The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1909-10-23
Wheat and Oats for Seed.
Prof. w. F. Massey.

ten In regard to the breeding and I'm
provement Of the seed Of corn and
cotton, there has been little said
about the Improvement Of the seed of
wheat and oats.
With these crops the farmer Is not
in position to do real breeding
work, though much has been done,
and more can be done, by experts in
this line or work. But the farmer
can do a great deal in maintaining
the character of the small grain he
sows. I was attending a county fair
In Maryland this week and was much
interested in the samples of wheat
exhibited. Unfortunately. even the
best samples this season are poorer
than usual owing to the unfavorable
season and the attacks of rust which
damage the foliage and, of course,
prevented the development Of the
grain. But even under these unfavor-
able conditions there was a great dif.
ference in the various samples of
wheat shown, even of the same varie-
ties. Samples shown by a wheat
grower, whose main business Is the
production Of seed wheat. showed
what intelligent care Of the seed
could do even in a bad season.
He had samples of the Dietz, Of
the Currill. and Of the old Fultz. The
Fultz showed the effects Of the sea-
son worse than others. and it is evil
dent that the bearded wheats are to
be more grown hereafter. for the
greatest damage to the yield this
season was done by the hard rains
that spoiled the flowers at blooming
time, and this was worse with the
bald-headed wheats than with those
bearded.
But 1t was evident that care in the
selection Of the seed has had a great
effect on the quality Of the crop. The
Dietz wheat grown by this seed grow
er was remarkably heavy even this
season. while samples Of the same va
riety shown by farmers who do not
take the same pains with the selec-
ton of the seed. were light in weight.
/ was at the farm of this seed
grower and noted the care used in
his tanning mill. The fan was on an
upper floor. and below there were
four chutes coming down. The first
one delivered mixture of light
weeds and grass seeds; the second,
light shriveled. wheat for chicken
feed: the third. what he called mill
Ing wheat. fairly clean sample of
wheat, and the fourth. delivered only
the largest. heaviest and plurnpest
graif-his seed wheat. He said that
some farmers were buying his milling
wheat and claiming that they Bowed
his wheat. and he stopped that and
refuses so sell this except to millers.
as he did not want to risk his reputa-
ton on any but his best wheat, and
In better seasons he usually makes 40
to As bushels per acre.
Now. while few farmers will go to
the extreme care that this man does,
or will have as complete machinery
for the purpose as he has, any one
can prepare his seed far better than
Is the usual custom. The tanning
mill properly used will enable any
one to get the heaviest seed for his
own sowing. and can be made to
clean 1t, too, from the worst weeds.
Take sample of oats as usually
bought, and in many cases you will
find what an ordinary observer would
call clean oats. But the man who
knows seed will look carefully at it
and will find that there are many
small grains that look like small oats,
and he will know these to be cheat
seed, and II the grain is sown, he will
find that 1t has turned to cheat" in
the spring, when 1t was cheat all the
time from seed to heading. Now, use
the fan thoroughly on that sample
and you can blow out all these seed
as we'll as many of the lighter weed
seed. With screens properly arrang-
ed and the fan energetically blown.
any farmer can prepare much clean
er sample Of seed than Is commonly
s"wn. 1t Is far better to blow ou.
the light seed than to SOW them to
produce weak plants. We want the
land occupied only by the strongest
plants, and the strongest plants are
produced only by the best Developed
seed.
Any one, with even the common
ran Will be surprised to find how
small percentage Of the wheat put