The news & observer., 1904-12-04
Talks with Farmers

or in our gardens that will not yield
to careful selection. Years ago when
digging late potatoes we found hill
that had forty-four potatoes. mainly
of small size. Right alongside was
a hill that had three good sized pota-
toes and few small ones. Now, we
have often heard men discuss the
planting of large and small seed po-
tatoes. Suppose we had taken the
large potatoes that grew in the hills
with few in the hill. for seed. They
We're certainly the most handsome po-
tatoes. But the hill with the forty
four potatoes showed at least a proli-
tic habit, and we planted them and
were not disappointed in the result,
for they gave far more marketable
potatoes than large ones from less
prolific hills. Lately we read in an
exchange the experience of a thought
ful farmer who said that in digging
his sweet potatoes he found hill that
mad eight potatoes that averaged one
pound each, the next hill had four po-
tatoes of q pound each and the
third hill had only one potato of
pound The crop had been fertilized
alike ana cultivated alike. One plant
had eight times the crop of another
Now, we are sure that if the potatoes
from the prolific hill were saved by
themselves and used to start plants for
~
vance in the yield. Some time ago one
Of our old students, who is IN he for
estry work of the u. $. Geological Sur
vey wrote to us from Colorado that he
mad found. back in the mountains,
man with a little ranch, who is an at
tentiVe reader of The Practical Farm
er. He had some wheat that he SAID
ne had found growing volunteer there.
and planted it on his farm. our COL
respondent said that the wheat had
heads five TO six inches long, and ne
secured some and sent it 20 us. we
now have that wheat growing in our
garden and will give it special atten-
tion and will save the finest heads for
seed. so that another year we may be
able to say what it will turn out. The
results in the selection of breeuin:y Of
wheat at the Minnesota Station have
attracted general attention, and there
is no doubt but that eitherAt spring
or winter wheat can be greatly in
creased in yield if careful selection OF
seed is made and only the heaviest
seed from the finest heads planted.
Fhe same is true of the cotton plant.
One man will take from the gin any
seed so that it is cotton. Another
man goes through his field and notes
the character of the plants and selects
his seed from plants having the char
acter he wants and that are pr olit1c.
ana IN a 1III6 Willie lie HAS d tOtlOil
that beats his neighbors and 1T is
named and sold. But the majority Of
those who buy the seed go on getting
seed of any sort from the gin, md IN
a little while the cotton has lost its
original character except with the
careful man who originated it. The
same is true Of corn. A careful breed
er will get a distinct strain and get
good prices for his seed, and in
little While the general stock of the
neighborhood has been allowed to de-
teriorate simply because the farmers
do not breed with the same ideal that
the original breeder had Most of the
special strains of our garden vegetables
nave been formed by selection dill
gently practiced year after year until
the new race has gotten so far away
from the original stock that 1t de-
serves and receives a new name. The
world is indebted to the specialists in
plants for all the improvement that
has been made in varieties. With most
of our farm crops as much improve
ment in the yield can be made by
careful seed selection and breeding to-
wards an ideal as can be made
through the Improvement of the soil
itself. We hope that every reader of
The Practical Farmer will determine
that in the future he will attempt the
intelligent breeding of the seed of his
money crop at least, and reap the
substantial reward of his extra care
Prof w. f. Massey, in Practical
Farmer.