The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1916-08-30

1,r+a Ga-The dime has come In
~o;o when successful cotton pro
.ior demands careful and persist
w. attention to the breeding of the
Iiabest type of seed, says the State
I'D of Entomology in a bulletin on
ao+tor breeding shortly to be issued
+ho information and advantages of
farmers of this state.
God seed, the department points
o.,+ is not only imperative in planting
~ meet boil weevil conditions, but to
1od,,ce strains that are resistant to
tbe many destructive diseases to
-hicb the cotton plant is subject in
s;Terent sections of the state.
Tor the benefit of Georgia's cotton
omers the department employs a
number of experts in cotton breeding,
-.,ose entire time is given to this
~ Among them are Ira W. VIII
wo,,s and C. A. McLendon, both Of
n'.ou, have furnished valuable data
~ the bulletin soon to be issued.
Troso experts are at the service Of
49,, farmer upon request, whenever he
nov desire their assistance in the mat
tor of producing higher and stronger
type of seed,
EVERY farmer should develop his
ovn cotton seed both to meet boil wee
vii conditions and to resist disease.
Tho reason for this is, as Mr.. Nc
Tendon points out, that the cotton
nlant is the product of two forces,
environment and heredity. Climatic
and soil conditions and methods of Gull
ture vary in different sections; there
fore the best seed for particular
locality is produced in that locality it.
self AS to heredity. selection be-
comes a comparatively easy matter,
because it involves simply the choice
from wear to year of the seed from
the nlant or plants which grow the
strongest. mature the earliest and man
ifest the greatest degree of resistance
Ito black root or wilt disease and 9th
g diseases attacking the plant.
For WeevI Conditions
Good "pedigreed" seed locally adapt
ed is absolutely essential, Mr.. Will
sliams points out, if weevil infestation
is very great By pedigreed seed is
meant that which extends back for a
number of years and which has been
developed as rapidly as possible from
single stalk
The proper method is to select say
fifty stalks of the variety considered
best and plant these fifty stalks in fif-
ty different rows; examine carefully
and study the different rows, and Sc
lect the most desirable and most pro-
ductive row. Increase this row into a
block and from the block into as large
an area as possible If this large area
does not plant the entire field, in
crease again the next year. Select the
Individual stalks each year from rows
or blocks of previous selection and re-
peat the method every year By this
means the farmer will have pedigreed
seed coming as close back as possible
from one stalk, and continuing this
process from year to year, the period
Of breeding will ultimately extend
through long number of years.
IF farmer is not willing to go to
the trouble of developing his seed by
this method, he should purchase one or
more bushels of seed each year from
some man near him who does do this,
and from such seed plant his entire
crop"
Adapted To Locality
The State Board of Entomology has
found by numerous tests that a va
riety Of cotton good in one section of
the state, is failure in another. That
is why it is most important to get
variety as well bred as possible that
is best adapted to the locality. The
seed chosen should be from stalks
which are absolutely free from any
signs of wilt or root knot. After
wilt resistant variety is secured, the
farmer should see to it that his cotton
is free from other diseases. If he is
compelled to lose some cotton from
the boil weevil, he can not afford to
lose it from any other cause. Among
the most destructive of these diseases
are angular leaf spot, or "black ARM"
as it is known by sea island planters,
winch is a germ disease, and anthrac-
nose, fungus disease, which is next
10 black arm, and, in conjunction with
H. the most destructive agency to the
DOLLS of cotton. These two diseases
are perpetuated in the seed, which
makes it of the highest Importance to
choose the seed from plants unaffect-
ed by them.
The type of stalk to be chosen IN
der boil weevil conditions is a small
stalk with as little foliage as possible,
out which should be equally productive
aS larger stalks. 1t should have me-
dlum sized bolls, because the greater
.ne number of bolls to the stalk, the
larger will be the number of them to
reach maturity free from weevil at
TACK. Unless a farmer is breeding for
length of lint and selling upon that
oasis, it is better to devote his energy
10 securing the highest per cent of
INT: This is largely matter OF in
dlVdual decision.
What is known as "mass selection"
may be practiced under certain condi-
uons with good results. This consists
IN going through the field and select
ing the seed from the healthiest and
W0St DrndIIPfivo ctaTIyc from O wilt rn-