Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1905-04-25

ToEs-IMPoRrANCE OF SELECTION.
It is a common belief among many
farmers that there is great advantage
in changing seeds with one another;
that plants do better from seed grown
in some other locality; that two farmers
living mile or hundred miles apart
will have better crops by an exchange of
seed than if each planted his own.
have never taken much stock in this
claim, nor have | ever practiced it to
any extent. 1t is true that in time plants
will adapt themselves to the climate in
which they are grown, TO some extent at
least. In the colder climate of Canada.
with it's short summers, Indian corn ma
lures in much less time than when
grown in the southern states. 1t makes
less stalk and foliage and attends at
once to the making of grain by which TO
perpetuate the species. If we want
corn for the silo We go south for the
seed because it will produce greater
growth of the silage material. Farmers
in northern New England like the Cana
da seed corn because it Will mature in
fewer days than any other. The oat
crop does better in the northern parts of
New England than in the southern states.
A rather cool climate suits the Oat and
the grain will be larger and heavier.
would prefer such seed over that grown
i'm NV own state or others on the same
latitude. If | were unable to keep my
potatoes through the winter without
La
growing long sprouts in the cellar be-
tore planting them, | would prefer to
get nv seed from Maine or at some
point so far north that they would re-
main dormant till time to put them in
the ground. Under these conditions
there is some sense in changing seed,
but for one neighbor To carry his seed
"A mile or less To exchange Tor seed that
has grown on different snil does not
appeal To my reason in the least degree.
| do, however, believe in growing seed
special.y for seed instead of taking IL
from the bin or the common stock. Ii
is a commendable practice to select seed
corn i'm the field while growing, and
planting the best of it by itself to get
seed for the main crop the following
wear. IL grain be the main object then
look for stalks with two or more ears,
and when the lower one is of fair size
take that in preference to the upper one
This will incline the variety to produce
ears low down and with less growth of
stalk. A variety can be considerably
modified in this way in few years.
When a careless farmer, who has never
taken any pains in the selection of seed,
procures a stock from some one who has
for many years taken special pains in
this regard the result will generally be
quite marked. Such farmer may well
believe in changing seed. Government
officials in the agricultural department
of Canada have recently been encourag-
ing farmers To collect the best heads of
wheat and other grains for experiment
purposes in improving varieties. Any
farmer can do this who will give thought
to the subject.
1t does pay to give special attention
TO the selection ui seeds of plants, just
as il paws to select the best animals
from our yards Tor breeding purposes.
lt is still an open question how much
potatoes can be improved by selection
of the most productive hills at digging
time for planting the following year
Planting potato tubers either cut OF
whole, instead of the seed from seed
balls is much like propagating trees
from scions or hardy garden Towering
plants by division. The new plant will
be like the old one every time, or may
be expected to be like it. The early
rose potato as we have have it now has
been propagated by division many years.
The same is true of some other varieties.
Some farmers believe that such varie-
ties tend towards running out, while
others claim that they are getting as
fine crops now as they were thirty years
ago. But these men have been careful
in growing the crop and in selecting and
keeping the seed tubers sound and
strong till the time for planting. An
other open question is in regard to the
use of large or small tubers for planting.
Most writer's for the press advocate
selecting large seed while some OF the
most successful growers have for many,
many years selected a size just a little
too small for market and have seen no
cause to change from that course. MIR.
Edmund Hersey of bingham, Mass,
followed that practice for as many as
ten years as an experiment, using large
seed at the same time for comparison
and found the smaller size equal or bet
ter than the larger. l have known a
case where planting small seed ran out a
variety in few years. 1t was as long
ago as the Peachblow was popular
variety. In a field of them one could
always find part of the hills having
dwarhsh vines with curly leaves.
These always produced small, inferior
tubers, and when planted the new crop
was always like the seed. 1t was
serious defect in the variety. farmer
who planted small seed at that time
found after while that the main crop
was becoming smaller and smaller each
wear. 1t was due to the planting of
these diseased tubers in increasing pro-
portion from year to year. Some farm
ers who raise several varieties of pOta-
toes each year are not particular in keep
ing the varieties distinct at harvest time,
but let them get mixed in storage.
Early and late sorts should never be
mixed in the field. Mixed varieties
never sell well in market. IL | were
making a speciality of potato growing l
would certainly select seed at digging
time from such hills AZ produced the
larger number of sizable tubers with
few small ones that would be unfit for
market. The claim comes now from
some of the experiment stations that in
field of rotting potatoes there are
usually some hills that are able to resist
the disease, and that seed should be
saved from such disease-resisting plants.
How valuable such selection would be
will be better known after the expert
ments have been carried on number of
years.-A. w. Cheever in New England
Farmer.
Air Treatment Cured Cow When
Apparently Dead.
Editor Maine Farmer: l have noticed
in the Maine Farmer during the past
winter the sterilized air cure advocated
for milk fever. l have given it fair
trial and find it all that it is claimed to
r