Corn Growers' Association. 311 



my hogs, if I had all the males and all the females I desired to select 

 from. I take the finer types for the rows I mean to detassel, and 

 the larger ones that are rougher in outline for those I do not mean 

 to detassel. Now, when I am ready to plant I select the ear from 

 row No. 1, shell the corn off, as much as I will need, leaving both 

 butt and tip and part of the rows unshelled; take a small square 

 card board and mark it No. 1, and stick a six penny nail through 

 it into the pith at the butt of the ear and put it into a box ; when row 

 one is planted then fix the others the same, only numbering each ear 

 according to its row. Set the box away in a safe place for future 

 reference. Now make an outline map of each row, or just number 

 them in a book, where you can keep a record of just what you do or 

 of anything you may see that you think might be of importance to 

 you. 



Now, as soon as the corn began to tassel, I was needed in the 

 patch every day and detasseled each alternate row, also took the 

 tassel out of every bad stalk, no matter where I found it. I had to 

 be in the patch every day for about ten days, as the tassel should be 

 pulled out as soon as it appears. We detassel to prevent inbreeding 

 or self-fertilization. The male element is in the tassel and the 

 pollen or dust falling on the silk, which is a female organ, fertilizes 

 the germ at the root of the grain, making it possible for the grain 

 to grow. After detasseling is done I watched it closely for any 

 thing of interest I might notice as to the time of ripening, the di- 

 rection the ears pointed at ripening time, height of both stalk and 

 ears, and made notes in my book. Now, when the corn was well 

 matured, and before frost, I went carefully over each row, and 

 taking the ears, where both stalk and ear pretty well met the re- 

 quirements, marked it according to its row, and laid it away to dry. 

 All is now done until time to harvest. When that time came I gath- 

 ered one row at a time, and with the ears from that row from the 

 first selection took the weight of the row, multiplied it by 60, and 

 I had the acreage yield in pounds ; so on until all is gathered and 

 stored away. In the last process is where I met my surprises. 

 Row No, 24 was planted from the heaviest ear that I had, and as it 

 came from one of Missouri's best corn growers, and with a strong 

 recommendation, I detasseled that row, thinking to get something 

 extra from it for seed. To my surprise, it made a yield of only 

 48.3 to the acre, while row 23, just next to it, made a yield of 106.8 

 per acre — 10,5 bushels more than twice the yield. 



Now here is a part of the ear (shows part of ear) that was my 

 ch9.mpion yielder, When I began shelling for row No. 1 the grains 



