Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1925-07-04
AGRICULTURE
(By P. G. Holden)
NEVER PLANT IMPORTED
SEED CORN

Never plant seed corn grown more
than a few miles from your farm.
The nearer to your farm the corn is
grown the better the seed will be for
your use.
Corn brought in from other locali-
ties will not be adapted to the con-
ditions under which they are to be
grown and reduction in both yield and
quality and in many cases total fail
ure will follow.
Many will say that seed brought in
from a distance is just as good but l
wish to warn the farmers of the
United States-do not be fooled.
Regardless of all argument to the
contrary, thousands of tests made by
Experiment stations, by the govern
ment and the results borne out in
actual experience, prove beyond dis
pute that seed corn imported from
one state to another even if it be but
so miles away, will produce corn in
ferior in both yield and quality.
These facts are not the results of
one test in one year, in one locality,
but for a period Of eight years in SO
counties in Iowa with over six. thou
sand tests, and in not single case
do we find the imported samples equal
to the home grown seed. The home
grown corn in every test outyielded
the imported corn on an average of
20 bushels to the acre, or Al per cent,
and besides was of better quality. Out
of all these tests together with in
vestigations carried on by the govern
ment in % states, the results were
the same. There were instances where
inferior home grown seed produced a
smaller yield than imported seed Of
higher quality, but in every case the
average yield of the homegrown
seed was larger than the average of
the imported seed.
Will we ever learn to save seed :?
We can import potatoes, oats and
wheat but we cannot import seed
corn without paying the penalty.
It will be impossible to measure the
loss of land, labor, food and money
which will come to the people of this
country if we do not get into our
minds and into our hearts the i'm
portance of these facts. Do not think
you can try it and win out for you
will surely fail. Let no argument
turn you from truth.
/ would not discourage the intro
duction of an improved variety of
corn into any county or state. The
corn crop in the southern two-thirds
Of Iowa was improved and standard
lied by importing Reid's Yellow Dent
from Illinois. But it was done with
great care 1t required three or four
years to acclimate the new variety
and make it safe for the farmers to
plant it for their main crop.
I wish only to warn farmers that it
is not safe to import seed corn from
more than SO miles and depend upon
it for their main crop. In the first
place transportation charges and 9TH
err items make it expensive; in the
second place, the average yield is
never as high as when homegrown
seed is used.
Seed corn grown upon your farm
is best.
Do not conclude too soon that there
is no seed corn in your locality. Ask
your neighbors, your County agent,
banker, experiment station, Chamber
of Commerce, local paper-write to
your agricultural college. Do not i'm
port from the south under any cir
cumstances
If you must obtain corn from some
other source than at home get it from
your nearest neighbor, keep within
your own community, do not go out
side your county Get busy, do some
thing, but don't get crazy and go to
importing seed corn from a distance,
and do not plant kernel until you
have tested it. Test every ear and
don't guess. Do not import" These
things will determine your success.