The earliest record of Iowa crop experiments that are still available today is from 1871, pre-dating the creation of the Iowa Agricultural Experiment Station in 1888 by a fairly large number of years. The Ninth Biennial Report for Iowa State Agricultural College (LD2531 Io9r - copies available in Parks Library General Collection and in Special Collections and Archives) includes information on 3 acres devoted to crop experiments. These were hardiness tests for specific varieties. Crops included spring and winter wheat, rye, winter oats, potatoes, and barley. It provides information on specific varieties planted and yields for each variety. Biennial Reports exist for earlier years; however, this was the first one to specifically include experiment information for field crops.
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