The real test, of course, is how 

 ;n.iny bushels per acre your yield 

 IS increased, but no tarmer wants to 

 I'lant inlenor seeJ even one season it 

 iic can help it. 



Most producers undoubtedly are 

 iw.ire of the need for holdint; customers 

 hy providmi; only lionest seed as rep- 

 resented. Yet the fact that exploiters 

 ind dishonest dealers have been pedd- 

 ling inferior, if not wortiiless, clover, 

 ilfalfa, and ^rass seed by mail order 

 and otherwise, leads you to wonder if 

 some of thcise sharp-shooters will ^et 

 into the hybrid lorn business. The 

 temptation will be great to cut overhead 

 by a slioddy job of detasseling, by us- 

 ing inferior parent s.jd stocks, and by 

 substituting one hybrid which happens 

 to be a slow mover, for another more 

 popular variety, especially when the 

 margin of profit grows slimmer. 



So what about CnRTIflCATlON.^ 



What can the 30 or more state crop 

 improvement associations, organized by 

 leading seed growers with the aid of 

 the agricultural colleges, do to pro- 

 tect the buyer of seed ? 



The answer to this question is what 

 this article is chiefly concerned with. 



The Illinois (^rop Improvement As- 

 sociation, which carries on seed certi- 

 luation work in this state, was incor- 

 porated as a non-profit organization in 

 19-'l. 



1 he purpose of the Association is 

 10 preserve the purity, increase the 

 Mipply. and hasten the distribution of 

 pure seed of new and improved strains 

 ot crops, thus enabling the careful 

 l.irmer to purchase with contiden(e and 

 satistaction. 



I he Illinois Crop Improvement As- 

 sotiation has approximately lOO mem- 

 bers whuh include most of the states 

 Ic.uling producers ot pure farm seeds. 



When you see the trademark or label 

 ot the Crop Improvement Association 

 im a b.ig of certified seed it means: 



I. That the seed has been certified 

 as a iupi'i/or tariety. (It must 

 have no characteristics which 



ANOTHER NEW SEED HOUSE 

 This one is on the Schwenk Farm in 

 Peoria county. 



make it unprofitable or undesir- 

 able as proved by pertormance 

 tests conducted annually by the 

 state experiment station.) 

 1- 1 hat the seed is ntDnmc. 

 s. That it is certified as Pkic. 

 I. That the seed has been inspected 

 after its production, and checked 

 and tested for grade, germination, 

 moisture content, etc. 

 In short, seed certification is com- 

 parable to a disinterested outsule auvlit 

 ot the books and records ot an indus- 

 trial concern tor the benefit ot the 

 olFiciaK and stockholders. The buyer 

 ot certitieil seed can be reasonably sure 

 that he is getting a superior product 

 .ipproved by an impartial auditor. He 

 IS not entirely at the mercy of the pro- 

 ducer who may make claims tor his 

 seed which may or may not be true. 

 1 he Associ.ition will not certify a 

 variety of hybrid ^eed corn which has 

 not jsroved its superiority in actual 

 field performance tests during the pre- 

 ceding three years. 



It inspects the single crosses (two 

 inbreds crossed) from which the double 

 cross or commercial hybrid seed corn 

 IS produced. In this stage it is easy 

 to detect outcrossini; resultmt; from 



adulter.ition. .An exception was made 

 to this rule in \^)'t^ m the case of large 

 companies which employ trained and 

 experienced breeders. 



After the seed is produced. sam|s|es 

 are taken to the stale seed testing lab- 

 or.itory to check on moisture, disease 

 .iiid germination. The seed must Ih? 

 .It least <;() per cent STRONG (not 

 mere germination) to pass inspection. 

 It It contains more than I s per cent 

 moisture the producer is notified to 

 run It through the drier again. 



1-ield inspection work iluring the 

 growing season is done by agricultural 

 college graduates who have studied 

 plant breedini: at the college and in addi- 

 tion rcecivcel three eiays ol special in- 

 struction h\ crcij^ sjsei i.ilists at Urbana 

 before starting their work. In Illinois 

 if has been the practice to use m.Mnly 

 high school ag teachers for field inspec- 

 tion. 



A critical time in the proiluction of 

 commercial hybrui seed corn is the 

 tasseling period in July anel August. 

 Detasseling is an expensive process. It 

 accounts for much of the increased 

 cost of hybrid seed. (>angs of men 

 must go through the ficKIs daily and pull 

 out every tassel that shows up in the 

 seed bearing rows BfT'ORH it sheds 

 pollen. If this work is done carelully, 

 the female rows will be pollinated by 

 the m.ile p.irent rows. Corn produced 

 in the pollen-bearing rows is discarded. 

 During the lasseling period, the cro|-) 

 improvement .issoeiation inspectors ar- 

 rive at the l.irnis of certified seed pro- 

 ilucers un.innounced and begin their 

 work. They eount otf 100 hills in a 

 block and inspect five different blocks 

 CidO lulls) in different parts of the 

 field, liicv ex.iinine each corn plant 

 carefully !o determine how many fas 

 scls have been missul. The inspeetor 

 writes out Ills report and seiuls it to 

 headciu.irters at L rbana. Il the inspec- 

 tion shows more th.in 1 per cent pollen- 

 bearing tassels on the seCel rows, cer- 

 tification of that ficKI is refused. 



Fven before the detasseling inspec- 



HYBRID CORN ENTHUSIAST CHARLIE HOLMES 

 Certification is a real protection to the farmer who buys 

 hybrid seed corn." 



V 



IP^ 



NEW SEED DRYING AND GRADING MACHINERY 

 takes its place in new additions to old barns as (he thriv- 

 ing hybrid corn industry gets under way. 



