Annual report of the North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station

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•-I9IG Noflh Carolina State library
Raleigh £uC
THIRTY-NINTH ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
NORTH CAROLINA
Agricultural Experiment Station
FOR THE
YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 1916
North Carolina State Library
GIFT OF
North Carolina State Library ^ 7
Kaleich
THIRTY-NINTH ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
NORTH CAROLINA
Agricultural Experiment Station
CONDUCTED JOINTLY BY THE
N. C. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
AND THE
N. C. COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND MECHANIC ARTS
FOR THE
YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 1916
INCLUDING
Bulletins Nos. 232, 233, 234, 235, 236
> . >
RALEIGH
Edwards & Brotjghton Printing Company
State Printers
1917
LETTER OF SUBMITTAL
Kaleigh, 1ST. C, June 30, 1916.
To His Excellency, Locke Craig,
Governor or North Carolina.
Sir :—I have the honor to submit herewith report of the operations
of the Agricultural Experiment Station, conducted jointly by the North
Carolina Department of Agriculture and the North Carolina College of
Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, for the year ended June 30, 1916. This
work is under the immediate direction of the "Joint Committee for
Agricultural Work" provided for in chapter 68 of the Public Laws of
1913, and the report is made in accordance with the requirements of the
Act of Congress approved March 2, 1887, and known as the Hatch Act.
Very respectfully,
B. W. KlLGORE,
Director.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
Letter of Submittal 3
General Summary of the Work of the Station During the Year 7
Report of the Division of Agronomy 13
Report of the Division of Chemistry 19
Report of the Division of Animal Industry 21
Report of the Division of Entomology 48
Report of the Division of Horticulture 52
Report of the Division of Veterinary Science 55
Report of the Division of Plant Pathology and Bacteriology 58
Report of the Division of Markets and Rural Organization 59
Report on Drainage 66
Financial Report 69
Bulletins :
No. 232—Results of Variety Tests of Wheat, Oats, and Rye.
No. 233—Common Diseases of Poultry.
No. 234—Farm Drainage in North Carolina.
No. 235—Some Further Studies of Chick Mortality; When to Feed the
Baby Chick.
No. 236—The Prevention and Control of Erosion in North Carolina with
Special Reference to Terracing.
BOARD OF AGRICULTURE
*W. A. Graham, Chairman, Raleigh
F. P. Latham Belhaven *A. T. McCallum ..Red Springs
C. W. Mitchell Aulander *C. C. Wright Hunting Creek
*R. L. Woodard Pamlico William Bledsoe Gale
*Clarence Poe Raleigh W. J. Shuford Hickory
R. W. Scott Haw River A. Cannon ..Horse Shoe
BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE COLLEGE
Governor Locke Craig, Chairman
M. B. Stickley Concord *T. T. Thorne Rocky Mount
T. T. Ballinger T^on *C. W. Gold Greensboro
W. H. Williamson Raleigh T. E. Vann Como
*0. L. Clark.. Clarkton P. S. Boyd Mooresville
Everett Thompson Elizabeth City W. E. Daniel Weldon
R. H. Ricks. Rocky Mount *W. H. Ragan High Point
O. Max Gardner Shelby W. B. Cooper Wilmington
M. L. Reed... Biltmore J. P. McRae : Laurinburg
W. C. Riddick (President College), West Raleigh
STAFF OF THE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION AND
EXTENSION SERVICE
Administration
B. W. Kilgore Director of Experiment Station and Extension Service
C. B. Williams Vice-Director Experiment Station
R. W. Collett... Assistant Director, Branch Stations
F.H.Jeter Agricultural Editor
A. F. Bowen Bursar
Miss Mary S. Birdsong.. Secretary to Director
Agronomy
C. B. Williams Chief in Agronomy 2R. B. Hardison Asst. in Soil Survey
J. K. Plummer Soil Chemist S. O. Perkins Asst. in Soil Survey
W. F. Pate Agronomist—Soils L. L. Brinkley. Asst. in Soil Survey
E. C. Blair Assistant Agronomist—Soils F. N. McDowell Asst. in Soil Survey
H. D. Lambert Assistant Agronomist—Soils 2E. S. Vanetta Asst. in Soil Survey
R. Y. Winters Plant Breeding *E. H. Mathewson Tobacco Expert
1 J. H. Hall, Jr. Assistant in Plant Breeding A. R. Russell Asst. in Field Experiments
l\T
. R. Herman Assistant in Plant Breeding
Chemistry
WT
. A. Withers . Chemist J. Q. Jackson Assistant Chemist
F. E. Carruth Assistant Chemist E. S. Dewar Assistant Chemist
J. A. Mullen Assistant Chemist E. B. Hart Assistant Chemist
J. M. Pickel Feed Chemist F. C. Wiggins. Assistant Chemist
W. G. Haywood Fertilizer Chemist
Entomology
Franklin Sherman, Jr. ..Chief in Entomology S. C. Clapp Assistant Entomologist
Z. P. Metcalf Entomologist R. W. Leiby Assistant Entomologist
6George H. Rea Bee-keeping
Horticulture
W. N. Hutt Chief in Horticulture C. D. Matthews Assistant Horticulturist
J. P. Pillsbury Horticulturist B. Szymoniak,
L. R. Detjen Assistant Horticulturist Demonstrator in Fruit and Truck Crops
R. G. Hill Assistant Horticulturist
Animal Industry
Dan T. Gray Chief in Animal Industry 3J. A. Arey Assistant in Dairy Farming
R. S. Curtis Associate in Animal Industry 3F. R. Farnham Assistant in Dairy Farming
W. H. Eaton Dairy Experimenter 3J. L. Graybill Assistant in Dairy Farming
B. F. Kaupp, 3F. T. Peden Assistant in Beef Cattle
Poultry Investigator and Pathologist 3A. L. Jerdan Assistant in Beef Cattle
3A. J. Reed Dairy Farming 3L. I. Case Assistant in Beef Cattle
3B. P. Folk Pig Club Agent Earl Hostetler,
3A. G. Oliver Poultry Club Agent Assistant in Beef Cattle and Swine
Stanley Combes. .Assistant in Dairy Farming Dan M. McCarty ...Asst. in Animal Nutrition
Plant Pathology
F. A. Wolf Plant Pathologist E. E. Stanford. .Assistant—Bacteriology
R. O. Cromwell Assistant—Plant Diseases
6 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
Drainage
"H. M. Lynde Senior Drainage Engineer F. R. Baker Assistant Drainage Engineer
Veterinary
G. A. Roberts „ Veterinarian
Markets and Rural Organization
W. R. Camp Chief, Division of Markets
E. E. Culbreth Assistant Superintendent of Credit Unions
Farm Management
J. M. Johnson Farm Management
Branch Stations
F. T. Meacham Assistant Director Iredell Branch Station, Statesville
J. H. Jeffries ..Assistant Director Pender Branch Station, Willard
C. E. Clark Assistant Director Edgecombe Branch Station, Rocky Mount
*E. G. Moss Assistant Director Granville Branch Station, Oxford
S. F. Davidson Assistant Director Buncombe and Transylvania Stations, Swannanoa
Farm Demonstration Work
C. R. Hudson State Agent
E. S. Millsaps District Agent, Western District
T. D. McLean District Agent, Central District
R. W. Freeman District Agent, Eastern District
Boys' Agricultural Clubs
T. E. Browne State Agent and Rural Supervisor
S. G. Rubinow Assistant State Agent
A. K. Robertson Corn Club Agent
Home Demonstration Work
Mrs. Jane S. McKimmon . . State Agent
Miss Minnie L. Jamison Assistant in Home Demonstration Work
Miss Grace E. Schaffer Assistant in Home Demonstration Work
The members marked with * are members of the Joint Committee for Agricultural Work, and the
Experiment Station and Extension Service are under their direction.
*In cooperation with the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry.
2In cooperation with the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Soils.
3In cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Animal Industry.
4In cooperation with the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Public Roads and Rural Engi-neering.
5In cooperation with the U. S. Department of Agriculture. Office of Farm Management.
6In cooperation with the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Entomology.
THIRTY-NINTH ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station
For the Year Ending June 30, 1916
B. W. Kilgore, Director.
F. H. Jeter, Agricultural Editor.
This report covers the work of the Station from July 1, 1915, to
June 30, 1916.
The year through which the North Carolina Agricultural Experiment
Station has just passed has been one of real progress and development.
The influence of the work which has been done and which is still under
way is reflected in a substantial betterment of agricultural conditions
throughout the entire State.
In performing the large and varied service to the agricultural inter-ests,
there are forty-eight workers who are engaged in the investigational
work which the Station is carrying on. The growth in means, number
of workers employed, services performed, and influence has been rapid,
in fact, far more so, it is believed, than was anticipated by any one when
the joint agricultural work was undertaken by the State Department of
Agriculture and the College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts.
Few changes in the staff have occurred during the year. Dr. F. A.
Wolf was secured as a successor to Prof. H. R. Fulton, Chief of the
Division of Plant Diseases, who went to the Federal Department of
Agriculture. In the Divisions of Agronomy and Animal Husbandry
some minor changes in assistants have occurred.
In the work of the Experiment Station and Extension Service it has
not been possible to keep complete records of all the various activities of
all the workers, but those which have been kept show very clearly how
closely the work is in touch with the farmers of the State. The work
has not been confined to actual experiments and demonstrations in the
laboratories and on the experimental plots, but it has reached out over
the State to the branch stations, local farms and the farm homes, carry-ing
a knowledge of better living, better farming, and a higher social life
to the farm women, men, girls, and boys on the farm. Numbers of pub-lic
meetings have been held where the people have become interested in
the practical, scientific information given as well as in the demonstra-tions
held. Bulletins, periodicals, multigraph matter, and special arti-cles
have been sent out in answer to requests over the entire State; and
business men, corporations, and others have enlisted their aid in the
8 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
undertaking to make a more pleasant and more remunerative farming
profession. The records show that the work is so organized that almost
every activity and phase of farming in North Carolina is actually
demonstrated, not only by personal contact, but by correspondence, bulle-tins,
and other timely publications, and it is apparent that good results
are being obtained.
The records show that the workers have traveled approximately 456,-
453 miles during the year, and have reached 885,792 people. Of course,
some of these people have been seen a number of times, but, on the other
hand, many who were seen have influenced many others to follow the
improved farming methods found by experimentation, and it may be
said with a good degree of accuracy that one million people have been
reached during the year by the combined agricultural service of the
Experiment Station and Extension Service.
The program of investigative work is being developed in such a way
as to meet the needs of our growing agriculture and to furnish informa-tion
where it will be most helpful. A brief summary of the work of the
different divisions, showing the main undertakings in which the workers
are engaged, is given in the reports of divisions which follow.
f'"" AGRONOMY.
In Agronomy three main phases of work are being considered. These
are soil survey, soil fertility studies, and plant breeding. Most of
the experimental work is based upon the soil survey, as the other two
phases, to be of the greatest value, must be based upon the types of soils.
The soil fertility work is being done both in the field and in the labora-tories,
with different types of soils, to determine their chief needs and
deficiencies for profitable crop yields under a proper system of soil
management. Crop improvement and adaptations to different soils in
different sections of the State are also receiving consideration.
Permanent pasturage and hay crops for different sections of the State
are being worked out with the different legumes and grasses best suited
for the two purposes.
The selection and establishment of certain strains of different crops
which make their maximum growth and production in different parts
of the State continues to be the main feature of the plant breeding work.
Investigations into the uses of the soybean and its products in the
commercial work has been a special feature of the work of the Agronomy
Division during the past year. Considerable progress has been made
and the crop has attained greater popularity as a summer legume as a
result. Extension work with the bean is now being conducted, and
during the past year 100,000 or more bushels were crushed by the oil
mills of the State in beginning a new market for the farmers for this
product.
~N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 9
CHEMISTRY.
Work in this Division lias been continued during the year along the
same lines as heretofore. 'The toxicity of cotton-seed meal and the
nitrification of soils have received the principal attention of the workers.
Several articles have been published in regard to the toxic principle of
the meal, and the question as to whether or not it is Gossypol, as has
been found by this Station, has been widely discussed by other investi-gators.
ANIMAL INDUSTRY.
The work of investigation in Animal Industry is being conducted with
swine, beef cattle, sheep, dairy cattle, horses and mules, and poultry.
The undertakings are outlined so as to cover the main questions which
have arisen in connection with these industries in the State.
Splendid results have attended the manufacturers of cheese in the
mountains of the western part of the State, five factories having been
built, and there is now a demand for aid in the construction of more of
these factories than the Station is able to supervise. A cheese of ex-cellent
quality is being manufactured, and has found a ready sale on the
market at prices above that which has been paid for other cheese. Be-cause
of the conditions where this cheese is being manufactured, this
work is considered among the best conducted by the workers during the
year, and is a step forward toward the establishment of a new industry
for the State. This will be encouraged and followed until it is on a good
footing. Investigations in the creamery and dairy industry have made
good progress. A plant has been established at the College for the bene-fit
of the farmers adjacent to the Central Station and for the study of
problems connected with the creamery industry.
The work with poultry continues to be very satisfactory. Some
twenty-one projects are being studied in poultry, and the findings are
being given publicity.
ENTOMOLOGY.
In Entomology, nine principal projects are under investigation. These
are : the investigation of laundry soap as a remedy for Aphides, survey
of the insect life of the State, the spraying of peaches and potatoes, a
study of the pecan insects, a study of the Corn-stalk Borer, Corn Bill
Bug, Gloomy Scale, and Cowpea weevils. The experiments with peach
spraying have been followed during the second year, and the potato
spraying project has been carried through the third. The study of the
pecan insects has been in progress since 1913. One year's work with the
Cornstalk Borer has been completed. Studies of the Corn Bill Bug
have been practically finished and work is continuing on the Gloomy
Scale, affecting shade trees, and the cowpeas and bean weevils with a
view to determining their life-history and means of combating them.
10 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
Under the supervision of this Division a bee-keeping project has been
added for the purpose of promoting and improving the bee-keeping in-dustry
in the State.
HORTICULTURE.
The growth of trucking and orcharding gives importance to the work
of the Division of Horticulture. In addition to the efforts which are
being made to study the various truck and fruit crops, special work is
being done in cooperation with the United States Department of Agri-culture
to improve the Scuppernong type of grape. This work is being
carried to the point where new ones are being produced which will have
greater commercial value.
Valuable results are being obtained from a study of the pecan indus-try.
This work has now been under way for nine years and consider-able
data have been collected. The work of breeding new varieties is
being pushed and a number of crosses has been made with the hope of
getting better kinds.
A study is being made in an effort to produce early freestone varieties
of both white and yellow-flesh peaches, and also varieties which are
hardier in the bud. In this connection a number of foreign varieties
are being studied.
The study of the thermal belts of Western North Carolina and their
relations to fruit production is now in its fifth year, and good progress
in obtaining results is being made.
Considerable work is under way in a study of sweet and Irish pota-toes,
including studies of varieties, fertilization and methods of storing.
A study of the self-sterility in dewberries and blackberries has been
completed during the year and is being published as Bulletin ISTo. 11 in
the Technical series. This study has established several important facts
in regard to the sterility and fertility of different varieties and crosses.
The study of the transmission of characters in hybrids of Rotundifolia
grapes has progressed favorably, and a manuscript on the inheritance of
sex in the Vitis Rotundifolia is being published as Technical Bulletin
No. 12. -
VETERINARY SCIENCE.
In this Division the so-called "contagious abortion" infection has
received the principal attention of the workers. The trouble has been
found in a large number of the herds of cattle in the State, and similar
infections have been found quite prevalent in horses, swine, and sheep.
The major part of the studies during the past year has been done with
dairy cattle.
An effort is being made to determine the effects or results of the in-fection,
the extent or prevalence, the means and methods of detecting it,
and measures for control of the effects if not of the infection itself.
The disease has been found to be general over the State.
!N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 11
PLANT PATHOLOGY AND BACTERIOLOGY.
Work lias been conducted along the lines of soil bacteriology, apple
root rots, lettuce drop, watermielon wilt, and tobacco wilt. The work in
soil bacteriology, in cooperation with the Division of Chemistry, is be-ing
conducted along the same lines as previous years, special attention
being given to the relation between the rate of nitrification and the
character of nitrifying solutions. With the apple root rots, field and
laboratory studies are being made with one of the organisms productive
of the rot. Comparative studies are being made with the Sclerotinia
attacking lettuce and the one affecting clovers and alfalfa, and consider-able
data have been secured on the relationship of the organisms.
The tobacco wilt studies are being made in cooperation with the
United States Department of Agriculture. It has been found during
the year that crop rotation is one of the most successful methods of con-trolling
the disease.
MARKETS AND RURAL ORGANIZATION.
In the main, the Division of Markets has concerned itself with aiding
the citizens in the marketing and financing of their products and farm-ing
operations. This has been accomplished through the publishing of
a weekly price report, a daily wire service for localities specializing in
the growing of some of the perishable products, the listing of sellers,
buyers and receivers of farm products, the organization of Credit Unions
and Farm Loan Associations, and of farmers for marketing coopera-tively
by the grading, warehousing and marketing of cotton, and by in-stalling
standard methods of accounting in different farm enterprises.
In all of these matters considerable progress has been made.
Twenty-one counties responded to the request for a $300 appropria-tion
by the board of county commissioners for the purpose of investi-gating
the grading, warehousing, and marketing of cotton in the differ-ent
cotton growing counties, and grading offices were established at
Charlotte, Fayetteville, New Bern, Raleigh, Tarboro, Weldon, and
Wilson.
DRAINAGE.
The work of Drainage has been confined to three general lines : The
improvements of farm lands now under cultivation by the drainage
(mainly with tile), collection of general and technical data on drainage,
and preliminary and reconnaissance work.
A considerable number of farms have been improved during the past
year by careful tile drainage and terracing. Some good data are being
collected in Wilson County and in Iredell County on the determination
of run-off in tile drains.
12 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
publications.
In addition to the nmltigraph circulars sent out to special mailing
lists, five regular bulletins and six circulars have been printed and dis-tributed.
Four issues of the Farmers' Market Bulletin also were printed
and distributed.
Following are the publications issued
:
Bulletin
232. Results of Variety Tests of Wheat, Oats, and Rye. By G. M. Garren.
233. Common Diseases of Poultry. By B. F. Kaupp.
234. Farm Drainage in North Carolina. By H. M. Lynde.
235. I. Some Further Studies of Chick Mortality.
II. When to Feed the Baby Chick. By B. F. Kaupp.
236. The Prevention and Control of Erosion in North Carolina with Special
Reference to Terracing. By F. R. Baker.
Circular
28. The Use of Lime on the Farm. By G. B. Williams.
29. Feeding Skimmilk, Buttermilk, and Whey to Hogs. By Dan T. Gray.
30. Oats for North Carolina. By G. B. Williams.
31. Soybean Growing in North Carolina. By G. B. Williams.
32. Increasing Our Crop Yields by Seed Selection on the Farm. By R. Y.
Winters.
33. Cow Records Pay. By A. J. Reed.
Farmers' Market Bulletin—4 issues.
The reports of the heads of the several Divisions and financial state-ment
follow
:
1ST. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 13
REPORT OF THE DIVISION OF AGRONOMY.
To the Director:
The activities of the Division have been chiefly along three lines:
Soil Survey, Soil Fertility, and Plant Breeding.
The work of the soil survey is the basis on which most of the other
experimental work is carried on. It has been found that work in plant
breeding and soil fertility, in order to be of the greatest value, must be
based upon types of soil as the plant-food deficiencies, and hence the
plant-food requirements, as well as the plant adaptations, are frequently
different for different types of soil.
In the soil fertility studies it is planned to determine the chief plant-food
deficiencies of the soils and the most profitable means of supplying
these deficiencies to different crops.
In the plant-breeding work it is planned to select and establish cer-tain
strains of the different crops that are best adapted for growth on
the different soils in the various sections of the State.
In the summary given below some of the results secured in the various
lines of work carried on by the Division of Agronomy of the Station are
recorded. These are mainly as follows
:
MAIN WORK IN PROGRESS.
(1) Soil survey to establish and map the various types of soil occur-ring
in the several counties of the State.
(2) Soil fertility work in the field and in the laboratory with differ-ent
types of soil to determine their chief needs and deficiencies for profit-able
crop yields under a proper system of soil management.
(3) Crop improvement and adaptation to different soils and sections
of the State.
(4) Determination of the most suitable grasses and grass mixtures,
combined with clovers and other suitable legumes, for permanent pasture
and for hay purposes in different sections of North Carolina.
(5) Investigative work in soybean growing and in a better and more
complete utilization of the soybeans themselves by inducing cotton-oil
mills to crush the beans.
WORK FINISHED AND RESULTS SECURED.
Soil Survey.—During the year soil survey work has progressed satis-factorily.
During the past summer surveys of Wayne and Columbus
were completed, and work in Anson, Alleghany, and Davidson was be-gun
during the fall. Work in these latter counties was finished during
the winter, and the three parties working in the State took up work in
Halifax, Harnett, and Hertford counties. At present, the field work is
14 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
being done by three men each from the Federal and State Departments
of Agricnltnre. It is planned during the summer to start surveys of
Cleveland, Stanly, and Orange counties.
. RESULTS OF SOIL FERTILITY STUDIES.
Chemical and Petrographic Examinations.—In the chemical and
petrographic studies of the' soils of the State, the following fundamental
points of importance have been brought out
:
(1) Wide variations in the total amount of the elements of plant food
have been shown to exist between the soils of the Appalachian Moun-tains,
Piedmont Plateau, and Atlantic Coastal Plain. The soils of the
first physiographic province are better supplied with phosphoric acid,
potash, and lime than are those of the other two provinces which com-pose
the State. Those of the Piedmont Plateau are, as a rule, amply
supplied with potash and lime and with phosphoric acid in rather large
amounts in some cases. On the other hand, the soils of the Coastal
Plain south of Albemarle Sound are markedly deficient in all essential
elements of plant growth.
Nitrogen is usually low in a majority of the soils of all three sections
of the State.
(2) Petrographic studies of these soils correlate markedly with the
chemical studies. The petrographic studies show that the question of
topography plays an important part in the chemical composition of
soils. Those soils of the mountains are formed from the same or similar
rock as are those of the Piedmont section, yet almost invariably the
mountain soils are richer in minerals other than quartz, especially those
carrying phosphoric acid, potash, and lime. In the mountains the forces
of erosion have not allowed the soil mantle to become as well defined as
in the Piedmont province, consequently there is greater preponderance
of the minerals found in the parent rock when the superficial covering
has been removed. The Coastal Plain soils are markedly deficient in
minerals except quartz, which is in accord with the ultimate chemical
analyses.
(3) In coordinating these studies with the field tests, using various
crops as indicators for measuring the relative densities of the soil solu-tion,
close relationships appear to exist between the chemical and min-eral
composition of the soils of each province and their requirements for
the chemical elements found in the usual fertilizer mixture. Nitrogen
being low in a majority of the soils of the State, it is either the first or
second element required by all the soils under experiment.
(4) Phosphoric acid is the constituent most needed in the west-ern
soils. An average of many analyses shows that as a rule this con-stituent
is found in larger quantities here than in the Coastal Plain
soils, yet it does not appear to be needed so badly on the latter. This is
undoubtedly due to the fact that the western soils are of much finer
N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 15
texture and the absorption much greater; therefore, there is greater
competition between the soil and plant for this material than occurs in
the sandy soils of the eastern section.
(5) Potash and lime are abundant in the Piedmont and Mountain
provinces. Field tests show that with common crops, except legumes,
potash cannot usually be used artificially at a profit. Here micas fur-nish
much of the potash contained therein. Lime has not produced the
results here as it has done down in the eastern portion of the State.
Plagioclase feldspar, augite, and hornblende are more abundantly found
in the upper sections. With the soils of the east, potash is one of the
limiting chemical elements, and felspathacic material is its principal
source.
(6) More data are needed on the question of the relative availability
of plant food when supplied in the combinations of the various soil-forming
minerals. The indications are that micas furnish a better sup-ply
of potash than feldspars, and plagioclases and hornblende carry
lime more easily soluble than epidote, garnet, etc. Pot experiments are
now under way at the Station with the view of throwing some light on
this important question.
Field Work with Mountain Soils.—Four distinct types of soil are be-ing
studied in the mountain section of the State, viz. : Porter's clay,
Porter's loam, Toxaway silty loam, and Toxaway loam.
(1) All four types show that phosphoric acid is needed first, and pot-ash
shows no gain with different crops, except where complete fertilizer
is used and large crops produced. Lime alone shows gains on leguminous
crops, and when used with complete fertilizer a gain is made.
(2) On Porter's clay and Porter's loam nitrogen is second in im-portance
to phosphoric acid, and has to be supplied to produce good
crops.
(3) Toxaway loam and Toxaway silty loam need nitrogen for best
results, but not so much as the upland mountain soils to produce remu-nerative
crops.
. Field Work with Piedmont Soils.—Cecil clay near Charlotte, Cecil
clay loam near Statesville, and Cecil sandy loam near Gastonia all show
phosphoric acid is the limiting constituent of plant food, with nitrogen
coming second. Very little benefit is derived from potash, except where
used in a complete fertilizer.
(1) The tests on the Iredell loam near Charlotte show that nitrogen
is the first element of plant food needed, with potash and lime next.
Although a complete fertilizer with lime gives best returns where phos-phoric
acid alone is used, no increase is secured. This seems to be the
only type of soil thus far studied in the Mountain and Piedmont sec-tions
in which phosphoric acid does not show up to be one of the limiting
constituents in crop growth.
(2) Alamance silt loam near Monroe, Durham sandy loam near Ox-ford,
and Norfolk coarse sand near Hoffman all show nitrogen to be
16 Thirty-ninth Annual Keport, 1916
the most needed element of plant food with, phosphoric acid and potash,
showing good yields when nsed with phosphoric acid and nitrogen. In
fact, for large crops a good supply of all of the plant-food constituents
with lime is needed, as well as an increased supply of vegetable matter.
Hence all of the constituents seem to be more or lesss limiting factors
in producing maximum crops.
(3) On the Cecil clay soils, potash either gives no gain or depresses
the yields. This may be accounted for by the increase of the amount of
potash in the soil solution. Enough of this constituent evidently is
present for present crop yields on the type.
(4) At the Central Test Farm on other phases of Cecil series of soils
experiments show that nitrogen is the chief limiting element of plant
food for large yields of crops, with additions of phosphoric acid needed
for best crops. Potash is of least importance.
Field Work with Coastal Plain Soils.—With soils of this section, the
following types of soil have been studied long enough for fair conclusions
to be drawn with reference to their greatest needs : The Portsmouth fine
sandy loam at Pantego, Portsmouth silt loam near Edenton, Norfolk
fine sandy loam near Kingsboro, Norfolk sandy loam at Elizabeth City,
Norfolk sand near Greenville, and muck near Moyock have been studied.
(1) With the exception of muck, nitrogen is the limiting element of
plant food with all these eastern soils, with potash and phosphoric acid
needed to produce good gains in crop yields.
(2) The results on Norfolk sandy loam at Elizabeth City have shown
that phosphoric acid comes before potash in importance for this type
of soil.
(3) On the muck soil, lime seems to be of first importance, then phos-phoric
acid, potash, and nitrogen follow in the order given. The use of
nitrogen, potash, and phosphoric acid give best returns when used in
connection with lime.
(4) Norfolk sand at Greenville gives evidence of needing humus-forming
material before any fertilizer can be used with profit.
(5) With peaty soils, the addition of potash and phosphoric acid
seems to have a depressing effect so far when used alone or in com-binations
without lime.
(6) Taking the State as a whole, one of the materials of greatest
importance for good crop yields is decaying vegetable matter incorpo-rated
into all the agricultural soils. After this is done, and it will fur-nish
a good supply of nitrogen, phosphoric acid in an available form is
the constituent of first importance to be supplied, except in the south-eastern
portion of the State, where potash is of extreme importance for
intensive farming.
RESULTS OF BREEDING EXPERIMENTS.
(1) In breeding work with cotton, it has been found from a large
number of selections that Selection No. 29 is the best yielder thus far
~N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 17
secured. It produced 252 pounds of seed cotton more per acre in 1915
than the unselected seed from which the selected strains came. It led
in the variety test at the Station farm by 94 pounds of seed cotton per
acre.
(2) In cooperative cotton improvement work at Aberdeen last year
with a long staple upland variety, an uniform strain was secured that
gave a staple 1 5
/{q inches in length, and compared favorably in yield
with the short-staple cottons grown in that vicinity.
(3) In community cotton improvement work at Crisp, in Edge-combe
County last year, much interest was shown in the work, and the
farmers cooperating were much pleased with the results secured. A
strain of cotton introduced in the community produced 158 pounds of
lint more per acre than did the variety most generally grown in that
community.
(4) In ear-to-row cooperative corn-breeding work with W. L. Wyatt
of Wake County, the yields ranged between 23.1 and 58.7 bushels of
shelled corn per acre from the different plantings from selections made
in the field during the previous fall. The ten best selections average
54.2 bushels, while the average yield for the whole field of selected seed
was 42 bushels per acre. The higher yields of some of the strains indi-cate
the value of such selections. The best yielding strain produced at
the rate of 16.7 bushels per acre more than the average of all the selec-tions.
Considering the average for the best ten selections and the aver-age
for the whole lot, we have a yield of 12.2 bushels per acre in favor
of the ten best selections.
(5) In variety tests with soybeans in different parts of the State it
has been found that for the Eastern and lower Piedmont sections the
Mammoth Yellow and Tokyo are leaders, and for the upper Piedmont
and mountains the Haberlandt and Wilson for seed production. For
hay production the Virginia is superior to any variety thus far found,
for any section of the State.
(6) In cooperative soybean experiments last year with F. P. Latham
of Beaufort County, the Tokyo variety showed up so favorably as a
yielder of seed that it will be used this year to replace, to some extent
at least, the varieties ordinarily grown in* that section for seed pro-duction.
These tests, too, brought out the value for early pasturage for
that section of the Haberlandt and Black Eyebrow varieties. Because
of their earliness, these two varieties come on at a time when rich pas-turage
is ordinarily scarce in that part of the State.
(7) Velvet beans have not been very successful in plantings made at
the test farms in Iredell and Buncombe counties. The plants made
relatively small growth and failed to mature.
In Wake County and eastward, the varieties class as follows, in the
order given, in amount of growth per acre : Florida Velvet, One Hun-dred
Day Speckle, Chinese, Wakula, and Yokohama.
2
North Carolina State Library
Ealeigh
18 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
For seed production in the eastern portion of the State the varieties
would stand as follows : One Hundred Day Speckle, Wakula, Yokohama,
Chinese, and Florida Velvet.
The Florida Velvet does not ordinarily mature at Raleigh, and only
about 10 per cent of the seed of the Chinese have matured here in the
past.
At present, for North Carolina conditions generally, the One Hundred
Day Speckle variety, because of its earliness, is considered the safest
and best variety for general use.
Respectfully submitted,
C. B. Williams,
Chief, Division of Agronomy.
N". 0. Agricultural Experiment Station 19
REPORT OF THE DIVISION OF CHEMISTRY.
To the Director:
The two principal lines of work of the Division relate. to cotton-seed
meal and soil bacteriology. The first line of work has been carried on,
to some extent, in cooperation with the Division of Animal Industry;
and the second, to some extent, with the Divisions of Bacteriology and
Agronomy.
COTTON-SEED MEAL WORK.
The results of our investigations have shown that cotton seed contains
a principle which is actively toxic to the classes of animals which have
been under experiment. The various classes used were rabbits, guinea
pigs, fowl, and swine. The toxic principle was identified as gossypol, a
substance first isolated by Mar-chlewski in 1899. Some of its chemical,
but none of its physiological, properties were described by him.
Since the publication of our article three valuable contributions by
other investigators have appeared, the authors being C. A. Wells of the
Georgia Experiment Station, Rommel and Vedder of the Bureau of
Animal Industry of the United States Department of Agriculture, and
Misses Richardson and Green of the University of Texas.
Studies of cottonseed meal from a nutritional standpoint are in
progress by Osborne and Mendel of the Connecticut Experiment Station
and by McCollom and his associates of the Wisconsin Experiment
Station.
Wells, after making exhaustive experiments to test the acidosis theory
of cotton-seed poisoning has abandoned it.
Rommel and Yedder have offered as an explanation of the ill effects
usually accompanying its feeding to swine that cotton-seed meal con-tains
no active toxic principle, but that it lacks "vitamines," and that
the resulting disease is similar to if not identical with "beriberi" which
is often produced in human beings from eating highly milled food
products. Their paper being preliminary contained only a few experi-ments.
Misses Richardson and Green, using albino rats, have also concluded
that cottonseed meal is not actively toxic; contains efficient protein, but
is deficient in minerals.
Without denying the deficiencies of cottonseed meal, it cannot be
admitted that these are the chief causes of the harmful results from
feeding it, as it has been found that cotton-seed kernels are not lethal to
pigs after gossypol has been extracted.
During the past year further experiments with rabbits was carried
on, using many more swine than were used during the experiment of the
previous years, and some experiments were instituted also with albino
rats.
The rats show a very high resistant power toward cottonseed meal,
but are very quickly affected by unpressed cotton seed. They appear to
20 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
live indefinitely upon a diet of cotton-seed flour, which, however, is
quickly toxic to rabbits.
These more or less conflicting views as to the toxicity of cotton-seed
meal may be explained partly on the peculiarities of different classes of
animals used for experiment and partly by the possibility of variation
in the toxicity of different cotton-seed meals. The fact that rats are
promptly affected by crushed kernels, but can live over long periods
upon cotton-seed meal as the sole source of protein, carbohydrates and
minerals, indicates that the process of manufacture is a fairly efficient
means of removing the toxic principle. It is possible that a close study
of the conditions of meal manufacture may show how this principle
may be more efficiently eliminated. This is an important matter for
future investigation.
Some attention has been given to the study of effect of aging upon
the toxicity of a meal, and it is hoped to take up the plan proposed
some time ago of studying the distribution of gossypol in the different
parts of the cotton plant and in different varieties of the plant grown
under different climatic conditions.
The experiments during the year have confirmed the views previously
presented that gossypol is the toxic substance of cotton seed. A paper
embodying these results is now in preparation for publication.
SOIL BACTERIOLOGY.
Studies in nitrification have been continued during the year and have
been mainly with solutions. An effort is being made to study the most
desirable concentration of the various constituents, the most satisfactory
form of container, optimum time and temperature of incubation, and
the other changes in nitrogen combination accompanying ammonifica-tion
and nitrification.
PAPERS AND PUBLICATIONS.
The following papers have been published or presented at the meet-ings
of various societies during the year
:
Feeding Experiments with Cotton-seed Products, by W. A. Withers and F. B.
Carruth before the N. C. Section of the American Chemical Society.
Chemistry of Gossypol, by F. E. Carruth before the N. C. Section of the
American Chemical Society.
Cottonseed Meal as a Feeding Stuff, by W. A. Withers before the N. C. Cotton-seed
Crushers Association.
Properties of Substantive Cotton Dyes, by F. E, Carruth before the N. C.
Section of the American Chemical Society.
Gossypol the Toxic Substance in Cottonseed Meal, by W. A. Withers and
F. E. Carruth in the Journal of Agricultural Research, November 15,
1915.
Respectfully submitted,
W. A. Withers,
Chemist.
N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 21
REPORT OF THE ANIMAL INDUSTRY DIVISION.
To the Director:
I herewith submit the annual report of the Investigational work con-ducted
by the Animal Industry Division of the Experiment Station.
The following statements give a brief summary of the projects which
are being conducted :
SWINE.
1. To determine the toxic principles in cottonseed meal.
2. To determine the value of temporary pasture crops for fattening
hogs.
3. To determine the value of waste peanuts, soybean meal, and pea-nut
meal as feeds for hogs.
4. To determine the effect of peanuts, soybeans, mast, soybean meal,
peanut meal and other feeds upon the bodies of hogs and their lards,
with a view to developing a plan of feeding to counteract any unfavor-able
results.
5. To determine the expense of raising pigs to the weaning age in the
various parts of the State.
BEEF CATTLE.
1. To determine the relative value of various quantities of cotton-seed
meal for fattening steers in connection with cotton-seed hulls and
corn silage, and note the effect of these feeds upon the quality of the
meat.
2. To make a direct comparison of the relative value of cotton-seed
hulls and corn silage when fed in conjunction with cottonseed meal.
3. To determine the effect of varying amounts of cottonseed meal
upon the health, development, and breeding qualities of young calves.
4. To determine the cause, if possible, of the disease commonly called
Trembles.
5. Cooperative beef cattle work with the Bureau of Animal Industry,
Washington, D. C, conducted on the farm of Mr. T. L. Gwyn, of Hay-wood
County. These experiments were inaugurated November 1, 1913.
Since that time the following projects have been studied
:
(a) To determine the profit, if any, in introducing corn into a ration
of cottonseed meal.
(&) To determine the best and most economical method of wintering
stockers when they are to be finishing the following summer on pasture.
(c) To determine the feasibility and practicability of fattening cattle
in the summer on pasture when the pasture is supplemented with cotton-seed
meal.
6. To determine the value of peanut meal as a fattening ration for
beef cattle.
22 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
SHEEP.
1. To determine the cost of maintaining a flock of sheep.
2. To determine the cost and feasibility of producing early lambs for
the April, May, and June markets.
3. To determine the effect of cotton-seed meal rations when fed in
various quantities upon the health, condition, and reproductive systems.
4. To determine the value of the use of Merino, Shropshire, and Bar-bado
rams in grading up native ewes and crossing upon each other.
5. To determine whether the Barbado sheep are in any degree resist-ent
to the attacks of stomach worms.
6. To determine the influence of various kinds and amounts of grain
in overcoming the ravages of stomach worms in lambs during the sum-mer
months.
DAIRY CATTLE.
1. To determine the cost of raising calves in the South.
2. To determine the value of silage in a milking ration when com-pared
with Southern dry feeds.
3. To determine the value of silage as compared with winter and
spring pastures.
4. To determine the value of various winter feeds for wintering dairy
calves, special emphasis being given to cottonseed meal.
5. To determine the best and most satisfactory method of making
skim milk, buttermilk, and cottage cheese.
6. To determine, if possible, a practical method of eliminating onion
flavor from milk and butter.
HORSES AND MULES.
1. To determine the place of cotton-seed meal in a ration for work-ing
horses and mules.
POULTRY.
1. To determine if cottonseed meal can be safely fed to fowls, and
if so, the limit of safety.
2. To study Mendelian characters (in egg production) in Leghorn
breeding.
3. To determine best feeds and methods of fattening fowls.
4. To determine best methods of preparing fowls for shipment to
curtail shrinkage.
5. To determine best methods of rearing turkeys to combat blackhead.
6. To study Mendelian traits (in color study of egg) in Barred Ply-mouth
Bock breeding.
7. Egg and poultry shipping experiments and market studies.
8. To determine the exact amount of excreta voided by fowls in 365
days.
N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 23
9. A study of parasitic conditions of the State. To determine the
best methods of combating the same.
10. A study of tumors of the fowl.
11. A study of abdominal purulent conditions of the hen.
3 2. To determine the best methods of housing and caring for fowls
in North Carolina.
13. To determine the best methods of housing the sitting hen and the
hen with her brood.
14. To work out profitable simple rations for the farm brood and the
farm flock.
15. To determine the effects of dry lot handling of the flock.
16. To determine the value of free range and degree of protection of
the farm crop by fowls.
17. To determine the cost of baby chicks hatched by artificial versus
natural means.
18. To determine the cost of brooding chicks, natural versus artificial
means.
19. Studies in the anatomy and histology of the fowl.
20. Study in therapeutics of the fowl.
21. To determine if mineral feeding will stimulate growth and de-velopment.
SWINE.
The swine work which is being conducted at the Central Farm at
Raleigh, at the Iredell Branch Station, at the Edgecombe Branch Sta-tion,
and at the Pender Branch Station has developed very satisfactorily
during the last twelve months. On account of lack of funds the work
has been handicapped, but as more funds become available for the test
farms it is hoped that the work can be done more completely and com-prehensively
than at present as well as inaugurate new and additional
work upon the Buncombe and Wenona Branch Stations.
Soybean Pastures for Fattening Hogs.
(Edgecombe Branch Station.)
One of the greatest lessons that the farmers of the State need to learn
is that money is usually lost—or at least a sufficient amount is not
made—when hogs are fed in dry lots without pasture of some kind. One
of the big problems of the authorities of the Animal Industry Division
is to determine the value of some of our various hog grazing crops and
to carry this information to the farmers who are to use our results.
Farmers all over the State are becoming very greatly interested in soy-bean
pasture, and are calling upon us for accurate information as to
just bow reliable this pasture is and how it should be used. Last fall
(October 2 9-December 28) a test was made at the Edgecombe Branch
Station to determine the value of five acres of soybean pasture. The
crop was probably far below the average. The beans were planted in
24 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
rows and cultivated. As they were planted late they were not ready for
grazing until October 28th, when 18 pigs weighing 87 pounds each were
turned on to the five acres. In addition to the pasture, the pigs were given
a fourth ration of nine-tenths corn plus one-tenth tankage. As a check
lot, three other pigs were placed in a small bare lot and fed a full ration
of nine-tenths corn plus one-tenth tankage. The five acres of soybeans
afforded feed for 18 pigs for sixty days. The pigs in both lots made
good gains during this time. The pigs in the bare lot making an aver-age
daily gain of 1.28 pounds, while those in the pasture lot made an
average daily gain of 1.38 pounds. The cost, however, to make these
gains was decidedly in favor of the pasture^ when pasture is charged
against the gains at $10 an acre, corn at $1 a bushel, and tankage at
$2.60 per hundredweight. The hogs in the bare lot made unusually
economical gains, as their gains cost only $5.60 per hundredweight.
The hogs in the soybean pasture lot gained at the rate of $4.96 per
hundredweight. When hogs were valued at 8 cents a pound on foot,
each acre of grazed soybeans proved to be worth $19.25. The yield of
seed was not obtained in this particular experiment, but the hogs gave
decidedly larger returns per acre than the seed themselves would have
realized. When it is remembered that the crop was not a normal one,
the results secured were entirely satisfactory.
[ Peanut Against Soybean Pasture as Feeds for Hogs.
I (Pender Branch Station.)
A second crop which the farmers of North Carolina are coming very
rapidly to appreciate is peanuts. They appreciate this both as a com-mercial
feed and as a feed for hogs. The Animal Industry Division has
already done considerable work to determine the exact value of peanuts
for hogs, and these results have been presented in my former reports.
Farmers, however, are continuously asking us the relative value of pea-nut
and soybean pastures. To be able to answer these questions
concisely an experiment has been outlined at the Pender Branch Station.
One year's results have been secured. The second year's experiment is
now under way. To determine the relative value of these two crops
1.65 acres of soybeans and 1.72 acres of peanuts were planted the spring
of 1915. Both crops were planted in rows and cultivated, and were
ready to graze September 16. Nine pigs, which averaged 112 pounds
in weight, were turned into each field and given a half ration of corn
in addition to the pastures. The above area of soybeans afforded feed
for the nine pigs for sixty-one days, but an equivalent area of peanuts
afforded grazing only thirty-six days. The length of time grazed, how-ever,
does not determine the relative value of the two crops as the pigs
upon the peanuts gained very much more rapidly than did those upon
soybeans. The soybean-fed pigs gained at an average daily rate of .98
of a pound, while the peanut-fed pigs gained at an average daily rate
of 1.36 pounds. When corn is valued at $1 a bushel and the pasture
.N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 25
at $10 an acre, it cost $5.20 to make each. 100 pounds of increase in
weight in the soybean lot and $5.41 in the peanut lot. The pounds of
seed produced on these areas were not determined, but after the cost of
the grain was deducted it was learned that each acre of soybeans pro-duced
$18.80 worth of pork, while each acre of peanuts produced $16.61
worth of pork, the hogs being valued at 8 cents a pound on foot.
Feeding Value of Damaged Peanuts and Peanut Meal When
Fed to Hogs.
(Edgecombe Branch Station.)
The eastern part of the State very frequently suffers very great losses
on account of the crop of peanuts being damaged in the shock. The
Animal Industry Division has had many inquiries relative to the value
of damaged peanuts when fed to hogs. Last year a series of tests was
inaugurated upon the Edgecombe Branch Station to thoroughly test the
problem. The first experiment was presented in my last report. I am
presenting the second one now.
In connection with this study we have been called upon to determine
the value of peanut meal as farmers are continuously asking the relative
value of wheat shorts, damaged peanuts, peanut meal, and soybean meal.
In the particular experiment reported here corn is valued at $1 a
bushel, wheat shorts and peanut meal each cost us $30 a ton, peanut
meal being purchased at a local mill; the damaged peanuts are valued
at 75 cents a bushel, although many farmers place no value at all upon
them. Thirty Berkshire pigs raised upon the Edgecombe Branch Sta-tion
were used in the test. At the beginning (January 25, 1916) they
averaged about 98 pounds in weight. At the close of the test (June 22,
1916) they averaged from 200 to 218 pounds in weight, depending upon
the lot in which they were fed. It is interesting to note in passing that
these pigs were shipped to the Baltimore market and sold for $10.35 per
hundredweight. The pigs in the first lot were fed a ration of two-thirds
corn plus one-third shorts ; those in the second lot a ration of two-thirds
corn and one-third damaged peanuts; those in the third lot a ration of
two-thirds corn and one-third peanut meal. For a long time experiment
of this character (149 days) the pigs all made reasonably satisfactory
gains, as those in the first lot made an average daily gain of .69 of a
pound, these in the damaged-peanut lot .71 of a pound, and those in the
peanut-meal lot .81 of a pound. In the wheat-shorts lot it cost $10.35
to make each hundred pounds of increase in weight, in the damaged-peanut
lot $9.83, and in the peanut-meal lot $8.81. When waste pea-nuts,
therefore, have a fictitious value of 75 cents a bushel, peanut meal
is the cheaper food. It is interesting to note, however, in this connection
that waste peanuts were sold by means of hogs for more than 75 cents
26 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
a bushel. Wheat shorts proved to be the most expensive supplement.
This test has been given the public by means of circular-letters and the
press and has attracted considerable attention.
Wheat Shorts, Peanut Meal, and Soybean Meal as Feed for Hogs.
(Central Branch Station.)
This experiment was outlined primarily to determine the effect of
soybean meal and peanut meal upon the bodies of hogs. Some packing
plants and other consumers claim that both of these materials produce
just as undesirable a body as do soybeans and peanuts. This phase of
the work, however, is presented in another part of this report. Inci-dentally,
some interesting results were secured as to the relative value
of wheat shorts, soybean meal, and peanut meal when fed in conjunction
with corn. For the sake of the first part of the experiment, the hogs
were kept in very small lots, the floors of which were covered with
cement. On this account the gains were, of course, not satisfactory, but
the results are comparable. The pigs in the first lot were fed a ration
of two-thirds corn plus one-third wheat shorts, the second lot of pigs
was fed a ration of two-thirds corn plus one-third soybean meal, the
third lot of pigs was fed a ration of two-thirds corn plus one-third pea-nut
meal. At the beginning of the experiment (January 24, 1915) the
pigs were small, averaging about 43 pounds in weight; in fact, they
were small 140 days later, when the experiment closed, as they did not
make rapid gains. The pigs in the wheat-shorts lot made an average
daily gain of .29 of a pound, those in the soybean-meal lot .44 of a
pound, and those in the peanut-meal lot .37 of a pound. The cost to
make gains was extremely high, as it cost $19.80 to make each hundred
pounds of increase in the shorts lot, $11.79 in the soybean lot, and
$14.56 in the peanut-meal lot. Corn was valued at $1 a bushel, soybean
meal at $40 a ton, and peanut meal at $30 a ton.
Feeding Cottonseed Meal to Hogs.
The cottonseed meal work is being carried on in cooperation with the
Chemistry Division. This work, on account of being extremely pains-taking
and expensive, is carried on at the Central Branch Station at
Raleigh. This character of work necessarily means that the gains are
to be expensive and heavy losses are to be encountered. Last year I
reported that progress was being made upon this study, and that we
felt that we would finally get results which would be of value to both
the cotton and hog producers of the South. We have gone far enough
to know that copperas and iron both overcome in a measure the danger
when cottonseed meal is fed to hogs. We cannot say, however, that
these two chemicals eliminate the danger completely. During the past
winter five lots of hogs were used in this particular experiment, which
began November 29, 1915, and closed 126 days later, on April 3, 1916.
N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 27
The first lot of hogs was fed a ration made up of seven-eighths corn plus
one-eighth cotton-seed meal, the second lot was fed a ration of seven-eighths
corn plus one-eighth cottonseed meal plus a solution of iron
sulphate., the third lot was fed a ration made up of seven-eighths corn
plus one-eighth cotton-seed meal plus a solution of citrate of iron and
ammonia, the fourth lot of hogs was fed a ration of four-eighths corn
plus three-eighths wheat bran plus one-eighth cotton-seed meal, the fifth
lot of hogs was fed a ration of seven-eighths corn plus one-eighth peanut
meal. At the beginning of the test the pigs averaged about 50 pounds
in weight. As the object of this experiment was not primarily to make
rapid or economical gains, but to try out the effect of various combina-tions
of cotton-seed meal and chemical solutions upon the health of
swine, the pigs were placed in small pens covered by board floors. They
were handled in this way to preclude the possibility of securing any
food except that given them. The pigs were in the test for a long period
of time (126 days), but attention should be called to the fact that the
proportion of cotton-seed meal was small. One pig in the first lot died
December 1st, but this was certainly not due to cotton-seed meal as the
experiment was inaugurated November 29. Two pigs died in the second
lot—the lot in which the solution of iron sulphate was used—one on
February 9th, or 72 days after the inauguration of the experiment, and
the other on March 31st, or 123 days after the experiment began. No
other deaths were secured. It is interesting to note, however, that the
gains were more satisfactory where the iron sulphate was used. The
pigs in the first lot, where simply corn and cotton-seed meal were em-ployed,
made an average daily gain of .25 of a pound per pig per day;
those in the second lot, where the iron solution was used, gained .35 of
a pound per pig per day ; those in the third lot, where the citrate of iron
and ammonia solution was employed, gained .42 of a pound per pig per
day ; those in the fourth lot, where both wheat bran and cotton-seed meal
were employed, gained .30 of a pound per pig per day; and those in the
fifth lot, where peanut meal was employed, gained .32 of a pound per
pig per day. All of the rations, therefore, were more effective than plain
cotton-seed meal.
This is a line of experimentation which should be carried to a final
conclusion no matter what the cost may finally be.
Expense to Raise Pigs to Weaning Age.
No problem connected with swine production is of more importance
than those problems associated with the suckling pig. On account of
its importance we are studying various methods of raising pigs to the
weaning period at the Central Branch Station and upon three of the
branch stations. Reliable information is being collected as we haATe gone
far enough now to get some definite results. Notwithstanding the fact
that this period is probably the most expensive period of the pig's life
no experiment stations have made careful studies to determine the cost
28 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
and work out the- best methods of feeding. When this work has been
under way a number of years we will have records that will be worth
much to the farmers of the State. At the present time exact records
are being kept of about 35 sows and their litters. In a report of this
kind I can speak of averages only. At the Edgecombe Branch Station
the sows averaged 5%i pigs raised to weaning age. This, of course, -does
not represent the number farrowed. When weaned at eight weeks of
age the pigs averaged 24.3 pounds in weight. When the cost of feed as
well as cost of labor is charged against the pigs, it is found that the
pigs upon the Edgecombe Branch Station at weaning time cost $1.94.
At the Pender Branch Station the sows have averaged raising Q 1
/^ pigs
to weaning time. The pigs upon upon this farm were weaned at 8
weeks and averaged 28.8 pounds in weight and each pig has cost us $3.34.
At the Iredell Branch Station the sows have averaged raising 6% pigs
to the weaning time. These pigs have averaged 31.8 pounds in weight
and have cost $2.24 each.
The Cheapening Effect of Peanuts, Soybeans, and Mast Upon the
Bodies of Hogs.
Farmers of the State who live in sections where mast, peanuts, and
soybeans are grown thoroughly appreciate the fact that these feeds, as
well as others, produce a body which is objectionable to the packer and
to the consumer. Those of us who have tried it know that packers in
the first place do not want hogs at all which have been fed upon soften-ing
feeds. Some packers will buy them, but when they do they deduct
from 1 to 2 cents a pound. This means from $2 to $5 a head. This
represents an enormous total loss to the State and discourages many
farmers from using some of the very best Southern feeds we have.
There is no doubt at all, I believe, that a way can be found to overcome
this cheapening effect. As this is one of the most important problems
in the South, we are devoting considerable time to its solution. Prac-tically
all of the hogs involved in the experimental work reported above
are used in this scientific phase of our work; that is, these hogs are
butchered, samples of fat taken and sent to out-laboratories at Raleigh,
where they are carefully analyzed. While we have been slow in getting
these studies under way, still we have made very material progress. I
devote much of my personal attention to this problem and Mr. McCarty
has devoted most of his time to the chemical phases. During the last
twelve months several hundred samples from hogs which have been fed
upon various combinations of feeds such as peanuts and soybeans have
been analyzed. In all of this work corn-fed hogs are taken as a basis,
this being done because it is recognized practically the world over that
the bodies of hogs which have been fattened upon corn alone are satis-factory
to the packer and ultimate consumer. The bodies of hogs which
have been fattened upon corn alone are satisfactory because the lard is
firm, white, and fine in texture as well as the body. We have learned
!N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 29
that the average melting point of lards made from the kidney fat of
hogs fattened upon corn alone is approximately 43 degrees. In every
feed or combination of feeds which produces leaf lard that melts at 43
degrees or above is considered satisfactory.
This investigational work has been done, as stated above, upon the
Central Branch Station, the Edgecombe Branch Station, the Pender
Branch Station and in cooperation with Messrs. Holderness and Shook
at Tarboro. Recently a comprehensive experiment was carried on in
cooperation with Messrs. Holderness and Shook. Following the custom
of the average farmer who lives in the peanut section, a lot of hogs was
permitted to graze upon waste peanuts. In this particular test the pea-nuts
lasted 82 days, when the hogs were brought into the barn lots. At
the end of the peanut period the bodies of the hogs were, of course, ex-ceedingly
soft as they had been fed upon peanuts exclusively. If they
had been sold at this time the markets would have discriminated against
them to the extent of from l1/^ to 2 cents a pound. "When the hogs
arrived at the barnyard they were divided into ten lots, 20 hogs being
placed in each lot. To determine the best and most economical rations
for finishing and hardening the bodies of these hogs, the lots of hogs
were fed upon corn alone and corn in conjunction with various amounts
of cotton-seed meal. The finishing or hardening period continued
twenty-six days, when the animals were shipped to the Richmond mar-ket.
The following table gives a summary of the work
:
Lot Hardening Ration
1 Corn alone
2 Shelled corn 9-10
Cotton-seed meal 1-10
3 Shelled corn 7-8
Cotton-seed meal 1-8
4 Shelled corn 4-5
Cotton-seed meal 1-5
5 Shelled corn 2-3
Cotton-seed meal 1-3
6 Shelled corn 1-2
Cotton-seed meal 1-2
7 Cracked corn 2-3
Cotton-seed meal 1-3
8 Cracked corn 3-4
Cotton-seed meal 1-4
9 Ear corn 2-3
Cotton-seed meal 1-3
10 Shelled corn 9-10
Cotton-seed meal 1-10
Days on Hardening Melting
Ration Point
26 37.6 degrees
26 39.6
26 39.2
26 38.3
26 39.3
26 36.9
26 39.5
26 38.7
26 38.0
26 38.0
It is seen from this table that the soft-bodied hogs were not fed upon
hardening feeds a sufficient length of time to bring them back to the
30 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
corn standard; in fact, none of these lots had an average melting point
as high as 40 degrees, while the average melting point for corn-fed hogs
is approximately 43 degrees. The packers who purchased these hogs
deducted one-half a cent a pound on account of the softness, and claimed
that they deserved an even greater deduction in price. The above work
clearly shows that hogs which have been fed upon peanuts alone for
long periods of time must be finished in dry lots upon concentrated feeds
for more than twenty-six days before the bodies are brought back to a
corn standard. This need not discourage the farmer as he can well
afford to feed them a while longer.
This problem has also been studied at the Pender Branch Station and
Edgecombe Branch Station. Recently a test was carried through at the
Pender Branch Station to study the effectiveness of corn alone as a fin-ishing
ration after the bodies of hogs had been rendered soft as a result
of grazing peanut and soybean pastures. The pigs in Lot 1 were grazed
upon soybean pasture for sixty-one days, and during this time received
a partial ration of corn. At the end of the soybean period the melting
point of the leaf lard taken from the two hogs which were slaughtered
was 37 degrees. The remaining pigs were enclosed in a lot and fed for
forty-one days upon corn alone. When these hogs were slaughtered and
the melting point of the lard determined it was found to be 39.8 degrees.
The pigs in Lot 2 ate peanut pasture and a partial ration of corn for
thirty-six days and at the end of this time had an average melting point
of 33.4 degrees. Their bodies were exceedingly soft. The remaining
pigs in Lot 2 were enclosed in a small lot and finished upon corn alone
for sixty-six days, and the melting point of the lard was raised to 37.2
degrees.
At the Edgecombe Branch Station a recent test was made to study
the effect of a ration made up of .corn nine-tenths plus tankage one-tenth
and the same ration when supplemented by soybean pasture. The
two lots of pigs were fed for sixty days. The pigs in the dry lot had
an average melting point of 43.3 degrees, while those which had the
ration of soybean pasture had an average melting point of 33.3 degrees.
The remaining pigs in the soybean lot were placed in dry lots for finish-ing,
and the period continued for twenty-one days. These pigs, which
were finished upon corn and tankage, had an average melting point of
35.6 degrees, while the lards taken from those which were finished upon
corn and cotton-seed meal had an average melting point of 38.5 degrees.
The bodies of the hogs, however, were all too soft.
In some recent work done in cooperation with Messrs. Holderness and
Shook and upon the branch stations, it has been found that exceedingly
soft-bodied hogs can be brought back to normal between thirty-two and
forty-nine days when corn is used in conjunction with cotton-seed meal.
We feel that we are making satisfactory progress with this problem.
Packers are also claiming that soybean meal and peanut meal produce
soft-bodied hogs. We are studying this problem carefully, and so far we
JST. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 31
have found very little evidence to warrant us in saying that these two
meals have a tendency to produce soft-bodied hogs. These problems,
however, are to be studied more carefully and thoroughly as we go
along.
BEEF CATTLE.
The beef cattle work, both investigational and field, has been going
along in a satisfactory manner. Messrs. Curtis, Jerdan, and Case are
putting in all of their time in this kind of work. Mr. Hostetler is de-voting
part of his time to investigational phases.
Best Feed for Wintering Stock Cattle.
Last winter 67 head of grade cattle were wintered on the Experiment
Station Farm to determine the best methods of wintering stock cattle.
In this test varying amounts of corn silage and cotton-seed meal were
used. The steers in Lot 1 were fed an average daily ration of 20 pounds
of corn silage plus 1 pound of cotton-seed meal, those in Lot 2 an airer-age
daily ration of 23 pounds of corn silage, those in Lot 3 an average
daily ration of 20 pounds of corn silage, those in Lot 4 an average daily
ration of 20 pounds of corn silage plus one-half pound of cotton-seed
meal. During the last forty-four days of the experiment all the steers
received 5 pounds of corn stover per day in addition to the above rations.
The steers all lost in weight, those in the first lot losing during the 148-
day winter period 16.2 pounds, those in the second lot 52.9 pounds, those
in the third lot 72.2 pounds, and those in the fourth lot 69.4 pounds. At
the prevailing prices of cotton-seed meal and corn silage, it cost $10.29
to winter each steer in the first lot, $8.18 in the second lot, $7.23 in the
third lot, and $8.09 in the fourth.
This test shows that cotton-seed meal and corn silage afford an ex-cellent
combination for the winter maintenance of beef cattle. These
cattle were sold in Virginia, and the work is planned with the idea of
following the cattle through the summer to get the results of pasture.
Part of this information is being collected, but of course cannot be
reported at this early date.
Best Rations for Wintering Stock Cattle.
(Iredell Branch Station.)
Last winter a car-load of grade Shorthorn cattle were shipped to the
Iredell Branch Station for some additional investigational work on the
question of wintering stock cattle. The cattle shipped to that station
were divided into two lots, the first lot being fed upon an average daily
ration of 20 pounds of corn silage plus 1 pound of cotton-seed meal and
the second lot upon 20 pounds of corn silage alone. The steers in the
first lot were made to gain somewhat in weight during the winter period
of 160 days, each steer gaining 24 pounds. The steers in the second lot,
32 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
where no cotton-seed meal was employed, lost in weight, as each steer
suffered a loss of 55 pounds. It cost, of course, considerably more to
winter the cattle in the lot where cotton-seed meal was used, as each
steer in this lot entailed an expense of $9.14, while each steer in the
second lot was gotten through with only an expenditure of $6.11. The
steers in the first lot were, of course, in very much better condition when
spring arrived, but it is a question as to whether this really makes any
difference upon the arrival of the subsequent fall. This question, how-ever,
is to be studied further.
Best Feeds for Wintering Beef Calves.
(Edgecombe Branch Station.)
During the past winter an experiment was also carried on at the Edge-combe
Branch Station to determine the most profitable method of winter-ing
beef calves, using cotton-seed meal and corn silage as a ration, the
object being to determine if cotton-seed meal could be fed profitably.
The calves in Lot 1 were each fed 15 pounds of corn silage plus 1 pound
of cotton-seed meal, while those in Lot 2 were fed 15 pounds of corn
silage per head per day. At the beginning of the test the calves in the
first lot averaged 340 pounds in weight, while those in the second lot
averaged 321 pounds in weight. During the winter period of ninety-eight
days each calf in the first lot made an average daily gain of 19
pounds, while each calf in the second lot lost 16 pounds. When silage
is valued at $4 a ton and cotton-seed meal at $40 a ton, it cost $4.90 to
feed each calf in the first lot the ninety-eight days, and $2.94 to feed
each calf in the second lot the same length of time. This small amount
of cotton-seed meal did not, of course, injure the calves in any way;
they came through in perfect health and were in much better shape for
grazing than were those in the second lot.
Raising Young Calves on Cottonseed Meal.
(Central Station Farm.)
There is probably no one livestock problem about which we are ques-tioned
so much as the one relating to the feeding of cotton-seed meal to
young animals of all kinds. The farmers of our State, of course, desire
to use cotton-seed meal just as extensively and continuously as possible.
Many of them, however, have found that with young animals especially
it is dangerous when used too lavishly, and the calls all hinge around
the point as to just how much can be used with entire safety. In our
swine work we have found that cotton-seed meal has a definite poison
—
gossypol. This poison kills swine readily and just as readily injures
other animals, especially when fed to them when young. Eor these rea-sons
Mr. Curtis and Mr. Eaton have been working together to determine,
if possible, the relative amounts of cotton-seed meal products that may
be fed to growing calves under varying conditions, with especial refer-
!N\ C. Agricultural Experiment Station 33
ence to the kind of roughage used and antidotes. Last winter 20 grade
Jersey calves weighing from 150 to 450 pounds were employed in this
experiment. Each calf in Lot 1 was given 1 pound of cotton-seed meal
for each 100 pounds of live weight and cotton-seed hulls; each calf in
Lot 2 was given 1 pound per 100 pounds live weight of a grain mixture
composed of equal parts of cracked corn and cotton-seed meal with
cotton-seed hulls ; each calf in Lot 3 received 1 pound of cotton-seed meal
per 100 pounds of live weight and a mixture of beet pulp and cotton-seed
hulls; each calf in Lot 4 received the same feed as the calves in
Lot 1, except that for each pound of cotton-seed meal that was fed a
quart of iron sulphate solution was added and stirred with the feed.
This particular experiment closed May 1st as one of the calves in the
third lot died on April 12th as a result of cotton-seed meal poisoning
and several of the other calves were losing their sight. The calves in
lots 2, 3, and 4 were then turned on pasture and weighed again on Octo-ber
31st. All of them showed subsequent gains for the summer, and
their eyes had apparently entirely recovered from the trouble. This
point is of particular interest to farmers who have experienced this
same sort of trouble.
A similar experiment was repeated during the last winter and summer,
but with practically the same results. It is planned to carry the calves
which do not die as the result of using the cotton-seed meal to the breed-ing
age. The charge is commonly made against cotton-seed meal that
its constant use produces sterility and abortion. When this part of the
test is brought to a close data bearing upon these two charges will be
available.
Maintaining Stock Cattle Through the Winter Months with a View to
Finishing on Pasture the Subsequent Summer.
(Gwyn Experimental Earm, Haywood County.)
This beef cattle work is being conducted in cooperation with Mr. T. L.
Gwyn, of Haywood County. No part of our work is appealing more to
the farmer any more than this. The farmers who live in the mountains
and under conditions similar to Mr. Gwyn's are watching this investi-gational
work very closely.
During the last winter 114 stockers were involved in this experiment.
The 114 stockers were divided into five lots, the first lot being fed upon
an average daily ration of 3.15 pounds of ear corn and 11.4 pounds of a
mixture of corn stover, hay, and straw; each steer in lots 2 and 3 was
fed a daily ration of 18 pounds of corn silage and 6 pounds of the rough-age
mixture ; each steer in Lot 4 was grazed through the winter with-out
the addition of any grain or hay; the animals in Lot 5 were really
calves and were fed upon a ration of % pound shelled corn plus %
pound cotton-seed cake. At the beginning of the test the stockers varied,
of course, somewhat in weight, but averaged from 762 pounds to 813
34 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
pounds per lot. The calves averaged 270 pounds in weight. The
stockers in the first three lots lost in weight 34, 41, and 40 pounds,
respectively. The stockers in the fourth lot (this is the lot which was
grazed upon winter pasture alone) gained 26 pounds each. The calves
gained 9 pounds each. The experiment lasted 119 days. Counting
pasture at $1 a month per animal and the other feeds at local prices, it
cost $12.14 to winter each steer in the first lot, $7 in lots 2 and 3, $5.30
in the winter pasture lot, and $4.18 to feed each one of the calves during
the winter period of 119 days. When April 13th came the winter work
was brought to a close and the cattle were placed upon summer pasture.
They were carried on pasture until August 31st, when they were sold.
Lots 2, 3, and 4 and 5 were carried through on pasture alone during the
pasture season. Lot 1 was given an average daily ration of 4 pounds of
cotton-seed cake in addition to the pasture. All the steers through the
pasture season made good gains, but we did not find that those which
were fed cake in addition to pasture made very much more rapid gains
than those which had pasture alone. The steers which were not fed
cotton-seed cake were sold at the farm for $7.25 per hundredweight.
The steers in the first lot which ate cotton-seed cake in addition to the
pasture were sold in Baltimore at $8.25 per hundredweight. When the
total cost of shipping and feed, including pasture at $5 for the five
winter months, were charged against the operations, it was found it did
not pay to feed the cotton-seed cake. The steers in lots 2, 3, and 4,
which ran upon pasture alone, yielded a net profit of $21.63, $20.94, and
$24.02, respectively, while the steers in Lot 1, where cotton-seed cake
was employed, yielded a net profit of only $13.01 each. The farmers in
the mountains are particularly interested in the wintering pasture prop-osition
as this pasture consisted of native pastures of the territory which
have been allowed to grow up in the summertime without grazing and
fall over for winter use. This kind of pasture has proven to be the
cheapest winter feed we have found.
SHEEP.
The experimental work with sheep has been going along in a satis-factory
manner, although many projects are not being studied at the
present time.
Experimental Work with Breeding Ewes.
This breeding work is of such a nature that it is difficult to show the
results in tabular form. This work was outlined about two years ago
for the purpose of determining the effect, first, of cotton-seed meal on
the health and reproductive organs of breeding ewes, and, second, to
determine the possibility of incorporating Barbado blood with Shrop-shire
and Merino blood in producing an early breeding ewe and pre-venting
the ravages of stomach worms. Up to the present time no detri-mental
effects have been discovered from feeding breeding ewes a ration
of two-thirds cotton-seed meal and one-third cracked corn. It seems that
!N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 35
sheep are particularly resistant to the poisonous effects of cotton-seed
meal. This study, however, is being continued and will be reported
probably next year.
It is not possible to report the results of crossing the Barbado with
the Shropshire and Merino blood at the present time. The cross-bred
animals are just being bred this summer. It is interesting to note, how-ever,
that the wool from the cross-bred animals was sold on the market
for the same price as the wool from the other ewes. It has often been
claimed that the Barbado is resistant, or partly resistant, to the ravages
of the stomach worm. In our investigational work here we have not
found this to be true.
Feeding Lambs in the Summer to Prevent Stomach Worms.
The greatest drawback to sheep production in the South is the Stom-ach
Worm. The lamb's first summer is the critical period of its life.
The majority of farmers recognize this. Where it is possible to do so,
the best method of combating the stomach worm is, of course, to change
the lamb to new and uninfested pastures, but where it is not possible to
do this other methods must be resorted to.
During the past summer an experiment was carried on at Raleigh to
determine if feeding a heavy grain ration would have any effect in over-coming
the ravages of the stomach worm. Thirty lambs, divided into
three lots, were used. All of the lambs were grazed upon good Bermuda
pasture during the entire summer period. As the pasture had been
grazed previously by sheep it was assumed that it was badly infested.
The lambs in the first lot received nothing but the pasture; each lamb
in the second lot received one-half pound of grain per day ; each lamb in
the third lot received 1 pound of grain per day. The experiment closed
October 30, 1916, and during the summer nine lambs died out of the
first lot, eight lambs in the second lot, and four lambs in the third lot.
Our records show that at least two of the lambs in the third lot did
not die from stomach worms. Lightning killed two. The results, there-fore,
of the first year's work indicate strongly that there is a very definite
relationship between deaths by stomach worms and grain fed through
the pasture season.
Best Rations for Feeding Breeding Fives During the
Winter Months.
In the fall of 1915 twenty grade breeding ewes were placed at the
Eredell Branch Station. When cold weather arrived they were divided
into two lots, one lot being kept in a shed or corral during the winter-time.
This lot was fed corn silage and a mixture of one-half cracked
corn, one-fourth cotton-seed meal, and one-fourth wheat bran. The
other lot was kept in a pasture during the daytime. The pasture was a
meadow from which hay had been cut. When spring arrived the sheep
which were kept in a pasture had gained 20 pounds in weight, and the
36 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
cost was only about half that of the barn-fed ewes. The barn-fed ewes
only gained about 5 pounds in weight. In the spring the sheep were
all sheared, the wool selling for 36 cents per pound, or $2.99 per ewe.
This amount is practically sufficient to keep the ewes during the year
when good pasture is available.
Milk Sickness.
There is no particular reason why a study of this test should be dis-cussed
under the head of sheep, except that we are using some of our
old ewes at the Central Branch Station in this work. Most of the com-plaints
which come to us relative to milk sickness have reference to
cattle, but our study can be made very much more economically by using
our old discarded ewes. This work was begun early in the spring. Our
offices get very many inquiries from the mountains about this mysterious
sickness. Mr. Curtis and Dr. Wolf began the study by shipping various
weeds to Raleigh and feeding them to ewes. The ewes which were
selected grew in the neighborhood of places which were pointed out as
being spots liable to cause the sickness. We have found out definitely
that at least one weed produced typical milk sickness. This is what is
known as Rich weed. We have been shipping this weed to Raleigh at
regular intervals all through the summer and feeding it to ewes. ~No
difficulty has been experienced in producing the typical symptoms which
are usually described by the farmers of the mountains. All told, fifteen
ewes have been killed by eating this weed, and they have died after
manifesting the usual trembling and tucked-up symptoms. It is usually
considered that the milk and meat of an animal which dies of this dis-ease
is poisonous to the human or animal that consumes them. We have
not, however, found this to be the case, as the meat of the ewes which
died of the disease has been fed to dogs with no ill results. One or two
dogs have been induced to eat the Rich weed and have died with the
same symptoms as produced in the sheep.
As stated above, we are sure that we have located at least one cause
of the trouble of this disease. Some time has been spent in trying out
various antidotes to see if there is a remedy for the trouble. No progress
has been made so far. This important piece of investigation was closed
at the end of the weed season, but will be taken up vigorously again next
spring.
DAIRY INVESTIGATIONAL WORK.
Mr. Eaton has continued the dairy investigational work both at the
Pender Branch Station, at Raleigh, and in the Greensboro territory in
cooperation with Mr. Combs. The feeding work is being conducted at
the Pender Branch Station. The manufacturing problems are being
studied at Raleigh in conjunction with the creamery. The greater part
of his work which relates to the cost of milk production, calf production,
etc., is carried on in the Greensboro neighborhood with Mr. Combs.
~N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 37
The dairy herd at the Pender Branch Station is in very much better con-dition
at present than it has ever been. We seem to be through with the
troubles we have been having with contagious abortion, as we now have
an excellent herd of young Jersey heifers coming on and the cows are
breeding regularly. We may expect marked advancement in the effi-ciency
of the Pender herd in the next year or so.
Value of Corn Silage as a Feed for Milk Coivs.
This investigation was inaugurated three years ago at the Pender
Branch Station, and is being continued at the present time. Each win-ter
the cows have been divided into two lots, one lot being fed upon
silage plus a grain ration, and the other lot upon a similar grain ration
plus dry roughages. The dry roughages have consisted of cotton-seed
hulls and corn stover. Mr. Eaton has recently summarized the three
years work and has found that during this time there has been a differ-ence
in favor of the silage-fed cows of 3,878 pounds of milk. This was
produced at a saving of $11.42 in cost of feed. This is not a marked
difference in favor of silage, but the silage at the Pender Branch
Station has, as a rule, been poor in quality. During the three years the
price of feeds has, of course, varied very much, but wheat bran was
valued at $27 to $28 a ton, cotton-seed meal $23 to $40 a ton, corn silage
$3 a ton, corn chops $30 a ton, cotton-seed hulls $3.50 to $10 a ton, and
stover $3.50 to $10 a ton. The actual market price of feed has been
charged in every case.
The Best Feed for Wintering Young Heifers.
The farmers of the South are particularly weak in developing dairy
heifers. This work is being conducted at the Pender Branch Station
and in the Greensboro neighborhood in cooperation with dairy farm-ers.
The work at the Pender Branch Station was begun December
11, 1913, and will be continued for a number of years yet, as a problem
of this sort must necessarily be studied for a great number of years if
conclusive and satisfactory results are to be secured. The main object
in this experiment is to determine the value of cotton-seed meal in the
winter ration of growing calves when the cotton-seed meal is used in
limited amounts. As is well known, the majority of farmers use nothing
but cotton-seed meal, so one bunch of calves is raised each year upon a
grain ration of cotton-seed meal alone. The other bunch of calves is
-raised upon a grain ration of one-half cotton-seed meal plus one-half
bran. The roughage ration is, of course, similar in the two lots. As the
experiment has been under way now almost four years we have had an
exceptional opportunity to study the cost of raising dairy calves up to
the milking period. When the four years work is summarized it is
found that the calves 'have been upon experiment a total of 553 days.
During this time the calves which were fed upon a ration of cotton-seed
meal and bran gained 711 pounds at a cost of $98.88. The calves which
38 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
were raised upon cotton-seed meal as the sole grain made a total lot
gain of 11.49 pounds at a cost of $99.33. So, during the 553 winter ex-perimental
days the feed cost for the two lots has "been almost identical.
The cotton-seed-meal-fed calves, however, made during this time an
average gain of 54.8 pounds per head more than the heifers which were
fed on the mixture of equal parts of wheat "bran and cotton-seed meal.
I was at the Pender Branch Station a day or so ago and no difficulty
was experienced in picking out the calves which were fed cotton-seed
meal during the winter months. It should be explained that these calves
were not fed heavy rations of cotton-seed meal, but averaged approxi-mately
a pound per calf per day.
Best Feeds for Dairy Heifers During the Spring and Summer.
Many farmers in the State are unfortunately short on pasture. This
is the condition of affairs at the Pender Branch Station as satisfactory
pastures have not as yet been developed. On this account we were led to
study the question of feeding dairy calves during the spring and summer
months. Under ideal farm conditions heifers during these months
would of course graze upon pasture alone, but many farmers of the
South have not reached ideal pasture conditions as yet, so the study is
worth careful consideration. The calves used in this experiment are the
same ones used in the winter work. Cotton-seed meal is compared with
a ration made up of equal parts of cotton-seed meal and wheat bran.
The calves were, of course, allowed to graze the available pasture, but
very little feed was secured from them. This experiment was begun
April 1, 1914, and is being continued at the present time. In sum-marizing
his work since that date, Mr. Eaton has found that these calves
have been in this experiment a total of 549 days, and during this time
those which were fed upon the grain ration of cotton-seed meal alone
gained 1,907 pounds at a total cost of $154, while those which were fed
upon a ration made up of equal parts of cotton-seed meal and wheat
bran made a total lot weight of 790 pounds at a cost of $145.31. The
cotton-seed meal heifers, therefore, made the better gains, but at a
slightly increased cost. This would lead us to conclude that cotton-seed
meal is not so efficient during the summer months as through the winter
months. This is no doubt due to the fact that the calves obtained some
green grazing throughout the summer months and did not need so much
cotton-seed meal. When the winter and summer work is taken together
the heifers which were fed cotton-seed meal alone have made more rapid
growth than those fed upon a ration made up of wheat bran and cotton-seed
meal and made the gain at practically the same cost.
Cracked Corn Against Beet Pulp for Dairy Heifers.
This experiment, which was begun May 1, 1916, at Raleigh, will also
prove to be of considerable interest to farmers who have a limited sup-
N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 39
ply of pasture, as beet pulp will in a sense take the place of pasture. In
this test the yearling heifers are divided into two lots according to age
and weight. Lot 1 is to receive a ration made up of cracked corn, cotton-seed
meal, and wheat bran. Lot 2 is to receive a grain ration made up
of beet pulp, cotton-seed meal, and wheat bran. The roughage will be
small and at the present time consists of corn stover and alfalfa hay.
The experiment has not been under way a sufficient length of time to
warrant any conclusion, but it is interesting to note that the hiefers in
the cracked corn lot have made an average total gain of 27 pounds per
head over those fed beet pulp. This gain, however, is partially offset at
least by the fact that it cost $3.47 more per head to feed them. So far
no difference in general appearance can be detected between the two
lots.
Cost of Raising Calves in North Carolina.
This work is being done by Mr. Eaton at the Pender Branch Station
and in cooperation with ten dairy farmers in Guilford and Forsyth
counties. The object of this experiment is, of course, to determine accu-rately
the cost of raising dairy animals from birth to maturity. This
sort of information has not been collected in the South and it is ex-pected
that very excellent results will be secured both at -the Pender
Branch Station and with the farmers in the two counties mentioned.
At the Pender Branch Station an exact record is kept of all feed eaten
by the calves from birth until the heifers bring their first calves. The
heifers are weighed at regular intervals and feeds are charged at market
prices. In the cooperative work with the farmers in Guilford and For-syth
counties Mr. Eaton visits the farms twice a month and summarizes
their records. The work at the Pender Branch Station has been under
way about three years. In the record of twenty-two calves it has been
found that when they were six months old they had attained an average
weight of 264 pounds at a total cost oT $13.57. When they were twelve
months old they had attained an average weight of 373 pounds at a total
cost of $26.12. When they were eighteen months old they had attained
an average weight of 478 pounds at an average cost of $34.30. When
they were thirty months old (only four have attained this age as yet)
they had attained an average weight of 646 pounds at an average cost
of $52.06. In the above figures feeds have been charged against the
calves at market prices, including pasture at $1 a head per month. In
the work in cooperation with the farmers of Guilford and Eorsyth coun-ties
it has been found that it cost $31.58 to raise a dairy calf to the age
of twelve months. This statement includes labor as well as feed. It
should be said that none of these calves has been credited with manure
produced.
Onion Flavor Investigations.
There is no one thing that interferes as much with the dairyman as
the onion flavors which get into his milk and butter during the late fall,
40 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
winter, and early spring seasons. Mr. Eaton is still pursuing his inves-tigations
relative to the feasibility of overcoming these onion flavors.
The work was begun in June, 1914. He has been studying the question
from four standpoints
:
(a) Relation of acidity of milk to onion flavor.
(b) Effect of time of milking upon onion flavor.
(c) Effect of feeding molasses upon onion flavor.
(d) Effect of feeding various preparations upon onion flavor.
This work has practically all been conducted at the Pender Branch
Station. The dairymen have been advised to remove their cows from
onion-infected jDastures from four to four and a half hours prior to time
of milking. Mr. Eaton found that this advice should not be given as
onion flavors are not removed in that length of time. In one case he
found a strong onion flavor nineteen hours after the onions had been
eaten. Three hundred and sixty samples have been observed when
molasses in varying amounts was fed in conjunction with other feeds.
It was found that while molasses will materially weaken the onion flavor
it will not remove it completely. Several patent preparations are recom-mended,
Kilgarlic being among the most prominent. This preparation
has a very positive effect in removing flavors. This preparation was
tried thoroughly in 524 different cases. Mr. Eaton states that it removed
onion flavors in 83 per cent of the samples he studied. In all, Mr. Eaton
has studied 3,105 samples of onion-flavored milk during the year.
Among the common remedies most thoroughly studied were charcoal,
soda, mixtures of charcoal and soda, mixtures of soda and molasses, Mrs.
Lee's Milk and Butter Purifier, etc. He has found that molasses in
large quantities will weaken the flavor considerably. He has also found
that Kilgarlic has something to do in weakening the flavor, but the other
preparation and combinations are entirely without effect. These studies,
however, are being continued.
POULTRY INVESTIGATIONS.
The work in poultry investigations and poultry pathology is progress-ing
in an unusually satisfactory manner. Poultry work is now being
done at Raleigh, at the Iredell Branch Station, the Pender Branch Sta-tion,
and the Edgecombe Branch Station. The pathological phases and
investigations which require extremely close and detailed attention are
carried on at Raleigh. Very much of Dr. Kaupp's work requires his
personal supervision every day, and this part is being conducted at the
Central plant as it is impossible to establish scientific laboratories at the
branch stations. Dr. Kaupp's work is not altogether devoted to investi-gational
activities, but the plan is to devote the greater part of his at-tention
to investigational problems, allowing Mr. Oliver, who is in
charge of the Poultry Club work, to take care of the field phases. Dr.
Kaupp, however, cannot keep entirely away from some extension activi-
N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 41
ties. To illustrate : Last year lie received and answered 1,852 letters
from poultrymen in the State. He has also been active in encouraging
plants around Raleigh, at the present time keeping in close touch and
really supervising about six plants within driving distance of the city of
Raleigh. He also assisted the State Hospital at Raleigh in putting in
a large poultry plant and is devoting some time to superintending the
operations. In addition to this he has assisted two of the farm-life
schools in inaugurating poultry work, the object being to induce as
many of the farm-life schools as possible to introduce this phase of
live stock.
Laboratory Work.
As Dr. Kaupp is a pathologist, very much of his time is naturally
devoted to studying pathological phases in poultry work. Many speci-mens
are sent to him for examination. In this way he gets in touch
with many of the interesting and destructive diseases of the State, and
has an opportunity, by means of correspondence, to disseminate sanitary
information over the State. An idea of the kind of specimens which
come to him for study and advice can be gotten from the following
statements
:
1. During the year he has made a study of many kinds of tumors of
the domestic fowl. Many specimens of this kind come to him.
2. Many specimens of sorehead in poultry are sent to him for identifi-cation.
3. All kinds of poultry parasites are sent to him for identification.
In a study of these kinds of parasites he found that to be effective, pow-ders
and other materials must either give off the gas that will destroy
the mites or the material must be in liquid form. In his investigational
work he found that lice and mites will live until they starve to death in
tobacco stems, Paris green, and sulphur. But when these agents are in
solution they are exceedingly effective. Such agents as gasoline, naph-thaline,
and pyrethrum are all destructive because they give off gases.
This discovery is of very great importance in controlling the parasites
which bother poultry and other fowls.
4. In connection with these tests it has been necessary for Dr. Kaupp
to make investigations to determine the proper dosage of some of our
common drugs as nothing with poultry has been done along this line.
He has found that fowls behave differently than do mammalia, as
far as drugs are concerned, so each drug must be tested out to ascertain
its physiological and its therapeutic dosage. During the year a study
of about fifty drugs was made and the results published in the Poultry
Item.
5. One case of Generalized Lyphosarcoma and another case of Gener-alized
Osteomata were studied during the year. The latter case being-sent
by a poultry raiser from Asheville.
6. Many of the specimens sent to the laboratory had diseases of the
ovaduct and abdominal cavity, especially those hens which were laying.
42 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
Dozens of other cases are coming to the laboratory all the time, such
as injuries to the spine, inflammation of the ovaduct, paralysis of vari-ous
nerves, pox in turkeys, limberneck, roup, etc.
The laboratory equipped for this character of work is recognized as
being the best laboratory in the South, and it is proving to be of very
great use to the poultry producers of the State.
Feeding Sour Milk to Chicks.
One of the greatest drawbacks to the production of chickens in the
State is the prevalence of white diarrhea. This is a disease which is
almost sure to appear in the flock sooner or later. In January a bulle-tin
was issued giving results of our work in studying the effect of differ-ent
kinds of sour milk in controlling white diarrhea. The chickens were
placed on uninfected grounds. One lot of chickens was given Bulgarian
buttermilk; a second lot was given natural sour milk; a third lot was
given B. Acidi Lacti buttermilk, and a fourth lot had no sour milk of
any kind. The lots of birds were hatched from eggs, produced upon our
Raleigh plant and were treated similarly in every respect except as to
the milk. Sixteen per cent of the birds in the sour-milk lot died ; 10 per
cent in the Bulgarian buttermilk lot died; 12 per cent in the B. Acidi
Lacti died; 24 per cent of the chicks in Lot 1, which had no buttermilk
of any kind, died. There was another great difference in addition to the
deaths, as the chicks which received sour milk up to eight weeks of age
were all extremely vigorous—that is, those that lived—while those in
the lot where no sour milk was used were weak and stunted in their
growth.
Vaccinating Against Sorehead.
One of the dreaded diseases of the poultry breeders of the State is
sorehead, as this disease makes it difficult to raise young chicks and
embarrasses the early production of fall eggs. Recently a method was
developed in Europe whereby chicks may be successfully vaccinated
against sorehead. This method has been studied and used by Nevada,
California, Ohio, and by our own laboratory. It consists of taking
healthy single-comb cockerels, inoculating the combs and obtaining the
virus from this source. We are trying to get our Raleigh plant in such
shape so this vaccine can be manufactured here at least in a limited way.
We are almost equipped for this kind of work now, and when we are
fully equipped to begin using this kind of vaccine we will be serving the
poultry raisers of the State in the same way that the hog and cattle men
are served with their vaccines. The treatment is a simple one, and the
farm demonstrators, after a three-day course in the laboratory, can
carry the information to the farmers and farmers' wives.
Cost of Feeding Laying Hens.
Last year a record was kept upon one hundred hens to determine the
exact cost of feeding them each month in the year. The morning scratch
~N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 43
feed consisted of equal parts of wheat and oats ; the evening scratch feed
consisted of equal parts of wheat, oats, and corn. The dry mash was
made up of wheat bran, wheat middlings, corn meal, ground oats, and
meat scrap. Each hen was given each morning and each evening one
ounce of scratch feed, the dry mash being kept before them all the time.
When the prices of feeds were as they were in 1915 and 1916 it was
found that from 14 to 26 per cent of the hens must lay continuously to
pay for their feed, varying from month to month as the price of feed
and the price of eggs fluctuate.
Raising Young Chicks up to Eight Weeks of Age.
An accurate record is kept of the expense of raising chicks upon the
test farms upon which we are doing poultry work as well as at Ealeigh.
In one of these experiments, where we had birds of different breeds, an
opportunity was given us to compare the Mediterranean and Continental
breeds with the American and English breeds. In this test it required
2 pounds of feed to produce 1 pound of gain on the Mediterranean and
Continental chicks, while 2.1 pounds were required to produce a similar
gain on the American and English breeds. At the end of eight weeks
the Mediterranean and Continental chicks averaged 1.2 pounds in
weight, while the others, averaged 1.6 pounds in weight. It cost practi-cally
the same to make a pound of gain in the various breeds. When feed
is valued at its usual market price it cost us slightly over 8 cents to make
each pound of gain upon the various breeds. This test indicates that
the American and English breeds grow faster and become larger than
the others, but that a certain amount of feed brings the same results
when fed to various breeds of chickens.
Some Fertility Experiments.
Except at this station no really careful experiments have been run to
determine the time that should elapse from the time flocks are mated
until the hens are producing fertile eggs. Upon many farms it is no
doubt true that eggs are saved from hens which have not had an oppor-tunity
for the eggs to become fertile on account of the fact that the
males have not been with the hens a sufficient length of time. Several
breeds of chickens were used in this test. In the beginning the cocks
were with the hens when they were removed and the fertility of the
eggs tested day after day until no fertile eggs were produced. When no
fertile eggs were being produced the cocks were placed with the hens
again and the eggs again examined until fertile ones were laid. In this
test it was found that under ordinary conditions from 80 to 90 per cent
of the eggs are fertile when the cocks are with the hens continuously,
and from 80 to 90 per cent of these fertile eggs hatched. When the cocks
are removed from the hens fertility rapidly declines, and it was found
to be inadvisable to save eggs for hatching after the males had been
removed from the hens for five days. We are certainly safe in saying
44 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
that the effect of mating hens with scrubby or mongrel cocks is entirely
removed within fifteen to eighteen days. When the fertility had entirely
disappeared and the cocks were placed with the hens it was found that
eggs began to come fertile about the fifth or sixth day.
Feeding Cotton-seed Meal to Laying Hens.
This long-time test is being continued, having been begun November 1,
1915. The object is to determine the effects of cotton-seed meal on the
health, vigor, and egg production. One lot of hens is fed a ration made
up of 30 per cent cotton-seed meal ; a second lot is fed a ration made up
of 5 per cent cotton-seed meal; a third lot is fed a ration which has no
cotton-seed meal at all. In the first lot, where a heavy ration of cotton-seed
meal is being used, 26 per cent of the hens died the first year; in
the second lot, where a ration made up of 5 per cent cotton-seed meal is
used, 12 per cent of the flock died ; in the third lot, where no cotton-seed
meal at all is being used, only 10 per cent of the birds have died the first
year. There has not been so far a marked difference in the amount of
eggs produced.
Breeding Work with White Leghorns.
The first year's work with White Leghorns was incorporated in my
last report. This year forty of the best Leghorns of the old flock were
selected for the second year's work. These hens were mated with a
grandson of one of the greatest egg producers of the country, Lady
Purdue. The object of this test is to breed up a better egg-laying strain
of White Leghorns, and after this is done to disseminate this strain of
good egg layers among the farmers of the State. We have not, of course,
gone far enough to know just what progress we are making in building
up this egg-laying strain as the old flock, about which we knew nothing,
was turned over to us only two years ago. Trap-nest records, however,
are kept of all these hens, so we know exactly what each hen is doing.
The flock we began with when the poultry work was given over to the
Animal Industry Division produced an average of 52 eggs a year. This,
of course, was very low. It is probable that the offspring from these
low-producing hens will be somewhat greater producers themselves, pro-vided
the males we secured really came from high-producing stock.
Pounds of Feed Eaten by Various Breeds and Pounds of
Manure Produced.
Accurate records have been kept to determine the amount of feed
eaten by our various breeds of chicks, the cost of feed, and the amount
of manure produced. Records are being kept of Silver Campines, Silver
Wyandottes, Golden Wyandottes, Columbian Wyandottes, Buff Ply-mouth
Rocks, Partridge Plymouth Rocks, White Plymouth Rocks, S. C.
White Leghorns, and some mixed lots. The lowest consumption of feed
has been with the Silver Campines. These chickens ate 57.6 pounds per
~N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 45
head. The most expensive breed was the Buff Plymouth Rocks, meas-ured
by the cost of each dozen eggs produced. We have not, how-ever,
gone far enough with this work to draw definite conclusions.
Hens are very heavy producers of manure. Our hens have, on the
average, produced 22 pounds of manure per head per year.
Marketing Problems.
Our surplus eggs are, as a rule, shipped to Boston, New York, and
Washington, D. C. We are making these shipments to gather informa-tion
as to shipping by parcel post and to work out the best material to
be used in shipping eggs. We have found that such materials as saw-dust,
bran, and cotton-seed hulls pack so closely in a box that there is
no spring to the material about the eggs, hence about 10 per cent of the
eggs shipped in these materials has been broken. These materials are
particularly unsatisfactory when breeding eggs are to be shipped. When,
however, our eggs were wrapped in soft paper, felt, prairie hay, or moss,
very few eggs were broken.
Soybean Meal as a Feed for Poultry.
(Pender Branch Station.)
At the Pender Branch Station fourteen broods of chicks were used in
this test to determine the value of soybean meal and sweet milk. We
are receiving very many inquiries as to the value of soybean meal for
feeding chickens, and this test was outlined in order to enable us to give
farmers definite information as to this point. Accurate data was kept .
until the birds were eight weeks old. The soybean-meal-fed chicks were
compared with oat-fed-chicks, and it was found that soybean meal prac-tically
takes the place of rolled oats and is very much cheaper.
Peanut Meal as a Feed for Poultry.
(Edgecombe Branch Station.)
We are also getting inquiries continually asking us about the value of
peanut meal as a feed for small chicks and laying hens. In the early
part of the summer a test was run at the Edgecombe Branch Station as
a preliminary study. Peanut meal was fed along with equal parts of
corn meal and ground oats. This lot was compared with other lots of
chickens which were fed a ration of ground oats and corn meal, all of
the chickens being given buttermilk. It was found that peanut meal
was exceedingly efficient for growing young chicks up to eight weeks of
age as our chicks which were raised upon this ration were very much
larger than those which were raised upon corn meal, ground oats, and
buttermilk alone ; in fact, the birds which were raised upon peanut meal
at the end of eight weeks averaged a little over a pound in weight, while
those which were raised upon a ration with the peanut meal left out
averaged only .7 of a pound in weight.
46 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
Dry Lot Against Range Handling and Feeding of Laying Hens.
(Iredell Branch Station.)
At the Iredell Branch Station the hens are divided into two nocks, one
nock is allowed the freedom of the farm, while the other lot is confined
in relatively small areas. This kind of an experiment is of particular
interest to poultry raisers who live close to or in the suburbs of small
towns and cities. The object of this long-time test is to determine the
effect, if any, of this confinement upon egg production, vigor, and
troubles in poultry diseases. This work, of course, has not continued a
sufficient length of time to get marked results yet, but during the last
season the hens which had the run of the farm produced many more
eggs than those which were confined. This was the case also with the
same kind of an experiment which is being carried on at the Pender
Branch Station.
HORSE AND MULE WORK.
The horse and mule work of the State is, of course, dragging because
of the fact that we have no one to look after it. We are, however, doing
some investigational and field work with horses and mules. Our inves-tigational
work is being conducted at the Iredell, Pender, and Edge-combe
Branch Stations. The work at the Iredell Station has now been
under way a little over two years; the work at the Edgecombe Station
will have soon been under way two years, and the work at the Pender
Branch Station was begun three years ago. Throughout all of this work
one idea runs; that is, we are trying to determine the place of cotton-seed
meal in a ration for work horses and mules. In this study we, of
course, incidentally get other information that will be valuable. A com-plete
record is now kept of the amount and kind of feed eaten by each
horse at each branch station as well as the amount and kind of work each
horse does each day. When this information is all gotten together after
several years it will be a valuable economic study of the cost of keeping
work animals upon farms and the amount of work they do. The work
horses and mules at each one of the branch stations mentioned above are
divided into two lots. One lot is fed upon a ration in which no cotton-seed
meal is used; the other lot is fed upon the same kind of ration
exactly except that cotton-seed meal makes up a part. So far we have
found that while cotton-seed meal can be used in very limited amounts,
we cannot as a rule induce a horse or mule to use more than one pound
a day for any length of time. This one pound, however, has proved to
be an economical addition to the ration, and has also had much to do
with maintaining the horses and mules in better condition. The saving
in money, however, is not the chief advantage in using cotton-seed meal,
or at least it does not appear so at the present time. It seems that the
chief advantage will be that the horses which eat cotton-seed meal stay
in better condition. This is indicated plainly during the spring months,
as the animals which eat cotton-seed meal shed off earlier and smoother
N. C. Agricultural Experiment Station 47
than those which do not eat it. Probably next year our information will
be full enough to warrant placing it before the public either in bulletin
or newspaper form.
MEETINGS- ATTENDED AND NUMBER OF PEOPLE REACHED.
Approximately 20,000 personal letters have been addressed to the
Animal Industry offices during the year. In answering these letters we
come in touch with many people, and we also meet thousands of people
in farmers' institutes and other gatherings. The following summary
gives a fairly accurate idea of the number of public meetings attended
by the various officers of the Division during the year
:
Meetings Total
Attended Attendance
General Office 18 3445
Dairy Farming Office 57 4622
Dairy Investigations
Beef Cattle and Sheep 50 3500
Poultry Investigations
Pig Clubs 82 4459
Poultry Clubs 114 8494
PUBLICATIONS.
The following publications have been issued during the year:
New edition of Pig Club Manual.
Feeding Skimmilk, Buttermilk, and Whey to Hogs.
Feeding the Sow and the Suckling Pig.
Soybean Pastures for Hogs.
New Edition of Curing Meat on the Farm.
Dairy Records, or Feeding the Farm Cow, Circular No. 33.
Colony Hog Houses.
Methods of Dehorning Cattle.
From Wool to Cloth.
Hog Houses and Equipment.
The Proper Methods of Housing and Handling the Farm Flocks.
Some Further Studies of Chick Mortality and When to Feed the Baby
Chick.
Eespectfully submitted,
Dan T. Gray,
Chief, Animal Industry Division.
48 Thirty-ninth Annual Keport, 1916
EEPOKT OF THE DIVISION OF ENTOMOLOGY.
To the Director:
The following report gives a summary of work on the entomological
projects under my charge for the year ending June 30, 1916.
1. INSECT CONTROL ON TEST FARMS.
All peach orchards were examined in late winter, borers removed, and
trees mounded at base. In late winter, spraying treatment to control
San Jose Scale was given to all fruit trees, and this followed by later
sprayings to control caterpillars, codling moth, curculio, and fungous
diseases. It is believed that the general condition of the orchards is
good so far as insect pests is concerned, though the loss of an occasional
tree is to be expected.
2. PUBLICITY WORK.
Although no publications have been issued during the year, the de-mand
for bulletins already issued has been gratifying. During the
spring (1916) over 2,500 copies of the Bulletin on Orchard Spraying
were distributed by request, mainly in lots to county agents, but many
were mailed directly to farmers.
Several weeks in January and February were devoted to farmers' in-stitute
meetings, where talks were given on the more important insect
pests, methods of controlling them, and the general principles governing
the development of insects and the application of remedies.
3. ADMINISTRATION AND CORRESPONDENCE.
Under this head comes the routine office work, and much time is
always consumed in consultations with (1) those who come in person
for information, (2) with assistants, and (3) coworkers in other offices.
There is also the preparation of reports, oversight of expenditures, pur-chases,
expense accounts, examination and filing of reports on inspec-tions,
and of certificates from outside nurserymen. Finally, there is the
regular task of general correspondence, much of which is technical or
semitechnical in character and must be carefully worked out.
4. EXTENSION WORK ORCHARD INSPECTION.
During the fiscal year under review, twenty-one counties were visited
in this work, fifty-five orchards inspected, these containing a total of
115,851 trees. San Jose Scale was detected in thirty-seven of these
orchards, containing 71,733 trees. It is a relief to report that spraying
to control this and other pests is becoming more and more common
among the fruit growers, and nowhere is the fruit industry now really
threatened by the widespread presence of this pest. This is proven by
!N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 49
the conditions in Moore Comity, where this pest was rampant in the
fine young peach orchards eighteen years ago. Some of these same
orchards are still in bearing, and our inspections of the present year in-cluded
a number of newly planted orchards in that county, showing that
the industry there is still on a solid basis.
5. EXTENSION WORK ORCHARD-SPRAYING DEMONSTRATIONS.
Public demonstrations in the spraying of fruit trees to control insect
pests have been held in a number of orchards. These are usually ar-ranged
in cooperation with the county agents, and the work of the year
has included demonstrations on both apple and peach trees.
6. REGULATORY WORK INSPECTION OF IMPORTED NURSERY STOCK.
Thirty-seven shipments from foreign countries have been inspected
during the year—from Holland 14, Belgium 11, France 11, Japan 1.
The following pests were intercepted : Crown Gall, European Tussock
Moth, European Pear Scale, Oyster-shell Scale, and a species of Soft
Scale. Various harmless insects were also found.
7. REGULATORY WORK INSPECTION OF STATE NURSERIES.
Fifty-nine nurseries located within the State were licensed after due
inspection.
8. INVESTIGATIVE WORK LAUNDRY SOAP AS REMEDY FOR APHIDES.
This is specified as a merely incidental project. ~No new data has
been accumulated during the year.
9. INVESTIGATIVE WORK INSECT SURVEY.
This project, worked upon piecemeal whenever opportunity offers, is
making slow but substantial progress. Part of the collections are identi-fied
by ourselves, but much must be sent to specialists, and is subject to
delay. During 1915, over 250 native species not before listed were added
to the card-catalogue record, and upwards of 100 or more were added
during the first half of 1916. A tabulation on May 1, 1916, showed
4,843 species of North Carolina insects listed. It is believed that few
States can make a better showing in this line of work.
10. INVESTIGATIVE WORK PEACH SPRAYING.
Owing to late frosts and early drought, the peach crop was so scant
in the orchard at the Iredell Branch Station that the tests which have
been under way there were not conducted during 1916. The data of the
two preceding years is in hand, and it is expected to add to this as oppor-tunity
offers. It seems best to make all the tests of this series in this
same orchard.
50 Thirty-ninth Annual Report, 1916
11. investigative work potato spraying.
This work was carried through the season of 1915 and results noted.
It is being done at the Buncombe Branch Station. Plantings were made
in spring of 1916, but owing to disastrous floods (which have occurred
since the fiscal year covered by this report) the results of the work for
1916 will be of little value.
12. INVESTIGATIVE WORK PECAN INSECTS.
The work on this project continues favorably, and much data have
been accumulated concerning the species of insects which attack the
pecan in this State. Their habits, life-histories, and injuries have all
been studied. Tests for the control of several species have been made.
Notes, photographs, and biological collections are being accumulated.
13. INVESTIGATIVE WORK CORNSTALK BORER.
The work of the year has established the approximate life-history of
this insect, number of broods, time of emergence and egg-laying by the
adult insects, and specific data has been secured showing the difference
in injury in plots planted at different dates. Notes, photographs, and
collections are being accumulated.
As in the previous report, I am glad to acknowledge the efficient work
of those associated with me—Mr. R. W. Leiby in Investigations, Mr.
S. C. Clapp in Inspections and Field Work, Mr. B. Szymoniak in
Demonstrations. Respectfully submitted,
Franklin Sherman, Jr.,
Chief, Division of Entomology.
N". C. Agricultural Experiment Station 51
REPORT OF ENTOMOLOGIST.
To the Director:
My time during tlie past year has been devoted exclusively to the three
Adams' Fund projects : the Corn Bill Bug, the Gloomy Scale, and the
study of the Cowpea Weevils.
The Corn Bill Bug project has been finished as far as practical at the
present time, and a report for final publication as a technical bulletin
is all but ready to be submitted for publication. There are still a few
points in this project that have not been completed, but there is no rea-son
why this project should not be closed so that more time can be de-voted
to the other projects.
The Gloomy Scale and the Cowpea Weevil projects have progressed
as satisfactorily as could be expected. A new and more satisfactory
method of following the life-history of the Gloomy Scale has been de-vised,
so that in the future we will be able to follow the various stages
of this insect in greater detail. An additional point of advantage in the
new method is that the scale under observation will be under perfectly
natural conditions. A parasite of this scale has been doing effective
work in controlling the scale and a great many observations have been
made in its life-history. There is also a predaceous mite which seems
to be rather effective in controlling this scale at times.
Most of the work that has been done on the Cowpea Weevil project
has been devoted to a study of the egg-laying habits of the adult and to
a consideration of 'practical remedies for its control. A satisfactory
remedy has been discovered in air-slacked lime, which is not only cheap,
but easily applied, and so far as our observations have gone far more
successful than any remedy so far suggested.
Respectfully submitted,
Z. P. Metcalf,
Entomologist.
> > > > •
,
' <
> i j
52 Thirty-ninth Annual Beport, 1916
EEPOKT OF DIVISION" OF HOKTICULTUKE.
To the Director:
I herewith submit the report of the experimental work of the Division
of Horticulture for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1916.
PECAN WORK.
The work with pecans, as originally begun nine years ago, to ascertain
the possibilities of commercial pecan growing in North Carolina has
progressed satisfactorily. The test orchards have on their eighth year
come into commercial bearing. The production records of these or-chards
are as follows
:
Third year : A feAv nuts on three varieties.
Fourth year : A scattering of nuts on several varieties.
Fifth year : Several trees bore a pound of nuts each, some IV2 pounds,
and one tree bore 2 1/o pounds.
Sixth year: A late spring frost caught the new growth just as it was
putting out and there was no crop that season.
Seventh year : There was 50 pounds of nuts gathered from 300 trees.
Eighth year: The crop was 815 pounds.
Each successive season has confirmed the value of Stuart and Schley
as varieties of pecans suitable for conditions in Eastern North Carolina.
Many varieties which have been found unsuited to our conditions are
now being topworked to these varieties by the methods outlined in our
Experimental Bulletin No. 224, "Topworking Seedling Pecan Trees."
The test orchard in pecan breeding work set in the spring of 1914 has
made a very satisfactory growth this last season.
PEACH WORK.
Considerable data have been collected this last season from the variety
orchards on the test farms and from commercial orchards throughout
the State.
The work in breeding new varieties has pushed vigorously this spring,
and a large number of crosses have been made to produce improved va-rieties,
es