coux. 87 



one. Apply twenty two-horse loads of stable manure, 

 plowed in, or one thousand pounds of bone-flour, or five 

 hundred pounds of guano, harrowed in, to the acre. Mark 

 out furrows four feet apart; put in some well-rotted 

 manure or compost, with which mix a little soil; drop the 

 seed from three to six inches apart, cover two inches deep, 

 and press with tkc hoe. When desirable to work both 

 ways with a horse, mark furrows, three and a half feet 

 apart each way, and at the angles place a half-shovelful of 

 manure, mixing some soil with it, and put in six or eight 

 kernels to each hill ; cover with two inches of fine earth, 

 and press firmly with the hoe-blade. About one peck of 

 seed will be required for an acre. 



The amount of seed in the row or hill must be in ac- 

 cordance with the season, and if planted early which it 

 always should be for first crop, even at the risk of having 

 to replant it must be put in quite thick, as in all proba- 

 bility some will rot. When fairly above ground culti- 

 vate and hoe, and when all danger of frost is past, thin to 

 one foot apart in the rows, or four to a hill. The usual 

 time for planting is the first of -May, but if it can be got 

 in earlier all the better, if the land lies warm. It may be 

 planted for succession at intervals until July. 



Marketing 1 * The fitness of corn for the table, and 

 hence for market, can be determined by the kernels filling 

 out plump and entirely covering the cob, but as the husk- 

 ing to inspect its condition damages the looks, and by ex- 

 posing the kernels would spoil the whole, growers pull 

 the ears in accordance with the appearance of the silk 

 which protrudes from the ends, as well as by feeling. To 

 understand the proper condition of the silk can only be ac- 

 quired by experience, and to learn this a few ears must be 

 husked at various stages. Suffice it to say no corn is fit to 

 market while the silk, or at least so much of it as protrudes 

 from the husks, is green. Sweet corn can be shipped in 



