Department of Agriculture. Scientific Report of the Bellary Agricultural Station for the Official Year 1907-1908

The work at present may be roughly divided into— (a) The demonstration of the improvement effected in the ordinary country cotton by selection of seed and caretul cultivation : the comparison of certain introduced cottons with t! e local cotton and the testing of varieties of other crops which may usefully find a place in the agricultural practice of the country. [...] The district generally is one of the driest of the Presidency. [...] 8. Cotton crosses.—Examination of the 74 plots of crosses sown in 1906-1907 led to the conclusion that the work was becoming too complex and the issues somewhat confused and it was decided to attempt the improvement of the cotton plant by selecting seed from individual plants and not from plots as hitherto had been done. [...] Tile reason for this lies in the fact that the cottons immediately.after germination have to face a long drought and thasince excess of available nitrogen stimulates the formation of leaf at the expense of root development the plants thus manured receive a serious check when the drought becomes severe. [...] Germnation was fair but the effect of the drought was soon felt and slight differences in level in the field where the moisture remained long enough to enable the young plants to get a fair start were of more importance than the differences in cultivation.