The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1883-10-10
Experiments With Seed Corn.

lPhllacelphla Record
Now that corn is being harvested the time
is at hand for selecting the seed for next years
crop. Professor Sturtevant of the New York
Agricultural Experiment Station, deserves
the thanys of every farmer in the country tor
the valuable information he has published in
his official bulletins. and one of the most i'm
portant series OF experiments conducted was
that relation to corn. The professor reminds
farmers that there are number of distinct
races OF the corn plant, he Classics such with
botanical terms, which may be omitted here,
but the common names are the pops, flints,
dents, sweets and softs- These differ from
each other more or less, in the construction
OF the kernels, and in the habit of ripening
and growth. The flint corn kernel when
split Open is found to show three structures
the chit or germ, lying in starchy
substance, which is surrounded by
a corneous envelope This corn
ripens from outward inward. The dent corn
has the chit, starch and corneoos envelope,
but the corneous portion occupies the sides,
while at the terminal portion the starch comes
to the surface. This kind of corn ripens
from within outward. The Tuscarora (soft
corn) is composed of the chit and starchy
portion, the corneous portion being absent.
This ripens from the outside inward. The
sweet corn shows the chit and corneous por-
ton, without visible starch. To these four
types may be referred all the kinds that are
hhOhiI' anu lASg p1CcCANS a 4CAhoAAoDAS JUL
stancy.
Some light is given also in relation to the
termination OF the tips, butts and other por
tons of the ear. The flint corn tips are su-
perior to other grains of that race, while with
dents the opposite facts hold true, which ac-
counts for the many apparent discrepancies
that have appeared on the con- parsons of
results for determining the terminating quail
ity of seed; but the suggested system of
classification, the Professor believes, will
prevent such mistakes i'll future
The results OK the experiments clearly show
that the different races of corn may have
different habits and differently react to the
factors OF culture; and there seems posi-
bility that the crossing of these types is
unfavorable to crops while a crossing within
these types may be favorable. This point is
CT great significance, for the Professor has
solved one of the problems that has puzzled
farmers since corn has been cultivated u
was well-known fact that corn will ''mix''
when different varieties are planted on
neighboring fields, or when together. and
farmers have endeavored to secure the i'm
provement of corn by this method As corn
OF the same type may be crossed favorably
1t is apparent that a mixture OF dent and
flint corns would not be a judicious one !;
but an improvement can be made in cross
ing any OF the dents together, or any of the
Hints with their own family. The sweet
earns having beeh crossed within that var-
ETY.. have been made to grow faster, ripen
earlier and produce more abundantly, which
corroborates the statement of Professor Stur-
tevant; and the same may be said of the
dent corn in this State, which, by careful
in-breeding. if the term may be used. has
reached degree of excellence that permits
of but little improvement. The fints, which
are grown mostly in the South, have been
adapted especially to that section, and with
the light of EXPERIMENTAL knoweledoa 10
classify and further select, no doubt corn
culture will be practiced in future far more
systematically than heretofore.