112 



THE BOOK OF CORN 



plant can begin to use the food in the soil and in the air. 

 The loose, sandy soils warm up more quickly than the 

 heavier clays, so that in order to get the necessary heat 

 for the best germination the depth of planting must be 

 regulated by the character of the soil. In the loose 

 prairie loams of Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska the state 

 experiment stations find that two to four inches will 

 give the best results. This depth will vary with the 

 season and the time in the season of planting. 



In an early sea- 

 son, or if the 

 planting is done 

 late in the season, 

 after the soil has 

 been thoroughly 

 warmed, the corn 

 can be planted 

 deeper than dur- 

 ing a late season 

 or early in the sea- 

 son before the soil 

 warms up. The 

 depth will also 

 vary somewhat 

 with the size of 

 seed. If the seed 

 is small, it should 

 be planted shal- 

 lower than larger seed. Where small seed has been 

 planted deep in the prairie loam soils, only a small pro- 

 portion of the plants reached the surface, while large 

 seed planted at the same depths all came up. 



The depth of planting must vary with the amount 

 of moisture in the soil. If the soil is very moist at the 

 time of planting, the seed should be planted more shal- 

 low than if the soil is comparatively dry. This is true 



Fig 29— Effective Corn Marker for Hand 

 Planting 



A few farmers still prefer to plant corn by 

 hand, and for these the marker here shown will 

 prove helpful. The materials needed are one 

 piece of wood, a, 2x4, about nine feet loner, one 

 piece, b, 2x4, about four feet long, two pieces, 

 d d, each two feet long, and two pieces of scant- 

 ling, c c, about four feet long, two old plow 

 handles, an old pair of buggy shafts, and three 

 or four old cultivator shovels. Set the shovels 

 the proper distance apart to make rows as re- 

 quired. 



