New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1905-10-04
ALL DEPENDS on THEuSEED
.JohnCownieo of Iowa Gives Pointers
on Corn.
Timely Article on Seed Has Had
Wide Circulation.
Almighty Couldn't Raise Good
Corn From Some Seed. eE

The following extracts aretaken from
headed article in the Des Moines Reg
lister and Leader of Sept. 5, from John
Cownie. Mr.. Cownie declars that Iowa
loses 100000, 900 bushes of corn each
year in the selection of seed corn. The
entire article would be worthy of the
perusal and study of every farmer in
the state. We have only space this
week for few extracts from it that
bears more particularly upon the Sc
lection of the seed, the eason for which
is now here. Mr.. Cownie starts out with
this assertion.
"The Almighty could not raise
good crop of corn even in Iowa with
the kind of seed corn the Iowa farmer
uses.''
''In round numbers the corn fields of
Iowa will aggregate 100000 acres the
present season and, no matter what the
yield may be, no person we'll informed
on this subject will deny that with good
seed the everage yield would have been
increased from five to eight bushels per
acre. Taking the lowest figure, an
average loss of five bushels per acre,
and we have as the result of the neglect
to secure seed corn last fall clear
loss of As, 100000 bushels in the 1906
corn crop of Iowa. At As cents per
bushel, the present price of corn, the
state will lose S26. $50, OOO-this enorm-
Gus sum lost through down right negli-
gence-a loss that could have been
prevented by securing seed corn in
proper manner. Added to this will be
the loss sustained by immature corn on
account of replanting, aggregating
several millions more, and all this loss
because too many of the farmers of
Iowa select their seed corn in the spring
instead of in the fall of the preceding
year.
''There is another important factor
in regard to seed corn that is general
ly overlooked, and that is that corn
selected in the spring may terminate
and grow while it lacks in the vitality
that is always found in seed corn saved
in the fall. Several years ago while
testing samples of seed corn forward
ed at my request from the several in.
stitutions. I was surprised to find that
the sample from one institution, al
though planted at the same time as the
others, was a few days later in APP
pearing above ground and, instead of
a strong, healty growth of dark
green color as in the other boxes, the
stalks were slim, of a weakly, sickly
appearance, and of yellowish color.
Inquiry of the superintendent Of the in
stitution that forwarded the corn for
the reason Of having such poor seed,
for it terminated only IS per cent, re-
vealed the fact that my instructions in
regard to saving seed the previous fall
had not been follOw we'd. that the crib
corn failed to grow and the seed corn
forwarded was from a lot purchased
from d firm making a specially Of fur
nishing seed corn to shiftless farmers.
Seed corn selected before the middle
of October and properly cared for will,
when planted at the same time, get a
start OF a week to ten days over seed
corn of weak vitality selected in the
spring from a corn crib. The latter
may terminate fairly we'll with favor
able conditions, even although weak
in vitality, but the seed corn saved in
the fall will terminate in the field in
any kind of weather we have had in
Iowa from and after the middle of
April for the last fifty years. I know
whereof write for have planted corn,
selected early in the fall preceding, in
the latter part of March to test it, and
never yet found it to fail under the
most adverse conditions.
HOW TO SELECT CORN.
The choicest ears to be found should
be selected for seed; if part of the
husks are left on the cob two ears can
be tied together and hung over wire
or beam, or the ears may be placed
on racks but the best place to be found
on a farm for saving seed corn is in q
room Or attic with an open register
over the kitchen stove, where of neces.
sity there is fire every day. Seed corr
should never feel frost. 1t should be
kept warm and dry, with sufficient ven,
tilation Of dry airs to prevent mould
ing, from the time it is gathered unit
the planting season.
'Three or four times as much corr
as will be required for seed should b.
secured before the middle of October
and after being kept as indicated al
winter, it should be carefully sorted il
the spring, any mouldy or imperfec
ears rejected, point and tip kernels re
moved by hand, and only the full, ever
and uniform sized kernels shelled fol