profit by such changes with certainty it 
will be necessary to determine whether it 
will uniformly benefit the ciop, or under 
what particular conditions and for what 
reasons such benefits will accrue. As prac¬ 
tical men we are after facts rather than the 
philosophy of things. If we can find out 
the conditions required for certain things, 
we will let the professors tell the reasons 
for it. Our opinion, founded upon observa¬ 
tions and experiments, is that farm seeds 
will retain their qualities in a soil and cli¬ 
mate which is compteiely adapted to them, 
but rapidly deteriorate when perpetuated 
in an uncongenial spot, In support of this 
we note also the experience of a Dutchess 
County farmer as reported in one of our 
exchanges. He says, “the soil and climate 
where lam is well adapted to c*.rn—“nat- 
Rial” for it, as we are apt tax say, as any in 
©ur latitude. All the varieties improve 
htre, as they adapt themselves to the cL- 
mate. For wheat our soil is not so ^‘nat¬ 
ural. ” The old Red Mediterranean 
was the only kind that impro\ed here, 
and even of that I got the best crop from 
feed sent me from Geneva. We get good 
crepe of wheat only by careful culture, and 
I think we had better change after more or 
less of an interval, My neighbors on the 
hills who raise some spring wheat must get 
their seed from another soil and climate. 
Our most observing farmers are accustom* d 
to go up on the hills for ilieir seed oats, but 
the lull farmers never come here for their 
feed oats. It is not simply a change that 
they want, but a change from a locality 
well adapted to them to one less congenial, 
In raising com, we never, in this part of the 
ftate, make any improvement in our crop 
by bringing our seed front another district, 
unless simply to get a better variety. Our 
com does not degenerate. I have planted 
the same kind of com on my farm for thir¬ 
ty-five years, and no other kind, except oc¬ 
casionally for comparison. 1 have guarded 
the purity of the seed by (twice in this time) 
planting the seed from a single stalk by it- 
felf and taking all my seed from the product. 
It may not be the most prolific variety to be 
found, but in the certainty of its ripening 
and curing, and the excellent product, it 
seems by common consent here to be well 
adapted to this district. It has improved! 
by continued propagation, rather than dete¬ 
riorated.” 
We believe with this correspondent that 
even a single year’s seeding in a soil and cli¬ 
mate perfectly adapted to the most complete 
development of plant and seed will give & 
noticeable improvement in the product of 
those seeds when transported and planted! 
in a locality which is not so naturally adap- 
ed to that particular crop, and that w© 
should ever keep this point in view wheift 
changing or buying seeds. There is yeft 
another variation equally as sure to result 
from the change of climate in planting 
seeds, which only need he observed wher© 
earliness of product is an object. Plant# 
continually propagated in a climate wher# 
the season is much longer than they requir© 
gradually become later in maturing. So, 
seeds which are desired tor very early mar¬ 
ket products, should, if possible, be pro 
cured from more northern localities thafi 
those in which they are to be planted. 
We have kept these points in view dur¬ 
ing the ten years in which we have been 
producing “Puget Sound” cabbage seeda, 
and we attribute much of the superiority 
which is universally acceded to this fa¬ 
mous brand to these practices. To prevent 
the tendency to late maturity, which th© 
long climate there might induce, we fre¬ 
quently send seeds from our best Eastern 
stocks to be re-seeded and returned. NO 
country in the world is more naturally 
adapted to the perfect development of cab* 
bage heads, or seeds, and those grown and 
seeded there carry their vigor with them 
wherever they go for one generation aft 
least. To keep the characteristics of each 
variety true we grow our seed stock from 
as critically selected heads as possible, and 
a combination of these principles has re¬ 
sulted in our producing seeds which ar© 
attracting more attention on account of 
tlieir superior products than any others in 
the world. 
" ... rt r 
F LORAL INSTRUCTOR, 5th Year. 
Monthly, tells all about Fruits. Flowers an& 
Vegetables Sample copy free. Ainsworth, Iowa 
isay where you saw this.) 9t< 
POULTRY WORLD. 
A monthly magazine, the oldest, largest and best- 
eriodio.al devoted entirely to poultry ever pubdshed. 
plendidly illustvateu. ‘#12 per year Also th* 
AIWFHinN POlTi.TKY YARD, 
the only weekly paper in existence wh ch is entirely 
devoted to poultry #1 60 |>er year Both papers r 'ot 
$2 00 A sample copy of both mailed on receipt of teft 
cents in ]*ostage stamps. Mention Seed-Time an® 
Hairest and address, H. XX. STODDARD, 
9-12 Hartford, Ct*. 
