B. P. I— 743. 



THE SEBD-CORX SITUATION 



INTRODUCTION. 



With about the same regidarity that corn-plantmg time arrives 

 it is found that in some portion or portions of the United States the 

 corn that must be used for seed will not germinate well and that 

 good yields can not be expected, because good seed of adapted strams 



does not exist. 



With the assistance of the various State agricultural experiment 

 stations a general surve}^ was made of the seed-corn situation ui the 

 sprhig of 1912. This situation was found somewhat more serious 

 than usual because it was more general and because it affected large 

 portions of many of the leading corn-producing States. Aside from 

 the lack of proper precaution in selecting and savmg seed corn, 

 wliich is the piincipal cause, the bad situation can be attributed to 

 summer drought, frequent and prolonged fall rains, and unusually 

 cold weather in November. Some sections endured all these unfa- 

 voral)le conditions. 



In general, the southeastern portion of the United States produced 

 in 1911 a much better corn crop than the average, and sufFicicnt corn 

 that ^vill grow is available for sprmg plantmg in that section. 



New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsm, 

 Minnesota, and North Dakota produced a better corn crop than the 

 average, but m these States there is very little corn fit to plant 

 excej>t that wliich was gathered eai-ly and well cared for. This seed 

 was gathered and dried m September and is in almost perfect con- 

 dition, but is very hmited in quantity m comparison \\-ith the supply 

 needed. 



In the leading corn-producing States of Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri 

 summer droughts caused the crop to bo below the average and the 

 fall rains and November freezes injured or destroyed for seed ])urposes 

 all corn that was not gathered and dried early. As in the Northern 

 States, the seed which was gatheied and dried early bids fair to pro- 

 duce a good crop, but is entirely hisufhcient to plant the usual corn 

 acreage of these States. 



The drought was especially severe m the Great Plains, and all of 

 the States from South Dakota south produced much less than a 



40813°— Cir. 95—12 3 



