274 DRY LAND FARMING 



discussion of fertilizers for corn in the semi-arid west, 

 as the need for these has been but little felt. 



Planting. It cannot be said with the assurance of 

 certainty at the present time which are the best corns 

 for each particular section of the dry country. This can 

 only be determined by experiment, and the time for such 

 experimentation has not been sufficiently long. A few 

 years hence much more will be known with reference to 

 varieties and their adaptation for dry areas than is known 

 at the present time. 



It would seem correct to say, however, that four 

 distinct classes of corn will be found suitable for the 

 semi-arid country. These are: (1) flint corns; (2) dent 

 corns; (3) sweet corns, and (4) flour corns. The flint 

 corns are best adapted to extreme northern conditions. 

 The dent corns have adaptation to conditions less severe. 

 The sweet corns may be grown over a wider area than 

 the flint or dent varieties, and the flour corns are best 

 suited to southern conditions. Varieties may yet be 

 evolved with more complete adaptation to the environ 1 

 ments of each locality than those that are now grown. 



When determining as to the variety that shall be 

 grown, the object sought in growing the crop should be 

 carefully considered. If grain is the principal object 

 sought, the fodder being a secondary object, those vari- 

 eties should be grown which will give the largest yields 

 under the average prevalent conditions. But if fodder is 

 the primary object, then varieties should be grown which 

 will give the largest amount of good fodder. The more 

 grain production that can be linked with such fodder 

 production, the more valuable will be the fodder thus 

 produced. 



In northern areas the best varieties for producing 

 grain include the Squaw corn, the Gehu and Golden dent. 

 The Squaw corn is a low-growing variety, grown by 

 the Indians, long years ago. It is a flint corn, white in 



