of the writer. Corn does not do this if carefully selected, but continues to improve after the first crop. We shall have to take varieties best suited to the different sections of the State and endeavor by selection to improve upon them.

Our Western friends report that "inbreeding" in corn is as undesirable and degenerating as in animals. The Department of Agriculture of Kansas, in 1903, published a bulletin on this subject. By the kindness of Mr. F. D. Coburn, secretary of the Board of Agriculture of Kansas, I present a picture of the result of five years of inbreeding and crossbreeding.

To prevent inbreeding was one of the first steps taken after choosing the type. Last spring, through the newspapers, I requested those interested to plant six ears of corn in six parallel rows. This corn will soon be shooting and tasselling. To prevent inbreeding or the pollen from the tassel fertilizing altogether the silk on the ear of the same stalk, just as the tassel appears cut out every tassel on one-half of row No. 2; then get over on row No. 3 and cut every tassel to the end of it; then at that end begin on row No. 4 and cut tassels halfway back; then change to No. 5 and cut to the end, as follows:

Then go through the corn that has not been detasselled and detassel every barren or undesirable stalk (that is, every one that has no ear upon it). If you desire a variety of more than one ear to the stalk, then detassel all the stalks having less than two ears. If a stalk has its ears too high and tends to produce too much stalk, then detassel these, and thus fix the desired type.

Where you have a field of one kind of corn you might select any portion of it for your seed patch and treat it as recommended for the six rows above. Detasselling should be done as soon as the tassel appears.

BARREN STALKS.

Barren stalks are said to produce a greater amount of pollen, therefore should be promptly removed, or the pollen will cause the shoots upon the good stalks to produce ears that will bring other barren stalks.

Barren stalks were found to be perhaps more detrimental than inbreeding. The loss from such cause is no surmise or guesswork, but can be easily proven. Go through a row of corn, count the barren stalks as compared to those bearing ears, and you have the proportion of loss. If you and a neighbor are passing through your or his field, let each of you take two rows and count as above, and then calculate what would be the increase if every stalk bore an ear. You have the stalk, and your fertilizer and land are taxed to produce it. All that is lacking is the ear. This loss was reported to be at least onethird, but has been reduced to less than ten per cent in five years.

If you find a stalk of corn you deem desirable for seed, detassel all undesirable stalks within ten feet of it, or you may have for your seed the very stalk you deem most undesirable. Careful attention to this matter will do much to increase the quality and quantity of corn in this State next year.

SCORE CARD FOR JUDGING CORN.

The associations determined the points desired in an ear of corn of a specified type, and arranged them in groups of 100 points, to be used in judging corn. The score cards are not uniform in all the States. The following table shows the cards of the respective States named:

SCORE CARD FOR NORTH CAROLINA.

The determination as to what this shall be should have careful consideration. There must be several, as we have different types of corn that are most productive in different sections of the State or in different kinds of soil, as upland and bottom, e. g., prolific corn, upland

corn and bottom corn.

The same score will not answer in the same degree for each of these. I would propose the following, which can be varied after an opinion as to what is desired has been formed:

1. Market condition, i. e., maturity, condition, etc.... 15
2. Per cent shelled corn...

3. Trueness to type...

4. General appearance (including 5, 11 and 14 of
Western table)

5. Shape and length of grain.

6. Uniformity

7. Butts ..

8. Tips

9. Length of ear

10. Circumference

11. Color of cob

20

10

010

5

5

10

5

5

5

The rule established for length and circumference is that the circumference one-third from the butt shall not be greater than threefourths of the length of the ear.

If seed corn is to be judged, I would put vitality at 20 and omit 7, 8, 9 and 10.

At the farmers' institutes this summer and at the fairs this fall and especially at the meetings of the alliances and Farmers' Union, I hope this question will be considered and conclusions published in the papers, and afterwards the matter referred to competent authority to determine what shall be the provisions of the score card.

Next fall and winter it is proposed to have numerous corn-judging demonstrations, so that the farmers shall be made familiar with the various points obtainable on this subject. Our Western friends have two causes for anxiety about their seed corn which give us but little. concern: First, injury to the seed by cold weather; second, failure to germinate. While the latter deserves attention, it is not often that we suffer from this, further than a reduction of the stand.

I have published this paper for the information of our farmers, and hope they will give careful attention. While corn is the basis of our operations, yet a farmer should not forget the small-grain crops, nor crimson clover and vetch for pasture and winter cover crops. Where you have land in peas this summer, if it is at all thin do not cut the peas, but in September disc the ground into good condition and sow crimson clover and vetch, covering with a light weeder; then follow with corn next spring, after the crimson clover is ripe, and repeat the sowing of peas and crimson clover.