CORN GROWERS ASSOCIATION. 73 



good, marketable corn, while that of lot No. 2 gave only about 30 

 bushels of a very inferior quality. It must not be inferred that because 

 the seed germinates that it will do to plant, as it often occurs that the 

 root germ will make a vigorous growth, while the stalk germ will be 

 weak and often will cease to grow after the first two or three days. It 

 would be well to plant only those ears that make a vigorous growth 

 from the start, as when the seed is placed in the earth nature will not 

 nourish it so gently as when under cover in a room of even temperature. 



GROWING CORN IN THE OZARKS. 



(Mr. E. O. Weeks, Eldon, Missouri.) 



I have lived on a farm all my life, and I have raised a crop of 

 corn every year but 1901 ; I made a mistake that year ; I had in ten 

 acres of corn and hired a couple of men to take care of it ; and the first 

 night they went home they took every ear in the field. If I had har- 

 vested it myself, would have saved the crop, but as it was, I lost it. 



i^Up until the winter of 1903 I had thought all there was to growing 

 corn was to plow and plant and plow, but that year, in January, 1903, I 

 went to an Agricultural College to take a short course in live stock 

 judging, as I was becoming interested in the breeding of pure-bred 

 stock. Well, after I had been there for a day or two, I kind of lost 

 out on the stock judging and became interested in the corn judging 

 business. I got interested in the most interesting subject there; the 

 more a man studied it the more he wants to learn of it. After I had been 

 home for a few days I was very much surprised to get notice from the 

 College that I had won first prize for the best corn judging. Until that 

 time I had never seen a good ear of corn ; had never seen an ear of 

 pure-bred corn. The next spring I purchased some pure-bred seed, 

 and the three years since that time I know I have increased my yield 

 30 per cent with the same land, same cultivation and same strain of 

 corn; possibly I gave it a little better cultivation, as I was more in- 

 terested ; I think we all do that ; the more we know about a subject the 

 more pains we will take in it. In estimating the crop, I am positive I 

 have averaged 30 per cent more corn during the last three years than 

 any preceding three years I have been growing corn. Up until 1903, 

 I never raised over 40 bushels to the acre. Now, I wish to say here, 

 that I do not farm river bottom land. But the last three crops I have 

 raised I have measured parts of the field, weighed the corn, and esti- 

 mated the whole field carefullv, and I am satisfied that I have made an 



