The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1905-07-19
NUMBER /
liant B,esdinq.

PAM NHal Can Uo III proven Dy Ca e.
full selection. There is hardly a
plant grown on our farms or ia our
gardens that will not yield to care
full selection. Years ago when dig
lying late potatoes we found a hill
that had Al potatoes, mainly of
small size. Right alongside was a
hill that had three good-siz.d
potatoes and few small ones.
Now, we have often heard men dis
cuss the planting of large and
small seed potatoes. Suppose we had
taken the large potatoes that grew
in the hills with few in a hill for
seed They were certainly the
most handsome potatoes. But the
hill with the A potatoes showed
at least a prolific habit. and we
planted them and were NOT dis
appointed in the result, for they
gave far more marketable potatoes
than large ones from less prolific
hills. Lately we read from an ex-
change the experience of a thought
full farmer who said that in dig
ging his sweet potatoes one hiif
had eight potatoes that averaged
one pound each, the next had four
potatoes that weighed one pound
each, and the third hill had only
one potato of pound. The crop
had been fertilized alike and culti-
waited 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
another season there would be an
advance in the yield. Some time
ago one of our students who is in
the forestry work of the United
States Geological Survey, wrote to
us from Colorado thathe had found,
back in the moutains, a man with
little ranch. He had some wheat
that he said he had found growing
volunteer there, and planted it on
his farm. Our correspondent said
that the wheat had heads five to
eight incnes long, and he secured
some and sent it to us. We now
have that growing in our garden,
aud will give it special attention
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 and
breedlRg of wheat at the Minnesota
station have attracted general
attention, and there is no doubt
out that either the spring or winter
wheat can be greatly increased in
yield if careful selection of seed is
made and only the heaviset seed
from the finest heads planted.
The same is true of the cotton plant.
One man will take from the gin
any seed so that it is cotton. An
other man goes through his field
and notes the character of the
plants anu selects his seed from
plants having the character he
wants and that are prolific. and in
little while he has cotton that
beats his neighbors and it is named
and sold. But the majority of
, those that buy go on getting seed
of any sort from the gin, and in a
little while the cotton has lost it's
original character except with the
, careful man who originated il.
The same is true of coru. A care
full breeder will get distinct strain
and get good prices for his seed,
and in little while the gener a |
stock of the neighborhood has been
allowed to deteriorate simply be-
cause the farmers do not breed with
the same ideal that the original
breeder had. Most of the special
strains of our garden vegetables
have been formed by selection uilI
gently practiced year after year
until this race has gotten so far away
from the original stock that it de-
serves and receives a new name.
The world is indebted to the
specialists in plants for all the inn
provement that has been made in
varieties Practical Farmer.