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Show HOME COURSE IN SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE i SIXTEENTH ARTICLE. 'FARMERS' CORN TESTS. I By Professor C. P. NOROORD of the Col- I lege of Agriculture, University of Wisconsin. TIIB purposo of tho farmers' corn tests Is to cmpbaslzo tho Importance Im-portance of proper curing, stor-I stor-I age and planting of good seed torn and tho value of using high yielding yield-ing varieties. This wns accomplished by gcrmlnntlou and growing tests on tho demonstration farms of each farmer's farm-er's corn, showing tho great losses bub-tulned bub-tulned by farmers with prqont practices. prac-tices. Samples of farmers' seed corn a.s planted by them wcro secured from twenty-flvo farmers surrounding each demonstration farm. Each car of this was tested for germination and n record rec-ord kept of the same at tho station at Madison. One hundred nnd fifty kernels ker-nels of each farmer's corn wero planted plant-ed In duplicate rows In different parts of ono of the demonstration fields. I.Tho land was carefully selected bo ns to bo uniform in fertility nnd drainage drain-age and ns f rco ns possible from anltnnl and insect enemies. Tho corn was 'planted aftor May 15 to avoid cold rains and packed soils. Tho exact 'stand wns determined from tbo number num-ber of stalks appearing from tho 150 kernels planted, nnd later the.yiold of each man's corn was secured. Samples of "station bred, kiln dried corn wero planted bcsldo the farmers' corn and !woro taken as standards for comparison. compari-son. Considering tho relntlvo yielding power of different varieties, Farmer A. at Oshkosh found that his snmplc, a mixturo of flint and dent, with a Btand of 87 per cent, gavo a yield of 27.0 bushels per acre, whilo his neighbor's Golden Glow corn, with a stand of PI iMmmmmmWISxLmmJKtmm TiiWmmlmmm f M-F1! &?&& TmWimlS -immmk WVmU t&maE&&mmt?TMJ'3w!mmmmVi SfflKiSF' '. IBBBJI ythW "'-illir BBSS ' Photo by Collcgo of Agriculture, WIscon- sin State university. roon McrnoD op ounma seed cork. ier cent, gavo 77.1 bushels, a difference of 40.5 bushels per acre, duo to a low yielding variety. At CO cents por bushel Farmer A. lost $24.75 per acre. 1 It has been demonstrated that yield 'corresponds very closely to stand and that stand depends largely upon the vitality of tho soed as Bhown by tho gorralnatlng test. Ono of tho factor determining tho vitality and yield. li storage, Tho effect of storago of seed corn was strikingly illustrated by two Ban pleo of Silver King .corn grown side by sldo at Oshkosh. Farmer B.'s Silver King corn, field cured and otored on tho outside of n pump 'houso, gnvo a Btand of 00 per cent nnd a yield ol forty-ono bushels per acre. A flra dried Bamplo of Silver King from the station grown next to it, with a stand of 00 per cent, gnvo a yield of 85.7 .bushels per aero. Farmer B. lost forty-four forty-four bushels, or $22 per aero In othoi (words, ho secured only half n crop because be-cause of poor caro of seed. ' One bushol of corn will plant six acres. For every busholof this corn that Farmer B. used ho suffered a losi on six acres of $132. Had, Farmer B. cured and stored the flvo bushels ol soed corn used by him In 1000 according accord-ing to tho best method bo would hrtv lncrensed his lucome from this thirty acres by $000., This sum thereforo represents rep-resents tho value to him of curing Ave bushels of seed corn, or a valuo of $133 per bushel. Considering tho avorago results ol tho Ave best and flvo poorest samples, wo And that tho flvo best samples averaged av-eraged 78.8 bushels, or $30.15 por aero, Whllo the flvo poorest samples oven aged 00.7 bushels, or $10.85. The average aver-age loss sustained by each of tho farmers farm-ers using the flvo poorest samples wai thereforo $10.30 per aero. Tho lowest germination, 1 per cent, was that of corn standing In shock 'during, tho winter. This did not dry out well in the fall. The cells of this corn wore thoreforo subject to frequent 'froezlng nnd thawing while distended with water. As a result of this many of tho colls burst, thus killing the germ and lowering tho germlnution. It it noticeablo that fire dried corn did not suffer so macb, nor corn cured In well ventilated garrets or rooms In houses, tha germination of tho former being 0C per cent. This corn had tho high per ceutugo of molsturo romoved lmm .1 dlately after coming ' from tho field and could therefore withstand freezing and thawing without Injury. The aver-aga aver-aga germination of need corn throughout through-out the state for 1009-10 -as shown by theso samples Is 05.0 per cent. Tin average stand secured from this corn was 60.B per cent Seed corn dried with artiflclnl hen I in well ventilated rooms dtt'ig th first two or three weeks aftei picking gives the btgbest germination, mi average av-erage of 01.5 per cent for the two years. Next to this 1b corn cured in furnnco rooms -with open windowi where the beat was applied immediately immediate-ly after bringing the corn from th flold. Well ventilated rooms and gnr-rots gnr-rots with more than one window gav germinations of 80.5 per cent and 81.0 per cent respectively. ;Corn cured under un-der porches protected from reins gav 70 per cent; com In barns, tool houses, etc., 00 por cent Tho granary has proved a snare and delusion to many a farmor who thlnki this is a good place for drying seed corn. Tho molsturo from tho grain Id granaries, like tho moisture from animals ani-mals In bnrus, enters the cells of thi corn, nnd tho freezing weather whlcb follows destroys its vitality. Wind mills nnd the outsido of buildings and corncribs proved tho poorest places to euro soed corn. In this study of seed airing tnucb corn wns found which was destroyed by lying In piles or standing in sackt for a short time nftor busking. Tin only safo way of curing seed corn U thereforo to plnco tho corn lmmediatclj aftor picking in a well ventilated room and apply artificial heat for from on to three weeks. Tho grading of tho seed, the calibration" calibra-tion" of tho planter and the weather and soli at planting time arc, of course, other factors which have their influence. influ-ence. Tho greatest variation, a dlf-forenco dlf-forenco of 13 per cent Is found In tho case of corn stored In-grunnrles. The average germination of all kinds of corn for 1000-10 la 05.0 per cent, and the average stand Is 50.5 per cent very closo parallel. Tho methods for securing good seed corn and obtaining a good stand ore, briofly, using n high yielding variety sufficiently early to mature In the locality lo-cality whero grown; selecting only well ripened, perfect cars from vigor-outt vigor-outt stalks before tho entire Held li rlpo; storing each ear separately; drying dry-ing with artificial heat In a well ventilated ven-tilated room immediately after picking; pick-ing; testing each car for gormlnatlon; grading the seed and calibrating tho planter to Biilt each grade of corn; growing seed corn from well selected seed in seed plots where barren stalks may bo removed. Tho spacing of rows and hills of com and tho number of kernels per bill vary with latitude and soil iertillty,andl tho variety. Tho rlcpcr- thealLife closer can tho eo7h'boAlnnFed; . -"""! Special emphasis lias beon placed .upon harrowing corn several Urn'?? Boon after plnnUng and In cultivating corn with Binglo horse culUvntorsJ when tho corn is tasseling and setting set-ting ears. Caro has been exercised at this cultivation to run the cultivators shallow to avoid cutting the roots whlqh at this tlmo como very close to tho surface. Shallow, lovel cultivation cultiva-tion practiced at a number of places particularly -fifter showers during the drought of midsummer formed dusi mulches and conserved the soil molsturo mols-turo for the use of tho, corn. Inquiries nt farmers' meetings Bhow-cd Bhow-cd that only 20 por cent of tho farmers In tho state owned fanning mills. The losses from weed seeds annually Intro- duccd on a farm through uncleaned grain would amount to mora than the cost of a fanning mill. A sufficient supply of grains for seed purposes should be carefully cleaned soon aftor thrashing and stored In small bins, whero danger of heating 1 removed. Too often tho seed is prepared pre-pared Immediately before seeding time, taken from tho bottom of large bins, whero heating nnd bin burning have lowered the vitality, and sown without cleaning. "Pin oats," tho Bmall kernels of oats, multiply, much more rapidly than the larger kernels. Where tho small kernels ker-nels are not removed from the seed by stoves and wind tho size of kerne) thus rapidly diminishes. Grains thuf "run out" by n lack of caro and cleaning clean-ing of the soed rather than from the causes to which this condition is commonly com-monly attributed. At all of tho farms tbo method ol treating seed gralus with formaldehyde for tho eradication of smut was dem oustratcd by actual application to grain at the meeting and to seed grain used during tho season. Tho solution used consisted of ono pint of -10 pet cont formaldehyde mixed with thirty-sir thirty-sir gallons of water. The solution wai placed In a barrel or tank, and the grains placed In gunny sacks wero submerged sub-merged In this for ten minutes. Aftei being removed and allowed to drain for ton minutes tho grain was placel In a heap on a barn floor and covered with wot blankets. The formaldehyde gas being held In the pile by the wet blankets makes tho treatment mor effective. After two hours tbo grajn was spread on tho floor and shoveled over nt intervals until dry. Growing tests at various places with seed furnished by tbo station contain' lng 20 per cont of smut demonstrated clonrly that this can nil' bo removed by tho trentment At Oshkosh the fleld sown with treated Beed was entirely' froo from smut and yielded ten bushels bush-els inoro per ncro thuu an ndjolnlnj flold sown with untreated seed. A study and demonstration of crop rotation ro-tation have been taken up to show thai a good system of crop rotation 1 crenses yields, kills weeds, produce I deslrablo proportion of the different o reals and hay crops and provides ge4 seed beds. |