40 MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL REPORT. 



and a great deal of valuable work is being done by the stations in thus 

 aiding the farmers to find the most suitable varieties for their conditions. 

 The encouragement of corn breeding by individual farmers is also be- 

 ing practiced, which is evidently bearing fruit, since a great deal of in- 

 terest is being shown throughout the corn belt in this matter of corn 

 improvement. 



As to the methods and plans of the experiment station which are 

 applicable to use by the practical farmer something might be said. Un- 

 doubtedly much will depend upon the skill and intelligence of the. 

 farmer as to how far he is able to apply the methods of the experiment! 

 stations in his own work. Certainly every farmer of average intelli- 

 gence who grows corn to any extent can apply som'e of these principles 

 at least in a slightly modified form. I am convinced that every farmer 

 who is engaged in corn growing would be amply repaid by setting aside 

 a small tract of land, say an acre, on which to grow his seed, and plant- 

 ing this with corn from the 15 best ears he can select from his crop of 

 the year before. This will mean that he will have good ears planted 

 together where they may be closely observed and where fertilization 

 will take place mainly between stalks of desirable character. This will 

 be true even though the plot lies in the center of the field, but it would 

 undoubtedly be much better were the plot located at one edge, prefer- 

 ably on the side toward the prevailing winds, or probably better if it 

 could be isolated from the main body of the field entirely. In any case 

 the soil on which it is grown should be an average in fertility of the rest 

 of the land that the corn developed for seed will be exactly suited to the 

 conditions under which the main field will be grown. I believe further 

 that for our most intelligent and progressive farmers the breeding plot 

 mentioned before where rows arc grown from individual ears can be 

 used with success. It is being done in Iowa, Illinois and Ohio to quite 

 a great extent by practical farmers and is by no means impractical for the 

 man who is giving his best attention to the improvement of his corn' 

 crop. Lastly, the development of varieties parlicukirly suited to given 

 conditions lies within the province of the farmer's ability. In certain 

 localities we need drought resisting varieties, varieties suited to par- 

 ticularly thin land or very rich land or varieties adapted to various pe- 

 culiar phases of soils and climate. Careful selection and breeding of 

 corn by the practical farmer will make these things possible and until 

 our farmers appreciate the necessity for care in handling this important 

 crop and the possibilities of changing it by selection to suit his condi- 

 tions wc shall never have the highest development of corn in Missouri. 

 Scientific breeders and experiment stations can do very much but by no 



