i
Purdue University
L I n R A R Y
VOL. LXII
INDIANAPOLIS, MARCH 2, 1907.
NO. 9
WILL IT PAY, AND MOW?
Some Farmers   Have Proven That
It Does Pay.
We have in the past several months occasionally alluded to the fact that a certain per cent of the farmers in this and
aatbier central states had greatly increased
their wheat, corn and other productions
per  acre. Enquiry  in  every  instance,
revealed the reason for this in a very
large measure, to be that clean, pure,
plump aud perfect seed only were used
in sowing and planting, and that this was'
obtained by using graders and fanning
mills of the latest and best construction,
lt has come to be well understood that
imperfectly matured, shrunken split and
poor seed rarely germinate, and when
they do the result is much the same as
using scrub live stock in growing cattle,
sheep, etc., for in fact these shrunken
and runty seeds are "scrub," and as "like
produces like," the result is scrub corn,
wheat, etc., and hence the small yields
|rt acre. But what  is  worse still,    a
very considerable part of these seed
wain't germinate and even produce scrub
grain, but pulls haral on the soil and absorbs the fertility which ought to go to
the production of good yields, just as
scrub cattle draws as heavily on- the feed
lains aud at maturity weighs a thousand
pounds, while the high grades at the same
age and with no more feed weighs 1,500
pounds. That   is     pretty     nearly   the
whole  question  iu   a  few   words. The
real problem is the want of clean pure
plump seed to start with, and to obtain
that grading machines and modern fanning mills are used by the farmers who
average 30 bushels of wheat per acre, and
have so increased their corn yields as to
make it 15 to 20 bushels per acre more
than they  grew  in  the old  way.
Xo one is farming for his health purely, and in any case, each and every
one is anxious to get the largest possible
returns for his labor. To produce bigger returns is what the grader and fanning mills are for, it's purely and simply
an   investment,   not   a   luxury.
It reasonably seems very unwise for ai
fa rmer to invest money in land, go to
the labor and expense of enriching and
cultivating the soil, buying implements
to cultivate and harvest the crop, and
then not sow the choicest of his grain
for seed. It requires about the same
amount of labor and expense in sowing
poor seed and harvesting a poor crop as
in sowing good seed and harvesting a
correspondingly  good   crop.
The threshing machines may seem to
make a good job o* cleaning it, but their
main object is to secure for the farmer
nil   t'hie  grain or  seed. Now,  in order
to obtain the best results it is necessary
i.a grade out the small, leaving nothing
I ul the large plump grains for seed, and,
having to thresh quickly irrespective of
the condition of the grain, and having straw, chaff, dust, wind, etc., to
contend with renders this work for the
threshing machine not only impracticable
hut impossible. By passing grain
through an improved fanning mill it will
he found that after having come through
the threshing machine there yet remains
about one-fourth of it which is unfit for
seed. Therefore in sowing 60 bushels
the farmer throws away in seed alone
about 15 bushels of good seed instead,
the improvement in his next crop should
more than pay for a fanning mill. Then,
considering that  the  life  time of a  fan
ning mill is 30 to 40 years, there should
be no question as to having one being a
good investment. Again, very often a
farmer can realize from 10 to 15 cents
extra on every bushel of his grain by
grading it in first class style and selling
it for seed. We are quite safe in saying
that there is not one single acre of grain
grown in the United States but what contains a large percentage of kernels which
it does not pay to sow. Much of it
contains different kinds of weed seeds,
and that even the samples which are free
from foreign matter are far from being
fit for seed until put through the faning
mill. To   thoroughly   satisfy   yourself
and prove that what we say is correct it
nourish the first blade better and longer
than a thin one, thus giving the infant
plant a better start and a better hold of
the soil ere it loses the nourishment afforded  by  the  kernel.
This can be seen by putting large and
small seed into pots of elean, sharp
saml or sterilized soil, and noting the time
which elapses before eaeh plant dies.
Moisture nnd heat will cause germination
and sustain life so long as the blade can
live upon the seed, but when that is
sucked dry, and the tiny roots fail to
find sustenance in the sand, the plant
dies.
There is no place where a farmer can
get his seed or grain cleaned without pay-
Says Auto Men Saould Build Their
own   Roads.
Rdltors Indiana Farmer:
I have taken the Farmer some 20 years,
and like it very much especially the stand
you take against the auto owners; they
ought to have to build their own roads,
as at least 90 per cent of them never paid
a cent toward building or keeping the
roads in repair, or they never will, and
I don't think they ought to be allowed to
use them to the detriment of those that
have to foot the bill, the Farmers. Will
you please tell me in the next issue if
home grown apple trees are as hardy as
Eastern nursery stock is; or, as they
claim, is it better than our homo grown.
It has been our opinion that our home
grown stuff, from a good reliable nurseryman, is just as good as any; but if I am
wrong I would like to know it, as I am
thinking of setting out an orchard.
Providence. J. W. T.
—We would as soon plant home grown
trees as eastern, if the nurseryman is as
reliable. More depends on the grower
and packer than the location; as between
east and west there is no great difference
in stock; both do well if well grown
and  carefully  shipped.
Home of A. E. Shugart, Grant County.
will only be necessary for you to extract
the kernels from the side of a head of
wheat, place them on a board, each kernel in its respective place as it comes
from the head. This will also do more
to convince one of the necessity of grading seed than all the talking we can
do. It will also prove that no matter
how good the erop is the seed requires
to be graded each year. You do not
realize the fact that yon sow with your
seed every year, several bushels, which,
if grada5d out by itself, would prove to
be so inferior, that we venture to say
you would not accept one dollar a bushel
aud agree to sow it on your land, and it
would not pay you to do so. Here are
live points  worth  considering:
1. It is a recognized fact that "like
begets like" in the case of all domestic
animals, and the exceptions that occasionally occur go to prove the rule.
2. It is only reasonable to conclude
that the same rule prevails in regard to
vegetable life, and that we cannot expect to reap other than what we sow.
3. It has been proved that where seed
oats were sown the average yield was
usually ten or twelve bushels per acre
better than the average from small seed.
4. In barley, too, the plump seed has
always given the best results, while in
the case of wheat, peas and potatoes, the
laest seed generally gave 20 per cent better yield than that from medium or inferior seed.'
5. The superior seed must have an advantage, not only because like produced
like,    but also because a plump seed can
ing for it, and no way in which it can
be as conveniently and cheaply done as
by having a fanning mill at his own place,
where he can grade it on wet days. He
saves the price he would otherwise have
taa pay for grading, and has all his screenings, etc., at home for feed. All grain
should be cleaned, not only the seed, but
grain  you  feed   should  be   cleaned. It
prevents the foul seed in it from going
back to the ground with the manure,
where it will cost more than the price of
a mill to get rid of it. Besides, the
time one would lose in driving after a
fn iming mill and returning it would, long
before the machine was worn out, amount
to niaare than the price of it. A great
many farmers laelievo it is a good idea
to grade their seed and they promise
themselves that before tbey sow any more
seed that tliey will take it to the elevator or some other place and have it
graded, but when the rush of spring
work is on, well the seed goes into the
ground without any cleaning or grading
of any kiml.
The advantage in having a fanning
mill of yonr own is obvious. We don't
think you can get anyone to take the
same pains in grading your seed that you
would   yourself. It's   the   other  man's
object to get through as much as he can,
while it's your object to produce as good
a sample of seed as possible.
Spring will soon be here and if our
readers have no good fanning mill to prepare seed, write to some good manufacturer and get prices and particulars of
their mills and seed  graders.
Don't Want to   Make Roads    for
the Auto.
Editors Indiana Farmer:
It was I". J. Freeman, of Richmond,
whaa acquitted the case I wrote about
siaiiii' time agaa. so would it not be better
tai chase a few shops which don't cost
half the amount of money we farmers
have spent to make the roads, and keep
the autos locked up in their garages, to
rust away, than to be crippling or killing
people every day? The auto people are
worse than the horse thieves to contend
with. The thieves don't endanger our
families. They might as well put the
number on their backs under their shirts,
as where it is now. How can we look
for a number and watch the horses? If
speed is what they want let them make
a road and speed on it. We farmers
had better try to have a law passed so
as not to compel us to work on the roads;
it would be more pleasure to travel in
the mud than to be in danger of our
lives every time we go out on good roads.
Kokomo F. Y. writes a good line, like
many others, but what effect does it have
on what we should have? If we had
more good and true men in office we
would get something done besides raising
the salaries of the officers.. E. S.
Good Resolutions.
Fulton County Farmers' Institute, at
its recent meeting in Rochester, passed
resolutions offering $150 in prizes for the
last corn grown next season by boys of
the county: also one favoring, first, the
teaching of elementary agriculture in
graded schools; second, the county school
term should last seven months; third, we
agree with Purdue University in setting
aside October 25 as Corn Seed day and
favor   its   celebration.
A farmer living in northern South Dakota, has made use of the surplus water,
flowing at a great pressure from an artesian well, by compelling it to run a dynamo. This generator produces an electric current sufficient to furnish light and
power for the farm. Some of Intliana's
ortesian wells could be utilized in a similar  manner.