Cleaned, Treated and Tested Seed 
7 
Character of Impurities in Seed. —We should know more 
than the purity percentage of seed, however. Two lots of seed 
may both have a purity of 98%; in the one case the 2% of im¬ 
purities may be largely dodder, a most pernicious and destructive 
weed; in the other case the 2% impurities may be made up of 
harmless inert matter such as broken sticks, gravel, etc. Again, 
a lot of seed with a purity of only 90% may be superior to one 
with 98%, having the same germinability, if the purity in the 
first case is of harmless material and that in the second is of 
noxious weed seeds. The purity reports as issued by the Colo¬ 
rado Seed Laboratory give, not only the percentage of purity, but the 
percentage of noxious weeds, the percentage of other seeds, the per¬ 
centage of inert matter and the number per pound of each kind of 
noxious weed seeds. This is information that should be in the hands 
of every seller and purchaser of seed. 
Seed True to Variety. —Care should be used to plant seed true 
to variety. Mixed seed results in a crop that is not uniform. The 
stand is uneven. The plants of the different varieties mature at 
different times. Consequently, there may be considerable loss from 
shattering or from immaturity. 
If seed of a given kind (wheat, for example) from a number of 
growers is dumped into a bin elevator, it is sometimes the case that 
such a lot represents a mixture of varieties. There are many far¬ 
mers in Colorado who are buying such mixtures of seed wheat. And, 
the rather prevalent practice of mixing strains of cereals is resulting 
in a positive loss to the State. 
Extravagant Claims of Seed Promoters. —We need to be 
cautious of extravagant claims of seed promoters. From time 
to time varieties of wheat have been introduced on the market 
which are said to give yields of enormous crops, much above 
the prdinary. For other varieties it is claimed that but small 
amounts of seed need be planted per acre, and this claim is made to 
justify the exorbitant price for such seed. As a general proposition, 
it is advisable to use home grown seed that has been tried and found 
to give satisfactory yields when its purity and viability are high and 
when proper cultural methods are used, and the seed is acclimated. 
Cleaning Seed. —The fanning mill should be made greater use of 
by farmers. There are a number of excellent kinds of fanning mills 
on the market, some of which are of such a price as to be within 
reach of individual growers. Many farmers are equipped with such 
mills. Occasionally, several farmers of a neighborhood join in the 
purchase of a fanning mill. With the small cereals the fanning mill 
will remove chaff, wild oats, light and shriveled seed, smut “balls” 
and many weed seeds, and thus secure a much larger percentage of 
plump, vigorous seeds. 
It has been demonstrated that running seed grain once through 
the fanning mill will often result in an increase of from 2 to 5 
bushels per acre. 
