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UNITED STATKS DKPAUTMKNT <)I"\oUICULTUUE FARMERS'^ BULLETIN
WASHlNnTON, 1>. ('. MAV L'», J»1(1
Coitlrlbullon from the Burvau »f ri«nl Indualry, Wm. A. Taylor. Chlrf.
MARQUIS WHEAT. liy ('AKI.ETON It. lUi.L, ApromtmUt in Vhnroc of Wvalcrn Wheat InvrtttiffOtUtnif, ninlM. Ai.i.KN I'LAUK, Si-irntifli- AKMi/iltiiil in W'l xh rn \\'h"il tun itlii/tilifitiM.
CONTENTS.
I'UK''. Pnitp. Inlrwliictton 1 MiininlHWlii-iU In llic I'liMc-d Sltili'i< Whut fx Miiri|uU wheat 1 1 Ciintlniicd. lllnlory •> Vdliii- III llii' Himlitrld H-i-tloo-- IK'scrlritliin i; Mari|iilK wlii-ilt In ttip t'nitcil KtnleM_ ;i \'alu>' ID fill' Kiilihumld KcitloD ,", Milllnu VHlu)'
INTKODUCTION. Mnrquis wheiit Im-s aroused niiicli interest in llie X'nited Sttitt's (luiiii^ the past three or four years. Farmers and also millers, hunkers, and real-estate dealers have had tlicir attention attracted to it. Thin interest was iirst stinnilateil Ity items in tlie papers stating that Mar(]iiis wlieat had taken the first prize for hard spring wheat at certain expositions. Stjiteitients were piiblislied also of hi^^h yields made by this variety in the Provinces of Manitoba and Sus- kutchewan in Canada. - .
WHAT IS MARQlllH WHEAT? The variety called Marquis is a hybrid wheat produced by Dr. A. P. Saunders and Dr. C. E. Saunders, cerenlists of the Central Experimental Farm at Ottawa. Canada. :wi8L"= null. 73:;- n( 2 FARMEKS' lil'I.l.KTIX :;i2.
HISTORY.
Maniuis wheat is one of tiie descendants of a cL•os.-^ made in or ))boiit WH. Tlie female parent was a wheat from India, called Ibiid li.-d Ciilciitta. The male parent was the widely grown Kcd I'lfe wheat of Canada. TUv ditrereiit forms resulting fi-(tni this cross were separateil in l'.ii);{ at Ottawa, and each was jirown hy itself in U'OL One selec tion liHvin
nKsrHlPTION.
Tlie .\Ian|iiis is a beardless spring wheat, with hiiiilcss, white (greenish wliite) ehatf or glumes, and a hard red kernel. In appear ance it cliKsely rvseuibles the. Fife wheats of our northoi'n (Ireat I'laiiis Stales and is therefore included in the Fife group (lig. 1). The plants are of only medium height, ranging from 'JH to 48 inches, accrirding to season. They generally are "i to 4 inches shorter than those of the (rlyiulon or Power varieties. The heads are short, varying from lU to 4 inches, and averaging one-half to 1 inch shorter than other varieties of Fife wheat. The chaff or glumes also ait> short and broad. Two or three short awns oi' beards usually Hie found at the tip of the head, as in other beardless wheats. The short straw is stiff and stands up well. The seed (hies not shatter. The kenieis of other Kife wheats are short ami broiul. but those of the .Man|iiis are even more so. They average about one-twentietli of an inch shorter than those of Kite urid Bluestem wheats (Hg- -*• The crease is deep and Itroad. ; The \[aniuis is an early variety, ripening from i*S to l:t."> days after sowing, varying with tlie season ami locality. The average length of its growing [XM-iod in the northern Oreat Plains is about 11.". days. This makes it three or four days earlier than most of the other Fife varieties. Itecause of its earliness it escajies to some extent the drought of dry yeai-s, the rust and fall rains of wet ^t•l|son>. and also tiie early fidl frosts. These are the characteristics wliich ha\e made it especiidly valuable in the Prairie Provinces of MARQUIS WHEAT,
W Canada. The growing season lengthens as one passes southward into the Fnited States, and earliness is no longer so great an advantage.
Ki',. 1, -Mfiiils iiml kiTUfIs of thn-c vuri.-liis of li;if(i s]iiin^' wlioiK. uutunil si^<': 1- M'lr- qiils; 2. GlyuiUiu ; ?<, llaynes.
MARQUIS WHEAT IN THE UNITED STATES. A considerable quantity of seed was brought into this country from Canada for sowing in 1913. Much larger quantities were imported for sowing in 1!'U. This importation, with the seed home grown in liU:i. was suflicient to sow about half a million acres in 4 FARMKHri hlM.KTlN 732.
11(14. The resulting ciop ((f some 7.'M)*MM)*l bushels pive a lar^ supply of WH'd in this country, aitd very little has been importe ^ • • f « • 9 9 I I • 1^ I'!'. J K'-iiiii* "t Mir.'*" viirli'M.'-i ' TW iimrtpny of ILi' tilnTtiini and otlipr oBlrcrd ^>f tht> State mrrlrutOirnl experiment iita- flonx of l.iwii. Mhim-sohi, Nrtirufikii. North I>iiki>lrt. und Californln. In fiirnlalitDtc exiwrl- m«>iilHl (Ulii '>u Muniiiln wheal, in lieret); itraleriill/ noknowleU|t«d. MARQUIS WIIKAT. 5 long stiTtch of territory the a VALUE IN THE SEMIARID SECTION. ' ' The semiaritl section covers most (d' the northern half of the (Jreat Plains aiea. It includes, thereftne. most of Nebraska and the Da kotas. uurtheastei-n Colorado, eastern Wyoming, and the eastern half of Montami. . ;.% i ' Two classes of spring wlieat. common and durum, are grown in these States. All the leading varieties of spring connnon wheat belong to the Fife, Bluestem, and Preston groups. Martpiis has proved to be as good a yielder as any of the \arieties in these groups in this section. Alim)st all of the durum wheat is of two varieties, Kubanka and Arnautka. Throughout this section durum wheats out- yield spring conimoii wheats, including Marquis. Winter wheiit. again, is decidedly better than any spring wheat in niuch (ff this section. In central South Dakota and central and westeri\ North Dakota, however, winter wheat can not be grown. All thw winter wheat grown in this section belongs to the Crimean 6 FARMKHS' BULLETIN 732. group of hard red winter wheat. The leading varieties arc Tuikey. Kharkof, Crimean, and Beloglina. Across the line in the (.'amulian Province of Alberta, Turkey is called Alberta Red. The following conclusions are based on the facts given aboxe: (1) Winter vurlctles are best where llit'y can be grown In the northern sfcliun of tlie Great Phiins area. (2) Durinn wlieiitw are better thnn any spring common wheats in this section. (8) Marquis is better than any otla'r variety of the sjirlng coiiuiieii wlieats In some parts ami abiait as pind as any in aU parts of this section. WhiTe spring wiieat is grown anil ilunmi wlieat is not nstU, tiie Marquis Is a sale variety to grow. It is especially well adapted to central South Dakota. Here drought and rust often redvu-e the yields of later maturing varieties. Preston (" Velvet Chaff"), a bearded wheat, is now the leading va riety in that district. !Mar VALUE IN THE ARID SECTIONS. The dry lands of the States west of the Rocky Mountains are in cluded in the arid sections. The different sections I'epre.sented are known as the Great Basin, the Snake Kiver Basin, the Harney Valley, the Columbia Basin, and the Sacramento Valley. Marquis wheat has not been widely introduced in these sections. Several carloads have been sold for seed in the t'olumbia Basin coun ties of Washington. At most places in these States good varieties of spring wheat outyield the Marquis. Palouse Bluestem, Farly Baart, and some times even Little Club have outyielded the Mai-cpiis variety. It also is not as good as several of the new wheats which have been V)red at these western stations but are not yet grown on the farms. Mar quis is not recommended for any district west of the Rocky Moun tains. The hard red winter wheats of the Crimean group are now widely grown in the wheat districts of Utah. Idaho. Oregon, and Wash ington. AVhere\er these wheats are grown they outyield any va riety of spring wheat. VALUE UNDER IHRIGATION. Irrigated farming is confined to the valleys more or less adjacent to the mountains of the Western States. Marquis wheat has not been grown to any extent under irrigation. MARQl'tS WHEAT. 7 In western South Dakota and in Montana. Marcjuis has given goctd results, according to the limited information at hand. lu Idaho aiul Nevada the soft while spring wheats, like DicUlow. !>cliaiice. Palou.se Bluestem. and Kittle Club, all have outvielded Mar HILLING VALUE. Marquis wheat is a first-class wheat for flour inaking. The l-'ife and Uluestem wheats are tlu' standard hard led spring wlieats for this purpose. Numerous milling tests show that Marquis is e IrnppovcnieiU of llie Wlieat <'rop In ralM'i.nila. lluMelln 17M. I'rlee, 1(1 eenfu. 1'<>«>|i*'riitlve lira la Iiivesiliciitlinis at Mel'litTNon. Kanx.. lUo-t- IIHiU. Itaiieltn '2My Price, ." rents. C'erwil KxiwrinieiitM In tlie Texas I'aiihamlle. Itiilletln LIS.'!, Price, lU cttun. UlTREAU or FLANT INDUSTRY CIRCULARS, I>ry-l4in»l llraliis tor Wt^tern Niirtli ait Tile Future Wlieat Supply of the Inlted Slates. Seimnile Till. I'rilV, .1 KninWr: A strain for llie Semlarltl Ketfions. iltilletiii 130. WUiter F.miiier, iniUetUi -Hltl. The Smuts .if Wiieat. i »ats. Hurley, an ^tmntntrms : OOTRRKHRMT CKINTIMI OFFICR : ivia