The progressive farmer and the cotton plant., 1904-09-27
Tuesday, September 81. 1904.


that is, if the protrudes from the husk, as it
sometimes does, it will take water and be liable
to mold. Therefore you don't want that ear.
Don't select any that does not bend over by
the time the corn is even partially matured The
ear that bends downward has a chance to dry
out, and the reason it bends down is because of
the relatively heavier weight of the corn than
the shank. It is likely to have small or medium
sized cob, to be well developed, fully matured,
easily dried out, when the husk will open at the
point and become loose all over. We would not
select that does bend If the husk
was not loose at the point, for the simple reason
that it is likely to be undeveloped, and even if
well developed will not dry out readily, so as to
be tit for seed.
When you select ear of take look
at the stalk. What we need is sort of Dutch
mans stalk built Dutch fashion, draft horse
fashion, something after the type of irst-class
Crulckshank bull good feeding steer of any
breed That is, that is robust, OF great
vitality, and stands up straight. Don't take an
ear from stalk that leans when there has
not been any severe storm. A very severe storm
will swirl and twist even the strongest kind OF
corn-stalk; but when stalk leans over, the great
bulk of the stalks remaining erect, there Is some
think wrong with that stalk, some weakness which
you don't want to perpetuate For remember
that corn, as In men and ANIMALS, like produces
like, and you don't want to perpetuate any defects
weaknesses it you possibly can help it.
Don't select OF corn, no matter how
gOOd, tnat is at Lne enO OF a long SnauK WHY!
You will be harvesting your corn sometime tor
fodder for silage and these long shanked ears
will break off and you may have more corn brok-
off than you make use OF for hog iced at
the time Besides, it is worth all you can get
out of them to pick them up. Therefore reject
those long shanked ears.
You can wait, it you will take time to do 1t.
until husklng time to select this corn; but the
probability is that you won't take the time then.
Z our boys want to make record huskers.
They won't stop to pick out the seed and
throw them into box behind the wagon. So you
and they had better look after this matter be-
forehand A bushel of this well selected seed
corn will plant eight acres, and it you are grow
ing eighty acres of corn next year, you will only
want about eight hundred good ears, and you
certainly afford the time to pick them out, even
it it takes you week.
The best way therefore is to go through with
a sack on your shoulder, examine each stalk, pick
out carefully the very choicest ears, strip back
the husks, tie them together, and throw them
clothesline pole, any other place that
will give them free access to the sun and air. Dry
your corn may seem, there IS still too much
water in it. The thing to do now is to get the
water evaporated from the and cob just as
quickly as possible. It will not do to put corn,
matter how apparently well matured at this
stage of the growth, into a closed room. corn
requires heat, moisture, and oxygen or air III
order to grow. If you put corn, even well ma
tured corn, in pile in closed room or room
without free ventilation, you furnish all the re-
Quirements for growth The first thing you know
your seed corn will be utterly ruined. Some
seedsmen lost quite lot of corn last year by
not understanding this simple proposition: That
seed corn will grow whenever the conditions OF
growth are furnished.
In case cold weather threatens before the corn
has thoroughly dried out, we would move 1T into
building at least night, SO as to protect 1t
from sudden freezing Take to see that at
every opportunity it has free access to, sun and
air, without having so much of it together as to
start sprouting.
How much is this corn worth when we have
it selected on these principles? 1t is worth more