164 CAMPBELL'S SOIL CULTURE MANUAL 



able soil moisture, air and plant food at all times. It 

 is true there are instances , or conditions that might exist 

 by which more corn might possibly be got from two, 

 three or four stalks in a hill than one. These would be 

 rare cases, and where by extreme heat the demands upon 

 the supply of moisture and plant food might suddenly 

 destroy the vitality, or life of all the ears that were started 

 on the corn, except the top one. Then a sudden and 

 liberal rain immediately replenishing the soil about the 

 roots with the necessary moisture which would immedi- 

 ately increase the available supply of plant food and push 

 to completion the single ears left on each stalk, when we 

 would have two, three, or four ears to the hill as against 

 one ear if we had but one stalk. Then again should the 

 dry period continue longer without any rain we might 

 lose all the ears, because the demand for moisture to 

 supply the growth and development of two, three, or 

 four stalks -would be just that much greater than for 

 one stalk, consequently the one stalk could endure the 

 drouth longer without suffering, and probably reach the 

 next rain when ample moisture would mature one or 

 two good ears as against none at all with a larger number 

 of stalks. 



ROOT DEVELOPMENT. 



The number of ears therefore, does not depend en- 

 tirely on the number of stalks growing. It is substan- 

 tially true that it is possible to secure as many ears from 

 a crop with one kernel in a hill as from three kernels in 

 a hill. In the semi-arid region it is much more prob- 

 able the one-kernel crop will beat the three-kernel 

 crop. However, where there has bpen storage of the 

 moisture and the soil is well prepared we prefer two 

 kernels in the hill and believe that we can get best results 

 from this amount of seed. 



