Lower coast gazette., 1909-03-06
Seed Corn.

Seed Corn.
It will soon be in order to plant corn in South Louisiana. In
fact, the best time to plant corn has been stated by old corn
planters to be the last week in February. Sugar corn, however,
occasionally gets cut down by March frosts and it is thought by
many to be better to plant early in March, rather than to plant late
in February. The one conclusion generally admitted is that the
corn should be planted very early ia the season, so as to get a
growing season better adopted to successful corn growing than is
the intense heat Of the latter summer. 1t is therefore thought that
March corn will give better results than April Or May corn and
June corn would ordinarily be a failure, were it not for the intro
ductlon of the tavorte variety now known as Mexican June corn,
which does not seem to do we'll when planted as late as June.
Another reason for early corn planting is the fact that in our
cane fields where corn is planted as a rotation crop and where
peas are planted with the corn as q fertiizng crop, it is very de-
siable to have the corn rpen by the first of August, or any way
by the middle Of August, so that it can be gathered then, without
any risk, and fall blowing be begun at once. Our autumn weather
seems to be as uncertain in its character as any of the rest Of our
somewhat changeable climate and fall blowing is such an essential
to successful agriculture that it is wiser to begin earlier than usual,
rather than to take chaaces OF beginning later and often to find
it then impossible Of doing at all. Corn planted in April will fra
quently meet these conditions, but it is better to have it done in
March, if it be possible,
Recently Mr.. Aaron Coffee, known as The Old Cotton Planter
Of Mckinney, Texas, y read a paper before the Texas corn grow
ers' association at Sherman and in this he took up the question of
seed corn and deplored the fact that many good farmers in Texas
felt that they should send off to the North every few years to get
fresh seed corn. In a general way it is thought wise with nearly
all crops to get the seed from a climate with a shorter growing sea-
son, as in that way the plants from such seed seem to grow more
rapidly than those that have been grown in the warmer localities
for many generations. Northern corn brought South gives big ears
ndsmall stalks and grows rapidly. When planted with peas, how
ever, til very apt to be run over entirely by the peas, and much Of
the corn becomes lost in the harvest season. Corn from northern
seed, grown in the South, after the first year gradually increases
in the stalk growth and in the size of the cob. The taller growth of
the stalk Isl preventive of injury from the cow peas planted in
the field, but the large cobs, as compared with the smaller cobs in
the western corn, is a distinct loss, but one perhaps necessary if
we secure the advantage of the larger stalk.
We might here call the attention of our friends to a proof of
ripeness in corn from a South Louisiana point of view. In the
West much corn is cut and shocked in the fields while the leaves
are still green. Being shocked in the field the corn can dry out
without moulding. In Louisiana corn is generally gathered in the
slip shuck, to keep the weevil from attacking it, and when 50 gath
cred it s at once housed and, 50 far as we know is never shocked
in the corn fields. 1t is therefore necessary to leave it on the
stalks until every part of green color about the leaf or stalk of the
corn has disappeared and the complete yellowing of the whole
plant shall have arrived. It not that the corn may look right
enough, but the fact is that it is only when all the greenness shall
have disappeared that the cob becomes sufficiently dried to admit
of its preservation in the corn cribs without moulding, If the cob
contains moisture perceptable to the eyes, in our ATTITUDES it is
practically sure to mould,
Referring again to the matter of seed corn, Secretary Coburn.
who declined an appointment to the United States Senate when
rendered to him by the Governor of Kansas, in order that he
might remain Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture of Kan
ss, has been endeavoring to induce the corn farmers of Kansas
to be more particular about the seed corn used in that state. He
holds that the corn crop Of Kansas can be increased millions of
bushevs if the seed be carefully selected. The favorite corn seed
in lower Louisiana has generally been sound, yellow corn coming
from the New Madrid
seems to do extremely weuin Louisiana. On the other hand much
of the corn that comes to Louisiana from the West, and particular,
ly from far up the country and to some extent from Nebraska,
has been kiln dried, in order to insure it's keeping qualities. The
corn may be preserved by kiln drying, but the germ of the corn is
usually destroyed by the very considerable heat used in the kiln
drying. On this account it is very necessary that those buying
seed corn should see to it that tt is not kiln dried.
If we in Louisiana would give that care and attention to the
production that is given to this great crop in Indiana, Illinois,
Iowa and the western states generally we. would surely harvest
double the number Of bushels per acre that we now do. It now is
the tail end Of our crop work, our other standard semi tropical
crops have the precedence wherever farm or plantation work is
going on. Let us all try to do a little better in our corn culture.
Bob Ingersolls Apostrophe to Whiskey.
There are two gems in the English language that deserve to
be preserved, one Bob lngersolls Apostrophe to Whskey, and the
other Senator Vests Apostrophe to the Dog. We give below Bob
lngersolps on Whiskey and it shows what wonderful control of the
English language that famous man had. On the other hand
we must. says that whis key has its dark side, and had he been
so disposed, lngerspll could have pictured the signs and tears Of
women, the cries of children, blghted hopes, despair and suicide
and all the sad things that whiskey sometimes brings, He choose,