The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1910-04-06
ABOUT SEED GRAIN.
Care In Selection and Preparation
Means Greater Profits.

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Means Greater Profits.
An instructive booklet upon the
subject of seed grain has been re.
ceived by the River Press from the
Van Dusen-H Harrington Co., of Min.
neapolis, who submit the proposition
that "better farming is the great need
in this country, and better seed is the
arst step to better farming" The
booklet Gays 10 part:
Light, shrunken or weak seed of any
kind should never be sown. The best
and only safe varieties of seed for the
farmer are those that have already
proved themselves adapted to his 10.
cality.
Continuous growth of grain on the
same soil does not csuse degeneration,
but on the contrary, II proper care is
taken In culture aud seed selection
and the seed be kept pure, grain grown
for . long term OF years in any given
locality should become, with each
added year, better adapted to the
conditions peculiar to that locality.
Importation Of seed from q distance
should be resorted to only when it 10
impossible to obtain suitable seed
near home, or when some new variety
ts to be tested, which latter should
always be done on a small scale at
first.
Grain smuts cause an ANIMAL loss
in Minnesota and the Dakotas which
has been estimated at 10 per cent OF
the value Of the crop. The yield of
oats is often lessened 20 per cent.
Smut infection is carried by snutty
seed, not by smut spores that have
fallen on the ground. All varieties
Of wheat, oats and barley are subject
to smut, and all seeds should be
treated with formsldehyde. Make q
solution of one pound lone pint J Of
formaldehyde to As gallons of water.
Forty five gallons will treat about 100
bushels of wheat or 80 bushels of oats
or barley. After thoroughly cleaning
with . tanning mill, put the wheat,
oats or barley in a pile on the barn
floor. Sprinkle with the solution,
use an ordinary garden s%prinkling
can then shovel or rake over thor.
oughly. Leave the grain piled for
two or more hours and then repeat
the sprinkliug and %shoveling process
/ until unl oWo anita onno thn% o~~h
kernel has become wet.
1t is an advantage for the grain to
be kept In the pile over night after
treatment. because the chemical has
better opportunity to attack the smut
spores. Throw horse blankets over
the pile to keep in the fumes; other
wise the smut spores on the top grains
are not killed. Do not leave the grain
piled long enough to get hot. Dip
bags in the solution before sacking
the treated seed. The drill should be
set to SOW of this swelled seed
than you would sow if dry. One can
determine how much by measuring
before treating, and again when ready
to seed. Wheat swells about one. fifth
in bulk.
Sow only pedigreed varieties of
grain ii possible and keep them pure.
The market price 10 always better for
q pure wheat than for a mixture.
White oats are worth more than black
or yellow or mixed.
A plump, heavy kernel Of grain will
produce q stronger plant aud nourish
it better than will a shrunken, light
kernel. Many tests have proved this
and have also shown that heavy wheat
will yield about FIVE bushels more per
acre than light; and heavy oats about
eight or ten bushels more than light
pats.
Flax wilt is caused by a fungus
which lives year after year in the soil.
Land once infected by this fungus re.
mains infected for several years.
Fungus is introduced to new lands
chiefly by scaly, chaffy diseased seed.
Practically all fax seed contains the
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before sowing. Seed properly treated
will yield an increased crop. whether
the fax wilt fungus is present on the
seed or not.
Flax grown on Aax.sick soil tends
to become more resistent each year If
the seed is cleaned and only the heav.
lest and best seed used for sowing. II
this method is followed for three or
four years on aax.sick soil, almost
entirely immune seed results. Grow
your own seed. 1t will be better for
use on your farm than any which you
can obtain elsewhere. After grading
until only plump, bright seeds remain,
treat in the same manner as described
for wheat, oats and barley, except
that it 10 better to apply the solution