CORN CULTURE 43 



kernels in each lot and figure the percentage rejected 

 through hand picking. 



4. If there is a corn planter near at hand, draw it to 

 the school and test it for the drop on each of the different 

 grades of seed, keeping count for at least one hundred hills 

 on each side of the planter. What percentage of the time 

 are you able to secure a drop of three kernels ? 



5. Mix together a few pints of the three grades in the 

 proportion they bear in the whole amount shelled. Test 

 the planter with this mixture, keeping track of the drop for 

 one hundred hills on each side of the planter. What do you 

 conclude as to the wisdom of grading seed corn for the 

 planter ? 



11. The Seed Bed and Planting 



The roots of growing corn require, besides the nutrients 

 of the soil, heat, air and moisture. Let any of these fall 

 short, and the crop is injured. Loose soil absorbs both 

 moisture and air better than hard soil. Loose soil also holds 

 its moisture better than hard soil, since it does not favor 

 such rapid evaporation. And, since evaporation is always 

 accompanied by a loss of heat, hard soil loses heat more 

 rapidly at night or during cold spells. The supply of 

 heat, air and moisture therefore depends on having the 

 soil loose and finely pulverized. 



How corn roots grow. Corn roots grow by pushing 

 the root tip out through the soil, drawing food from the 

 tiny particles of earth, and drinking the film of water that 

 surrounds each particle of soil. If the ground is hard or 

 soggy, the root tips can not easily push through it, nor 

 can they get enough air. If it is coarse and full of clods, 

 the roots can not reach across the open places between the 

 clods. In soil of this character roots also suffer from lack 

 of moisture, for they must be packed about by fine par- 

 ticles in order to drink in the water. Even if the soil be 

 so wet as to have water standing around the roots, they 



