West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1885-10-02
SEED-CORN.
II Fail Selection of seed-How to In
sure Vitality.

AhS W. OChGCNiDh VI Gttu-INOW TO IN
sure Vitality.
The early fall is the best time in
which to make this selection, because
corn then selected can be so kept rs to
insure its vitality when used for seed.
and also because selection al this time
better enables the farmer to improve his
corn by the choice of that which posses
ses the greatest number of good quail
ties. Trials Of many varieties on the
university farms, from different parts of
Illinois and other States, have shown
me that very many localities have va
rieties OF great merit; often better
adapted to their soil and climate than
woul be almost any variety brought
from other regions. While / would en-
courage the trial of promising new va
rieties and experimenting i'm crossing.
etc, / count it unwise to abandon the
cultivation of varieties which have been
thoroughly tested and found satisfactory
in any locality.
Selection of seed from the bin, espe-
cially II this be done in the spring, only
gives opportunity for the choice of sat
%isfactOry ears. Selection i'm the field. i'm
the early autumn. gives opportunity to
determine the comparative earliness of
the chosen ears, and the character OF
the stalks ON which they were produced.
And in both these respects great differ
ences will be found i'm corn of the same
variety, even when growing in the same
hill.
Among undesirable qualities for any
northern region may be named excess
i've sizes of stalk, in height o. thickness.
or the opposite extremes; the habit of
bearing the ears very high up, on long
or very thick "shanks:'' cobs of great
thickness, or with marked differences in
thickness at butt and tip; shallow kcr-
nels and failure to ''fll out we'll at the
ends of the ears. Others of importance
might be named. IL will be seen that
there Is q much better opportunity OF
getting what we want. as to some Of
those named, by selection in the field
than at any other time, and of some no
judgment could be formed ut any other
time.
My own belief is that with the don't
varieties, almost universally grown i'm
the West, we have stalk. leaf and root
enough to produce more than one good
ear Of orn and that. II we persistcntly
selected with reference 10 the prOduc-
ton Of, say. two ears. instead Of con
stantly selecting in practice from stalks
producing but one car. we would
make q decided gain. Whether this
be true OF not. there are abundant
reasons for early selection and from the
the field.
There is no necessity that corn dc.
sired for seed should fully mature on
the stalk. Experiments have shown mp
parently strong vitality in Kernels which
were shriveled mp from the ears having
been pluckcd long before maturity. ]
would not advise this practice, but
there ~ be no objection to plucking
seed-corn some weeks before 70 would
do TO put in the crib. The essentials I'M
treatment Of the corn seem 10 be chat
both kernels and cob shall become pref.
" thoroughly dry before there is severe
freezing. Fire heat may be used to ST..
cure this, but IL is usually not essential
The old plan Of tracing up the ears,
pair by pair, by the husks. and hang.
ing them up IN q warm, dry room. will
almost certainly give good results.
like better the use Of the cork-scrcw
wire, put in the butt Of each ear and
slipped over a vertical wire.-PrOC q.
I ~. M0TrOW.