SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETING. 189. 



tions as an agricultural State, we must work together and get 

 back to the soil as nearly as possible. Every farmer whom one 

 meets in this work has some experience which is valuable to 

 his neighbor. There is no man who can work by himself, 

 entirely dependent on his own resources, amid our average 

 rural surroundings, and experience all of those things which go 

 to make up a successful life. In other words, each one of us 

 grows and develops by learning the experiences of others. If 

 we can collect the experiences of farmers who have been, 

 successful in the growing of certain crops and find among a 

 large number of farmers that they have in common certain 

 methods or ways of handling these crops, we can feel certain 

 that through the practice of these methods we will be far more- 

 certain of winning success. And in its purpose of establish- 

 ing more cordial relations between farmers, this organization 

 can be of the greatest value to Maine. So whoever the Field 

 Agent of this Association may be, every farmer with whom he 

 comes in contact ought to assist him in bringing out the best 

 and most practical points regarding the production of certain 

 crops. Let this Association become a clearing house of the 

 practical experiences of farmers most successful in the produc- 

 tion of various crops. 



The second purpose of this Association is to carry on investi- 

 gations and experiments in growing new and superior varieties 

 of farm seeds and plants. In taking up this purpose, perhaps 

 it would be well to deal with the various crops in which we are 

 interested. We will take up corn first. It is interesting to note 

 in the census figures for 1879 that the State of Maine grew~ 

 30,997 acres of corn; in 1889, 10,891 acres; in 1899, 16,856 

 acres, and in 1909, 15,558 acres. The total yield in 1909, the 

 census figures give as 667,089 bushels or an average yield of 43 

 bushels per acre ; a value of $28.70 per acre. In many respects, 

 corn is a valuable plant for us to grow, that is, in the sections 

 where it can be grown. Corn in a rotation afifords a crop well 

 adapted to clean cultivation and hence aids in keeping the land 

 free from weeds. Land which will produce 35 bushels of oats 

 per acre will easily produce 50 to 60 bushels of corn. Taking 

 60 cents as the average value of oats per bushel we have a 

 return of $21 per acre for the oats and at 65 cents a bushel for 

 corn we have a value of $32.50 to $39.00. Of course it will 

 cost considerably more to produce a crop of corn, but we must 



