11 March, 1918.] A Form for Describing Maize Ears. 183 



A FORM FOR DESCRIBING MAIZE EARS. 



For the purpose of keeping a record of the types of maize ears which 

 are used in the ear-row system of maize improvement, and also for a 

 detailed description of ears of different varieties as a record of the 

 standard type, the following form has been found, after trial over a 

 number of years, to answer the purpose best : — - 



Variety 



Registered numljer 



Pedigree number 



Obtained from 



Weight of ear (to | oz. ) 



Shape — Cylindrical, slightly tapering, or tapering 



Length (to ^ in.) ; circumference (to i in.) 



Indentation — Smooth, crinkled, creased, or pinched 



Shallow, medium, or deep 



Beaked or unbeaked 



Rows — Number ; paired or unpaired 



Straight, curved ( to right or left ) 



Tip — Well filled, medium, or poorly filled 



Regular or irregular 



Husk protection — Good, medium, or poor 



Butt — Well-rounded, medium, or flattened 



Regular or irregular 



Shank — Large, medium, or small; diameter (to I in.) 



Round or oval-shaped 



Space between rows — Wide, medium, or narrow 



Deep, medium, or shallow 



Grains — Firm, medium, or loose on cob 



Grain — Thick, medium, or thin 



Average breadth of grain (to l-16th in.) 



Weight of core ( to ^ oz. ) 



Colour of core — ^Dark red, red, light red, white 



Size of core — Large, medium, or small 



Circumference (to 5 in. ) 



Weight of shelled grain (to | oz. ) 



Percentage of shelled grain 



Average length of grain (to 1-1 Gth in. ) 



Colour of grain — Dark red, medium red, light red, amber, yellow, 



white 



Brightness of grain — Bright, medium, or dull 



Grain — Horny, medium, or starchy 



Size of germ — Large, medium, or small 



Shape of grain — Rounded, S(juare, oblong, wedge-shaped, shoe-peg, 



or pointed 



Numljer of grains per oz 



Other remarks . 



This form is used in describing all the ears selected for the ear-row 

 tests at the various Experiment Farms of the State where maize improve- 

 ment is being carried out by this system, and it is expected that there will 



