The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1909-08-12
SELECTION OF
SEED GRAIN
is OF VITAL IMPORTANCE TO
FARMERS.
SUPT. A. E. CHAMBERLAIN
TELLS HOW AND At WHAT TIME
TO SELECT SEED GRAIN.

A. r.. Chamberlain of this city, sup
erintendent Of the farmers institutes
of the state and one of the best post.
ed men in the Northwest on farm
conditions, especially in South Dakota,
contributes the following on the pro-
curing of seed grain:
An article appeared in a MINNEAPOLIS
paper August 2 announcing the sale
In that market of carload of new
wheat from South Dakota. It proved
to be winter wheat shipped from be
tween Canton and Sioux Falls and
tested 611a pounds to the bushel. 1t
seems pity that with the demand
| there is in this state for superior seed
grains, and particularly for winter
wheat west Of the river, this excellent
quality Of native grown grain should
be shipped from the state Experience
es with winter wheat In this state
have varied materially in different sea-
sons. Some have had remarkable sue
cess. while others have met with
failure.
Doubtless most Of the failures have
resulted from not sowing early enough
In the fall to permit the wheat to get
a good top and root development be-
fore winter sets in. Winter wheat in
| this state should not be sown later
than September TO- normal seasons,
and If it gets too heavy a top, so as
to endanger smothering, should be
grazed off with brood sows or light
cattle, when the ground is perfectly
dry or after freezing. 1t will, how
ever, seldom need grazing.
| The special object of this article,
however, is to call attention of the
farmers to the importance Of procur-
ing the best possible seed grains while
1t is most easily done. In nearly every
community every farmer has super
ior quality Of oats, barley, wheat, fax.
etc. He will almost always be will
ing to sell this to his neighbors at
his granary at what he could get for
1t at town. In buying It the neigh
Dor farmer knows whether or not 1t is
free from foul seeds. Large sections
of this state have been seeded with
mustard, morning glories, cockle-burr,
quack grass, and other foul weeds by
sending away at distance for seeds.
The farmer who had early varieties OF
oats and barley, and sowed them early
in a good seed bed, escaped the re-
cent hail storms, or at least had his
grain in shock. His neighbor who
| sowed late varieties of these grains
lost all of his crop. Almost every
summer about harvest time, or dur
| ing 1t, sections of this state are visit
| ed by hail. The cheapest insurance
we know of, or rather partial insur-
| ance, is sowing early varieties Win
ter wheat, winter rye, or spring rye,
sown early. early varieties Of oats,
barley and speltz sown early on we'll
| dl aimed land can nearly always be
matured before our disastrous hail sea-
| son, and suffers very little damage IL
| well shocked. This early varieties al
most invariably give the best returns
| in this state. In seven years expert
ments at the college, early oats gave
an average yield Of twenty bushels
to the acre more than any of the later
varieties, These were the Lincoln
oats, also known as Kerson, Sixty
Day, Early Russian and by some other
names. There are some of these
grown in nearly every community
Why not produce seed of these differ.
ent kinds Of grain now while 1t can
be done cheaper than it can be later?
If some slick stranger would come
along offering you wonderful oat
with big name, million Dollar, that
would mature early and yield twenty
bushel to the acre more than the later
varieties, many farmers would pay S.
bushel for some of the seed. Some
neighbor of yours has just such a
variety of oats. Why not deal with
him? There is also great difference
in the quality of the wheat grown by
different farmers. If yours is not the
best, just own up to it, and go to your
neighbor and get something that is
better.
If you have some seed OF some
especially good variety. be neighborly
enough to try and get 1t used in your
community without charging two or
three prices for It, You can well af-
ford to sell 1t to your neighbor for
the same price it would bring at the
elevator. We hope that farmers will
take hold Of this matter and try to
improve the quality of the seed for
the next springs sowing. All of the
elevator companies operating In this
state. ana especially the farmers ele-