Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1908-12-11
Mistrllaneous Rraaine.
SEED CORN GROWING.

SEED CORN GROWING.
York County's Corn Production Can
Be Tremendously Increased on Pres
ent Acreage.
A suit was brought in an Illinois
court by a man who had recently pur-
chased a dairy herd Of fifty milch cows
covered one Of the cows to be barren.
She would not produce calves and
therefore was worthless on a dairy
farm. The point Is that the dairyman
found that he was supporting a cow
3 per cent Of his herd-at an abso-
.uIe Ioss and lie cunsiuered The matter
u enough Importance to bring SUIT.
OF course upon hndlng out the
conditions he immediately weeded her
out OF his herd.
How many farmers, stOck-growers, or
plant growers are sure that they do
IIut need to apply the wedding out pro-
cess, perhaps to a far greater extent
tnan did the dairyman? The subject OF
tnis article is corn growing and there
Is probably no American crop where
Che wedding out Of poor methods and
poor seed by the growers would pro-
uuce a greater increase in profits. Corn
Is our greatest crop, with an estimated
yield this year of over two and half
billion bushels, yet the average
tor the United States never runs
above 80 bushels per acre, while in
some states 1t is as low as 13 bushels.
Not only the average good corn field,
out all except the very best few fields
contain not the 2 per cent Of the dairy
man, but 7 or per cent Of barren pa
rents, and yet 1t is one Of the simplest
matters imaginable to reduce this item
Of dead loss by at least one-half. BY
this and other not more difficult pro-
cesses the yield Of corn can be increas-
ed 10, 20, 80 and even more bushels
per acre. The barren stalks constitute
one Of the reasons why the corn yield
for this year is estimated by the bu-
reau of statistics of the department of
agriculture at only 263 bushels per acre
for the whole United States; but there
are several other causes for this small
average, most Of which are largely
within the control Of the corn grower
who will give little intelligent study
to the subject of breeding his seed
corn. Breeding seed corn and largely
Ia alI 10 cf
blem in farm management and lies
within the province Of every individ-
ual farmer 1t Is not a complicated
question like breeding up wheat seed,
results will prove most gratifying and
profitable after a single year and will
continue with each year Of breeding.
The necessary expense Is practically
nothing.
The variation in different stalks and
ears of corn Of the same variety Is the
most distinctive trait Of this crop. At
the same time corn comes remarkably
true to the seed ear and in this fact
lies the ease with which the yield can
be Increased.
Many farmers carefully select fine
ears from the bin and rub off the poor
kernels from either end, or better yet
even pick good seed ears from the field;
but this Is not going far enough. 1t
will be money in the corn growers
pocket to grow his own seed patch and
;r l.,
ment he will increase his general corn
yield, after the first year by a very
large percentage. The corn plant pro-
duces both male and female organs.
The pollen from the tassel vitalizes the
silk on the ear and this produces the
kernels To prove It, tie bag over a
corn ear before 1t has silked and the
result will be that no kernels will de-
velop. Now where corn Is self-pollinat-
ed it is inbred, and like all inbreeding
the result Is bad All corn ears 10 be
saved for seed should be polinated
from other stalks This Is one thing
to provide for; another Is proper selec-
ton. Two ears Of perfect looking corn
may produce widely different yields;
but when a good strain Is once estab-
lished, having the various characteris-
tics which make 1t most desirable,
succeeding generations, II the strain Is
kept pure, will come remarkably true
to the parent. If start Is made with
an ear Of highly productive corn the
following generations will all be high
" productive. "The open secret Of a
good yield Of corn," said G. P. Hartley.
the most prominent \Jrn breeding eX.
pert Of the department Of agriculture.
consists In causing each stalk In theI
6eld to produce at least a good ear.
At first glance, it would not sAem very
difficult to get an average OF one good
ear to every stalk and not beyond the
bounds Of possibility to get an aver
age OF one and half ears per stalk.
But just figure out, if you please, what
would be the result of this on an acl..
Corn is planted in different ways In
various parts of the country. Take,
for example, where the stalks stand is
inches apart in rows 81 feet wide, this
will give S,297 stalks to the acre and
if each stalk bears an ear weighing a
pound the yield will be 122 bushels OF
ear corn per acre (6S pounds to the
busheD. This Is worth working for,
if your average is not better than that
for the entire United States. But you
may be farming In the richest part CT
the corn belt and already produce $50
bushels of ear corn per acre, possibly
200 bushels. There Is still room fol
great improvement. If you can make
every stalk average two 1-pound 'rrs
your acre yield will be 244 bushels of
ear corn. In some splendid corn fields
where the yield Is $50 or possibly zoo
bushels Of ear corn per acre there Will
De found many stalks producing two
and a less number producing three
good ears each. In such fields the
aim must be to breed to secure all two
and three ear stalks. Unless special
attention has been given to seed corn
there will be found in the most pro-