The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1898-01-01


OF such seed in wheat grow
ing. At present experiments are
being made at several different places
TO test this point with reference to
wheat, three grades of seed-small,
medium and large-being used. Too
much attention cannot be given to this
subject. Many choice varieties have
peen developed by selecting from a
Held certain unusually good heads,
planting the grains of these separate
ly, n thereafter selecting the best
eacn year. 1t has been satisfactorily
proved that the old idea that rust
shrlveled grains give as good returns
as large, healthy ones is erroneous.
About the year 1876 a semi-hard, red
variety, known as Grass wheat (prob-
aDly an Odessa sort), became quite
popular in Northern Kansas, and was
widely used for ten or twelve years
thereafter. However, as the variety
was adapted for either fall or spring
sowing, and the spring-sown crop was
always inferior to the fall-sown, the
consequence vas that two grades were
produced from the one variety. AS the
fall-sown crop brought the better price,
1t became the practice to sell all the
winter wheat and use the worst of the
spring crop for fall seeding. 1t was
claimed that this practice made no diff
ference in the quality or quantity of
the winter wheat, but about 1888 Grass
wheat began losing favor among wheat
growers, having lost much of its orig
1nal good quality, and finally gave
place to Turkey, Fultz and other var
ieties. Now, there is no doubt that
the deterioration Of this variety was
due, in great part at least, to the con-
slant use of the very inferior shriveled
spring grain for fall seeding. Many
other instances of the so-called run
ming OUT of varieties is probably due
mostly to similar cases. However, even
under the best treatment 1t is a pretty
well-established fact that certain var
~ieties, when introduced into new local
tiles, will in time change quite mater
tally in quality of grain. This is espe-
cially likely to be the case with hard
northern sorts when transferred to
warmer and moister southern ATTITUDES.
Probably the only remedy in such cases
is to make an occasional fresh importa-
ton of seed. The matter of seed Sc
lection is OF such vital Importance that
probably nothing would be of more
benefit to the wheat grower than the
establishment Of special small seed
plats OF, say, one to five acres, from
which to select seed each year. The
Following plan is recommended: At har-
vest time cut from a good field a strip
OF the best portion, first eliminating
all rye and other foreign heads and
large weed seeds. After threshing the
wheat from this strip, grade it by
means of a tanning mill with special
sleeves made for the purpose, so as to
Obtain only the largest and most Wig
orous grains. Use the best grade of
wheat both for sowing the small plat
n for the general crop the next sea-
son. The next year use non Of the
field crop for seed, but after grading
the wheat from the small plat, as be-
fore, use the very best Of it for sowing
the small plat and all the remainder
for sowing the large field, and so on
year after year. In this way seed Is
never taken from tie general crop,
which cannot be given the same care
as the small plat, and there is a con-
slant selection of seed, which is more
and more rigid every year.. Moreover,
there is no extra labor involved, except
the small amount required for grading
the seed each year.