14 AGRICULTURE 



size of the box. Fill in on top about two inches of damp 

 sawdust, packing 1 it down very firmly. Then fold the edges 

 of the cloth over the sawdust, covering it so that it will 

 not dry out. 



Reading the test. At the end of the germination 

 period the cover must be removed without disturbing the 

 kernels. This can be done by carefully rolling up the top 

 pad of sawdust in its cloth. The sprouts will be some two 

 inches long, and may in some cases have grown through 

 the first cloth covering. 



It is easy now to tell which are the strong, weak or 

 dead seed ears. All ears should be rejected if even one 

 of the six kernels failed to sprout. For a loss of one out of 

 six means 16-2-3 per cent, of the crop gone if all ears were 

 of this kind. 



Ears whose six kernels may all sprout, but which start 

 weakly, should also be thrown out. For it is these weak 

 plants that later turn out to be barren, or prove an easy 

 prey to dry weather or some insect enemy. If only those 

 ears are planted whose six kernels all produce strong vig- 

 orous sprouts in the germination box, the greatest obstacle 

 in the way of a perfect stand will have been removed. 



5. Seed Bed and Cultivation 



Corn in the South requires a deep and well-prepared 

 seed bed as well as a rich soil. In western and northern 

 states the plowing need not be so deep, chiefly on account 

 of the winter snows, freezing, and a more virgin soil. 



Plowing. Plowing for corn in most southern regions 

 may with profit be prepared in the fall and should reach 

 a depth of from 8 to 12 inches. In many cases it will 

 pay to use a subsoil plow set to even a greater depth. 

 Fields that have had but shallow plowing should not, how- 



