VARIETIES OF OATS.

Mataura Ensign, Issue 1033, 15 May 1902, Page 5

VARIETIES OF OATS.

J (• North British Agriculturist.') ' Of late years great attention has been paid by agriculturists and agricultural experimentalists to the relative degrees at productiveness iu different varieties of grain, potatoes, etc. Many experiments have been conducted at various centres with the view of testing the relative productiveness of different varieties of seeds, and the results have been rather varied. In the case of potatoes, the supeiior pro( nc .iven. a of various varieties, such as the Lp-to-Diwe, fur instance, has beeii well established. Moic recently the same kind of tests in repa'l to the relative proauctiveneess of diffi-ioiit vaiieties of outs have been extensively carrifd out. Mr John Speir, of Newton Farm. Newton, by Glasgow, who has carried out a great amount of experimental work with commendable ar d scrupulous care, has been engaged on this work for some years, and his reports of these annual tests have been published in the annual volumes of the Highland Society's ' Transactions." His report of his last year's tests is to be published in the forthcoming volume of the ' Transactions'; and the directors of the Society considered that, us the results of these tests were so striking, it was desirable to have them published as early as possible, so that farmers might have the full advantage of this knowledge to guide them in the telection of seed for the coming season. Mr Speir's tests of last year went to show that, in point of productiveness, the Messrs Garton's cross-fertilised variety named Goldfinder was an easy first, with the same firm's cress-fertilised Waverley a close second, and the other varieties were comparatively nowhere. Some of the o'der and more commonly sown varieties, such as the Potato, Hamilton, and Longhougbtcn varieties, made a very poor show in point of yield as compared with the Goldfinder and the Waverley. Even the Canadian varieties known as the Banner and American Beauty, which have frequently topped the list in point of productiveness in similar tests, were " not in it " with the Goldfinder and the Waverley at Newton. Mr Spier also notes, as a curious fact, that the mice showed a marked preference for the Goldfinder, and he is not sure " but it may ultimately be found that Golrilinder oats c more palaiables, say, in porridge or it) ■cakes, than other varieties," but its inquiry "has stopped short at this important point. According to Mr Spier's own tables, however, there is a considerable variation in the relative productiveness of the different varieties indifferent ycais, foi over a series of years the Goldlinder, which came out first last year, has only given an average yield of o{> 2!MO bushels per acre during the la>t three years, wheieas the Waverley, which came out second in his tests of last year, gave an average yield of i;y 22-40 bushels duritiu' the last four years. One very notable fact brought out in his tests is the marked increase of yield to be obtained by a change of seed, the average increase of yield obtained from " changed " seed as compared with boiue-growu seed, bulking up to over 13 bushels per acre. In this connection, however', it will be noted that the three varieties which weie tested for " changed" setd emus home-grown teed were all of the new cross-fertilised varieties brought aut by the Messrs Gallon.