Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1906-01-19

very interesting and instructive man
ner in recent issue, which we re-
produce for the benefit of our corn
growers:
"We take up the question of corn
breeding at this time of the year, ap-
parently out of season. but really in
the proper season. because our read
ers who are attending Institutes dur
| ing these winter months will give
more attention to seed corn than
they are likely to give even when
they are getting ready for planting.
They will therefore excuse us If we
again harp on the same old string.
We assure them that we intend to
keep harping on it until the corn
fields of the Mississippi valley bear a
crop of grain proportionate to the
labor which the farmer puts on it,
which these fields are very far from
doing now.
These fields will never yield their
full increase until we have one or
more corn breeders mot corn growers
but corn breeders) in every township,
and one or more on every particular
kind of land that abounds in that
township. We must come to this,
and the sooner we come to it the
better.
This corn breeder may be some
wise old farmer who has been think
ing corn long before he ever heard OF
corn breeder; and not only thinking
but thinking to some purpose, and
has fixed in his mind the type OF corn
adapted to his land. selected his seed
carefully, preserved its terminating
power by the proper means, and SO
without saying much about it has de-
veloped a type of corn adapted to his
farm. and all farms of the same gen.
eral character lying in his township.
We meet with these public benefac-
tors every now and then, and in al
most every part of the states that
have a considerable acreage of corn.
1t is, however, just as likely to be
some smart boy who has been attend
ing Judging school, or has been
reading Wallaces' Farmer or some
other good agricultural paper, and
who not only hears and reads, but
takes it into his young head to bring
things to pass. If this should stimu-
ulate any boy, either young or old,
or farm girl for that matter, to un-
dertake this work of corn breeding
for the good of the farm and of the
community, we have some suggestions
to make:
Get the best type of corn that you
can find, preferably some grown in
your own neighborhood. Select
twenty or thirty ears of this corn, as
true to type as you can get it. Avoid
as far as possible mixed types, an easy
thing to do when corn is in the ear.
Then select piece of land in good
ordinary condition, at some distance,
if possible, from the corn field in
order to avoid the danger Of cross
pollination.
Plant these ears in rows. If the
rows are, say, twenty rods long, plant
singles. If the patch is a square one
and the rows short, then plant
doubles; that is, plant two rows from
one ear Mark the cobs with the
corn that is left on them, and also
mark the rows If the rows are long,
plant row l with No. l ear, row
with No. 2. and SO on, being sure
first that the seed will grow, and
then planting the number of grains
in the hill that you think best
Three is enough on 3 foot incl
planter.
Then give some study to these rows
of corn. You will find that some OF
them germinate we'll. growing strong
from the start. Some do not germi'
nate SO well and grow weakly. Detas
sci all these weak rows. The boy is
likely to want to go fishing or camp
| ing out about the time the corn |!
tasseling. He should not do that
Stay at home, pull out the tassel!
every morning as they appear. Let
him keep close watch on these row!
till the end Of the season, noting
those that mature early and thos'
that mature late.
There is difference of opinion
among corn judges as to whether yol
should take seed from the detasselet
rows or from the rows on which tn
tassels are allowed to remain. Gu
own judgement is that this would de
pend on circumstances. If the rows
are all good it would pay to detasse
each alternare row, without regart
to quality, and then take your seet
corn from the detaSSeled rows If i
is one Of the even rows that you hav
Il mind TO detassel land it is the evel
rows that should be detasseled,
any, and it should prove to be defici
ent in stalk or in ears, in other word
If it should be a weak sister, W
would detaSsel it but would not tax
lseed from that row. You don't wan
to continue that inherited weakness
in growing power.
The argument in favor of taking
1.-THE seed from the detasseled rows
that these rows will not be self pol
lEpatad. that iS fhav will not he pO