CULTIVATION 



27 



tip kernels are left in the seed corn. Corn is planted either 

 by drill or by the check-row method. On mellow land there 

 does not seem to be much difference in yield by each method 

 if the same number of stalks are grown per acre, but on 

 the heavy or weedy soils the check-row system is preferable 

 as it allows cross cultivation, which keeps the land mellow 

 and kills the weeds 

 close to the hills. 

 Corn should be 

 planted after the 

 ground has lost its 

 winter chill and the 

 chances of heavy 

 frost are past. The 

 larger portion of the 

 corn crop of the 

 United States is 

 planted in May and 

 harvested in Septem- 

 ber and October. 

 Cultivation. Im- 





Fig. 13. First cultivation of corn. 



mediately after planting, a fine-tooth harrow should be run 

 over the ground to level it and to kill additional weeds. 

 As soon as the corn is noticeably above the ground it 

 should be cultivated at a fairly good depth. The subse- 

 quent cultivations should be shallow, as the roots of the 

 corn soon push out to the center of the row and will be 

 severely injured if deep cultivation is practiced. Culti- 

 vation should be continued until the corn shades the ground. 

 If subsequent heavy rains occur, it is often good practice 

 to go through the corn with a one-horse cultivator and 

 break up the crust that has been formed by the rains. 



