The Bulletin. D 



selection of ears. 



What is to follow will deal more with corn for exhibition purposes, 

 but should not be omitted in the selection of seed. 



For exhibition purposes a sample of ten ears is usually recommended 

 because of the ease with which it can be handled by the judges. Id 

 selecting the best ten ears from the corn that has been selected in the 

 field, lay the whole lot of corn, after it has been husked, on a long plat- 

 form made of boards or else in rows on the bare floor. Take the very 

 best ear you can find or the photograph of an ideal ear and compare 

 every ear in the lot with this ideal ; eliminate those ears which fail in 

 the most essential points, go over the corn again and again, eliminating 

 each time those ears that fail in the most essential points until you have 

 selected down to the last ten ears. This should give you the very best to 

 be obtained in your field. Then take these ears and wrap them carefully 

 in paper and store away in a dry, moderately warm place until time to 

 exhibit. This careful handling is necessary because it is essential to 

 have every kernel intact and the ears in good condition, as the judge 

 will score the missing kernels as though they were inferior. 



In order to have a uniform standard in judging so that each contest- 

 ant will have an equal showing, the following score card has been 

 adopted as a standard for North Carolina: 



Uniformity of exhibit 10 points. 



Maturity and market condition 15 points. 



Trueness to type 5 points. 



Shape of ear 5 points. 



Purity as shown by color of cob 5 points. 



Purity as shown by color of kernels 5 points. 



Butts 5 points. 



'Pipg 5 points. 



Space between rows •. 5 points. 



Per cent of shelled corn to ear 20 points. 



Grain: 



(a) Shape 5 points. 



(b) Uniformity 5 points. 



Circumference of ears 5 points. 



Length of ears 5 points. 



Total 100 points. 



In the following pages I will try to explain by illustration and de- 

 scription what is meant by each point in this score card. 



UNIFORMITY OF THE EXHIBIT. 



To put into words just what is meant by uniformity of a sample of 

 corn is very difficult. To a com judge, uniformity of an exhibit is best 

 manifested by a similarity of expression, much as we recognize the 

 family resemblance of our friends, although at a loss to point out just 

 where the resemblance lies. A thorough knowledge of how to score an 

 exhibit on this point comes only from experience and not from any 

 set rule. But to help the beginner, the following points may be of serv- 

 ice in getting fixed in the mind some of the important features. A uni- 

 form exhibit must be imiform in size, shape, color, indentation, breed 

 characteristics, course of rows, spacing of rows, placement of kernels. 



