Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-10-21
Agricul- Engt-

|
| 1a,4-95. OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 0 3Ie
1Soo-9G. ~ w
| lSSo3f - Eao
| 1897 -9S Observation-Disclosures. 10 300
| lS.,S-9o .............. Is 3OS
| lDOO-Ol- l39 ZIG
loOl W.. '.......... 90 4oi
| 1902 03. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 2S4 634
! l9O3-O4 Observation-Disclosures. 800 S26
| 1904 O5 Observation-Disclosures 400 9l3
| 1906 90 NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 43O 1.006
| l9o6-O7.. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. ATS 1.153
| 1907 -OS ............... 1925
Corn is a serious subject at the UnIver-
| sity of Illinois; first, because 1t is the
| chief product of that state, and second.
because 1t will yield more money value
per acre than any crop that grows. 1t
Is the greatest food crop we have In
America. Although the potato crop of
the United States is larger in bulk. corn
has many more uses than potatoes.
Wealth in Larger Ears.
DR.. c. S. Hopkins head of the depart
ment of agronomy at the university. who
is studying and experimenting on various
methods to make the corn crop bigger
than 1t Is, tells me some curious things
about corn. He declares that by adding
two rows of kernels to every ear husked
on the farms of the United States we can
| increase the wealth of this country mil
lions of dollars. There is no other way
in which it can be increased SO easily,
Each cob Of corn carries an even number
of rows always--from eight to twenty
four-and DR.. Hopkins has seen an even
larger number of rows on an ear Every
addit onal row represents many millions
of dollars. The number of kernels In the
rows on the ear Is not regular, but they
can be increased by cultivation. and that
means millions more of wealth to the
country A good ear of corn will carry
a thousand kernels. sufficient to plant
300 hills. which means about one-tenth
of an acre. for there are usually about
1900 hills to the acre. Each hill ought
to produce two ears of corn from three
kernels of seed. Planted three feet apart,
with three stalks to the hill. the yield will
be twelve bushels for every ounce Of the
average ear.
corn he has in his fed. II he takes an
ear Off the nearest stalk at random and
weighs 1t he can tell approximately how
! many bushels he can get from that field.
Experienced farmers in the corn belt OF
| Illinois calculate that they can harvest
twelve bushels to the acre for every
| ounce of corn on an average ear. II the
| ear weighs four ounces the field will run
| forty-eight bushels to the acre: II 1t
| weighs FIVE ounces the field will run sixty
| bushels to the acre; II it weighs six
| ounces they will have a bumper crop
| Of seventytwo bushels.
The Average Corn Crop.
| The average crop of corn In the United
States is twenty-seven bushels to the
acre; the average in the corn belt of
Illinois is forty-flve bushels to the acre.
But DR.. Hopkins asserts that 1t is posi-
| BILE to Increase this average not only to
| seventy-two, but to eighty bushels an
| acre-Many scientific farmers raise eighty
| bushels to the acre. and even no bushels
! by increasing the nourishment in the soil
| which the corn plants require for their
| development. The soil Of the cornfleld,
Prof. Hopkins says, needs much phos-
phorous, nitrogen and more potassium in
order to do Its best. The proportions of
these several plant foods should be regu-
| lated according to the purpose for which
the corn is to be used. Corn Is used for
hundreds Of purposes, chiefly for flour.
| meal, sugar, starch, dexterine, glucose,
corn-bran, OIL oil cake, gluten meal, glu-
ten feed, mucilage. making a substitute
| for India rubber and various other pur-
| poses The corncob Is used for pipes and
for making fiavoring extracts. and the
stalk is used for dozen useful things.
The latest use is as a substitute for wood
pulp in making wrapping paper.
II Some years ago corn was stranger,
said Prof. Hopkins I'VE found 1t here
yet, until fifteen years ago we took it for
II granted Then a close study of its in
dividuality and peculiar characteristics
demonstrated that it was possible to breed
up corn just as we improve animals. al
II though we have not yet learned how
to control the male parent. The impor-
lance of this may be appreciated when
we remember that the corn crop of the
country is worth a billion and a half OF
dollars every year-2,25O, OOO, 600 bushels
We are trying to get one ear of corr
to the stalk. That Is what we are work
ing for. because some stalks are barren
We don't know why. Various people have
various theories. but they have not beer
demonstrated.
4 Variation in Growth.
Take a hundred ears of corn, plant
them exactly alike, three kernels to the
hill, the kernels from each ear in a row
by themselves. in the same exactly soil
cultivate them the same way. and the
yield will vary a hundred per cent. We
cannot account for that variation, 1t is
impossible thus far to determine why
some corn will grow and other corn will
rot, but in planting farmer should al.
ways use the seed from the best ears. be.
cause that is likely to yield more than
the poor ears. But every ear of seed
corn should be tested by germinatins
pan during the winter. This is a new
thing, but it is being introduced rapidly
all seed men and the better class of farm.
ers are taking this precaution. None
of the big corn planters will use any but
tested seed
students by practical periments con.
Quoted in twenty-five different counties OF
the state of Illinois, as we'll as on the
campus of the university. The results
have been most satisfactory and they
are appreciated by the farmers. We
have corn breeders association in THU
state composed of twenty-five seed grow.
ers, and they are all working earnestly
with US In breeding up the corn of ILL
nois to the very highest quality and the
greatest possible yield"
Where are the big corn farmsr' ]
asked
The Biggest Corn Farm.
"The biggest corn farm know of be-
longs to David Rankin, in southwestern
Missouri. who has between twenty-five
and thirty MI taA 81 -