40 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE 
make up for the greater number of missing hills. In the 
Southeast, where there is as much as six feet between the rows 
of corn, it will generally be found that cowpeas are grown 
between the corn rows. This makes three feet between the 
row of corn and the adjacent row of peas. It is advisable, 
in most eases, to have the corn rows at least three feet six 
inches apart in order to have plenty of room to cultivate. 
This is especially true where heavy draft horses and riding 
cultivators are used. 
Most of the cornfields in the Corn Belt proper are planted 
in rows varying from three feet four inches to three feet 
eight inches in width, and in nearly all cases a three-foot 
six-inch check wire is used. The majority of Iowa farmers 
plant three feet six inches both ways. In Central Illinois 
a large part of the corn is planted three feet six inches in 
the row with the rows three feet eight inches apart. 
NUMBER OF STALKS PER HILL 
There is considerable difference of opinion in regard to 
the proper number of stalks to the hill. That this difference 
of opinion should exist is only natural since the proper number 
of stalks to secure the largest yield is determined by several 
conditions. The number of stalks for the largest yield will 
depend on the distance between the rows, the latitude, the 
variety grown and the richness of the land. One general rule 
is that where corn is grown for the grain, each plant should 
have sufficient space to permit its fullest development. This 
is especially true where the corn is being grown for seed. 
The Illinois Experiment Station has carried on extensive 
experiments to determine what influence the number of kernels 
per hill has upon the yield. The results are shown in the 
following tables: 
