174 YIELD. INDIAN CORN. 



The acre that received no plaster yielded twenty and 

 a half bushels. The grain weighed twenty-eight pounds 

 to the bushel, and was pretty uniform on all the lots, 

 that on number one being the lightest, both in grain 

 and straw. 



The crop was small, the land being unfavorable for 

 oats; but it will be perceived that the lot seeded 

 with three bushels to the acre produced forty bushels, 

 while that seeded with five bushels produced only forty- 

 two bushels. 



The experiment, though exceedingly unsatisfactory 

 in other respects, seems to indicate that the use of 

 five or six bushels is more than is needed, and that three 

 or four are sufficient, especially on land that is well 

 cultivated and prepared. 



A good yield of oats is from sixty to seventy-five 

 bushels per acre, and this is often obtained without any 

 extraordinary culture. 



INDIAN CORN. 



INDIAN CORN (Zea mays) was found under cultivation 

 by the Indians, on the discovery of the New World, 

 and was, unquestionably, of American origin. Its gen- 

 eric name was derived from a Greek word, signifying 

 to live, and was applied to this plant on account of the 

 farinaceous or mealy nature of the seeds. 



Indian corn, or maize, grows with a strong, jointed 

 stalk, rising to the height of from five to fifteen feet, 

 with large, alternate leaves starting from each joint, as 

 shown in Fig. 141. The male or sterile flowers, Fig. 

 142, are arranged in a loose, spreading panicle at the 

 apex, called the tassel, and the female or fertile flowers, 

 Fig. 143, on the side. 



Each plant bears from one to four or five ears, Fig. 

 144. As many as six or eight have sometimes been 



