Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-11-13
SPREADING GOSPEL
Of GOOD SEED
Some of the Lessons Learned
From the Corn Experiments
at the County Farm
SEED MEANS PROFIT OR LOSS
Evidence Produced That Some Farmers
Are Making Money on Their Corn,
Others Arc Losing on 500 Land
Methods Followed in Conducting the
Experiments.

The work carried on at the Marshall
county experiment station at the coun-
ty farm, under the direction of the de-
partment of agriculture extension of
the Iowa State College. has proved and
is proving to be of great benefit to the
farmers who are interested in better
methods Of farming. The work for the
year 1906 has just been completed and
many important lessons have been
learned. That all may gain some profit
from the experiments, some Of the re-
suits are outlined
The board of supervisors furnished
a field Of ten acres, which had been IN
clover the previous year, and had 1t
fall plowed and made ready for the
1906 crop. Superintendent Koontz and
his men began early in the spring to
get the soil in condition by discing
and narrowing thoroughly. In the
meantime, Mr. Wentworth, senior at
Ames College, called on the farmers Of
the county and procured from various
ones quart OF seed. this being taken
from the sacks from which the farmers
were planting their own fields, where
possible, so as to secure representative
samples of the seed being used. Mr..
Wentworth also secured seventy-two
Individual ears Of corn for the single
ear and kernel tests.
When the field was ready the plant
ing was done by hand for the farmers
variety test, three kernels being placed
in each hill and covered with hoe,
nearly 800 plots being thus planted.
System Of Planting.
The kernel test plots were planted
under the following system: In the
first plot, one kernel per hill; in the
second plot, one kernel in every alter
nate hill and two kernels in the others;
in the third plot. two kernels per hill;
in the fourth plot, three and four alter
nately; in the fifth, three per hill; IN
the sixth, three and one half per, hill;
In the seventh, four per hill; IN the
eighth, four and one-half per hill, and
in the ninth, five per hill. Plots for
for testing butt kernels, one for middle
kernels and one for tip kernels.
In the single ear test, the seed for
two rows was all taken from one ear.
All the plots on the entire field were
exactly the same size, each containing
Just one fiftieth of an acre. The plant
ing was all under the supervision OF
Mr.. Wentworth. The cultivating was
done by Superintendent Koontz and
assistants, and the field now shows the
work was thoroughly done. The count
ing Of the stand and of smutted stalks
was done by Mr.. Mead. The harvest
ing, weighing, grading and making OF
records was superintendent by nj. A.
Hauser. and the work has been most
thorough.
Weighing and Grading.
The weighing and grading was done
with a portable platform scale, Which
was attached to the wagon and was
Of sufficient capacity to hold all the
corn from one plot. With six men to
do the husking and one to follow and
inspect the plot to see that no ears
were missed, the work was rapidly ac-
complished The corn was then spread
out and the best ten ears were select
ed and thrown back in the hopper to be
weighed. All the marketable ears
were then selected and their number
recorded. The nubbins and all the
worthless ears were counted. From
the best ten ears those suitable Tor
seed were listed, tied and hung up for
future reference. The same metnod
was followed in all except In the ind1-
yidual ear plots, where twenty-five IN
stead Of ten ears were preserved
By seed ears is meant all ears OF
proper size for the variety being grad
ed-those we'll matured, with well
shaped kernels, even, true to type, good
and serviceable. BY worthless is meant
all ears and nubbins too soft to keep
in cribs or elevators, or with scatter
ing kernels over cob, moldy ears or
ears starting to sprout.
Wide Difference in Seed.
A very. wide difference was notice.
able in the producing qualities of the
seed used by the different farmers over
the county. each farmer had three
plots, giving him a fair trial over the
field. It was also observed, by the
number of seed ears taken from each
and the number Of worthless ears, that
there is very wide difference in the
maturing qualities, and that it is not
always the highest number of bushels
per acre that gives the most profitable
crop. Another conclusion reached by
the experiments was that while some
farmers are growing corn at hand
some profit on 500 land, others are
growing it at practically loss.
The kernel test was for the purpose
of determining the number per hill that
will give the best results. The in
dividual ear plots show the wide diff
ference in the breeding qualities, some
giving nearly double the amount of
grain for given amount of labor.
This is not only true in the ears secured
for the experiments, but in all seed
corn The Importance of good seed
has been conceded but the experiments
prove the Importance Of the best seed
procurable.
MYERS TO VISIT OLD PRISON.
Written Man Will Enter AndersonviIle
Under More Favorable Circumstances.