Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1886-10-21
SAVING SEED.CORN.

SAVING SEED.CORN.
Tho Indian Plan Undoubtedly the hest
and safest of Any Yet Suggested.
| The question as to the proper time
to save seed-corn is one up1h which
there is great diversity of opinion. A
large number seem to he of the opin-
ion that the seed should be selected as
soon as the grains are glazed. and
cured by drying in the air. Saving un-
ripe seed-corn Is wrong, both in
theory and fact. Aside from the fact
that immature seed tends to promote
earliness in ripening there is nothing
else to sustain the practice. In every
plant none but the most fully-matured
seed is proper for planting.
| Probably the reason why corn alone
has been made the exception to the
rule is from the fact that while other
cereal grains became quite ripe and
dry during the warm season, corn
alone often requires artificial help to
fully dry and harden it before winter
sets in. So common is the failure to
get corn fully dry, as commonly
gathered and cribbed, that when
shelled and marketed before the
warm weather of the succeeding sea-
son, great difficulty is often ex-
perienced in preventing the grain
from heating. And in exporting corn
across the ocean it is the exception,
rather than the rule, that it does not
become more or less bitter and other
wise damaged as food, unless kiln
dried. In fact, when saved in the or
binary Western cribs, eight to ten feet
wide, a considerable percentage is
damaged during the winter and spring
unless in exceptional seasons for ripen-
ing and curing. So the failure of seed
to grow, when taken from the crib, is
well known, and of late years this has
constantly been a source of disappoint-
ment to the farmer. Yet the vitality
of Indian corn is fully as great as that
of any other grain, if it becomes fully
ripe.
There is only one sure way to have
seed-corn every grain of which will
grow and which will hold its vitality
intact throughout the winter. The
ears must be fully ripe, they must be
fully dried out before hard freezing
weather, and they must be kept thor
oughly dry if exposed to cold during
the winter. If kept in an atmosphere
above the freezing point, with nat
ural degree of moisture or such as will
be naturally held when not kept in
warm, dry atmosphere, so much the
better.
The Indian plan of saving seed-corn
is undoubtedly the best of any. The
finest full-ripened ears are selected by
the squaws at husking-time. Husk
enough is left on the ear so two
ears may he tied together. 1t
is strung over poles in the
lodge, and when fully dry-just before
in a small pit on a sandy ridge and
covered secure from wet during the
winter. Food corn is saved in the same
way. except that it is packed away,
point down, after drying, with the
husks attached. Such corn, if fully
ripe, is also sure to grow.
The following excerpts from articles
lately published will show the idea
held-not generally, it is true-by a
portion of the agricultural press. A
writer says: From experimenting we
have found that corn, if properly cared
for, will grow when it is well out of
the milk or when first it becomes
glazed The kernels will, of course,
shrink in size. but it will all grow just
as well as it would if fully matured.
Another excerpt reads: 1t is better to
commence this work early in the sea-
son than to wait until the corn is fully
matured before selecting the seed, be-
cause the earliest and best ears can
then be selected, and it is well demon
strated that such seed will ripen earlier
than that selected later in the season.
Still another piece of advice is: Every
farmer should save his own seed, and
not depend on his neighbor for it. The
best time to do this is in the early fall,
just as soon as the kernels are free from
milk.
The error in each of these three ex-
cerpts is in advising to save seed from
unripe corn. There is no reason torso
doing unless frost touches the crop be-
fore the corn is ripe. and this is rare
occurrence. When so, it is fer better
to fall back on seed of the preceding
year that has been properly saved. 70
have sure seed, select fully ripe. per-
fectly formed ears. either in the field or
at husking time, thoroughly dry them
by braiding the husks together and
hanging them in an airy room. one
where there may be fire heat if
necessary. Or place the ears on racks
or Stats, where they may be dried
quickly. If fire is used a few days will
so dry the corn that it may be put in
narrow crib, if the moisture is fully
eliminated. Then the process may be
repeated until enough seed is secured
for the next season. Thus saved, it
may cost fifty. sixty or seventy cents
per bushel, but it will be worth far
more than that, for every seed will not
only grow under proper conditions.
but will develop a strong. healthy plant
Chicago Tribune.
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