194 THE CEREALS IN AMERICA 



mo'fed from the soil will be increased, unless the yield of 

 maize is decreased. No results have been reported of the influ- 

 ence upon yield of breeding for high protein or other modifica- 

 tions in composition. Whether it is better to raise the surplus 

 nitrogen needed in leguminous crops like clover, alfalfa, soy 

 beans, cowpeas, field peas, etc., and to raise maize primarily as 

 a source of easily digestible carbohydrates, will need to be settled 

 by each grower in accordance with local conditions, assuming 

 that composition has no influence upon yield. 



264. Methods of Breeding. — Breeding for composition has 

 served to call attention to the method of testing hereditary 

 power, whether the character to be tested was high protein, 

 fat or yield. 



After several ears of maize have been selected for high pro- 

 tein, it becomes necessary to determine whether they will repro- 

 duce ears with high protein, and also to place the plants produced 

 from such selected ears where they will be fertilized by pollen 

 from plants having high protein content. If this is an advantage 

 in the case of ears selected for high protein, it is also an advan- 

 tage for ears selected for high yield. Large ears may be the 

 result of environment or may be due to hereditary power. Of 

 two ears of equal merit (as, for example, size), one grown on 

 very rich soil and the other on ordinary soil, the latter should 

 be preferred for seed. 



265. The Breeding Plat. — Assuming total yield of grain to be 

 the character bred for, the following is an outline of plan to be 

 followed in the breeding plat, the details to be modified accord- 

 ing to circumstances : 



(i) First carefully consider the variety of maize best suited 

 to conditions. Do not waste time improving a poor variety or 

 strain. Having selected the variety, it will generally be wise to 

 grow no other. 



(2) Select 100 ears of perfect vitality of this variety. Weigh 

 each ear separately and arrange in order of weight. 



