At Pantnagar, India, linear response in maize to nitrogen application was observed up to 150 kg. of N/ha. with some of the most promising hybrids and composites released by the All India Co-ordinated Maize Improvement Programme. Increase in grain yield, and total nitrogen accumulation in grain, were substantially more in Ganga 2 than in the local cultivar or the composites, at higher rates of N application. In absolute terms, the local cultivar accumulated more nitrogen in its grain, but the relative amounts declined at higher rates of N application. Among the yield components influencing ultimate grain yield, barrenness exerted a negative influence on grain yield through the number of cobs per plot. Among cob characters, such as thousand grain weight and number of grains per cob, the former exerted a substantial influence on grain yield.

Application of dimecron to cowpea plants increased grain yield, its effect being more pronounced in widely spaced plants and those planted in March. Dimecron increased grain yield by encouraging greater leaf area development, by increasing the number of flowering inflorescences and the number of pods set per inflorescence, and by decreasing the number of shrivelled pods. March planting encouraged greater dry matter production than January and May planting. Dimecron application decreased the number of Ootheca beningseni, reduced the proportion of leaf damaged by these insects, and reduced the number of plants infested with aphids and Acidodis larvae.

Simple, partial and multiple correlations, as well as regression coefficients, were worked out for 14 quantitative characters in a collection of 42 sesame varieties grown for two consecutive seasons. Total number of seeds per plant, number of pods per plant, plant height, height to the first pod and days to flowering and maturity, gave positive and highly significant correlation coefficients with yield and with one another. Partial regression and partial correlations indicated that the number of pods per plant and plant height are important yield-contributing characters.

Two years study was made on variability in 42 indigenous and exotic varieties of sesame. With very few exceptions, highly significant differences were found between the varieties for the 15 characters investigated. A wide range of phenotypic and genotypic variability was exhibited by all characters except oil, protein and moisture, and 9 out of 15 characters gave heritability estimates exceeding 80 per cent. To relate heritability values to other genetic parameters, a ‘rank procedure’ showed that the characters followed one another in a definite order.

The sugar cane ripener Mon O45, tested on three commercial sugar cane varieties, showed responses depending on variety, time of application, dosage rate and the interval between application and harvest. Age of crop at application appeared to have little influence on the response. The chemical was also shown to have growth inhibiting properties. The possible use of this chemical to increase sugar produced per unit area is discussed.

Mon O45 at rates of 4 and 6 kg./ha. was shown to increase total dry matter in the stem of the sugarcane variety M13/56, optimum response occurring at 9–12 weeks after application. The increase in dry matter was mainly due to an increase in sucrose, since the chemical had no effect on fibre and decreased reducing sugars. The site of action appears to be in the top 16 internodes. Possible modes of action of the chemical are discussed.

A study was made of the nitrogen fixing systems of various forage legumes and their rotational effect on yield of subsequent cotton crops, as well as of yields of the different legumes. Phillipe-sara, clitoria and lubia out-yielded all the others. Nitrogen yields of the various forage legumes showed that they are active fixers of atmospheric nitrogen, but yields of cotton following the various legumes showed wide seasonal variability and were neither significantly nor consistently different in different seasons. On the other hand, the increase in cotton yield due to fertilizer nitrogen was highly significant, indicating a comparatively small end-of-season contribution of cut legumes to soil nitrogen. It was therefore difficult to differentiate between the legumes on the basis of any consistent ability to influence yields of following cotton, suggesting that the choice of a legume in the rotation should depend primarily on economic considerations.

Beans collected from immature pods of cocoa progency C77 × C23, as early as 15 weeks after pollination, successfully produced seedlings as vigorous as those from mature ripe pods. Seedlings produced by beans from 21-week-old pods were the most vigorous, with vigour based on the integral of all measured growth parameters (leaf number, leaf area, seedling height, girth and root weight). There were close correlations between these growth parameters on the one hand and bean maturity and seedling age on the other, the relations with the former being curvilinear and with the latter linear. Seedling age and bean maturity accounted for between 87–99 and 42–96 per cent respectively of the variations in growth parameters. Multiple regression equations are presented for quick estimations of leaf area.

The object of the study was to find whether loss during combine harvesting was correlated with pod shattering propensity of soybeans. Mechanical pod shattering methods tested included vibration, impact, centrifugation, pod traction and compression. The influence of variety and moisture content on mechanically-induced pod shatter and on header losses was studied. The pod suture compression method was simplest to perform and, with respect to crop moisture, gave results indicative of machine harvest shatter levels. Such a standardized mechanical shatter index may prove a useful criterion in soybean breeding selection for harvest shatter resistance.