24 AGRICULTURE 



will after a time have a tendency to "breed true"; that is, 

 all to be like the ears selected for seed. 



Selecting the best variety. Different varieties are 

 suited for different climates and for different soils. It is 

 therefore important in selecting a variety of corn to know 

 whether it is adapted to the conditions under which it is 

 to be raised. 



TOPICS FOR INVESTIGATION 



1. How many of the seven different types of corn have 

 you ever seen ? How many are grown in your region ? (Be 

 sure to distinguish type from variety.) . 



2. Bring to school a sample of as many different types 

 as you can find. What three can you easily secure if you 

 live in the Middle West? What ones can you secure if you 

 live in New England ? If you live in Oklahoma or Alabama ? 



3. Examine these different types for the size of the 

 ear ; for the shape ; for the shape of kernel ; for color ; for 

 proportion of corn to cob ; for the parts of the kernel. 



4. Is the corn raised on your father's farm a true 

 variety, or is it mixed? If true, what is the variety? 



5. How many varieties of corn do you know? Join 

 with your classmates in making as large a collection of sam- 

 ples of different varieties as can be found in the neighbor- 

 hood. Comparing these ears for the different qualities by 

 which ears are judged, what are the differences you note? 

 Which seems to you the best variety? Does it yield best? 

 Does it ripen ? Does it have good feeding and selling qual- 

 ities ? 



7. Raising Seed in a Selection Bed 



The first step necessary in improving corn is to improve 

 the seed. Not only must we make sure that the corn se- 

 lected for seed will grow, but it must be as nearly perfect 

 in every way as possible. For heredity works in plants as 

 well as in animals. We select the best stock for breeding ; 

 we should do the same in choosing the seed we plant. Good, 

 strong, well-formed ears will tend to produce corn of the 



