rete s! =o Wey Ue, Wy yf Wy) if a ‘es (oS LT Pisa i 7 Rew Dork State College of Agriculture At Cornell Gnibersitp Bthaca, N. B. Library 0 =v te 8a 2 ————_— ae Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924000358444 THE CORNFIELD THE DAY AFTER PLANTING Notice the shallow furrows made by the furrow openers attached to the planter runners PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE Written especially for the CORN BELT FARMERS BY W. T. AINSWORTH Actively Engaged in Farming for Forty Years, and Still at It. RALPH M. AINSWORTH Secretary Illinois Corn Growers’ and Stockmen’s Convention. Member Illinois Seed Corn Breeders’ Association. ILLUSTRATED PUBLISHED BY W. T. AINSWORTH & SONS MASON CITY, ILLINOIS ad ‘*Oh, the corn, the royal corn, within whose golden heart there is of health and strength for all the nations.’’ —Ex-Governor Oglesby. CoPYRIGHT, 1914 BY RALPH M. AINSWORTH HAMMOND PRESS w. B. CONKEY COMPANY CHICAGO PREFACE made in the cultivation and care of corn, both for seed and market. During this time few books have been written which have kept up with this progress. What has been written has pertained largely to the attacks of insect and fungous pests and to the selection and care of corn for seed. Very little that would be of practical benefit to the busy.. farmer has been written on the culture of corn. We have long felt the need of such a book and have at length been induced by our friends to attempt the work ourselves. The result is seen in the volume now placed before the public. Our aim has been to make this book up-to-date in every particular and to cover the entire practice of corn growing, from the cutting of the stalks in the spring to the selection and testing of the seed for next year’s crop. We have purposely started with the preparation of the seed bed because we know that some readers will start this book and will not finish it. If only a little is read, we are especially anxious that the reader get that part pertaining to the growing of the crop. The writers are both actively engaged in farming seven hundred acres of land, and W. T. Ainsworth has been growing corn on his Cloverdale farm for over thirty-five years. No apology is offered for the manner in which the subject is treated. The public must be the sole judge as to whether the book ig deserving of commendation. We do not claim originality for all of our methods since 3 [LD me the past ten years great progress has been 4 PREFACE many of our operations have been suggested by neighbors and the reading of bulletins and farm papers. Changing conditions, from year to year, demand new and different methods of culture. The farmer, to keep abreast of the times, must be ready to adopt new ideas. If any of us should disregard the opinion of others and depend solely upon his own judgment for ten years, he would find that he would be left far behind in the march of competition. We wish gratefully to acknowledge the sympathy, encouragement and suggestions which we have received from farmers in J]linois and in other states. To mention each one would be out of the question, but our gratitude for their kindness is none the less sincere. Such rapid progress is being made in the methods of growing farm crops that this book will undoubtedly be a back number in less than five years. For this reason it is our intention to rewrite it every two years. If the reader will send a return stamped envelope we shall be glad to answer any questions, in our power, in regard to conserving soil fertility and the culture of corn. W. T. anp Ratpo M. AInswortuH. Sunny Swe Farmsteap, Mason City, Illinois. January, 1914. CONTENTS PART I. CULTURE Page IMGROMUCTHORY -sreewos sped dean cheaee Soa aesnare Grek See AW Ra aod Sa ea a ae ae vi Preparing: the Seed Beds ns «savianeawidjas v — Ss > + = ‘20 v . ° wv a ® uv 3 U = Q > as approved by the Tn a ce nema Bis CHAPTER X THE ‘“‘EAR TO THE ROW”’ BREEDING PLOT Corn has improved greatly in type and yielding qualities in the last twenty years. From a long, slender ear on a tall, heavy stalk, corn has been bred to a cylindrical ear with deep grains, showing a percentage of grain to ear of between eighty-five and ninety. This improvement in type and yielding qualities has been due to two things: First, the breeding plot; secondly, field selection. Improvements through the breeding plot are ac- complished largely in a mechanical way,—by the use of scales. Field selection is done by the picker ever keeping before him the ideal that he is striving to obtain. To make the greatest progress in corn improvement, it is necessary to combine breeding plot and field selection. On the following pages we will give as well as we can our method of conducting an ‘‘ear to the row”’’ breeding plot. PLANTING A CoRN BREEDING PLOT In starting a breeding plot, one hundred of the most desirable ears are chosen. The ears of course should be well matured and sound and the type as good as can be obtained, since a mistake in the first selection may set the breeder back a year or two. It is better to make a record of the measure- ments of ears. (Illinois farmers can obtain blank registers by applying to L. H. Smith, of the University of Illinois.) Tf a breeding plot has been conducted before, ears, of course, should be selected from the highest yielding rows of the pre- vious year’s plot. 105 106 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE After the description of the ears has been recorded, they are shelled separately and the kernels of each placed in small paper sacks. These sacks are tagged from one to one hundred and are then placed in a grain sack and hung away from the mice until time to plant in the spring. The best time and place for this work is in the winter before the kitchen fire. In order to prevent foreign pollenization the breeding plot should be situated in a large field of the same variety. A very convenient size of breeding plot is forty rods long and one hundred rows wide (about twenty rods). Assuming that the breeding plot is to be located in a forty-acre field, the first thing is to stake off six or seven acres that contain no ponds, and where the soil is of uniform richness. If the ground of the whole field is prepared as corn ground should be prepared, it is not necessary to give the breeding plot any extra preparation. Planting should be done in the regular way until the breeding plot is reached. Before starting on the first row of the breeding plot, the corn is all removed from the planter boxes and heavy paper cones are inserted, if an edge drop planter is used. This is to keep the corn from shifting to the center of the box. The corn in sacks No. 1 and No. 2 is placed in each planter box. If planted three grains to the hill, it will easily plant the 40 rods, unless the ears were exceptionally small. A stake should be driven at the end of the plot. As soon as the driver is even with this stake, the regular field corn is placed in the planter box. This corn is planted to the end of the field and back to the stake. When opposite the stake on the return, the driver stops and removes all the field corn in the planter boxes, empties into them the contents from sacks No. 3 and No. 4, and plants to the place of starting. Four rows from ears Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively, have now been planted. 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As soon as a row is planted, it is well to tie the tag on the fence just back of the row. If the tags are substantial they will serve to mark the rows until the breed- ing plot has been cultivated the last time. After the corn is laid by, it is best to place numbered stakes at the end of each row. (See illustration.) For convenience, the two sacks to be planted on each return should be taken to the far end of the plot by the driver, placing them in his pocket as he starts each round. As soon as the breeding plot is finished, the planter boxes are filled with the regular seed of the same variety and the rest of the field is planted. Now we have a breeding plot in a large field of the same variety. It is surrounded on three sides with the same kind of corn, which prevents foreign pollenization. If the 100 ears were carefully shelled and placed in candy sacks as suggested, it should not take more than five hours longer to plant this corn than if planted in the regular way. The breeding plot is cultivated at the same time as is the entire field; in fact, one would not know that the breeding plot existed if it were not for the tags at the end of the rows. To secure a uniform stand, it is well to thin down to two stalks to the hill after the corn has been plowed the first time. The ears will be larger with two stalks to the hill than with three. DETASSELING It is almost necessary to detassel alternate rows. If not detasseled, the corn in each row, being from a single ear, would otherwise be closely inbred. When the alternate rows are detasseled, the product of the detasseled rows only is used. It can readily be seen that by this method cross pollen- ization is insured. THE “EAR TO THE ROW” BREEDING PLOT 109 Tasseling time usually comes at a very busy season of the year, which makes it necessary to get the work done quickly as well as thoroughly. This work can be done easily by going between the rows astride a horse muzzled to prevent destroying the corn. The tassels should be pulled, never cut. The field should be gone over the first time when about two- thirds of the tassels are just beginning to show. A second going over a week later will get practically all of the re- mainder, providing the work is carefully done. About two weeks after the detasseling, the plot should be gone through and all suckers and barren stalks removed. If there are many suckers the breeder will be well repaid for this work by the increase in yield. MaxInNG OBSERVATIONS The best time for the breeder to make observations for maturity, soundness and position of ear on the stalk, is when the earliest rows have just matured. The beginner in corn breeding will be surprised to notice that the husks in some rows will be brown and dry, while on other rows they will be quite green. ‘When it comes to deciding what rows to reserve, your opinion should be guided largely, but not altogether, by the weight of corn in the individual rows. If the scales alone were to make the decision, they would very likely indicate that we should keep one of the latest maturing rows, since they are often the highest yielders. To decide by weight alone would be a very serious mistake. It is not necessary to husk out and weigh separately every detasseled row in the breeding plot. The rows that promise apparent quality should be weighed out, and only those kept for seed that show a yield above the average. 110 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE BREEDING AND FIELD SELECTION The purpose of the breeding plot is to determine qualities not apparent in field selection. No one, not even an expert corn judge, can pick out the highest yielders merely by looking at the individual ears. In picking for quality one might, unknowingly, turn down high yielders. The breeding plot and the scales give the inherent quality, while score card ONE HUNDRED HIGH YIELDING EARS OF REID’S YELLOW DENT Used in 1913 breeding plot selection indicates apparent quality and even show corn. But show corn does not always possess the greatest utility. Hence, the selection with the ideal in mind should be com- bined with the breeding plot and scales in order to obtain seed corn that will grow the greatest number of bushels. In a herd of 25 brood sows it seldom happens that the THE “EAR TO THE ROW” BREEDING PLOT 111 finest show animal is the most prolific, the best mother, ete. What the individual animal has done in the past is her performance record. This is the best assurance of what she will do in the future. At the same time, it is very desirable that she conform as closely as possible to the score card. The same is true of corn. Corn is even more susceptible to breeding than either cattle or hogs, since there is more room for improvement. For the farmer to know that his seed corn for the coming season is from a high yielding strain and will show a high germination test should be as impor- tant to him as to know that his hogs are prolific or that his cattle are easy feeders. RESULTS OBTAINED IN BREEDING CorRN Progress in corn breeding ig necessarily slow. Neverthe- less, it should be every breeder’s earnest endeavor to make this progress steady and sure. To be perfectly candid, we must say that in not a single instance have we ever obtained spectacular results in corn breeding. If one were to start with a very low type of corn the results through careful selection and breeding would undoubtedly be very marked. But starting with the very best type of the several varieties, the improvement is not so rapid. In order not to be handi- capped, the breeder should always start with the very best seed that can be obtained. Our own work in corn breeding tends to show that the ear has very little hereditary tendency to reproduce itself in size. The matter of size depends more on local field condi- tions and the hereditary tendency of the kernel. On the other hand, like kernels from small and large ears of the same variety often produce ears of the same size. This tends to prove that a good shaped kernel is of more importance than a good shaped ear. Medium sized ears out-yield exceptionally 8 412 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE large ears because the very large ear is generally later in maturing. Hence, the kernel does not have the vitality pos- sessed by the kernel from the smaller ear. We believe, by carefully selecting our seed from the high yielding rows in the breeding plots and, at the same time, following the rules for field selection, we can accomplish as much in one year as we could in five by using field selection alone. We are so sure of this that we are conducting three breeding plots. Since the results of the breeding plots are always affected to a considerable extent by season and varying soil conditions, we are not prepared, as yet, to make the above statements dogmatically. It will take several more years’ experiment on our part to prove or disprove the above points. The breeder who guesses at results is a hindrance and not a help to corn improvement. There are other points, however, on which we are con- vineed beyond a doubt: First, a medium type of any variety of corn will out-yield a very rough type. The result of last year’s breeding indicates that the rough type averaged in yield only 89.6 per cent of that of the medium type. Mr. Chas. A. Rowe of Jacksonville has obtained practically these same results. Some breeders have had results proving that a very smooth type will out-yield the rough. We consider, however, the smooth type a dangerous extreme, since it does not dry out ag well as the rougher type. (The rougher the type the longer the average length of kernels.) Our results show that the detasseled rows do not yield as well as the rows where the tassels are not interfered with. Even if the work is carefully done, pulling the tassels euts the vield about 5 per cent. The loss is correspondingly greater if the work is carelessly done. This shows that detasseling should be undertaken only in the breeding plot and for the express purpose of insuring cross pollenization. LOTd ONIGHHYE «-MOU HHL OL AVE;, AA IASSVLaG 114 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE Suckering corn and cutting out barren stalks increase the yield sometimes as much as forty per cent, depending on the number of suckers and the dryness of the season. Our greatest gain was the result of cutting out over half the stalk growth on a very dry year (1918). The sooner this work can be done after the corn tassels, the better. Two men in six days can cut out the suckers and barren stalks in the average forty-acre field. It is not necessary to have an ‘‘ear to the row’’ breeding plot in order to test the results of detasseling and suckering. These two experiments can be made in any field of corn. There are hundreds of things to be determined by corn breeding, but the work is so slow that no one individual can be expected to establish more than a few facts. Realizing that co-operation was necessary in order to make the most rapid progress, the Illinois Seed Corn Breeders’ Association was organized in 1900. One member of this association, Louie H. Smith, assistant chief in plant breeding at the University of Illinois, has sueceeded in breeding a high and low protein and high and low oil corn. Mr. Smith’s work along this line of breeding has extended over fifteen years. His results are undoubtedly the most pronounced of any that have been attempted in corn breeding. The work of producing hybrid seed has been carried on by H. J. Sconce, of Sidell, Il. Mr. Leigh F. Maxey, of Curran, Ill, has perhaps done more than any other indi- vidual in breeding and establishing the type characteristic of Leaming corn. OBSTACLES TO CONTEND WITH IN BREEDING CoRN The corn breeder is often discouraged by adverse condi- tions over which he has no control. Cutworms may make the stand so uneven that the weight of the corn in the indi- THE “EAR TO THE ROW” BREEDING PLOT 115 vidual rows would be of no advantage. We have had a breeding plot ruined by water standing in a depression in the center of the field. If the scales are to help select seed by pointing out high yielding strains, the stand must be uniform. This last summer of 1918, which was one of the dryest crop years we have ever seen, was a poor year for indicating the relative value of seed from the different rows. We do not consider our results from that year’s breeding to be of half the value of those obtained in 1911 and 1912. While these facts are discouraging, the corn breeder is still better off than the grower of pure bred hogs, who may lose his entire herd from cholera. : CARING FOR THE Brest Hars After the corn has been carefully husked and weighed, the best ears from the most desirable rows should be care- fully dried by laying on racks. The racks can be of wood or wire, or the corn can be strung on binder twine. If the breeding plot is gathered in October, it can safely be dried by hanging in a dry loft; but if gathered later, it is generally best to dry in a mildly heated room, since the germ might be injured by a sudden cold spell coming before the moisture was all out of the ear. One should never go to the other extreme and lay corn on boards over the furnace. This, of course, will soon dry the corn, but it will also cause some of the oil to evaporate, which undoubtedly weakens the germ. These methods of securing high yielding seed may seem too expensive to some, but when one stops to consider that an increase of only ten per cent often means a difference of from 100 to 400 bushels, on the average farm, one can see that this time is well spent. Corn shows and short courses in corn judging are for 116 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE the purpose of educating farmers and farmers’ boys to grow more prolific seed and to know how to select and care for it through the winter. To get the greatest benefit from these courses offered in corn judging, they should be supplemented by practical work in corn breeding on the farm. This chapter has been taken in the main from an article in the January 15th issue of the Prairie Farmer entitled ‘Breeding Corn for Quality and Productiveness,’’ by Ralph M. Ainsworth. BIBLIOGRAPHY ‘‘Ten Generations of Corn Breeding.’? By Louie H. Smith. Til. Agri. Ex. Sta. Bulletin No. 128. ‘‘Inereased Yields of Corn from THybrid Seed.’? By G. N, Collins. U. 8. Dept. of Agri. 1910. ‘“‘The Production of Good Seed Corn.’? By C. P. Hartley. U. 8. Farmers’ Bulletin No. 229. “The Study of Corn.’’ By Vernon MM. Shoesmith. CHAPTER XI DRYING AND STORING SEED CORN The importance of preserving all the vitality by gather- ing the seed corn for next year’s planting before cold freezing weather sets in is being appreciated more and more by farm- ers and corn growers. There are, however, a large number of farmers who still depend for the coming year’s seed upon the occasional good ear found throughout the husking season. Still others are satisfied with the best looking ears found in the corn crib in the spring. The loss sustained by these two classes varies with the mildness or severity of late fall weather and the picker’s ability to detect the sound from the unsound seed ears. Let us say right here that even the most experienced are sometimes deceived in the condition of the ear by the appear- ance of the germ. A yellow or brownish embryo and germ indicate that the corn has been frozen. When the embryo is wrinkled or pale in color it usually means a loss of vitality due to long storage. Old corn that has been earried over one summer should never be planted if sound new corn can be secured. While old corn will usually grow, it is always slow in starting, due to the evaporation of some of the oil from the germ. F ‘ A good healthy germ and embryo should be nearly white ; but germination tests prove that some kernels have white clean cut germs and still send up a weak sprout due to exposure and bad storing. The only way to be sure that seed will grow is to plant only seed that has been carefully dried before hard freezing weather sets in. 117 118 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE Timer to GaTHER SEED CoRN In this latitude, October is undoubtedly the best month in which to gather seed corn. If this important work is put off until the middle of November, the vitality of the seed may be injured by wet weather, followed by a hard freeze. On the other hand, it is not a good plan, as a general rule, to gather seed as early as September. Unless there are indi- cations of early freezes, corn should be allowed to ripen in the field. Professor P. G. Holden, in ‘‘Successful Corn Cul- ture,’’ says, ‘‘It is not a good plan to harvest the seed in MODERN SEED CORN DRYING PLANT September while the corn is immature, as it is more difficult to preserve, will be chaffy and give weaker plants than corn which has been allowed to fully mature on the stalk.’? Seed corn that has been picked before it is matured shows a shriveled condition of.the kernels after it is thoroughly dried. Best PLACE FOR THE FARMER TO STorE SEED CoRN A storeroom or bedroom that can be spared is the best place for the farmer to store seed corn. The attic, if not too inaccessible, is also a good place, although zero weather before DRYING AND STORING SEED CORN 119 the corn was dry would weaken some of the sappiest ears unless the attic could be heated. Notwithstanding the danger of frost, the attic is far ahead of the cellar. If there is a furnace in the cellar the corn is apt to dry too quickly or to become too dry. Remember, if corn is allowed to become too dry, it will be slow in starting in the spring. If there is no furnace in the cellar, the corn will dry too slowly unless it is well dried before being placed there. Again, the average cellar does not have sufficient ventilation for the proper drying and storing of corn. On all good drying days the windows should be thrown wide open. There is nothing that dries seed better than a warm, dry breeze blowing through it as it lays on the racks. When the weather is damp, the windows should be closed if a door can be opened into the rest of the house. If not, the windows should never be closed entirely, unless the room is very large and the amount of corn small. If a tight room is filled with new corn; the corn is apt to mold, no matter how well it is hung up, unless the room is constantly ventilated. Moisture, as it leaves the corn, must have some means of escaping. Layne on Racks For several years past, we have dried all of our ear seed corn on wooden racks. These racks are built of one by four inch uprights in which tenpenny nails are driven every four inches and on which heavy lathe are laid. (See illustration.) The racks are all placed on slatted floors which permit perfect ventilation. There are a number of good ways to dry seed corn. An old and very good plan is to string the ears on binder twine and suspend them from the ceiling. Of late years, various kinds of wire hangers for drying corn have been placed on the market. If these hangers are not placed too close together they will dry the corn as well as any other SMOOVE MOWX ATIONIS NO NYO) GUUS DNIAXOLS DRYING AND STORING SEED CORN 121 method. If the hangers are made out of woven fence wire, they tangle badly when the corn is removed, and, if made of steel, they are rather too expensive. SvTorInG SEED Corn on A LarGE SCALE In order to dry corn to the best advantage, the drying room should be so constructed that it can be thrown open on all sides in mild weather. It should be tight enough when closed up to enable it to be evenly heated in cold weather. A plant built especially for drying corn for seed should be tall with the floors slatted to allow a free circulation of air from bottom to top. There should always be ventilating flues in the roof, and these should never be closed until the corn is dry. Corn should be gathered early and taken direct to the plant where it is picked over the same day and laid on racks or put in ventilated cribs. Corn, to show the highest germination, should be gathered as soon as it has ripened in the field and stored in a room that is frost proof and at the same time thoroughly ventilated. Great advancement has been made in the last ten years in the construction of buildings made especially for the drying and preparing of seed corn for market. Some well venti- lated and thoroughly heated plants have not given the best results, simply because they were filled too full of seed corn. We are of the opinion that in order to obtain the best results, no seed drying plant should be filled to more than one-half of its crib capacity. CHAPTER XII PREPARING SEED CORN FOR PLANTING There is only one way by which the farmer can be certain that his seed corn is strong in vitality, that is, to give it a germination test. By an examination of the germ, most of us can tell whether the kernel is healthy or dead; but no man’s judgment can be depended upon to detect unerringly the strong from the weak. For this reason, a sample from all corn to be planted should be tested and, if it does not show a germination of at least ninety-five per cent, each individual ear should be tested. One hundred good sized ears will plant ten acres. One man can easily examine and place in the tester the kernels from four hundred ears in one day. This is enough seed to plant forty acres, and if only a few weak or dead ears are revealed by the test, the farmer is well repaid for his trouble. This question is often asked, If the corn is selected from the field before freezing weather sets in and is properly dried will it be necessary to test it? If all this has been done, it will perhaps not be necessary to test each ear; but in order to be sure the seed is strong, a fair composite sample should be tested. If the results do not show uniformly strong sprouts, the ears should be individually tested and the weak thrown out. There are so many different conditions that can weaken the vitality of seed corn that the only safe plan is to test at least a sample. All seed sent out by reliable seed corn growers is sold under a definite germination guarantee of from ninety to ninety-seven per cent. This germination is determined after 122 PREPARING SEED CORN FOR PLANTING 123 making numerous tests from all parts of the plant. If a certain percentage of germination is guaranteed the grower is honor bound, as well as required by law, to replace or return the purchase price for all seed falling short of germi- nation standard. If there is any doubt about the vitality of seed corn pur- chased from a seed firm or neighbor, it should be tested before making a complaint. A conservative seed corn grower will always guarantee less than the results of the germina- tion tests, as most breeders do. A guarantee of ninety-five per cent is a strong guarantee for seed that will usually go over ninety-nine per cent. Some customers, in placing their order for seed corn, state that they expect to test the seed when it arrives; and if it does not test a certain amount, it will be returned. This is sometimes a stiff proposition but it is made fairly and squarely. The breeder alone knows whether or not his seed will come up to the requirements and the order should be accepted or declined accordingly. Tue Four EssENTIALS OF GERMINATION All seeds, to make the most rapid growth, must be strong in vitality. The seed bed also must be of the right tempera- ture and must contain the proper amount of moisture and oxygen. If corn is gathered: before it has had time to ripen in the field, the kernels will be immature. Immature corn, due to the larger amount of sugar in the kernels, will usually germinate rapidly under ideal conditions, but since it has a small reserve of plant food, the kernels will rot if the ground is cold and wet, before the young rootlets have a chance to draw from outside sources. 124 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE Again, the vitality of the seed will be weakened if sub- jected to either repeated freezing or high temperatures. Corn will germinate between the wide variation of from forty-eight to one hundred and fifteen degrees. It will make the most MODERN SEED CORN TESTER rapid growth, however, at ninety-three degrees. Since it will make a more hardy growth at about eighty degrees, this is perhaps the best temperature for germination. Moisture is just as essential as proper temperature. Water softens the seed covering, dissolves the plant food and carries PREPARING SEED CORN FOR PLANTING 125 it to the growing embryo. Too much moisture, however, means too little oxygen. This is the principal reason for seed rotting in heavy, wet land. Corn cannot make rapid growth without an abundance of air. THE Srep TESTER Conditions which apply to the field apply equally well to the seed corn tester. If the seed corn tester is ‘to show accurately by its results the true condition and the relative value of the different ears, it must provide sufficient moist- ure, give ample ventilation, and keep the temperature be- tween sixty and one hundred degrees. It had better fall below sixty degrees than go above one hundred degrees. In order not to give some of the kernels an advantage over others, the moisture, temperature and ventilation should be uniform in all parts of the tester. The trays should be pigeonholed off in such a manner that the kernels from each ear can be placed in a separate pocket so that their identity will not be lost. A good time to test seed corn is in March. This is late enough for all the ears to show their true condition and is early enough to allow the farmer to procure more seed, if the test is unsatis- factory, before spring work requires his attention. SHELLING AND GRADING CoRN FOR PLANTING Before corn is shelled, it should be carefully tipped and butted since the tip and butt grains are irregular in size, besides being smaller and larger than the type desired. After the uneven grains are shelled off the tip and butt ends, the remaining kernels should be carefully examined and all off-colored or undesirable grains removed. The ears are now shelled. If the shelling is done by TUO YOVI WoL Sfouroy O44 AlOVedos ploy 0} Jo peuonmaed st £B1, oy YALSHL NYOO GHHS AHL WOU AVUL C09 “Aw TeuONUN fxaq1005) (Courtesy A, T. Ferrell & Co,) LARGE SEED CORN GRADER 128 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE machinery, the spring tension should be as loose as possible consistent with effective work. If considerable corn is cracked in shelling, the indications are that the corn was either too dry, or the sheller is not properly adjusted. In order to secure a uniformity, a corn grader should be used. There are hundreds of corn graders on the market. They range in price from five dollars for small ones to eight hundred dollars for large graders used in largé seed corn drying plants. The very cheapest corn graders will do better work than will the average farm fan mill. A good grader should take out all the large and small grains and about nine-tenths of the cracked kernels. It is necessary to take out from twenty per cent to forty per cent in order to have an even grade. The difference in yield between graded and ungraded seed is often as much as ten bushels per acre. This difference is due to the more even planting of graded seed, not because the smaller and larger kernels are poorer yielders. ADDITIONAL READING ‘““The Study of Corn.’’ By Vernon M. Shoesmith. ‘‘Corn.’’ By Bowman and Crossby. ‘‘Seed Corn Must Make Good.’’ By L. C. Hutcheson. Corn. March, 1913. ‘*Make Corn Growing Pay.’ 19138. ‘Getting Ready for This Year’s Corn Crop.’’ Twentieth Century Farmer. February 22, 1913. ‘“Ten Bushels More Corn to the Acre.’’ By Robt. H. Moul- ton. Fruit Grower and Farmer. March, 1913. “It Pays to Test the Seed Corn.’? By Arthur Lumbrick. The Prairie Farmer. March 15, 1913. > The Fruit Grower and Farmer, CHAPTER XIII INSECT ENEMIES AND PLANT DISEASES Of all the obstacles to the successful growing of corn, none has ever shown itself in a more serious aspect than the destruction due to injurious insects and plant diseases. The problem of how to control them is a hard one and should receive the attention of every farmer. We do not feel competent in ourselves to handle this subject of insects and diseases attacking corn, and for this reason we have appealed to Prof. S. A. Forbes, Illinois State Entomologist, who has carefully helped us by correcting and revising this chapter. In addition to this we want to thank Professor Forbes for furnishing us illustrations of insects. On the following pages we shall'describe briefly the more injurious of these insects, and suggest remedies with which to suppress them. Insects INguRING THE SEED AFTER PLANTING The Corn Wireworm (Several species of melanotus): These are the larve (offspring) of the common snapping beetles. They are hard, smooth-skinned, reddish brown, worm-like creatures, and vary in size from the thickness of a pin to the thickness of a darning-needle. The body is divided into thirteen segments, and has three pairs of short, stout legs. The corn wireworm eats into the kernel after it has been softened by the moisture in the ground, and also bores into 129 130 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE and even through the underground part of the stalk. This usually results in the total destruction of the plant. Their eggs are laid most commonly in grasslands, and their life history is such that their injuries to corn are most severe the second year after grass. Late fall plowing and The Corn Wire- The Corn Wireworm worm (Melano- (Melanotus cribulosus) tus cribulosus, ) adult. larva. crop rotation with frequent clover crops are the practical methods employed to prevent injury by this insect. Seed Corn Maggot (Phorbia fusciceps): This maggot eats the interior out of both sprouting and unsprouted ker- nels. The adult is very similar in appearance to the common INSECT ENEMIES AND PLANT DISEASES 181 house fly. Severe injuries by this insect are unusual, and there is no known method of preventing them. Insects ATTACKING THE Roots The Corn Root Louse (Aphis): Every farmer has noticed the little blue insects clustered in great numbers on the Lay ADULT OF SEED CORN MAGGOT Phorbia Fusciceps suid LARVAE OF SEED CORN MAGGOT Phorbia Fusciceps roots of the corn. They feed on the juice of the corn root, and if present in large numbers sometimes kill the plant. Later in the season another kind of aphis is found on the 132 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE leaves, husks and tassels of the plant. There seems to be a partnership existing between the corn root louse and the com- mon field ant. The ant places the young of the aphis on the roots of the corn plant and for this service it feeds on a liquid known as honeydew, which exudes from the body of the louse. Remedy: Thorough cultivation, by checking the work of the ants has a wonderful effect in lessening the number THE CORN ROOT LOUSE Aphis maidiradicis (female) of the lice. If the ants are working much around the hills we harrow the young corn. Where furrow openers are used the harrowing pulls loose dirt around the hills and effectu- ally checks the work of the ants until after the next rain. Rotation, however, is a standard practical method of check- ing the injury although it cannot be said to eradicate this pest. As the ants winter in old cornfields, with the eggs of the INSECT ENEMIES AND PLANT DISEASES 133 root lice in their nests, the best preventive of injury is to prepare the field for corn by deep and early plowing and repeated discing. This tears up the ants’ nests and scatters the root-louse eggs through the dirt, at the same time keeping down the young weeds upon which the root lice live until the corn begins to grow. The corn root louse has perhaps worked a greater injury to corn than any other one insect. Every farmer should THE CORN ROOT LOUSE Aphis maidiradicis (female) study the habits of this insect and make every effort to check its injurious work. The Corn Root Worm (Diabrotica longicornis): The adult of the corn root worm is a beetle; green or yellowish green in color and about a quarter of an inch long. The beetle feeds on the pollen and silk and deposits her eggs in the ground at the base of the stalk. The following spring these eggs hatch out into the corn root worms. 134 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE Since the corn root worm is dependent for its food upon the roots of the corn the eggs are seldom deposited outside of the cornfield. It is due to this fact that a cornfield is never injured by the corn root worm the first year and even the second year the damage done is usually very slight. But if the field is put in corn three or four years in succes- sion it is very doubtful if the last two crops ever escape without serious injury. In some cases we have known the yield of corn to be lowered from thirty to forty per cent as a direct result of the ravages of these insects. The corn root worm lives on the roots of the corn plant. They often eat off the ends of the roots of the plant and then burrow just under the outer covering of the root the entire length of the root. The corn root worm can be easily found by carefully splitting an injured root. It is usually about three-eighths of an inch long and about the thickness of a pin and of a white or flesh color. It can safely be said that the damages resulting from the corn root worm are due entirely to the bad practice of con- tinuous corn cropping. If a rotation of crops is adopted in which corn is never grown longer than two years in suc- cession we shall soon have the corn root worm under easy control. If crop rotation were only as effective in checking other insects as it is in heading off the corn root worm, the insect problem would not present the serious aspect it does. White Grub (several species of lachnosterna:) This is the larve of the common May beetle. These beetles usually deposit their eggs in fields of grass, timothy and small grains, and especially in the vicinity of timber where they feed. The eggs hatch into small brown-headed grubs, which feed on the grass and corn roots. They do not attain their full growth until the third or fourth year. They are most abundant in old blue-grass pastures. Their presence can INSECT ENEMIES AND PLANT DISEASES 135 be detected by the fact that the grass dies out in the spots where they are thickest. The surest way to rid the cornfield of grubworms is to pasture it with hogs the summer before it is put in corn. The hogs will root to a depth of a foot or more in search of grubs.