Wheat branches only at the ground, and produces no more heads than stalks. It only sends out these branches early in its growth or during cool weather and when the growth is comparatively slow. The branching of wheat (called " tillering" in the Old World, and "stocking," "stooling," and "tillering" in different sections of this) must take place before the plant attains any considerable height or it does not occur at all. Hence, in climates like those of the Northern and Eastern States this takes place mostly in the spring, and a cool, prolonged, and rather wet spring is therefore best for the ultimate yield of the crop; the grain then stands heavier on the ground. On the contrary, a warm, rather dry, rapidly growing, and early spring. in those parts of the country diminishes the yield of wheat, because of this habit of growth; there are then fewer stalks, and the heads are fewer. Consequently, when from the nature of the season or the general climate of the region there is an undue tendency for the wheat to shoot up without sufficient branching it is common to check the growth by pasturing off the grain in the early spring, as is a common practice in many of the Southern States. In a country of cold winters, for good crops it is better that the ground be continuously covered with snow. Bare ground, freezing and thawing, now exposed to cold and dry winds and now to warm sunshine, is exceedingly destructive to wheat. It "winter-kills" in two ways-what may be frozen to death by cold, dry winds, or, as is more often the case, particularly on soils rich in vegetable matter, it "heaves out," and by the alternate freezing and thawing of the surface soil the roots are lifted out of the soil and the young plant perishes. The means of guarding against this or of lessening the danger will be spoken of later. After the wheat comes in head more sun is needed and less rain. Too much rain, particularly if accompanied with heat, induces rust, mildew, and other diseases, and, on the other hand, too dry winds shrink the grain. The ideal climate for wheat is one with a long and rather wet winter, with little or no frost, prolonged into a cool and rather wet spring, which gradually fades into a warmer summer, the weather growing gradually drier as it grows warmer, with only comparatively light rains after the blossoming of the crop, just enough to bring the grain to maturity, with abundant sunshine and rather dry air toward the harvest, but without dry and scorching winds until the grain is fully ripe, and then hot, dry, rainless weather until the harvest is gathered. This ideal is nearer realized in the better years in California than in any part of the United States, and it is there in such years that we find the greatest yields known to the country. The quality of the grain is largely determined by the climate, a hot, dry, and sunny harvest time being best for wheat of the first grade. The berry is then brighter, and millers say the quality is better if the climate has been hot and dry before the harvest. The wheat of sunny climates those of California, Egypt, northern Africa, and similar countries has always ranked high for quality, and the statement is often made that the wheat of such climates is also richer in gluten-that is, makes stronger flour-than the wheat of cooler climates. Of this latter assertion I find no proof from the mod-ern and fuller chemical analyses. The chemical composition depends more upon the variety cultivated than upon either soil or climate. The spring wheat of Dakota and Minnesota produces as strong flour as does grain from a sunnier climate. It is true that certain varieties of very hard wheats only grow in hot, dry climates. Such is said to be the case with the best macaroni wheats. It is claimed that the macaroni wheats of California are equal to the best of northern Africa or of southern Europe and that the macaroni made from it in San Francisco is equal to the best Italian. But while, as a whole, the quantity of gluten and the strength of the flour is determined more by the variety of wheat than by the climate or the soil, yet both of the latter have their influence on chemical composition. Although direct chemical evidence is lacking, derived from a large number of chemical analyses from samples chosen with this special object in view, it is claimed that abundance of phosphates in the soil increases the quantity of gluten in the crop. The millers of western New York say that the flour has grown stronger with the increase in the use of superphosphates in growing wheat in that region, and that the same has often been stated as a fact in English experience. The particularly bright character of American grain, however, depends upon the climate rather than upon the soil. The sunny climate of the whole United States south and west of New England is favorable for this, and from the time of the first settlement of the colonies the bright color of American grain, as compared with that of northern Europe, particularly that of Great Britain, has been remarked. The table of distribution according to annual temperature (Tenth Census, Cereals, Table XIX, p. 14) shows that the greatest production is where the mean annual temperature is between 50° and 55°, 173,895,149 bushels, or 37.8 per cent, being grown in this belt, and 136,401,822, or 29.7 per cent, where the mean annual temperature is between 45° and 50°. Adding these two, we see that 310,296,971 bushels, or 67.5 per cent, is grown where the mean annual temperature is between 45° and 55°. Considered in respect to the midsummer or July temperature (Table XX, p. 14), which has much to do with the ripening of the grain, our figures are of less interest in this crop, because over considerable regions of the country the crop is already ripe before July begins, notably in California; but we find that 223,852,371 bushels, or 48.7 per cent, grows where the mean temperature of July is between 70° and 75°, and 178,530,037 bushels, or 38.9 per cent, where the midsummer temperature is between 75° and 80°, or an aggregate of 87.6 per cent where the July temperature is between 70° and 80° and 97.3 per cent where it is between 65° and 85°. While the ideal climate for wheat is one of mild winters, and some of the most noted wheat regions of the world are where snow and frozen ground are unknown or very rare (as in Egypt, India, and California), nevertheless most of the wheat of the world grows in regions of cold winters. The table of distribution according to mean winter temperature (Tenth Census, Cereals, Table XXI, p. 15) shows that in this country 46.6 per cent grows where the mean January temperature is between 20° and 30°, 68.9 per cent where it is below 30°, and it is safe to say that 70 per cent of the wheat crop of the country is grown where the average January temperature is below the freezing point. This same condition marks most of the great wheat regions of the world. The wheat countries (which are also the countries of oats, barley, and rye) are where the summer season only is the growing season, and the comforts of winter must be provided for by forethought and labor; and hence they are also the countries of labor, industry, and enterprise, and where the highest civilization has been developed, the result being correlated to these climatic conditions. The table of distribution according to rainfall (Table XXII, p. 16) shows that 132,152,234 bushels, or 28.8 per cent of the crop, grows with an annual rainfall of between 40 and 45 inches, 62.7 per cent where it is between 35 and 50 inches, and 92.4 per cent where the annual rainfall is above 25 inches, although some important wheat regions, notably those of California, are where the mean annual rainfall is less than 25 inches. We have an explanation of this in the seasons at which the rain falls. The table of distribution according to the rainfall of the growing season (Table XXIII, p. 16) shows that 220,656,637 bushels, or 48 per cent of the crop, grows where from 20 to 25 inches of rain falls during this season, and 366,381,658 bushels, or 79.7 per cent, where the rainfall during the growing season is from 15 to 25 inches, 6.4 per cent where it is below 15 inches, and only 1 per cent where it is less than 10 inches-a fact of much significance for great tracts of our country. CULTIVATION OF CEREALS-EXPERIMENTS AT BROOKINGS, S. DAK. WHEAT. The first annual report of this station, for the year ending June 30, 1888, gives following table of results of experiments on different varieties of wheat, at Brookings, S. Dak. (lat. 44.3° N.; long. 98.5° W.), in April and May, 1887, on plats of ground that had already borne one crop of wheat or flax or oats. Some were sown broadcast and had no subsequent cultivation; others were "drilled by hand " and subsequently hoed twice or thrice. The columns giving the calculated sums of degrees of temperature are based upon observations at the Signal Service station at Huron, some distance to the westward, because the special station at Brookings was not then established. The meteorological table for Huron follows the agricultural tables, so that the student may make such further studies as he desires. A fragment of the meteorological record at Brookings for 1888 is given in the station Bulletin No. 5, which I have compared with the record for Huron and find that no important error will result from using the Huron records. The following table gives the results of experiments on different varieties of barley at Brookings, S. Dak., as given in the first annual report of that station. For further details see the preceding section on wheat experiments. OATS. The following table gives the results of experiments on different varieties of oats at Brookings, S. Dak., as given in the first annual report of that station. For further details see the preceding section on wheat experiments. The meteorological record for the "growing season" of 1887 at Huron is now given for detailed comparisons. The last three columns give the temperatures computed by the two methods of Boussingault and Angot, respectively. Meteorological data for Huron, Dak., in 1887. .do.. ....do... 2,399 ..do... Aug. 1 2,218 ...do.. ...do ... 2,218 ...do... July 28 2,099 ...do... Aug. 1 2,218 ...do... 2,218 |