The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1908-09-30

entirely overcome and careful soil
management reduce the weeds to a
minimum, such improvement would
yield valuable returns. 1t lies within
the range of possibility for every
wheat grower to assist in this great
undertaking and gradually raise the
standard of production in the state.
An increase OF both yield and quality
are easily possible and can be
brought about in a few years with
proper attention to methods and de-
tails.
Methods of Improving Wheat.
Three suggestions as to methods Of
Improvement are here made: First
the purifying of existing varieties.
Under the practices which are fol-
lowed in threshing grain, it is almost
impossible to keep strains pure and
unmixed. Large threshing outfits
pass from farm to farm, no effort be-
ing made to clean the machines or
TO prevent admixture. An examina-
ton of any good and apparently clean
seed wheat will reveal the presence
of many different varieties, often of
unlike field habits and belonging to
widely separated market grades. The
miller prefers to do his own blending
and must have established grades of
a quality which is constant, and nat
urallv he dislikes to purchase mixed
grades. 1t should be the wheat
growers aim to seed pure strains of
whatever variety he prefers. To
secure this, he should set off an acre
or more in the field from which he
intends to secure seed and carefully
remove from it all plants of varieties
unlike the one he intends to keep. r
may appear laborious task but a
considerable tract can be gone over
in a short time. A little study of
varieties will enable one to pick out
the undesired plants at glance, but
it may be found necessary to rogue"
or clear the tract more than once.
The work should begin as soon as tho
heads appear and the finishing
touches should be given when the
field is ready to cut If possible, seed
thus selected should be threshed sep
arately from the remainder of the
crop. The thresher should at least
be swept clean of grain lodged within
its interior A few moments spent in
doing this will be we'll repaid in the
results secured. BY following this
practice, pure seed of any desired
variety may be secured in one season
in sufficient quantity to plant a large
acreage. It is Improvement of a
practical sort and has the advantage
of immediate results.
The second methods here suggest
ed Is somewhat more tedious and re-
quires longer time to obtain a con-
siderable quantity of seed bur has
the advantage of a larger probable
improvement in yield as well as qual-
ity. Close study of any variety of
wheat will reveal great differences In
the habit of growth, appearance, and
general character of the plants found
growing in any given area pass
efby on the highway can detect At 1
distance certain stools or plants
which are decidedly superior to those
growing around them One may BE
remarkable for its wonderful stooling
habit, showing productive capacity.
Another may be smut or rust resist
ant; popularity of head. or other
feature. may characterize another. 1t
may occure that several different
plants may show the same neculiar-
tiles and thus the number may be In
creased right at the start. As a rule.
however, it is best TO start with siu2ic
individual plants and by planting sep
arately the seed secured, within a
year or two a large quantity can he
acquired Where possible several
different selected strains can be de-
veloped side by side at the same time.
some of which Will undoubtedly show
such superior character as to cause
rejection of others.
The third method of improvement
is more scientific and should possibly
be left to the experiment station as
it involves considerable skill and
knowledge of the habits of the wheat
plant Notwithstanding. it is not at
all impossible for any bright farmer
with 4 keen eye and nimble fingers
to experiment with such work pro-
viding he has the patience TO con
tinue the rigid selection that must
follow and the courage to reject the
large number of new varieties he will
produce but which fail to come up to
the desired standard. The plan here
referred TO is that known as 'hybri-
dization." or the production of new
varieties by artifcially crossing two
or more we'll established kinds.
LIBERALIZATION Work at This Station.
The first efforts to hybridize
wheats for the purpose of securing
varieties which could show improved
character We're made in 1899 by the
Agriculturist. A large number of
crosses were successfully made and
several hundred new varieties Sc
cured. During the season of 1908
there are almost one thousand new
or selected varieties growing on the
experiment station farm. 1t was
early recognized that any expert
ments carried on at Pullman would
not meet all the conditions for the
wheat growing sections of eastern
Washington. While the hybridiza-
ton work has been carried on at
Pullman the testing of the grains has
been done in other parts of the state,
stations having been established at
different times at Mayview. Gardfeld