HEATING IN THE RICKS. 18 



large quantities of seed are to be cured, the ricks are made -i or 5 feet 

 high by about 5 feet broad at the bottom. In the fields the ricks are 

 frequently as large and are from 50 to 200 or more feet Jong. 



To cure in the field a space is first mowed close, and is sometimes 

 scraped, leaving a smooth, hard-packed clay surface. The seed is then 

 ricked up on the dirt or on the short grass stubble, much of the coarse 

 stuff, such as weeds and timothy, being shaken out and removed at this 

 time. Some cure their seed out of doors for the first three or four 

 days, during* which time, if the weather is favorable, the seed becomes 

 nearly dry. It is then taken to barns to finish curing, when it can be 

 piled in larger ricks than would be safe with fresh seed. The curing 

 of the entire crop is usually completed at about the same time, as the 

 greener seed collected first takes a much longer time than that which 

 is allowed to fully mature before stripping. 



Until the last few years the curing was all done by the persons who 

 stripped their own seed, and consequently in small lots. Recently 

 it has become more and more the custom to sell the rough seed as soon 

 as it is stripped to dealers who either have cleaners of their own or 

 who cure it in large quantities and then resell before it is cleaned. 

 This system has necessitated the handling of very large bulks of seed 

 in one place — often more than there is room for or than can be suf- 

 ficiently stirred with the available help. This is especially true when 

 it is cured in buildings. 



TURNING THE RICKS. 



After the seed has been piled up it is of the utmost importance that 

 it should be stirred . often to prevent heating. For this a force of 

 workmen is kept busy turning the seed over with forks and shaking 

 out the straw, so that the air may get to every part. Every rick 

 should be turned at least three times daily for the first four or five 

 days. 



HEATING. 



When the seed is taken from the stripper and put into sacks it is 

 fresh, moist, and mixed with more or less green stuff. The closely 

 packed mass heats and, if left for even a short time before emptying, 

 the seed becomes decidedly warm to the touch. When this warm 

 mass is then piled into ricks and left for several hours the tempera- 

 ture rises rapidly, and, unless the seed is frequently stirred, soon 

 reaches a point at which the vitality is greatly damaged. Naturally 

 the temperature rises most rapidly and reaches the highest points in 

 the center of large ricks, and when for any reason these are not turned 

 often enough, the seed becomes "funked" or fired and assumes a 

 gray, dusty appearance with a musty smell, the vitality of the seed 



