Whole kernels and germ-end sections of half and one-third kernels of Dawson and Nittany winter wheats were planted in rows in the field at the Arlington Experiment Farm, Arlington, Va. Whole kernels were superior to half and one-third kernels in germination and in subsequent plant survival, number of culms per plant (with one exception), total weight per plant, and grain yield per plant. Half kernels likewise were superior to one-third kernels except in one experiment involving too few one-third kernels. Except in seed germination and in percentage of seeds producing mature plants, half kernels, the cut ends of which were capped with paraffin, were superior to unparaffined half kernels. Whole, half, and one-third seeds planted in flats containing sterilized and unsterilized soil in the greenhouse in general confirmed the results of the field plantings, although the differences were not so marked owing in part to the crowded condition of the plants which prevented optimum development. In the unsterilized soil the plants from one-third seeds appeared to be slightly injured by soil-borne organisms.

A study has been made of the sequence of fungi developing on wheat straw buried in four arable soils, an allotment soil, and a glasshouse compost. Both natural untreated straw, and straw autoclaved in a 2 % solution of sodium nitrate were employed. Fusarium culmorum and Mucor spp. appeared to be dominant organisms in the earlier stages of straw colonization, but these were replaced by Penicillium spp. in the latter stages of decomposition. The nitrogenous treatment of the straw favoured the development of Penicillium spp. at the expense of Fusarium culmorum and Mucor spp. The pathogenicity of the Fusarium culmorum isolates to wheat seedlings was established by inoculation experiments. The data provided by this investigation are considered sufficient to justify the inclusion of F. culmorum in Reinking & Manns' (1933) group of soil-inhabiting Fusaria, or true soil fungi.

Milling and baking tests were made with eight samples of Marquis wheat and three samples of Kanred wheat stored at Fort Collins, Colorado, in a dry, unheated room for periods up to 17 years. There was a definite and fairly regular increase in fat acidity with storage, indicating a certain amount of progressive deterioration on storage. Satisfactory flour yields were obtained in all cases and unusual tempering was not required in any case. All lots made satisfactory bread, there being no indications of deterioration in baking quality in any of the samples. The best bread both from Marquis and Kanred was made from the 1921 crop, but the small difference as compared with later crops can probably be attributed to higher protein content. There was no apparent relation between deterioration in viability as shown by germination tests and baking quality.

A study was undertaken on cultivated land, native grass land, and land abandoned for various periods of time in Kimball County, Nebraska, for the purpose of discovering the changes that occur in the soil during the process of revegetation. Determinations were made of the rate of infiltration of water in the field and of percolation in the laboratory, the volume-weight, the state of aggregation, and the quantity of plant roots, organic matter, and nitrogen in the soil. The rate of infiltration of water in the field was considerably greater under wheat stubble than under native vegetation. It was relatively low after 1 year of abandonment, but after several years became approximately equal to that of the wheat stubble land. Bare areas in the abandoned land generally had a low infiltration rate. The rate of percolation of water through a 6-inch column of topsoil showed about the same relationships as the infiltration rate. Percolation in the soil from the native grassland and the bare areas of the abandoned land was much slower than in that from the stubble field and the abandoned areas under vegetative cover. The volume-weight and the state of aggregation of the soils were very closely correlated. The volume-weight and the percentage of large aggregates (larger than 0.5 mm) were highest in the soils having the lowest infiltration and percolation rates and were generally lowest in the soils permitting the fastest infiltration and percolation. The root content of the soil of the cultivated fields, determined shortly after wheat harvest, was found to be one-fourth to one-third of that under native grassland vegetation. After several years of abandonment, the root content of the soil was greater than in cultivated fields and was approximately half of that under native grasses. The organic matter and nitrogen content of the soil of cultivated and abandoned fields tended to be lower than in the native grasslands, but the difference was not statistically significant for the number of samples taken. Under the native grasses 7.3% of the soil organic matter in the surface 6 inches and 2.2% of that in the second 6 inches was found to consist of plant roots. Under cultivation or abandonment, the percentage of root material was much smaller.

Growth habit as determined from spring seedings of 28 wheat varieties was studied at eight experiment stations in the years 1934 to 1936, inclusive. Data on earliness from fall sowing and winter survival from other tests are included in order to study their relation with the degree of winterness. The varieties rank in about the same order to study their relation the the degree of winterness. The varieties rank in about the same order for degree of winterness when grown at each of the stations. Degree of winterness is not closely related to time of heading from fall seeding or to winterhardiness in the varieties studied. None of the early varieties were as hardy as most of the late ones. However, a few of the late varieties were no more hardy than earlier maturing ones.

Replicated experiments on the control of annual weeds in a wheat field of known history by the use of three contact sprays, namely, sulfuric acid, ammonium thiocyanate, and copper sulfate, indicate that the degree of control differed with the different weeds and herbicides, Anagallis arvensis and Euphorbia dracunculoides showed higher degrees of reduction than Chenopodium album, explainable on the morphological peculiarities and the relative hardiness of the weeds as well as on the quantity of spray solution adhering on the surface, while the herbicides showed effectiveness in the decreasing order of sulfuric acid, ammonium thiocyanate, and copper sulfate. Contributory factors that apparently aided in the effectiveness of the treatments are the concentration of the herbicides, the time of their application, the stage and development of the plants, the leaf area exposed, and the temperature and humidity of the atmosphere. On a statistical examination of the data, however, significant differences were not observed. The yield of the grain tended to increase with a reduction in weed density, but the differences with the control plats were not always statistically significanty. Spraying with a higher concentration of ammonium thiocyanate solution gave significantly better result because of the addition of extra nutrients besides the elimination of weed competition. Sulfuric acid spraying did not make the soil sour. The small differences in pH, if any, were not significant.