INDIAN CORN. 161 



better to plant deeper than one inch so as not to move 

 or drag out the hills. The depth of planting has 

 merely to do with the plants getting properly started. 

 If the corn sprouts and comes up equally well, no 

 difference in yield need be expected on account of the 

 depth of planting. 



The depth of the roots is not materially affected by 

 the depth of planting. When a kernel sprouts, three 

 or four roots are produced at the kernel. No matter 

 what depth the kernel is planted the second whorl of 

 roots, or the crown roots, are produced at about an 

 inch from the surface, varying somewhat, probably^ 

 with the nature of the soil. The deeper the kernel is 

 planted the greater the distance between the first two 

 whorls of roots. The stem between these points is 

 usually about one- sixteenth of an inch in diameter, 

 while above the crown, in plants 15 inches high, the 

 stem is about three-eighths by five-eighths of an 

 inch in diameter. The roots at tiie kernel die 

 in a few weeks, so that the roots which ulti- 

 mately nourish the plant grow at the same dis- 

 tance from the surface without reference to the 

 depth at which the kernel is planted. Nothing is 

 .gained, therefore, by deep planting, unless necessita- 

 ted by the dryness of the soil. It only requires of the 

 plant extra force and time to reach a position where 

 the roots which eventually nourish the plant will 

 grow. 



The thickness of planting depends upon the soil, 

 climate and variety. In some of the southern states 

 corn is planted in hills five feet apart and one stalk 

 produced per hill. In the New England states corn 

 may be planted three feet apart and three stalks raised 

 per hill. 



