94 FIELD CROPS 



afforded by a silo. The outer spoiled part is cut off and only 

 the inner part or good silage is fed. While considerable corn 

 is wasted by this method, it still provides a cheap form of 

 succulent feed and does very well until such time as silos 

 may be afforded. 



MARKETING AND RETURNS 



112. Marketing. Corn is commonly sold from the farm 

 on the ear, though it is sometimes shelled before it is 

 marketed. The usual practice is to sell the ear corn to local 

 dealers, who store it or shell and ship it. Corn is generally 

 shelled before it is shipped, because shelled corn occupies 

 only about one-half as much space as the same quantity of 

 ear corn. No treatment is ordinarily given to the grain on 

 the farm; it is sold as it comes from the crib. When shipped 

 from the local buyer to the central market, some of the dirt 

 is taken out in shelling, but no large proportion of it is 

 removed. On account of the method of harvesting, however, 

 corn is usually quite free from weed seeds and other foreign 

 matter. A large part of the crop is fed on the farms or in the 

 communities where it is produced. The average shipments 

 out of the county where it is grown do not exceed one- 

 fifth of the crop. The states in which the largest percent- 

 ages of shipments are recorded are Illinois, Nebraska, Ohio, 

 and Indiana. 



The legal weight of a bushel of shelled corn is 56 pounds ; 

 of corn on the ear, 70 pounds. If corn is sold within a short 

 time after it is harvested, while it still contains a high per- 

 centage of moisture, it is customary to allow 75 or even 80 

 pounds to the bushel. Ordinary air-dry corn will shell 

 about 56 pounds of grain to 70 pounds of ears, but an extra 

 good sample may shell as much as 60 pounds. 



