The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1910-11-01
PROF. p. c. HOLDEN.

DIES MONIES, Ia, Nov. THE
farmers OF Iowa are just making $780,
O0O. 600 by one days work each-or
an average OF $23S apiece for the 2l0,-
600 men at H.
Pretty fair price for days work.
They are making that phenomenal
" big salary by little attention to
selecting seed corn, according TO the
system devised by the states agricul-
tural experts.
An ear OF corn is such a little thing,
but ii has approximately 1000 ker-
nels. One thousand kernels make
or ruin-one thousand stalks. say
each stalk grows one ear OF corn.
-Eightp-aaES- make -buShel.--CoEa-i
worth so cents a bushel. and il your
600 kernels don't grow you are just
1925 out.
When you get TO thinking about an
ear OF corn like that, il all at once
looks like a big thing IL looks so
big 10 the state of Iowa that experts
from the agriculture college are go
ing around the state teaching the
ers.
Test your seed corn says Prof.
P. G.. Holden.
And the farmers are doing it, Each
one takes wooden box and fills 1t
TO a depth of three or four inches
with sawdust that has been soaked
aver night in a tub OF warm water,
packing it down and leaving a smooth
surface. Then he divides 1t into
squares of two and one-half inches,
by pieces of white sheeting. Each
square Is numbered.
From each ear OF corn selected for
seed. a kernel is taken from near the
butt of the ear, another from the
middle of the ear. and another from
the tip. Then the ear Is turned over
and three more kernels selected in a
like manner. The six representative
kernels thus selected are planted in
one OF the little squares in the box.
The ear OF corn is numbered TO cor
respond with the number Of the
square.
A week later the Iowa farmer ex-
amines the kernels he planted. II they
have terminated he knows that the
ear from which they were taken is all
right for seed corn. II some OF the
kernels have not terminated, he
knows it's a pretty safe bet the ear
won't do. So he sorts out the good
ears for planting next spring and
leeds the bad ears to the hogs
Iowa farmers did this a year age
with the result that Iowa had another
bumper crop OF 300 600, 600 bushels In
stead OF the 200 900, 600 bushels some
people predicted for the state when
fall by old Jack Frost
The extra 100,0O0000 bushels were
worth so cents a bushel-S50 000. 00C
TO pay the farmers for a days work
in testing seed corn.
Every year the State Agricultural
college sends out experts in a special
train to lecture to the farmers The
railroads like the idea and provide
the train, because scientific farming
increases railroad business.
The corn special stops at the
small country stations, and the farm
ers come from miles around TO heal
the experts, 20 ask questions, and L
absorb information
IlOi' VI - bO" mail ahOIHeI "a
pert on the corn special" preache!
/ the doctrine OF breeding corn jus
as the farmer now breeds his horses
| and cattle
Select so or 60 ears OF your yer!
best seed corn he says. Set aside
/ Ave acres for a seed patch. Just pre-
pare It for planting as you do tn
rest OF your corn fields. AS the kern
/ els near the butt and tip OF each ca
are usually stunted, shell them of
using only the best corn for seed
/ Plant and cultivate this patch alon
with the rest.
But Just as soon as the silk an
tassels appear you want 10 give tht
patch a little extra time. The sill
is the female portion Of the plant