loss where they have established themselves as the now notorious
San Jose Scale. So much has been written about it that it is now pretty well known,
not only by its work upon trees, but also by its appearance to fruit growers in the
small corner of Ontario where only in Canada it is found in injurious numbers.

Two small colonies were found in British Columbia last year, but were promptly
dealt with, and it is believed that they are now wiped out. The minute, almost circulai-,
scales, one-thirteentli of an inch wide, shaped like an inverted saucer, with a depressed
ring around a central point, are sufficiently different from other scales to be recognized
at sight after a little experience. One very good diagnostic character for the young
scales which are found on nursery stock in winter is the black or dark coloured hue in-
side tlie ring. One of the great dangers of this insect is that when only in small num-
bers it is so inconspicuous that it is easily overlooked, and should this happen, its enor-
mous powers of increase during a summer, when press of work as a rule prevents fruit-
growers from examining their trees very carefully, enable it to increase sufficientlj'^
to do serious harm and spread to many other trees.

Remedy. — Frequent inquiries are made as to whether there is a practical remedy
for the San Jpse Scale. I believe that it may now be justly claimed that the lime and
sulphur wash made by any of the recognized formulae is a reliable remedy for this
insect. Orchards -vhich have been carefully treated are in better condition than they
were a year or two ago, and have borne during the past summer satisfactory and
profitable crops of fruit. No remedy, however perfect it may be, will give good results
unless great care is taken in applying it; even with the lime and sulphur wash, it is
not claimed that a single application will always give perfect results. Any remedy
which does not cost too much for labour and materials, and which will ensure a paying
crop, is certainly a practical remedy. All remedies will vary in the degree to which
they secure the ends aimed at, and all that is claimed for the lime and sulphur wash
for the San Joss Scale is that up to the present, all things considered, this has proved
ike best remedy, and is, at any rate, as successful in its results as any known remedy
which is used in medicine for controlling the diseases of animals or human beings.
Succes.s with any remedial treatment will necessarily always depend on the thorough-
ness with which it is carried out.

The Canadian wash is made by mixing lime and sidphur together in the proportion
of twice as much lime as sulphur, and boiling these together in an iron kettle for two
hours (or not less than one hour). The quantity of water added to make up the
requiretl amount of wash is largely a matter of convenience in using. When boiled
with steam, barrels may be used, and to begin with, should be one-quarter filled with
water and the steam turned on until the water is boiling; then turn off the steam and
put in the lime and suli^hur together as quickly as this can be done without making
the mixture boil over. When the lime is all slaked, turn on the steam again, and leave
the mixture boiling for at least an hour.

Oyster-Shell Scale (Mytllaspis ulmi, L.). — This well-known and destructive
enemy of fruit trees, particularly of the apple, has now been complained of from almost
every part of Canada where fruit trees are growm. There is only one brood of the Oys-
ter-shell Scale in the year. The young bark lice emerge from beneath tlie old mother
scales in Ontario and British Columbia about the end of May, and in the Maritime
Provinces towards the end of June. At that time they are small six-legged insects re-
sembling mites. After emerging they wander about the trees for a few hours, looking
for a suitable place to attach themselves to the bark, which they do by means of their
slender beaks. Trees upon which this insect occurs are weakened by being robbed of
their sap by thes^ insects. Frequently the scales occur in such enormous numbers as to
almost coat the trees and entirely hide the bark. In southwestern Ontario excellent

16—6

78 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

work has been done in preventing the spread of this scale insect, by a minute chalcid
parasite, Aphelinus mytUaspidis, Le Baron. It is bright yellow in colour with golden
eyes and measures only aboiit one thirty-sixth of an ijich in length ; being so small it
can hardly be seen with the naked eye. The parasite is sometimes so abundant that it
destroys more than half of the scales that are formed. Its presence on an infested tree
can be detected by the small round holes made through the scales when the flies emerge.

Remedies. — Although so destructive in aU parts of Canada, the Oyster-shell Scale
k not a particularly hard insect to control, where trees are attended to regularly.
The first step to take when an orchard is found to be attacked is to invigorate the trees
by ploughing round them and feeding them with some quick-acting fertilizer, such as
well-rotted manure, or a dresing of wood ashes. When trees have been standing in sod.
it is well to breal<; this up. Trees which are planted too closely, should be pruned and
cleaned out, so that they may be easy of access for spraying and other operations. As
soon as winter has set in, the trees should be sprayed thoroughly with a thin lime wash,
one pound of lime in each gallon of water. Two coats must be applied, the second im-
mediately after the first is dry. Where the lime-sulphur-and-salt wash is used to protect
trees against fungous and insect enemies, there will never be any trouble with the Oyster-
shell Scale. The young bark-lice emerge from their mothers' scales about June;
the exact date should be watched for, and. immediately the dust-like yellow mites are
noticed, the trees should be sprayed without delay with weak kerosene emulsion, or a
whale-oil soap solution, using one pound to six gallons of water,

Pear-Leaf Blister Mite {Phytoptus pyri, Nalepa). — A considerable amount of in-
jury is done every year in all parts of Canada, where the pear is grown, by the opera-
tions of the Pear-leaf Blister-mite: The irregular blotches about one-eighth of an inch
in diameter and frequently confluent, caused by these mites are frequently so abundant
on the foliage as to make it impossible for the leaves to perform their functions. These
blotches when examined are found to he hollow blister-like galls with a hole in the
centre through which large numbers of almost invisibly small mites issue and attack
fresh parts of the leaf. Few people recognize this injury as the work of an insect at first'
sight. It is nearly always sent in as a fungous disease, but if one of these galls is cut-
open and examined with a strong magnifying glass it is easy to detect the white elong-
ated mites with which tl?c inside is filled. The remedy for this insect enemy is to spray
the trees just before the leaf-buds expand with the lime and sulphur wash. The sul-
phur is practically obnoxious to all kinds of mites, and it has been found that this
gerious enemy of the pear-grower may be practically exterminated with a single
thorough spraying with the mixture above mentioned.

Cakkerworms. — Slender brown or green loopers, or * measuring worms,' about an
inch in length when full grown, and with only six pairs of legs, three pairs of which are
on the front part of the body and the others close to the other end, causing the cater-
pillars when they walk to raise the central portion into a loop. These are the caterpillars
of two kinds of geometrid moths which lay their eggs on the trees in the autumn in one
species, and in the spring in the other. The injury done by these caterpillars is some-
times serious and where neglected they increase so much in infested orchards that
sometimes the greater part of the foliage may be destroyed before they are noticed.

The remedy is to spray the trees as soon as the young caterpillars appear. After
they have become half grown they require much stronger poisons to kill them than
many other insects. When they have been neglected it is perhaps better to use arsenate
of lead than Paris green and as much as a pound of the poison may be used to 50
gallons of water or Bordeaux mixture. As the females are wingless and crawl up from
the ground to deposit their eggs on the trees, many may be prevented from egg-laying
by mechanical contrivances or they may be caught on bands of thick paper painted
with a mixture of castor oil, two pounds and resin, three pounds, for cold weather, but
in hot weather it is necessary to add one more pound of resin. These are heated slowly
until the resin is all melted and the mixture is applied to the bands while it is warm.

REPO-RT OF THE EyTOMOLOGIST AXD BOTANIST 7?

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Another formula is 5 lbs. of resin and 3 lbs. of castor oil for warm weather and equal
parts by weight for cold weather. The most convenient way to apply these mixtures
is to paint them on to bands of thick paper, but they may be applied to the tree with-
out injury. It is sometimes necessary to put on a second coating if too much of the
oil is absorbed by the bark. Printer's ink, 5 lbs. mixed with 1 gallon of fish oil is also
very much used in Nova Scotia and the amount mentioned will treat an acre of
orchard.

The Eve-spotted bud-moth {Tmetocera ocellana, Schif.) — The Eye-spotted
Bud-moth has been so abundant during the past two years that there is an
unusual amount of inquiry concerning its habits. There is only one brood
in the year. The inconspicuous moths, dark gray in colour blotched with white, may
be found at rest on the trunks of trees from the middle of June until the middle of
July. They become active at night flying about fruit trees of various kinds, laying
their curious little flat eggs upon the leaves. Ten days after the eggs are laid the
small caterpillars crawl to the middle of the lower side of the leaf and form a siUten
tube close 'to one of the larger ribs. Here they feed on the tissues of the lower side
of the leaf and grow very slowly until autumn, remaining all the time on the leaf
where they were born. About September they stop feeding and crawl to the twigs
where they spin a close silken shelter in which they pass the winter and from which
they emerge early the next spring and, compared with their size, do an immense amount
of harm by attacking the unfolding buds, frequently destroying a whole bunch oF
blossoms and sometimes two or three. The best remedy is to spray the trees thoroughly
with a poisoned Bordeaux mixture at the time the buds are opening, covering the
whole tree so that every bud receives some of the poison. Experiments having in view
the destruction of the young caterpillars in the autumn were not very successful. It is
(UtHcnlt to find time to spray during the fruit season and this of course would be un-
wise upon bearing trees. The experiments referred to were upon early apples of
which the fruit had all been picked some time before. If it is considered too much
trouble to iLse Bordeaux mixture for the first spraying at the time the buds are burst-
ing, a simple Paris green mixture which is more easily made, consisting of one pound
of Paris green, one pound of fresh lime, and 100 gallons of water may be used.

The Cattle Horn-fly (Hcematohia serrata, Desv.). — This troublesome pest of
Iiorned stock, which apijcared first in Canada in 1S92, has done much harm by
irritating cattle with its bites so that when it is abundant they fall off rapidly both
in flesh and in yield of miUc. Erom the time it first appeared in Canada this fly has
spread over all parts of the Dominion, reaching the Pacific coast in 1903; but is by
far more troublesome in the eastern provinces than in the west. The fly is a small
and very active dark gray species about one-third the size of the ordinary cattle fly,
and shaped just like that inseet with the same kind of biting, dagger-shaped beak,
carried projecting forward in front of the head. When in large numbers these flies
frequently cluster on the horns to rest. It was from this habit that they got their
name. Statements that they bore holes into the horns are inaccurate. The only
harm done by them is due to their very irritating bites on the bodies of the animals.
The eggs are laid by the females in freshly deposited covn droppings. The maggots
hatch in 24 hours and become full grown in about a week ; they then burrow down a
short distance into the ground and turn to brown puparia, from which the flies emerge
in four or five days. There are several broods during the summer, and the last brood
cf maggots passes the winter as puparia.

Remedies. — 'Of the many remedies we have tried, the following have given the
greatest satisfaction: (1) smearing the parts most usually bitten with a mixture of
lard, 5 lbs., and pine tar, 1 lb. Two applications each week when the flies are very
bad. Mix well together and apply to the parts most attacked, brushing the mixture
lightly over the tips of the hair. After two or three applications the 1;reatment has
morp pffpot than at first. (2) Spraying the animals twice a week with ordinary ke^o-

16— G*

80 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD Vll., A. 1907

Bene emulsion. (3) Fish oil 2 quarts, and oil of tar, 2 oz., or fish oil, 2 quarts, coal
■oil, 1 pint, and oil of tar, 2 ozs. (4) Good work may be done by breaking up the cow
droppings in the field. The maggots can only live in the dung while it is in a moist
condition. A boy with a rake could go over a pasture three times a week and break
up all the fresh droppings and the drying up of these by the sun or the washing away
by rain would kill all the eggs or maggots, thus locally reducing the numbers very
much.

Cattle Lice. — The loss from these disgusting and very common parasites of
horned stock is far greater than is generally appreciated. Many animals turned out
in spring in poor condition have been reduced in flesh by the constant discomfort of
being preyed upon by myriads of lice which might have been destroyed by a little
attention on the part of those in charge of them. On account of the small size of
lice they are often overlooked until they have become very numerous and have done
a great deal of harm. Lousy animals will neither rest nor feed well. They are pre-
vented from putting on flesh, their growth is stunted, and their meat is neither so
good nor produced so economically. It is well known that an animal kept in good
condition and steadily increasing in weight costs much less to prepare for the market
than one whose growth is checked and allowed to get into poor condition. Lice cause
more loss in stock than is generally appreciated. This loss is unnecessary because all
of the common external parasites of live stock can be easily and cheaply treated
There are two kinds of lice found commonly on cattle, the Small Blue Louse or Biting
Ox-louse {Trichodectes scalaris, Nitzsch) and the Big Black Louse or Short-nosed
Ox-lbuse (Hcsmatopiniis eurysternus, Nitzsch). Both of these parasites are sometimes
found in great numbers on neglected cattle, and when the stalls have become thorough-
ly infested are hard to clear out entirely; but this can be done by continued effort
and with great benefit to the stock and to the owner. Many remedies are known.
We have used kerosene emulsion with much satisfaction, spraying it on to the animals
and then rubbing it well' in with the hands. Any of the recognized sheep dips will
also answer, and are very convenient. Eecently Zenoleum has been used for this pur-
pose and answers well. All of the latter are used of the strength advised by the makers
An important part of the treatment consists of spraying thoroughly the stalls where
the animals have stood, after cleaning them out. Both of these lice leave the animals
and hide in the cracks and crevices of the woodwork.

Hog Louse (Hcematopinus suis, Leach). — This is the largest louse known, measur-
ing one-quarter of an inch in length. It is of a dirty white colour marked with brown.
The feet are provided with strong claws with which they cling tightly to the hairs. Al-
thorgh from the nature of the animals they infest and the usual way their pens are
built, these lice are rather difficult to eradicate, the same remedies mentioned for tbe
cattle lice will quickly and entirely kill these parasites also, as I have found on several
occasions. It is necessary to spray the sleeping quarters very thoroughly.

Sheep Louse (Trichodectes sphcerocephalus, Nitzsch). — This is a very small louse
but is a very troublesome parasite, causing great irritation to infested animals which
show their discomfort by rubbing themselves and by biting at the wool. Most of the
severest cases of infestation by sheep lice have been in the winter. Sheep should be ex-
amined before winter sets in and if any lice are found they should be dipped.

The Sheep Tick (Melophagus ovinus, L.). — Although usually knovm as the Sheep
Tick this is not a true tick, all of which in the mature form possess eight legs, but is a
true six-legged insect. It is in fact a member of the lowest-developed section of the
Diptera or Flies. It belongs to the Louse-flies or Ilippoboscidie. All of the members
of this small division are very abnormal both as to form and mode of reproduction. They
are all parasites living on birds and animals. Some are winged as those often found on
hawks, but the so-called Sheep Tick is wingless. Instead of laying eggs the louse-flies
retain the larvse inside the bodies of the females until they are full grown, only one

REPORT OF TEE ENTOMOLOGIST AXD BOTANIST 81

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

dcvclcping at a time; they then cinorge and at once turn to bi-own puparia. -u-hich arc at-
tached to the wool of the shesp by a sticky secretion. From this the fully developed
parasite emerges and at once attacks its host. Each female produces only four or five
young, and these are born one at a time. Xotwithstanding tliis. Sheep Ticks are fre-
quently very numerous on a single animal. The bite causes much irritation and when
they infest lambs they do much harm sometimes even causing death. There should be no
trouble with cither Sheep Lice or Sheep Ticks if the animals are regularly and proi>erly
dipped in spring soon after shearing. The work must be done thoroughly. Kerosene
emulsion answers admirably ; but commercial dips are as a rule thought to be more con-
venient because they can be purchased ready made, requiring only to be mixed with the
prescribed amount of water. For dipping, a deep vat is generall;^ used and care must be
taken that the animal, head and all, is pushed right under the liquid. Poisonous dips
should not be used either for sheep or for cattle. For this reason tlie kerosene emulsion
is preferable to many other dips which are sometimes used.

6-7 EDWARD VII.

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

A. 1907

REPORT OF THE CEREAI.IST.

CHARLES E. SAUNDERS, B.A., Ph. D.

Dr. Wm. Saunders, C.M.G.,

Director Dominion Experimental Farms,
Ottawa.

Ottawa, March 31st., 190G.

Sir, — I have the honour to submit herewith a report of the work of the Cereal
Division.

As the period to be covered by this report is only from November 30th, 1905, to
March 31st, 1906, and as most of the experiments carried on in this division can only
be satisfactorily presented when the work of a full year is being considered, it seemed
best, under the circumstances, to give, instead of the details of the winter's work, a
brief statement in regard to the experiments carried on since the establishment of the
Cereal Division, as well as a short review of the chief features of the work of earlier
years.

I have the honour to be, sir,

Your obedient servant,

CHARLES E. SAUNDERS,

Cerealisf.

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CEREAL DIVISION.

Though only recently organized into a separate division, the work of testing and
breeding cereals has been carried on ever since the Dominion Experimental Farms
were established.

For the first sixteen years this work was under the immediate care of the Direc-
tor, but during the latter part of that period it was found increasingly difficult for him
to give a sufiicient amount of time to the experimental work with cereals. In the
year 1903, therefore the Hon. Minister of Agriculture appointed a new officer to take
charge of this branch of experimental inquiry, and to devote the whole of his time
to it.

IMPORTATION OF CEREALS FOR EXPERIMENTAL PURPOSES.

The original stocks of seed grain for the commencement of the experimental work
on the farms were obtained 'from many different sources. Varieties of wheat were
secured through the London (Eng.) Corn Exchange. Direct importations were also
made from Russia, Franco and Germany, and some very interesting cereals of early
ripening character were obtained from India through the assistance of the Earl of
Duffcrin, then Viceroy of India. Many varieties of grain were also obtained from
some of the experimental stations in the United States and from seedsmen and fai'mera
in Canada and elsewhere.

In this way many different sorts of seed were brought together for comparative
test, the object in view being to determine the relative value of the different sorts in

83

84 EXPERIMENTAL fAHMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

yield, earliness, strength of straw, quality of grain, «S:c., when grown close together
under conditions as nearly uniform as possible.

The importation of foreign grains did not cease, however, when the system of test-
plots was well established. Many new sorts have since been obtained from various
sources from time to time. Among these are a few very interesting varieties which
may prove of value. As a rule, however, it appears that better success will be obtained
by breeding our own sorts than by importing varieties bred in other countries under
climatic conditions usually quite different from those of Canada.

IMPORTATION OF LARGE LOTS OF GRAIN.

In addition to the small quantities of grain imported from various countries for
test on the experimental farms, much larger lots were purchased in two instances in
the effort to meet at once certain special difficulties. The importations referred, to
were those of Ladoga wheat tmd of English Two-row barley.

The early settlers in soiue districts of the Northwest Territories sometimes
suffered a considerable reduction in the value of their wheat crop because of early
autumn frosts which occurred before the grain was quite ripe. It was, therefore, felt
to be of great importance to secure for those districts a variety of wheat which would
ripen about a week earlier than Red Fife (the kind most commonly grown). A
quantity of sead wheat was, therefore, obtained from Northern Russia, from near
Lake Ladoga. This variety was a promising, hard red wheat to which the name
Ladoga was given. The grain was supplied for .seed purposes to farmei's living at a
number of different points in the Northwest. It proved to be considerably earlier in
ripening than Red Fife and gave good yields, but when at length a sufficient quantity
was obtained for a milling and baking test (which at that time required a large
amount of grain) the flour was found to be too yellow in colour for the public taste,
and was also somewhat different in other respects from that made from Red Fife
wheat. The cultivation of Ladoga wheat was therefore not further encouraged, except
in the sections of country farthest north where the Red Fife was quite unsuitable,
and where all the wheat grown was used for home consumption.

In the year 1S90 an effort was made to encourage Canadian farmers to grow
barley for export for malting purposes to Great Britain and Ireland, tariff charges
in the United States having deprived our country of a market for a con.sidcrable q,;an-
tity of barley. Six-row barley had been grown for export to the United States, but as
the English market required two-row barley a quantity of seed of a suitable variety
was obtained from England and sold to farmers so that they might be able to start at
once the growing of comparatively large quantities of one of the best English malt-
ing sorts.

Thr results of this experiment showed that first-class barley of the type desired
by the English buyer could be produced in many districts in Canada. It was found,
however, that our system of shipping grain in bulk made it impossible, as a rule, to
retain the identity of the finest samples, which usually become mixed with poorer
grain before reaching the purchaser. This and other circumstances almost completely
stopped the exportation of barley; and while this grain is still largely grown in Canad
it is now used for feeding purposes at home, to the greater advantage of the farmer.

a.

TEST PLOTS OF CEREALS.

The system of uniform test plots which was established early in the history of
the experimental farms has proved of great value in enabling us to reach conclusions
as to the relative merits of the different varieties of grain. The size of the plots has
been changed somewhat from time to time, but of late years the standard has been
onc-fortietii of an acre. Smaller plots than this are not very satisfactory for cerca's,

REPORT OF THE CEREALIST 85

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

and larger plots are scarcely practicable at the Central Experimental Farm. Tlie num-
ber of varieties tested in these plots since the commencement of the work has boon
very large, and has included all the important commercial sorts obtainable as well as
a great number of cross-bred varieties and selected strains produced at this farm.
Most of the kinds which have proved distinctly inferior to the others have been re-
jectctl after a few years' trial so that the work might be kept within reasonable
bounds. These systematic tests have not only given valuable information in regard to
the varieties in general .cultivation, but have also made it possible for us to .select for
distribution among farmers the very best from among the newly produced sorts.

In order to present to the farmers in as useful a form as possible some of the most
important conclusions drawn from these comparative tests of cereals, short lists of the
varieties recommended for general cultivation (and sometimes those required for
special purposes also) are published each year in the annual report.

EARLY SOWING OF CEREALS.

An extensive series of tests, completed several years ago, showed that in the
climate of Ottawa it is of the utmost importance to sow all cereals early, in most cases
about as soon as the land can be brought into proper condition to receive the seed.
Quite a noticeable reduction in yield occurs if the seeding is delayed a week, and there
is usually a very serious loss if the delay is of two weeks' duration.

The best time for sowing cereals on this farm is from about April 20th to 26th in
an ordinary season.

QUANTITY OF SEED TO USE PER ACRE.

Experiments are in progress to determine the best quantity of seed to sow per acre
in the case of wheat, oats and barley. The tests are being made both on heavy and
on light soil. The results vary somewhat from season to season, so that the tests may
have to be continued for some years yet before entirely satisfactory conclusions can
be reached.

BREEDING NEW VARIETIES OF GRAIN.

The crossing of different varieties of wheat, oats, barley and peas 'for the produc-
tion of new sorts specially adapted to Canadian conditions was undertaken as soon as
possible after the establishment of the Experimental Farms. It was recognized that
cross-breeding was' the only method of work likely to produce varieties combining
those qualities necessary for the greatest success.

Among the first crosses made were some between Red Fife wheat and Ladoga and
between White Fife and Ladoga. In both of these experiments the object in view was
to combine the high quality of the Fife wheat with the earliness of the Ladoga. Sever-
al new varieties were produced from these crosses, and the best sorts have been dis-
tributed under the names Preston, Stanley, Huron and Percy. All of these are
vigorous varieties, ripening as a rule about a week before Red Fife. As the distribu-
tion of these varieties was begun before they were fully fixed in type they are not
altogether of uniform character as now found in commerce. Recently, however, they
were all carefully re-selected, and fixed strains of d'stinct character and improved
quality are now being grown at the Central Experimental Farm. The best of these
will be distributed to farmers as soon as possible.

Many other crosses were made, during the first few years of the existence of the
Experimental Farms, in wheat, oats, barley and peas, some of which have proved very

83 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

intereating, though they have not attracted so much attention as the varieties already
referred to.

When the work in cereals was organized into a separate division, the cross-breed-
ing was at once taken up in a much larger way, and the systematic selection of exist-
ing varieties By the newer method of choosing single plants was begun. The selection
of single plants of great excellence as the starting point of each new strain has been
found greatly superior to any of the older methods of selection whether of best heads
or of best seed from a number of similar plants. Several hundred cross-bred kernels
have been produced during the last three years, and these seeds have already given rise
to many thousand new varieties, most of which have, of course, been rejected, only
the best being retained for further test.

Ill all the work of crossing and selection of cereals the chief points aimed at are
to increase the productiveness, earliness, quality of grain, strength of straw, ability
to resist rust, &c., and to produce varieties suitable for the various soils and climates
of the different sections of Canada'.

Among the new sorts now on hand, in very small quantities, of course, there are
many which show great promise. Some of the extremely early wheats which ripen
two weeks before Red Fife and produce hard red kernels of excellent milling quality,
will no doubt prove very useful in the northern sections of our great wheat-growing
provinces, and will also be found valuable for rather cold and damp soils in districts
farther south. Nearly all of the very early wheats produced thus far have rather short
straw, a distinct advantage for some situations. Among the early sorts, ripening
between those just mentioned and Eed Fife, there are some vigorous varieties which
give promise of great productiveness, and which produce straw of good, length. Some
ci these may be of much value in rather poor soils, or in districts where the rainfall
is deficient.

In barley and .oats many new sorts are being produced, special attention being
paid to the hulkss and beardless kinds and to those varieties of very early maturing
habit.

Many new cross-bred sorts of peas are also under trial, including some very prom-
ising varieties of the crown type bearing coloured (instead of the usual white)
flowers.

MILLING AND BAKING TESTS OF WHEAT.

As has already been pointed out, it was not possible until a few years ago to have
a satisfactory test of the value of any wheat for flour-making and bread-making until
quite a large quantity of the grain was available. It was, therefore necessary to intro-
duce a variety before its quality could be ascertained. Now, however, since the small
experimental flour mills have been manufactured, it is possible to make satisfactory
milling and baking tests from a very small quantity of wheat. ^he purchase of a
small mill and of the necessary baking apparatus has added a most important new
feature to the work of the Cereal Division, and has greatly increased the possibilities of
doing good service for the country. All the new varieties produced at this farm are
now subjected to milling and baking tests before being distributed to farmers for trial.
This system has made it possible to eliminate some undesirable new serfs which,
though very promising in most respects, were found, to be deficient in flour strength
for bread-making.

While chiefly designed for testing new varieties of wheat produced at this farm
or imported from abroad, the experimental flour mill has also been employed in the
study of some of the more common commercial varieties and grades of wheat. Bulletin
No. 50 of the Experimental Farm series gives the results of a study of the milling and
chemical value of the grades of wheat in the Manitoba Inspection Division (crop of
19©4:). This investigation was carried on by the Cereal and Chemical Divisions
together.

REPORT OF THE CEREALIST 87

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Other tests of a somewhat similar nature have been made. Red Fife and White
Fife were carefully compared, and it was shown that there seemed to be no ground for
the common idea that White Fife (in pure condition) is inferior in quality to Red
Fife.

The inferiority of Club wheat was clearly demonstrated, and the western farmers
were strongly advised to di-continue the cultivation of this variety on account of the
poor quality of the flour it ijroduced.

During the present winter several interesting varieties are being tested, and the
difference between very hard and very soft Red Fife (both samples being known to be
quite true to name) is being studied. The results thus far obtained show clearly that
the flour from very soft Red Fife has markedly less strength, for baking purposes,
tlif-n that obtained from very hard Red Fife. The two samples compared were both
grown in the same district of Manitoba, but on different kinds of soil.

This investigation into the quality of wheats is intended to include all the lead-
iiig sorts of both spring and winter wheats now grown in Canada. It is believed that
many farmers pay too little attention to the quality of the ,varieties they grow, and
that in many instances it will be found practicable to substitute superior sorts for
those which are now being cultivated. At present, however, the information obtain-
able by farmers in regard to the quality of the leading- sorts of wheat is very meagre.

FIELD ROOTS, INDIAl^ CORN, ETC.

In addition to cereals the experimental investigations in regard to field roots,
Indian corn for ensilage, millets and some other fodder crops are carried on by the
Cereal Division. Comparative tests of different vai'ieties cannot be conducted quite so
satisfactorily with these crops as with cereals, owing to the difficulty of procuring
from year to year exactly the same strains of seed. The seed cannot, as a rule, be ad-
vantageously ripened on this farm, but is purchased every year from various seedsmen.
The diversity of names given to essentially the same seed when sold by different firms
also complicates the work considerably.

The importance of early sowing and of late pulling for roots have both been well
established by tests covering a number of years. So far as weight of crop is concerned,
there is a decided gain in sowing the seed as early and leaving the roots in the soil
as late rs can safely be done.

6-7 EDWARD VII.

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

A. 1907

REPORT OF THE POULTRY MANAGER.

A. G. GILBERT.

Dr. Wm. Saunders^ C.M.G.

Director Dominion Experimental Earms,
Ottawa.

Ottawa, March 31st, 1906.

Sir, — I have the pleasure of transmitting to you an interim report covering a
period of four months "from ^November 30 to March 31.

In this report methods of feeding and management, which many years of expsrieiice
have proved to be effective in the obtaining of eggs and poultry, at the best paying
seasons of the year, are described and discussed.

It .is hoped that the more general practice of these methods by the farmers of the
country will enable them to successfully cater to the requirements of a rapidly grow-
ing market for the better quality of poultry and eggs.

I have the honour to be, sir,

Your obedient servant,

A. G. GILBERT.

THE WORK OF. THE POULTRY DIVISION.

Since the date of the first annual report of the poultry divison of the Central
Experimental Earm, nineteen years ago, there has been a marked and gratifying
change in the attitude of the farmers of the country to the poultry branch of their
farms. It is not very long ago that the fowls on the farm were looked upon as a non-
paying quantity and received scant attention. If the adult birds received little atten-
tion, the newly hatched chickens, when they came, usually late in the season, received
still less. They were allowed to ' pick up their own living ' and to thrive as best they
could. As a result, the lean, sinewy and scraggy chicken was the rule, rather than the
exception, on the markets. New laid eggs were scarce and high in price. They are
yet high in value, but from a different cause. Then they were high in price because
scarce. To-day they are equally high for the reason that the demand for them is
greater than the supply, although the latter has greatly increased. The scraggy
chicken has, to a great extent, given place to the well fed and cared for specimen of
correct niarl^ct type. Customers arc more inclined to pay a bettor price for a Iicttor
quality, and producers find it most profitable to cater to the more exacting demand
with articles of the be,st quality. Indeed the best class of customers to-day will have
none other.

INCREASING DEMAND FOR NEW LAID EGGS IX WINTER.

Another feature of poultry development worth noting is the increasing demand
for strictly fresh eggs in winter. This was strikingly shown by the high prices which
prevailed in this and other cities of the Dominion during the months of November,
December, January and Eebruary last, wdien from 35 to 50 cents per dozen was paid

89

90 EXPERlMElsfTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

by leading grocers for the strictly fresh article. And this, despite the fact that tho
past winter of 1905-06 was unusually mild. Prices remained high until the beginning
of March, when they declined owing to the arrival of fresh laid eggs from the country.
The following values were obtained by our poultry division for strictly new laid eggs
during the months named. These prices were the same as paid to producers by the lead-
ing family grocery stores of the city, viz. : —

August, 1905 20 cents per dozen.

September, 1905 25 "

October, 1905 30 "

November, 1905 35 "

December, 1905 50 "

Jamiary, 1906 50 "

February, 1906 40 "

March, 1906 25 "

At the close of the last named month the eggs were sold for hatching at $1 per
setting and their disposal for eating purposes ceased to a very great extent.

WHAT EXPERIENCE HAS SHOWN.

Experience has clearly shown that extra care and attention are necessary before
the strictly new laid and well flavoured egg, or, plump chicken of proper type can be
placed in the hands of the purchaser. It is well that farmers and other producers
should realize that, neither ' select ' eggs nor ' superior quality of poultry,' can be pro-
duced by the hap-hazard methods which were so prevalent in past years and are yet
too common in many parts of the country.

That farmers and other egg producers are conforming in greater numbers, to
these more exacting requirements, is indicated by the increasing demand for informa-
tion in regard to them. The nature of these requirements and how to meet them
are fully outlined in report of this department for last year, 1905, to which the reader
is referred. Experience has also taught that to have winter eggs of freshness and
fine flavour, they should be —

1. ISTon-fertilized.

2. Laid by well and cleanly fed hens.

3. After being laid they should be immediately placed in a cool sweet smelling
cellar, or, cupboard.

4. They should reach the consumer as soon after being laid as possible. Certainly
within one week or ten days.

now THE FINER QUALITY OF POULTRY ISIAY BE HAD.

To have the better quality of poultry the following conditions should be conformed
with : —

1. The chickens should be of Plymouth Eock, Wyandotte. Orpington, or Dorking
type.

2. The aim should be to have the frame of the birds as small-boned as possible,
so that the weight of the chickens, when sold, will be in flesh rather than bone. This
may be accomplished by breeding from the best market tjT)es only.

3. In order to have chickens in the most desirable condition, at the earliest age, it
is requisite that they be well cared for and regularly fed from their earliest age.

Experience of many years has shown that if chickens are well looked after and of
the proper type described, that very little, if any, fleshing by crate, or other means, is
required to have them in acceptable condition at 3J, 4 or 5 months o^ age.

REPORT OF THE POULTRY MAXAGER 91

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

A DETRIMENTAL PRACTICE.

A practice not infrequently indulged in by farmers is certainly detrimental to their
obtaining the highest figures. It is that of holding back their eggs until a sufficient
number is collected to make it worth while taking them to city or town. In this way a
large part of the eggs are stale before they leave the farm. The clerk in store and many
of the purchasers on the market are well aware of tJiis state of affairs and govern their
valuation of the eggs accordingly.

On one occasion, during a recent winter montli, the writer was present in a leading
grocery store of the city, when a farmer entered and asked one of the clerks " if they
were buying eggs?" The following conversation then occurred: —

Clerk. — How many eggs have you for sale?
Farmer. — Ten dozen.
" -Clerk. — How many eggs did you bring in ?
Farimer. — Twenty dozen. I have sold ten.
Clerk. — How many montlis old are the eggs?

Farmer (indignantly). — They are not months old. They are fresh.
Clerk. — How many hens have you?

The farmer told the clerk, who immediately offered a price 15 cents below the value
of ihe 'strictly new laid' article. The price was accepted. In this caise the clerk evi-
dently reasoned that if a small number of the farmer's fowls had been layers, some time
iiiuei have elapsed before twenty dozen eggs could have been gathered up. As a result
the eggs first collected would be a stale commodity and a price was named accordingly.
On the other nand, it is not always convenient and ofttimes impossible for farmers, who
live at a distance from city, or town markets, to make special trips to them, with only
a few dozen eggs. Hence, the waiting until such a quantity of farm produce is got to-
gethei as to make its disposal worth while. Such cases are frequently to be met with.
They also show one cause why new laid eggs, during the winter months, are not likely
to heach the city markets in over-ab\indance for some time to come. Farmers, who are
located near city markets, undoubtedly have the best opportunities to receive the highest
prices for winter eggs and the superior quality of poultry.

AVHO OBTAIN THE HIGH PRICES.

In report of last year several letters from farmers are given to show the prices re-
ceived by them for new-laid eggs and the finer quality of poultry. But farmers are not
alone producers of fresh eggs and chickens of the better quality. The different pro-
ducers may be thus classified : —

1. Farmers who are located in the neighbourhood of cities and large towns and who
can readily reach purchasers who pay the best prices for the best goods.

2. Farmers within easy reach of express offices from which eggs may be shipped.
The cost of eggs by express has increased from two cents per dozen to three cents.
Crates, as heretofore, are returned free.

3. Specialists, amateurs, &c., who live in the suburbs of the city or town. Some of
the latter class are expert enough to have their hens lay well in the winter months.
They make it a feature to sell to only those who pay the highest prices.

AN UNWARRANTED OPINION DONE AWAY AVITH.

In the earlier days of poultry keeping in this country there was a popular opinion,
among farmers and many other poultry keepers, that in order to have eggs and poultry
flesh, in quantity and quality, it was necessary to keep two different varieties of fowls,
one to lay eggs only and another to furnish the proper type of market chickens. But
experimental work has unmistakably made plain that egg-laying qualities and correct

92 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

market type could be had in the different varieties of Plymouth Rocks, "Wyandottes,
Dorkings and comparatively later comers in the Buff Orpington family.

Experience has also shown that laying qualities are more a matter of strain than
breed ; that the best known breeds, embrace in their many varieties good and bad egg-
laying strains; that the selection of the best layers of the best market types of the
breeds hitherto regarded as being good for flesh only and breeding from them, is the
way to secure the desirable egg laj-er and market type combined. As a certain meana
to this end came the trap nest which with mechanical certainty makes known, the
history of each fowl in a breeding pen as a good layer or otherwise. So, to-day, we
have strains of Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, &c., &e., which are as good layers as any
of the famous egg-laying Spanish family, besides giving us chickens of the most desir-
able market sorts.

QUESTIONS AVHICH ARE FREQUENTLY ASKED.

The following questions on subjects affecting the proper management of poultry
are asked almost daily. They are given with replies to them on the present occasion,
with the hope that their publication will anticinate inquiry on the part of many
others : —

Q. What has experimental work shown to be fowls best adapted to the wants of
the farmers ?

A. Barred Plymouth Rocks, White Wyandottes or Buff Orpingtons. For the
reason that they are excellent egg layers and their offspring are good table birds.

Q. What profit should hens pay per head per year?

A. Properly managed fowls should pay from one to two dollars per year each,
over cost of keeping them. See statements made by farmers and others in C'.. E. F.
Report for 1905.

Q. What is meant by the term 'dual purpose' as applied to a fowl?

A. By ' dual purpose ' is meant a fowl which is a good egg-layer and of correct
market type. She is a good layer of eggs in winter and her offspring like herself are
of coiTect market types. The term ' utility ' is also used to describe this kind of fowl.

Q. Wliat is meant by strain?

Ansivei: — Strain is the development by careful selection and breeding of the best
points of merit of each variety.

Question. — How is the moulting of the hens in summer brought on and how long
does it last?

Answer. — The summer moult usually lasts from eight to twelve weeks. Mr. James
Shackleton, a well known authority contends that by feeding specially prepared rations
this period may be shortened. The following treatment has been successfiil in our
department for several years. During the early part of July — after the breeding season
is over — the fowls were placed on half the usual quantity of rations for 15 or 20 days.
The effect of this treatrnent was the stoppage of egg production and the loosening of
the old feathers. At end of 15 or 20 days the full rations were resumed. A little lin-
seed meal may be added to the mash with benefit on the resumption of full rations.
Before the beginning of operations to bring on the moult the cock birds were removed
from the breeding pens and placed in compartments by themselves. The hens were
then allowed to run in small fields where they could find insect life, clover, grass, &c.
i*or description of ' full rations ' see formula of winter egg producing ration on a fol-
lowing page. In the feeding of the fowls during moult care should be observed that
they do not become too fat. The fowls are more apt to becon-iC over-fat, from too
generous feeding during the moult than after they have got over it and recommenced
laying.

REPORT OF THE POULTRY MANAGER 93

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Question. — What number of fowls should a farmer keep?

Answer. — Not more than he can profitably manage, say from 50 to 250, according
to circumstances.

Question. — What number of chickens should a farmer hatch and rear?

Answer. — If hens are used as hatching mediums, from 50 to 100. If incubator
and brooders, from 150 to 250. Much depends upon his liking for and knowledge of
the work and the time at his disposal. Whether hatched by incubator or hens he should
have all his chickens, if at all possible, hatched by end of the first or second week of
May, so that the pullets will be early layers and the spare cockerels ready for early
market.

Question. — What are the best methods of operation of an incubator and brooder?
Answer. — Full instructions accompany each incubator and brooder. Any devia-
tion from these instructions is at the risk of the operator.

Question. — What are the prices of incubators and brooders ?

Answer. — From $10 to $29 for incubators of from 60 to 240 eggs capacity.
Larger machines are higher in price. Brooders range from $5 to $15, according to
size.

Question. — Can turkey, geese and duck eggs be hatched in incubators?
Answer. — Yes, particularly duck eggs.

Question. — Will you name a ration suitable for egg production in winter?

Answer. — The following ration has been used in our department with great suc-
cess for several years, viz. :

Morning. — Wheat, sometimes buckwheat, in proportion of 8 to 10 pounds to 100
fowls. Scatter in the litter on the floor of house or scratching shed attachment.

11 a.m. — Steamed lawn clippings, or clover hay, three or four times per week.

Noon. — If found necessary, oats in proportion of 5 lbs. to 100 hens. Scatter in
litter on the floor to keep the fowls busy.

Afternoon. — Mash, composed of such ground grains as are in most abundance.
Feed in quantity of 3 or 4 ounces to each fowl. When mixing the mash add a small
teaspoonful of salt, and another of black pepper, or ground ginger. Occasionally mix
boiled potatoes or turnips in the mash.

Cut green bone or other form of meat should be given in the proportion of one
pound to 15 fowls, three or four times per week, in lieu of the steamed lawn clippings,
clover hay or noon ration.

It is requisite for the good health of the fowls and to prevent egg eating and
feather picking that the rations should be varied and regularly fed. Grit, mangels,
turnips or other form of vegetable food should be in regular supply.

Question. — Will you name a ration that will successfully bring young chickens
from hatching to marketable age?

Answer. — The following will be found effective: — First day — Little or no food
is required. Towards end of the day a few stale bread crumbs may be fed. Second
day — Stale bread soaked in nailk and squeezed dry may be given in small quantity.
Feed a little at a time and leave none on the platform. A little hard boiled egg finely
cut up may be added with benefit. Continue this for a day or two and add granu-
lated oatmeal; finely crushed wheat may be given at tliis time. Continue the stale
bread soaked in milk and granulated oatmeal for ten days, when finely crushed corn
may be added to the foregoing with ndvantnge. After 14 days give whole wheat in
small quantity at first. As the chicks grow older they should be given a mash com-
posed of stale bread, shorts, cornmeal, ground meat, &c. Finely cut bone or meat will
be found a great incentive to growth at this stage. On the chickens becoming eight
weeks of age their rations may be dropped to tlireo per day. Care should be taken
that they are generously fed at last ration. For drink give skimmed milk and water.

16—7

94 EXPERIMENTAL FARMS

6-7 EDWARD VII., A. 1907

When fully feathered the mothers of the hen-hatched chickens should be removed from
them. The chickens will be found to return to their coops as usual, and they are al-
lowed to remain in them until removed to more commodious quarters in colony houses.
On the incubator-hatched chickens becoming too large for the brooders they were also
removed to colony houses.

AVINTER LAYING.

Winter laying commenced early in the month of December and continued dur-
ing the winter season. Different rations were fed to fowls of different breeds, and
the trap nests proved valuable in distinguishing the good from the bad layers.

6-7 EDWARD VII.

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

A. 1907

INDEX.

Pagis.

Agriculturist — Report of the 17

Beef Production 21

Cattle ■ 21

Cattle possible of being kept on a given

area 18

Cost of production of crops 18

Cost of production of 100 lbs. beef.. .. 22

Dairy Cattle 23

Horses 21

1/etter of transmittal 17

Lines of work on farm 18

Methods of growing crops 18

Rations for cattle 22

Rotation experiments 19

Rotation, results of introduction of a

five-year one 18-19-20

Swine 23

Soil and soil cultivation 17

Cerealist— Report of the 83

Baking Tests 86

Breeding new varieties of grain 85

Cereal Division, Establishment of the. 83

Early sowing 85

Early varieties of wheat 86

Importation of cereals S3, 84

Indian corn 87

Milling Tests 86

Quantity of seed per acre 83

Roots, Field 87

Test Plots 84

Chemist— Report of the 47

Canadian cereals 55

" soils 50

Cereals, Canadian 55

Cheese factories, well waters from.. .. 57

Chemical Division 47

" " character and scope of

work 48

" " correspondence 48

" " investigations and re-
searches 49

" " lectures and ad-
dresses 49

" " publications 49

" " sajnples sent for ex-
amination 49

" " staff of 4S

Page.
Chemist — Report of the — Con.

Chemistry, relation to agriculture.. .. 48

Conservation of soil moisture 53

Correspondence 48

Creameries, well waters from 57

Dairying, investigations relating to.. .. 56

Fertilizers, naturally-occurring 53

Forage crops, grasses, rape, Indian

corn, &c 54

Fruit growing, investigations relative

to 57

Grasses 54

Indian corn 54

Inoculation for the growth of legumes.. 51

Investigations relating to dairying.. .. 56

fruit growing. 57

" and researches 49

Lectures and addresses 49

Legumes, value of, for improvement of

soils 51

" inoculation for growth of 52

Letter of transmittal 47

Manure, barnyard, preservation of.. .. 53

Muck soils, improvement of 51

Publications

Rape

Samples sent in by farmers for examina-

tion.

Soft pork, character and causes of.. ..

Soils, Canadian

" value of legumes for improvement

0!f

Soil moisture, conservation of

" muck, improvement of

Smut preventive, influence of on wheat

germ

Staff of the Chemical Division

Sugar beets

Well waters, from farm homesteads,
creameries and cheese factories, ex-
■amination of

Wheat germ, influence of smut preven-
tive on

49
54

49

r,6

50

51
53

5]

55
48
55

57

55

Director — Report of the 1

Advancement of agriculture 15

Agricultural advancement 15

Agriculturist, work of the 12

Agriculture, movement looking to im-
provements in 2

95

86

INDEX

5-6 EDWARD VII., A. 1906

Page.
Director — Reporf of the — Con.

Barnyard manure, experiments with.. .. 4

Branch Experimental Farms 13

Cerealist, worli of the 11

Chemist, work of the 13

Climatic Conditions in Canada 1

Clover as a fertilizer 5-6

Correspondence, rapid increase of.. .. 3

Co-operative trials with pure seed.. .. 9
Crop growing, principles which underlie

successful ^

Director, report of the 1

Distribution of samples of gia.n for

seed -^

Dominion Experimental Farms, when

organized 1

Early ripening varieties of grain, need

of 9

Early sowing, importance of 6

Entomologist and Botanist, work of the. 12
Experimental Farms, establishment of.. 2
" " objects in view in
their establish-
ment S

" " to be bureaus of

information.. .. 3

Experiments with dairy cows 14

" " flowers.. 14

fruits 14

" " ornamental and tim-
ber trees 14

" " steers 14

" " swine 14

" " tree planting 15

" " uniform test plots of

■ grain, &c 13

" " vegetables.. 14

Fertilizers, results of tests of 4

■ Free distribution of samples of pure

seed ^

Forest tree experiments 15

Grain, early ripening vars. from India. 10

" " " " Russia. 9

" need of early ripening varieties. 9

Horticulturist, work of the 12

How prolific strains of seed are obtained

in Canada 8

Increase in agricultural exports, rapid.. 15

Information, dissemination of 15

Land, unoccupied in Canada, large area

of 2

Maintaining the fertility of the soil.. .. 4

Plump seed, selection of 7

Poultry Manager, work of the 13

Productiveness of varieties persistent.. 7

Page,

i)irector — Report of the — Con.
Pure seed, free distribution of samples

of 8

Red Fife Wheat, efforts to pieserve it

from deterioration 10

Rotation of Crops 6

Seed grain in Canada, improvement of

by selection 10

Seed grain in Canada, improvement of.

by cross fertilizing 10

Seed, plump, selection of 7

Soil, maintaining the fertility of 4

preparation of, for crop 6

Tree planting, experiments in 15

Varieties of Seed, selection of best and

most productive 7

Entomologist and Botanist — Repoit

of the 59-81

Aphelinus niytilaspiais 78

Apiary 61

Apple Maggot 76

remedies for 76

Arsenate of lead 73

Arsenite of lime and soda 74

Arsenites as insecticides 72

Aspidiotus perniciosus 77

Bethune, Rev. C. J. S., entomological

work of -62

Bud-moth, Eye-spotted 7&

remedies for 79

Cankerworms 78

remedies for 78

Carpocapsa pomonella 74

Cattle Horn-fly 79

remedies for 79

Cattle Lice 80

remedies for 80

Codling Moth 74

remedies for 75

Collections of insects, plants and weed

seeds 59

Conotraclielus nenuphar 75

Division of Entomology and Botany,

work of 63

collections 59

correspondence 60

historical resume 65

investigations 64

publications 63

staff 71

Entomologist, Dominion, appointed 1S84. 62
Entomology, progress of practical, in

Canada 61

Fiscal year, new.. 61

Hwmatobia scrrata 79

INDEX

97

SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16

Page.
Entomologist and Botanist — Reporl.
of the — Con.

Ewtnatopinus eiiry fit emus 80

suis 80

Hog Louse 80

remedies for 80

Injurious insects, most important occur-
rences in Canada 65

Insecticid-es 72

Meetings attended 60, 69

Melophagus ovinus 80

Mytilaspis ulmi 77

Oyster-shell Scale,
remedies for. . . .

77
78

Paris green 73

Pear-leaf Blister Mite 78

remedy for 78

Phytoptus pi/ri 7S

Plum Curculio 75

remedies for 76

Rhagoletis pomonella 76

San Jos6 Scale 77

remedy for 77

SaundeTS, Dr. W., entomological work of. 62

Seed Selection Si>ecial Train, work of.. 68

lecturers on the 69

Seed selection by fanning mills in the

field 70

Seed-testing for vitality 70

Sheep Louse 80

Sheep Tick 80

remedies for 81

Smut, prevention of, in seed grain.. .. 70

Spraying 71

invention and improvement of appa-
ratus 71

insecticides used 72

Tmetocera ocellana 79

Trichodectes scalaris ^. 80

spharocephalus 80

Weed seeds, collection of

Weeds, noxious, work en

means of introduction of

Fletcher, Dr. J., Entomologist and Bot-
anist— Report of

Gilbert, A. G., Poultry Manager — Report
of

Grisdale, J. H., Agriculturist — Report of. .

68,

60
, 70

60

59

89
17

25
26

28
29

30

30
cover crops as plant food 30 I

Horticulturist— Report of the. . . .

Apples

cross-bred varieties of

cultural experiments with

cover crops

cover crops and conservation
moisture

of

Paqb.

Horticulturist— Report of the— Con.
Apples — Con.

cover crops, conclusions reached re-
garding

fall versus spring planting

mice, protection from

mulching the soil with green clover.

root-killing of apple trees

sunscald, protection from

top grafting

evaporating

experimental shipments of

seedling

storing

varieties

conclusions reached regarding

named

hardiest recommended

of crab apples suitable for all dis-
tricts

recommended for Ontario and Que-
bec

recommended for the milder parts

of Ontario

recommended for the colder parts

of Ontario, and for Quebec

Apple trees, close planting of

individuality in

Arboretum and Botanic Garden

Blackberries

Blossoming records of fruit

Canning and preserving plums

Cheesecloth enclosure, experiments in

grooving vegetables in

Cherries

propagating on hardy stocks

varieties of Morello recommended for

Ontario and Quebec

whitewashing trees to protect fruit

buds

Correspondence

Cover crops

and conservation of moisture

as plant food

conclusions reached regarding

Cross-bred varieties of apples

Currants

seedling varieties

Diseases, fungous

Evaporating apples

Experiments with large fruits, 1887-

1906

Fall versus spring planting of apple

trees

Forestry

Fungous diseases

Gooseberries

varieties recommended

31

29
32
31
29
31
31
29
29
28
29
26

26
2S

28

27

27

27
32
29
44
38
39
33

41
S4

35

35

35
45
30
30
30
31
28
38
38
42

29
26

2S
43
42
38
39

New York Botanical Garden Librar

3 5185 00258 2938

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