The Kenna record. (Kenna, Roosevelt County, N.M.) 190?-1924, 1913-09-26
RAISING SMALL GRAINS
Early Varieties Have Best
Chance to Produce Crops.
Species Grown. In Eastern Russia
Readily Adapted to semI-ArId
Condition Ia Western Part
Of the United States.
BY MANLEY cHAMPLINl


In the semi-arid territory there is
usually a rainfall of from four to
eight inches during the months OF
May and June. This rain gives the
crop good start. but ordinarily there
IL very little rain in July and early
August. There is also more or less
danger of hail in the latter part of
July. For this reason the earlier vari.
eties of grains have better chance to
produce good crops. The late varie
ties spend their time and moisture
prodigally In growing a tall heavy
straw and find themselves In a seri.
Gus position when the midsummer
d1pught comes. They get ready to
produce a bumper crop then find
themselves without moisture and can
not I'LL, thus giving partial or total
failure. The earliest varieties. there
fore. are usually the best for dry
farming, though some seasons may be
exceptions. They do not produce very
much straw. They begin heading out
in the last week Of June and are usu-
ally well filled before the drought gets
serious.
Besides earliness, some kinds OF
small grains possess drought resist
ant qualities. They were developed in
regions Of light rainfall and sudden
changes of temperature, and have be-
come accustomed to that kind of a
climate. Some of them even relish
this kind of climate and will be smit-
ten with rusts and blights and yield
little or nothing II grown in humid
sections. The varieties that are be-
coming the comHercial standards in
this territory wen introduced origin
ally from eastern Russia by tie
United States department of agricul-
ture. The climate OF eastern Russia
is similar to that Of our territory and
the fluctuations Of temperature are
even more extreme. This fact has
made them readily adaptable to our
conditions.
Some of the varieties that have
proved especially valuable and are
now widely distributed are given be
low. The settler. when buying seed
should take every precaution to be
sure that 1t 10 pure and of the variety
which he thinks he is buying. There
was a large amount of mixed and
falsely named seed sold to new set
lers In this region last spring
Losses Of this kind can be best avert
ed by buying OF a neighbor or OF re
sponsible firm.
fvurN No. - =.
better adapted to this section thar
the six-rowed, although one six-roweC
bArley-the Odessa-has a good rec
ord at the South Dakota experiment
station, where 1t has been grown fol
several years. 1t has short straw anC
ripens early. Hitting and Hanna bar
leys are two-rowed varieties that have
good records and one OF the Hannas
Hanna ~. has become widely distrib
uted. The South Dakota experiment
station issued a bulletin last summe
giving results and methods used II
growing barley. which can be secures
by those desiring to go into the barle!
problem.
The small yellow early oat know
usually az. Sixty-Day has made goo,
and is becoming we'll distributed. !
yield Of 80 bushels or more per acr,
IL nothing uncommon for this variet.
in western South Dakota and Ne
braska. 1t is ready to cut by the mid
die Of July. thus lodging the droutl
that usually begins shortly after tn
Attn of July. On a homestead 10
miles west of Pierre yield of So bush
els per acre has been obtained. Thi
yield was produced on typical soil O
the regions heavy brown clay.