Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-11-30
.g0KN|E ON S[EDGORN
CHAIRMAN STATE BOARD OF
CONTROL GIVES INFORMATION
OF VITAL INTEREST.
VERY EARLY SELECTED SEED
MOST CERTAIN TO GROW

Upon Tests Personally Made as Stu
dent Of Corn Growine-Found That
First Frost and Freeze Impaired
terminating Quality Materially.
Des Moines. Nov sO-Chairman
John Cownie of the state board of con-
troll. student of corn growing. has been
making tests to determine the best seed
corn. and has found that corn picked
before becoming fully ripened is by far
the best.
Corn fully glazed he said. after il
has become too hard for roasting ears,
is in The best condition for seed"
Mr.. Cownies statements are based on |
the test he made at the board of con-
troll office at the state house with corn
picked early and before fully ripenel,
and with corn picked fully ripened, but
gathered after the first frost.
For the benefit of the farmers NJ.
Cownie gave out the following inter
view on seed corn:
"Those farmers who neglected gath
ering and saving in a proper manner
the seed corn prior to the frost in the
first half on October the present year
will find that much of the seed corn
gathered since the frost is worthless.
its terminating quality impaired, ana
to plant it means a loss of a crop.
Realizing this condition 1 have been
testing corn the same as l do every
spring with the seed corn saved at the
state institutions under the board OF
| control.
THE test is simple and follows ma
lures method, cigar box being filled
| to within an inch of the top with earth.
| the kernels of corn then evenly dis
| tributed in the box, and it is then filled
| even full with earth, watered when
necessary, and kept in a moderate
| temperature. as near as possible to field
planting conditions in the spring of the
year.
! while visiting the state institution
| at Anamosa and Knoxville in the latter
part of october, and the early part OF
November, j selected a number of ears
for testing with the following result:
The Anamosa corn was taken from
a load Just husked and fairly good for
this year. having been planted about
the middle of May. and some of it was
dry and sound while some ears Were
quite soft merely hard roasting ears.
OF the soundest and best ears selected,
S per cent terminated. but it came up
very unevenly indicating impaired vi
tality.
tray1 400 a
who have not made study of seed
corn, the soft, green, immature corn
gave somewhat better termination,
showing per cent and a much more
uniform growth than the ripper grain.
Knoxville Corn Uneven.
while at the Knoxville institution
in the early part of November l select
ed a number of choice ears in the field,
the corn standing up and to all APP
pearances we'll ripened This corn
where the selection was made would
easily yield sixty or more bushels OF
good quality per acre, but of the two
selections made, one only terminated
} "A per cent and the other so per cent
the growth being very uneven.
Passing a feed store in Des Moines
the early part of November 1 selected
from a basket of new corn at the door
number of kernels that We're alst
tested with 10 per cent termination
but there was almost a week from the
time when the first stalk made its APP
pearance above ground until the last
lone made its appearance indicating q
very low vitality.
/ In striking contrast with these sam
!. pies of seed corn gathered after the
October frost, was test made OF soma
corn brought to the office of the board
of control by the superintendent o
state institutions at the Septembe
conference. This corn had been picke'
about the middle of September whel
quite green and had lain in our offic'
since then. d few ears have becom
modify on accout of lying too closet.
together.
"Of this corn fifty grains were select
. ed some of them from the moldy ear
that l would have rejected for seed i
the springtime, but notwthstandin
this condition, forty-nine kernels, o
/. ninety-eight per cent, terminated an
made their appearance above ground q
nearly the same time. showing stron
vitality and a vigor that would stan
cold wet weather in an inclemer
season and grow. what none of the 9th
er samples tested would do.
Should Gather Corn Early.
A There Is lesson to be learned froi
. this test and that Is that seed cor
should be gathered early, the last ha
= of September being the proper time
any and all seasons Corn fully glazed
in fact after it has become too har
for roasting ears, is in the best cor
dition for seed. And not only cor
but all farm seeds have much more VI
tally when saved for seed before be
. ing fully ripe.
1'It should not be placed in an out
: building, driveway, under a porch roo
or on wire stretched between tree
= as is often done, for in such places dun
ing wet weather the corn will absol
moisture and drying before the adve,
of cold weather, which is imperativ
is prevented.
Artificial heat is absolutely nece!
ed sary and we'll ventilated, dry bas,