The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1883-07-20
SEED CORN
Making the Best Provision for the Next
Years To Come.
AmerieuH IOrtcWtHria

Making the Best Provision for the Mex
Years 10 Come.
| AIlerielH 1OTtcWIHrist.
The growing Of good, sound seed corn
that will yield a maximum crop, properly
begins a year beforehand ia the shaping
OF the character Of the seed. Therefore
select the seed for 1854 and 1855 from the
cara already growing in The field, and give
it special care. AS q rule, any thrifty
farmer can raise better seed than he can
buy, and it should be in his programme
every year TO give his personal attention
10 the growing oil his own seed corn.
There is money in il. The average yield
OF Indian corn for the whole country Is not
far from twenty-five bushels to the acre,
and the total yield sometimes reaches one
billion seven hundred million bushels.
With the best husbandry, which means
good seed, good soil, manure and tillage,
Il is not difficult to raise ssventy.tiye bush
els to the acre. Ii the hue, sound seed
corn, with q good pedigree, would add
only ten per cent to the yield OF this crop,
it would increase the annual yield one
hundred aud seventy million bushels,
worth eighty million dollars. Every
thinking farmer must see that he has
money interest in securiDgsound seed corn,
and in knowing Just what he plants. He
is suffering loss every year, probably from
want Ola llltle timely attention TO this mat
Ter. He uses unsound corn, possibly, Tor
seed, selects from the cOrn-Crib the best be
can fad, or borrows from Aeighbor as
careless as himself about the seed that lie
plants. 4 part OF the corn rOts in the Ii sid,
and he has to plant over, which makes extra
expense. he,iateg planted corn ls caught
by the frost, and he suffers loss in the large
proportion OF soft corn that he harvests.
The st0ver is not as we'll cured for fodder,
and cattle refuse the mouldy mass.
Heredity counts for as much in vegetable
as in animal life. To get MAXIMUM crops,
you must have seed perfect after It's kind,
with the normal qua1 atty Of starch, gluten,
oil, and other Constituents that belong u
it. The plant must be well fed, cultivated
and ripened in It's appropriate season to
mature thIs kind oil seed. We say, then,
select your cans for seed corn, as
they stand upon the stalk, in Au.
gust or September-periect ears, well
capped. Pu! string upon them, or SOME
mark, by which they can be identified, and
let them mature upon the stalk. To make
sure Of perfect drying, hang them up in
punches upon the South side OF building,
or in well ventilated lott or room with u
fire in it The perfect drying OF seed corn
IL an important item. The corn should
not be shelled until the cob is thoroughly
dried. When you are ready Tor planting,
pour the keed corn into a vessel OF water,
and skim of every kernel that floats. That
which SINKS to the bottom OF the water is
the best, aud with suitable condition of soil
and climate, will germinate and bear
iruit after its kind, Corn yields very kindly
to all Intelligent efforts 10 increase its pre-
ductiveness and improve It's quality. BY
selecting ears from stalks that bear two or
more ears, you Can increase the number OF
ears. BY selecting ears OF twelve or more
rows, you can increase the number OF ker.
nels upon the cob, always provided that
you give the corn plant food enough to do
its best III the harvest. Farmers VINO look
carefully alter their seed corn, and raise
seventy.tive bushels to the acre, do not
doubt that it Is a paying crop.