AGRICULTURE
39
prairie land could be worked and its adaptability for wheat growing
rendered the culture of that cereal less profitable in Quebec and accordingly
fodder and other grains, principally oats, were grown instead. The high
price of wheat in 1918 induced more Quebec farmers to sow this cereal
and as a result a record crop was harvested, the value being over $14,000,-
000. The reports of the Dominion Bureau of Statistics show the following
average yields in bushels per acre of spring wheat for the five years 1922-
1927. Quebec is 16-4; Manitoba, 17-5; Saskatchewan, 17-3; Alberta.
17-2; Canada, 17-3. It is thus seen that the soil of Quebec is as well
suited for wheat growing as any in the western provinces, once the land
is cleared and made readv for cropping.
Importance of Oats in Quebec.—No other crop, with the exception
of hay, has such an extensive area as oats in the province of Quebec, whtre
it is grown on practically every farm, and there is no doubt that it will
long hold this important position on account of its suitability: for this
part of the country. It is generally admitted that oats are naturally
adapted to colder regions than barley, so that the cool and usually moist
climate of most of the province of Quebec will make them grow to per-
fection when other factors are properly attended to. Besides being grown
alone, or in combination with other grains, for the matured seeds, oats
may be used for other purposes. Thus, when meadows are winter-killed,
oats may be grown and cured for hay, or they may be cut as green feed,
or put into the silo.
Careful tests at the Cap Rouge Experimental Station; for an average
of thirteen years, on a sandy loam of better than average fertility, have
shown that oats yield more pounds of grain per acre than barley or spring
wheat, and a fact which is very important from a live stock feeding point
of view, they produce more digestible nutrients than either of these two
cereals, for the same area. ‘‘Banner” is, no doubt, the most popular
variety grown in the province and has proved the most suitable, being
hardy. productive, and having a good strong straw.
Flax.—Although flax has been grown for its fibre, in Quebec, since
Hebert established the first Canadian farm in 1617, it is not one of the
principal crops. ~ It is readily grown in the province. however. and finds
a good market in Canada.
For the production of good fibre a moist climate with a long mode-
rately-growing season is required. In Canada these conditions exist in
the western part of British Columbia, southwestern Ontario, the valley
of the St. Lawrence, and the Maritime Provinces. From experiments
made by the Department of Agriculture at Ottawa, Canadian flax is
equal in strength to the best grades of Irish flax and is capable of yielding
