Abstract

The most important item of agricultural improvement which has been successfully attempted by the Madras Agricultural Department in the Bellary District, is the improvement of local cottons of indigenous origin. These were found to be for the most part of poor yielding capa- city and of low ginning percentage, while the lint was fairly rough and short. The problem, at first, was to find out a type of cotton better adapted to the needs of the grower and the spinner alike. With this end in view, the department carried out at the Hagari Experimental Station, near Bellary, a series of trials on both exotic and extra- provincial types of cotton for about four to five seasons from 1907. Egyptian, Afghan, Broach, Surat and Kumpta were the important ones that were tried here. Due to one reason or other, the attempt at acclimatization of exotic and extra-provincial varieties ended in a failure. As a result of this experience and knowledge, it was decided to concentrate effort upon the improvement of the existing indigenous varieties for the production of a long stapled cotton, suitable to the black cotton soils of the Bellary district.

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