Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1912-12-04
CARE OF SEED CORN,
II You Desire Good Domination,
Select In EARLY Fall.

| Clemson college, Dec. 2.--lt has
como to the notice Of the station
that from time to time in the spring
on a number of farms In the State
there IS a scarcity Of good seed corn.
The question Of how to prevent such
a deplorable condition then arises,
and the usual advice given for meet
ing this poor seed corn situation Is
to test the terminating power Of
each ear. This IS good advice when
1t does not become a yearly habit,
but the termination test Is very dis
couraging unless the seed corn Is
gathered and dried early in the fall,
thus causing the seed to retain full
! productiveness which the germna-
ton test cannot restore or even pro-
perly reveal. No matter how care
fully the seed corn may be tested in
the spring, the best seed and the
highest vitality cannot be had un-
less selection Of mature seed that
have all the characteristics Of good
yielding, acclimated variety, was be-
gun in the fall and good care taken
of 1T during the winter.
1t has been demonstrated that the
early fall use Of seed corn racks will
increase the acre yield Of corn by
several bushels on practically all
farms. The initial cost is slight and
the racks can be used for life time
when properly taken care Of and
stored away when not in use. The
sure way for the farmer to avoid US
ing land and labor in planting seed
of reduced productiveness is by Sc
lecting seed early and caring for 1t.
A small house could be built on each
farm so that the seed for all spring
planting could be kept therein. Such
house should he we'll ventilated
| and so constructed as to be in acces-
sible to rats and mice. This could
| be done by inverting common gal
vanized pan over the pillars. Then
; beginning about two or three feet
from the wall tier Of shelves Is
built upward from the floor. These
shelves are made preferably of stats
instead of solid plank, so as to allow
Of sufficient ventilation between the
ears. About six inches from this
tier another tier Of Slated shelves Is
built and so on in pairs across the
room. Two or three feet is left be-
tween each pair Of tiers to permit a
man with basket to pass through,
placing the ears on the shelves. The
husked ears are placed on these
shelves after selection in early fall,
and will soon dry out, thus lessening
all danger of freezing and thereby
loss Of vitality of seed in spring.
A cheaper initial cost can be had
by stringing heavy wire one and
half feet apart across from one side
If the building or in any dry, we'll
ventilated house on the farm and
hanging the corn up to these wires
by means of double string. The
ears are laid in the two strings,
which are then crossed, another ear
put on, and so on until the string
Of ears Is just about two feet from
the floor when tied to the overhead
wire. This method permits of per-
feet ventilation between the ears, but
the weight Of the undried corn some
times breaks the wire or pulls it out
from it's fastenngs.
! Another method in common use is
to use the upright wires Of an old
electrically welded wire fence. The
diagonal wires are cut off short
enough to reach about half the
length Of the ear, and tho ears of
corn are stuck on these diagonal
/ wires, tips upward. Usually these
wires are bent upward at slight
angle to give fiji mcr support for the
ear. These wires should be hung on
supporting wire as in case Of the
strings. When the building in which
; they are stored IS proof against ro-
dents, these wires can be hung on
nails from the cross pieces.
Any one Of these methods insurcs
| the farmer against moldy, diseased
corn and against seed Of low vitality,
caused by alternate freezing and
heating. II. II. Jeter,
Assistant to Director.
EnTlnrp Snnnfnp nnoI