u THE fahm. 



lays her egge near the base of the leaf where the leaf is sheathed arotind the 

 stalk. The worm is orange yellow, with rows of reddish warts, and a flat, 

 black head, with which it bores its way into the stalk. It sheds its skin four 

 times before it attains full growth. The cocoon is woven within the stalk, 

 and the moth makes its exit through the holes bored by the worm. Three or 

 more broods are produced each year. It hibernates in stalks and stubble. 

 The stalks not eaten by stock should be burned early in February, and the 

 stubble should be plowed up and burned, or plowed under very deeply. 



Curing Corn Fodder. — Much com fodder is spoiled while being cured.- 

 A good way to prevent this is to set iirmly in the ground a small stake or 

 large-sized bean-pole, around which a few armfuls of com is set, and bound 

 securely near the top. This makes a firm center around which to build. 

 Then set up more com, placing it evenly all around, and leaning it no more 

 than is necessary to have it stand. When enough is placed to make a large 

 stock, all that can cure, draw a rope, with a slip noose in one end, around 

 the stock as tight as convenient, using a step-ladder to stand upon if the com 

 is very tall. An assistant can now bind with a straw band or with selected 

 stalks, after which the rope may be removed. If doing the work alone, the 

 rope can be tied while the band is being put on. Corn fodder well put up iu 

 this way may be kept, if desired, in the field till winter. 



Saving Seed Corn. — To save seed com successfully in a cold climate, 

 you should not keep it in a warm place, or especially where it is warm but a 

 part of the time, as there is danger that the changes of temperature may de- 

 stroy the germinative power. Continued warmth is also conducive to de- 

 composition, which will destroy the life of the seed. Corn and similar seeds 

 are best kept in a dry, cool room, where the temperature is uniform. When 

 your seed from the "small pile over the Uving-room" failed to germinate, 

 the cause was probably due to both dampness and warmth, which incited 

 incipient decay. Seeds differ greatly in the degree of cold they will endure 

 without losing vitality. Com has gei-minated after having been subjected to 

 the most intense cold of the polar regions, and an experiment is reported iu 

 which other seeds germinated after having been frozen into a cake of ice. 



Corn Culture. — "The suckers," says H. M. Engle, in a prize essay, 

 "should, under all circumstances, be taken off before they appropriate too 

 much substance which the main stalks should receive, but under no circum- 

 stances allow suckera to tassel, for, whatever pains may be taken to bring or 

 keep corn at its greatest perfection by selection of seed, the pollen from the; 

 sucker may undo what has been gained by years of careful selection. I 

 would as soon tliink of breeding from a scrub male to a thoroughbred ani- 

 mal as to have the pollen from suckers cast upon an excellent varietj' of 

 corn. It is also well known that the pollen from a neighboring field is oft- 

 times earned to an almost incredible distance, and consequently may causa 

 more mixture than is desirable." 



Points on Com. — ^Deep plowing among growing com after the roots 

 have met in the rows is disastrous; "root pruning" is a mistake; to break 

 the roots chocks the growth, and in hot, dry weather deep cultivation will 

 surely cause the com to curl, showing injuring and suffering, while shallow 

 working will keep it fresh and green. As soon as a crust is formed on tlie 

 soil, it should be broken up to admit both moisture and air, for the one dis- 

 Bolvea the fertilizing matter which is in the soil, and the latter effecta its de- 



