STATE UNIVERSITY, Pass Agricultural Experiment Station. Amhers Z AT AMHERST, MASS. 1862-1895. BOARD OF CONTROL. HIS EXCELLENCY B. F. BUTLER, Governor of the Commonwealth, J. P. LYNDE, Athol, President ex-officio. JAMES R. NICHOLS, Haverhill, O. B. HADWEN, Worcester, Members of the Board of Trustees THEODORE LYMAN, Brookline, Member of the Massachusetts Society for JAMES C. GREENOUGH, Amherst, President of the Massachusetts OFFICERS APPOINTED BY THE BOARD OF CONTROL. C. A. GOESSMANN, Prof. of Chemistry at the Mass. Agricultural M. MILES, Prof. of Agriculture at the Mass. Agricultural College, S. T. MAYNARD, Prof. of Botany at the Mass. Agricultural College, AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. BULLETIN No. 1. JULY, 1883. The State Agricultural Experiment Station at the Massachusetts Agricultural College in Amherst, Mass., was established by an act of the Legislature approved on the 12th of May, 1882. The management of the Station is vested in a "Board of Control," which consists of the governor of the state, as president, ex-officio; two members elected by the state board of agriculture; two members from the board of trustees of the Massachusetts Agricultural College; one from the Massachusetts Society for promoting agriculture, and the president of the Massachusetts Agricultural College. (See Chap. 212, Laws and Resolves passed by the Legislature in 1882.) The members of the Board, at their first meeting in July, elected O. B. Hadwen secretary, and Theodore Lyman treasurer. No farther action was taken on account of the lateness of the season, until the following November when a director, a chemist and all necessary assistants, as provided by law, were appointed. The former entered upon his duties on the 15th of November, 1882, the latter on the 1st of January, 1883. By resolution of the Board its members are delegated to visit alternately every month the Station; and the director is instructed to report its condition and its wants at the bi-monthly meeting of the board. The first report of the director was presented to the board at its annual business meeting at the office of the secretary of the State Board of Agriculture, January 30th, 1883. It contained principally a short outline of a series of experiments proposed for the consideration of the Board as the basis of the first year's work of the Station, besides a detailed statement concerning the chemical work carried on since its establishment. The essential contents of the report are published in the annual report of the secretary of the State Board of Agriculture for 1882. The college buildings selected by the Board 75809 for the use of the Station have been repaired under the special direction of Mr. Hadwen, and they are now ready for occupation. The barn and the stables for feeding experiments have been re-fitted under the immediate supervision of Prof. Miles, who has also directed the necessary underdraining of fields and buildings for experiments. Prof. Maynard has carried out the desired enlargement of experiiments in fruit culture and in the cultivation of new forage crops; he has also paid much attention to the investigation of suitable means for the destruction of injurious insects. Most of the experiments assigned to the Station for the present year are fairly under way, and the remainder will be attended to in due time. At the May meeting of the Board it was voted to authorize the director to publish from time to time in form of bulletins, such results of the work carried on by the Station as in his judgment may prove of immediate benefit to the farmers of the state; and also to make known to them to what extent and in what direction the Station in its present condition can render them assistance in their every-day's agricultural pursuit. As the character of many experiments carried on in their earlier stage of progress renders a detailed discussion quite unprofitable, it seems but natural that the bulletins for sometime hence will contain mainly the results of chemical analyses of fertilizing material, fodder articles, and such other substances as are specified in the legislative Act above referred to. For the sake of completeness, concerning the record of the chemical work of the Station, the chemical analyses previously reported will be reprinted in a proper connection with later work of a similar character. The bulletins of the Station will be hereafter issued every month as long as the material on hand renders that course advisable. They will be sent to the agricultural press and the various agricultural societies of the state, and also to all parties inside or outside of the latter who will furnish their address to the office of the Station. is hoped that all who are connected with the publication of agricultural topics will send in return their publications to the latter. It Arrangements have been of late perfected which enable the chemical department of the institution to attend more satisfactorily to the examination of objects of general interest to the farming community. The requests for the analyses of substances coming through officers of agricultural societies or clubs within the state, will receive hereafter first and prompt attention; and in the order as the applications for an examination arrive at the office of the Station. The material for the analysis is to be sent on, transportation prepaid; the results will be returned without charge for the work carried out. Applications for analyses of substances sent on by private parties will receive careful consideration whenever the results promise to be of a more general interest, and as far. as the existing special resources admit. The limited financial means of the Station necessitate, however, in the latter case a moderate charge for the services rendered, to cover expenses. For obvious reasons no work can be carried on at the Station of which the results are not at its disposal for publication if deemed advisable in the interest of the citizens of the state. By consent of the secretary of the State Board of Agriculture the analyses of commercial fertilizers collected by the state inspector will be published hereafter in the bulletins in advance of the annual report. All parcels and communications sent to the Experiment Station. must have express and postal charges prepaid to receive attention. C. A. GOESSMANN, DIRECTOR |