The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1915-03-13
FARM DEMONSTRATION NOTES.
Written by the Farm Demonstration
of Atlantic County, Elwood Doug
lass.
7 SEED CORN.

Every farmer before planting the
corr that he stored in the fall for
seed, should make a second examina-
ton in the winter, and then test the
ears that he expects to plant. To
make the examination before testing
he should place the ears on a board,
tips all pointing one way, then sort
out the best shaped ears, keeping in
mind the shape and size of the kerr
nels. We do not want the large,
broad or thick ones, or the narrow,
slender ones, but we do want the me-
dunn size kernels that are we'll de-
veloped, filled out and firm, not shriv-
eled.
After selecting the best ears take
a knife and pick four kernels from
different parts of the ear.
There are a number of methods
used for testing, but / think the best
method to use is the termination box.
To describe the box briefly, it is this
| Take a box IA x IA inches or 20 x 20
inches square, a inches deep, place
moist soil in the box even with the
top, then take and drive small nails
around the top of the box, l inch
| apart, leaving about IL inch Of the
nail above the edge of the box, then
take some string and tie around one
| corner nail and stretch across the
box, back and forth from one nail
to the other, after you have covered
| the box one way cross the other way,
then after completed you will find
you have a number of squares meas
uring one inch. Before placing your
four kernels in the square, number
each ear and also each square, and
in that way you can tell just which
ear each of the four kernels belong.
After the ears are all numbered,
place the kernels in the soil and cover
with less than IA inch of dirt, moist
en- the soil well on top and cover to
keep from drying out, then place the
box in a warm place and moisten ev-
cry two or three days and at the end
of ten days examine the kernels and
notice the vitality of the individual
ears. For instance, if two out of four
kernels fail to show any evidence OF
termination it would indicate that
only half of that individual ear would
grow, and if such an ear was planted
you would only have a so per cent.
stand, which would mean less than
half a crop. Any method that will
enable a corn grower to determine ac-
curately the percentage of germina-
ton of each individual ear can be
used in subjecting the corn to the
test and will be one of the greatest
factors in increasing the yield as well
as the quality of his corn.
This telegram was received a few
days ago at the Experiment Station
in New Brunswick, N. j., and | would
advise all who are interested in po-
tato growing to take special notice
of this telegram:
"The rapid spread of powdery scab
disease in Aroostook County, Maine,
and the difficulty which has develop
ed in detecting by any practicable in
spection the presence of slight infec-
ton with this disease has led the De-
partment to discontinue further Ger
LITIGATION of seed stock from the in-
fected districts in Maine and New
York. The public should be warned
that all seed potatoes hitherto shipped
from infected districts in Maine and
New York may contain powdery
scab whether certified or not. The
only federal certificanon of potatoes
as a condition of interstate move
ment from the infected districts here
after will be as table stock potatoes