12 
ELEMENTARY AGRICULTURE 
Beginning the Field Selection of Seeds involves 
the problem of securing and saving those which yield 
most. Men have spent years trying to improve the 
standard of field crops. Their beginnings were with very 
poor plants, and long continued efforts have been neces¬ 
sary to obtain our high producing varieties. 
While many farmers do not have time to collect seeds 
according to the most scientific methods, the seeds of our 
Fig. 7.—A. Good cotton stalk. 
B. Poor cotton stalk. 
common crops require some study. The idea of field 
selection, by making use of suggestions for special crop 
work, will aid in improving the home supply of seeds. 
Corn.—After the corn has ripened, go through the 
field with a seed picking bag and husk the ears from the 
stalks that have produced the most corn without having 
any special advantages such as space, moisture, or fer¬ 
tility. Avoid the large ears on stalks standing singly 
