Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1919-07-10
THE CREATION OF 4
NEw oAT IN Maine.

Oat-Result Of Experiments
Begun in 1909 at Maine
Experiment Station.
Orono. Me-, July s-The following
was made public today from the Of
fee Of Charles D. Woods. director Of
the Maine Agricultural experiment
station at the University Of Maine:
Few people realize what the max.
ing Of a better oat requires in way
Of men and time. An idea Of what
Names now most famous oat re-
quired in its making may be gained
by reading the story OF its origin.
Back in 1909 when the Maine Ag.
ricultural Experiment Station began
it's oat testing and breeding at High.
moor Farm there were grown in test
plots some Is commercial varieties.
In 1910 there were selected from
these varieties $50 heads of oats from
individual plants. The seed from
each of these plants was tagged,
numbered. and stored away separate
~. Books with a cross reference
system even more intricate than the
bookkeeping system Of a big COM
mercial house. had to be made to
record accurately how each selection
was made and from whence it came
so that if it should be desirable any
selection could be repeated. When
planting time came the seed from
each single head of these $50 selec-
tons was planted in a single row;
each row was headed by stake with
a distinguishing number. This num-
Der given to the row the first year
the plant is grown in a row test fol-
lows the strain as long as it is grown.
The oat that has proven the best one
yet developed by this Station was in
it's first year Q910) in the oat gar
den in row No. $40, hence the name
Maine $40. Frequent notes on the
habit of growth, stiffness of straw,
tendency to lodge and other charac.
teristics were made and recorded.
When it came to the harvest each
row was harvested separately. the
yield Of grain and straw weighed, ex-
amined, and recorded.
In the winter careful laboratory
study of the grain of each Of these
selections was made to determine the
characteristics of the grain; thick
ness of hull. shattering of the head,
etc. From these data 1873 separate
selections Of grain which showed SUI
perior merit were made, each char
acter being carefully balanced with
the others. These 1873 selections
were planted in 1911 anG the same
accurate recording was made Of each
Of the selections. The same careful
study and accurate Judgment was re.
quired to select from these i8s lines
thought suitable to preserve for fur
| ther test.
In 1911 another step was made in
the testing of these selections. This
year they were grown on a larger
scale as seed sufficient to plant in
10000 acres plots had been produced.
The records for these plots were
more elaborate than for the single
rows and corresponding care and
judgment was exercised In the furth.
er selection From these 10000 acre
plots grown in competition tests in
1911, 81 selections Of the best were
made for planting in 1912. Sum-
cient seed was obtained from the
crop Of 1911 so that in 1912 the size
Of the plots were increased from
10000 to lao Of an acre. The larger
plots naturally increased the labor Of
recording. harvesting, threshing. and
laboratory study Of grain to make
further selections possible. In 1913
the selections were cut down to 81
plots coming from 81 Of the original
heads that made up the 460 plants.
In 1914 the selections were again in
! 40 acre plots. The selections made
from these were IL. In 1915 these IL
selections were grown in lao acre
plots each selection being grown
comparatively in 4 plots each.
From this long line Of tests
Maine $40 was evolved. In the
subsequent years this has proved SUI
perior for Maine conditions to 50
commercial varieties from all parts of
the United States.
Before the Maine Station was sat-
isfied with this oat, years Of careful
painstaking labor was consumed.
Three more years were required to
produce seed in quantities. So 9
years were expended in the making
this World Famous Dat; Maine $40.
For this may be advisedly called a
World Famous cat for it is now
grown in far distant states such as
Oregon and Washington.
While the creation and develop
ment of the oat itself is of high i'm
portance the accumulation of the
large amount Of growing data from
it and it's nom successful competitors
are of real value in ascertaining the
laws which underlie inheritance and
transmission of characters. And from
the standpoint of the Station this is
necessary fundamental work the re-
suits of which make it possible to
continue to study the problems of
oat breeding with increasing surety.
All of these records that bear on the
production of one good oat point out
the way to the production of a still
better one.
Another Maine Station oat 357 is
thought in one county of the State to
be superior to $40. But. all in all. in
our judgment $40 is the best Of the
II other exceedingly good oats thus
far produced at Highmoor Farm.
But this does not mean that it is the
best that we hope to obtain. BY
crossing and selecting we hope to
materially improve upon Maine $40.
o..