Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-03-07

proposed by the professors that APP
peals to the farmer. Though many
of them come to the train or to the hall
without believing that they will learn
anything Of value, they never leave
without admitting that they were
wrong in the feeling. Like the un-
believers,
"They come to scott, but remain to
pray
They recognize the value of the seed
corn gospel and admit its practical
biliay.
Yesterdays Large Audiences
| Yesterday the seed corn train ar
rived at Bloomfield shortly before
O'Clock, having made lecture stops
during the day at Leon, Garden Grove,
Corydon, Centerville and Moulton. At
each place large crowds of farmers
were waiting when the train arrived
at the station. The meeting at Cory
don was a veritable love feast. Fully
700 hundred men listened to three
/ speakers. The two coaches were
filled to overlooking and Prof. j. w.
Jones, assistant to Prof. Holden, de-
livered rear platform speech to fully
400 hundred people.
Every Meeting Success.
i Every meeting since the trip COM
menced has been an unqualified sue
cess. The farmers of Iowa are
awakening to their opportunities, are
beginning to realize the worth Of the
crops they have actually thrown away
by failing to prepare their seed corn
properly. Now they are eager to
learn how to test it, and the lecturers
tell them in plain language.
Points to Corn Growers.
In his lecture at Bloomfield yes
friday Professor Shamel gave his
hearers splendid advice on how to
gather and preserve the seed corn for
testing. He said:
Time to Gather Seed Corn.
4 "Do not select ears intended for
seed too early in the fall. Expert
ments have proven that corn allowed
/ to fully mature on the stock give the
best results. If the corn is husked
from year to year before it becomes
fully matured it will tend to become
earlier, but this will be Offset by the
weakening Of the vitality.
aIf gathered before it is matured
corn is difficult to preserve. When
allowed to mature under natural con-
ditions it will absorb all the nourish-
ment the stock has for it and at the
same time has the advantage of a free
circulation of air.
Storlno Seed Corn.
Experiments indicate that the best
!. results are obtained when the corn is
stored in a dry and thoroughly venti-
lated place. The most critical time in
the handling Of seed corn Is the first
month after it has been husked. At
i husking time one-third the weight of
corn is made up of water, and while
the grain may appear perfectly dry
when stored, as soon as this moisture
begins to ooze out it will become wet
unless the circulation Of air is suffl-
Gent to carry off the moisture. This
makes it unsafe to store corn in.
tended for seed in barrels, boxes or
over large quantities of other grain.
1t is good practice to place the corn
on racks or hang 1t up in some well
ventilated place until there is danger
/ from severe freezing. If then not
completely dry it should be dried arti-
ficially or placed in a ventilated room
where there will be no danger from
freezing If placed in warm room
while it contains a large amount Of
moisture 1t is almost certain to either
mould or grow. When 1t once be-
comes thoroughly dry, and is kept dry,
cold will not injure it, but if allowed
to gather moisture, freezing will re-
duce its vitality and may destroy it
entirely.
Imported Seed Corn.
mo farmer can afford to depend
upon imported seed for the main part
of his crop. If he cannot obtain home
grown seed that has matured well in
his locality, and it becomes necessary
for him to import seed, it is safer to
import it from the north than from
the south. Southern grown varieties
will produce large stocks and heavy
| foliage and the large, deep-kerneled
ears will be late in maturing. Northern
| grown corn will be smaller in ear and
! finer in silk, but will mature earlier
Seed corn imported from distance
seldom gives satisfactory results the
| first two or three years, even If the
seed be of the best.
Seed Corn in the Ear.
"a marked advance will be made
in the improvement Of the quality and
yield of corn in Iowa when our farmers
realize the Importance of purchasing
seed corn only in the ear. When the
corn is in the ear, the farmer can
see just what he has. If, after crit
ical examination, he finds the seed I'M
satisfactory, he can reject it. This
plan will enable him to secure corn
from another source or use his own
seed, which, in fact may be superior
to what has been shipped to him, and
ha ,uill not Lace q ,raor In dicnauaripr