396 Bulletin 314 



Although corn is a valuable product in New York, yet it is outranked 

 by three other field crops : hay, oats, and potatoes are more valuable from 

 a money standpoint. The growing of corn, however, will always be of 

 local importance in many sections, especially where milk is being pro- 

 duced. Some favored sections of the State can also grow seed corn for 

 localities where productive varieties do not ripen with certainty. Under 

 prevailing economic conditions it seems likely that we may slowly increase 

 the acreage planted to corn by determining which of the numerous varieties 

 now grown in the State are best adapted to certain localities. It is more 

 likely that the yields will be increased by selection of the best-known 

 varieties for different regions, after testing all the varieties that are accli- 

 mated to various parts of the State. 



EXPERIMENTS WITH VARIETIES OF CORN 



The New York State College of Agriculture began a limited number of 

 corn- variety tests in different parts of the State in 1909. A com show 

 was held at the College during Farmers' Week in February, and prizes 

 were offered for exhibits in several classes. Over four hundred entries were 

 made by persons residing in different parts of the State. Many of these 

 were varieties of unknown origin and were not accompanied by a variety 

 name. Because a large number of the exhibits were good and showed a 

 considerable variation in type, it was decided to test forty-two of them 

 in several different localities. The selections included both flint and dent 

 varieties. In addition, four dent varieties furnished by the Cornell 

 University Agricultural Experiment Station and four varieties from 

 Bloomington, 111., were tested, making fifty varieties in all. 



The general plan of these tests was cooperative and they have been 

 continued, with yearly modifications, for three years under the direction 

 of Professor Paul J. White.* Many of the varieties were eliminated after 

 a trial of one season; a few have been tested each year at several places. 

 Some additional varieties were introduced at one or more localities in the 

 second or third year of the tests. At four places the variety tests have 

 been made for three successive years; the other localities have tested for 

 one or two years the varieties furnished by the College. Tests have been 

 made on farms belonging both to public institutions and to private owners. 

 The location of the tests has ranged from the most favored corn-growing 

 region of the Stats to regions of inferior soil and unsuitable climate at an 

 elevation of 1,900 feet above sea level. These tests have, of course, met 

 with varying seasonal conditions. 



With the foregoing facts in mind, it will be understood that the results 

 obtained cannot be summarized and averaged with any reliability for the 



♦Agronomist at Washington State College since September i, 191 1. 



