The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1915-12-01
Get Acquainted with Your Corn.

trying 10 persuade our readers to get
acquainted with their cows. and q few
have listened to us and made their ac'
Quaintancc. Others have been indiffer.
ent or mildly interested, not enough
however, to impel them to make this
acquaintance that we desire them to
make. These have kept on losing mon.
ey every year on about third OF their
cows and making nothing on another
third
We have new song this year. one
10 which we are quite sure our readers
will listen; and that is: Get acquain.-
ed with your corn. We have never
seen farmers so much at sea on three
points: What, is the feeding value OF
corn? Will corn that went through q
temperature OF ten degrees below frost
maintain its terminating power? Will
this immature corn keep in the crib?
We made an examination OF quite a
number of corn fields about October
goth, and brought home various sam.
pies. Two samples were from q rather
heavy field of corn that was, frozen
when just about out Of the hard roast.
ing ear stage. Singularly enough, we
noticed two ears, one OF which COM
menced denting ut the tip and the 9TH
or at the butt.
We took number OF grains from the
middle OF these two ears and tested
them by the rag doll method. After
four days, fifty per cent OF the grains
from one car terminated and twenty
per cent from the other. but weakly.
From the middle OF the third ear, 100
PEI, cent terminated strongly. We took
another car at about the same stage
OF growth, weighed it and submitted it
10 oven heat for half an hour. At the
end of this time it had apparently
about the same percentage OF moisture
as No. 2 corn, the tips of the grains
being quite dry, but the bottom, where
they were attached to the cob, being
rather soft and difficult to shell. On
weighing 1t again, we found it had lost
10 per cent Of its weight. On shellinE
il and weighing the cob We found that
this ear OF corn contained 40 per cent
water, 80 per cent No. 2 corn and 30
per cent cob. We next took two sam
ples Of the grains and tested them,
viii, the result that none al them
eerminatGd. The heat Was probably
strong enough to kill the germ.
This is . very simple experiment
and any farmer can do 1t. Take q
sample of your corn in the field. or OF
|the#diiferent grades OF corn. Weigh
them, and put them in moderately
warm oven. The better way. however.
LIS to give q. slow heat. taking twonty'
foNr hours instead Of half an hour. TO
|eyaporate sufficient moisture to bring
Id TO the standard at No. 9 corn. That
will determine the amount OF excess
x-atar In your corn. by Smelling few
sample ears and Weighing tho cobs.
you can learn approximately the value
| 81 the corn. Tor. there is no feeding
value in the water, nor is there any
feeding value TO. speak OF in the cob.
1.-THE whole feeding value is In : the
grain, which Is less than onethird OF
lihD weight OF soft corn: as 1T stood AT
that time in tho Held.
Any farmer can do this: and ii, while
lhs lis doing il, he win take about q
bnshel OF this corn of any stage ana
1fill sup the oven with it after the wife
has done the baking. and dry y out,
1gay oyet night, or until he can shell Il.
and then take II tn some farm mill and
lhaye! it ground, he will have the best
lntAt afial for. earn meal nlush and fried
linush that he has had for many day.
1flk rite Will insist hereafter that this
Ills tho only kind OF corn meal ut for
mIAh ~, st.gS
LOS eo,,fsn there is in the Geld corn
lin all stages. some good enough fo'
lany year, some just denied. some ~
the roasting car stage. Farmers nave
written us that this corn was not dry
ling out, and tho cob not shrinking
IThis simple experiment Of ours shows
Iwhy tho corn was not getting loose OF
the cob. The ear OF corn. instead O
having not TO exceed ten per cent o.
water, as when dried out. had forty
'lper cent: and this excess must W
Idricd out.
y Don't take this experiment OF our:
4 as conclusive for your own corn: f0l
Iyou will have corn In various stages
i Va are simply pointing out how an,
IpersOn who il. at all interested can de
Itermlne for himself what pcr cent o
water. is In his corn, what per cent o
cob, whit per cent Ot corn on q No.
basis is in the car. He can also deter
jlnine whether frost kills the corn ant
TENDERS 1T unfit for seed, Us many DC
.llieyc, Of whether 1t will be good seet
jcOrn, IL properly, taken care OF. Gc
'Iaeauainteti, with your corn. II will pa!
,lyo,l even better than to get acquainted
with your cows.-Wallaces' Farmer.