Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-01-28
IOWA FARM NEWS And NOTES


to which they are adapted. but gets
them into a section where they will
not mature, except in q very hot, dry
season like 1914,
The farmers over the entire corn
belt will have more or less trouble
with their seed corn this year, for the
reason that there was a marked DELI
cheney in temperature last year. Corn
Is semi tropical plant, and can not
thrive where there Is not tropical
weather during from two to three
months in the summer. In other words,
you can't grow good crop of corn
any year in a country where you have
to sleep under blankets in the sum-
mer, This soft corn, II picked be-
fore frost, and properly kept has ger
minating qualities Some of our north
ern Iowa farmers, who piled their corn
around a stove pipe, and did not pro-
vide for ventilation, have discovered
this thru the sprouting OF the corn
before it had dried out. The germinat-
ing power was there; and had there
been sufficient ventilation to carry Off
the moisture brought out by the heat,
1t might have been saved. When you
are drying out corn, there must be free
circulation of air, or the heat may be
so great that the corn will .sprout pre-
maturely.
The greatest difficulty is In central
and northern Iowa. We anticipated
this in midsummer, and suggested 1t to
Eour readers. We knew it was a cold
summer. We did not know how long
it would continue to be cool, but we
knew perfectly well that If it stayed
cool thru July. August, and into Sep
TENDER, the corn would be soft and in
ferior in quality. and that securing
seed corn would be a very difficult
matter. Not being prophet, we could
not tell what would happen; but, as IN
insurance against failure of seed corn,
we advised our readers who had good,
sound corn of the crop of 1914, to go
into their cribs and select about twice
as much seed as they INTENDED to
plant in 1916. We doubt If we ever
gave better advice than this, aitho
some of the corn experts secuted the
; idea.
Our readers in the soft corn belt
are up against very difficult problem.
Some of them, who have not fallen too
deeply in love with the big ear of corn,
but have grown corn that will mature
fairly well even in cool summer, ard
have taken care of their seed corn, will
not have any trouble. Their corn may
not be big enough for the climate this
year, in case we should have Il hoc
summer with sufficient rainfall.
Where there is any difficulty about
getting germinable seed of the crop OK
s1915, We believe the best thing to do
is to search the county over for corn
fof 1914, sort out the very best of it,
tthen test it at once ear by ear, as the
corn experts do, and be sure of getting
seed corn adapted to the CLIMATE. 1t
will not do for us to go into bin Of
/ old corn, buy it as it is. take it as it
comes, and plant without testing. The
fonly safe way is to test it ear by ear.
AS hushel of corn will pant ABOUT
EIGHT acres, you can afford ID. spend
So in buying corn and testing it, If by
i so doing you get corn that is sure. to
grow. Good seed corn will not BIZ
cheap this spring. and in the soft corn
fsections you are lucky If you can get
good corn adapted to the climate, at
less than 81 or IS per bushel.
I We are glad to know that in SOM. IF
1.-THE counties, the farmers are taking
sthis up in a business way, securing tie
&county for good, sound corn of the6crop
iStest it. That is the only safe way
to do. @
There will be great risk IN buying
corn from the south. and considerable
| risk in buying it from far north. We
| have no doubt there is good seed corn
+ in Minnesota. but the farmers. Of Iowa,
should grow largerstyp than Mime
sofa, except on her southern border.
What we want Is corn that in 4 normal
season will nature before frost; and
corn grown in the same county, in the
same elevation of latitude, will do bet.
ter than as good corn grown in some
other county, with little different soil,
latitude or elevation. This matter has
been tested out at the various expert
ment stations, and we have given in
The above the result of their investiga-
lions and experiments.
W We once brought some corn from
Pennsylvania to one of our Iowa farms.
1t was an ideal type of corn; and yet
as we watched it from week to week,
at seemed to us to be like boy or girl
away from home for the first time. and
not yet acquainted in the new neigh
borflood. 1t has seemed to us some
times as IL corn had almost human In
stincts, a sort of intelligence
We don't know of any better advice
that we can give to our readers in the
soft corn regions than we have given
in the above. 1t won't do for them to-
quit growing corn because we had a
cool summer, nor will 1t be safe for
them to take chances in bringing seed
corn from far south. The only thing
we can advise them to do is to hunt up
some good corn Of the crop Of 1914,
which was remarkably sound and ma
tured early. Even then, don't take any
chances on the termination, but test 1t
thoroughly, and care for it as you do
the heirlooms of your family. Much of
your success in growing corn this year
depends on this. Failure to grow a
good crop of corn is a calamity, even
Il there be recompense In superior
crop of oats. barley or wheat due to
the same causes that produced the
crop of soft corn.
Good Prices at Farm, Sales.
Eagle Grove, Jan. 2S.-Frank Nc
Daniels purchased about two carloads,
- n