Meteorological data for Huron, Dak., in 1887-Continued. The record of the plantings and general condition of the corn for the season of 1888 is taken from the station Bulletin No. 9 by Prof. Luther Foster, director and agriculturist, and is as follows: The corn experiment embraced a set of 39 plats, each containing 60 rows 24 hills in length. Thirty-three of these plats were planted with different varieties of corn, 18 of Dent and 15 of Flint, the rest being used for experiments in deep and shallow cultivation. On the first 33 plats the planting began on the 7th and 8th days of May. Two rows of each plat were planted every day for thirty consecutive working days. It may, perhaps, be unnecessary to state that these daily plantings were made with the object of determining the corn growing season, when germination begins, and the extreme length of planting time. Preparation of soil. The land used is a sandy loam, with a subsoil of clay, and slopes slightly to the northwest." It was plowed the previous August to a depth of 6 inches, and thoroughly harrowed in the spring just before planting. It had produced two crops of small grain, and had never been manured. Planting. The rows were made with a marker 3 feet 6 inches each way. Part of the corn was dropped by hand and covered with the hoe, the rest being put in with hand planters. Of the Dent corn, the hills contained 3 and 4 grains; of the Flint, 4 and 5. The stand. The early part of the season was not favorable for corn growing, being cold and wet. The coming up was quite irregular, from six to ten days frequently elapsing between the appearance of the first and last hills in a row. This was especially true of the first fifteen days' planting. The stand in general was poor, resulting in part from unfavorable weather and bad seed, but principally from the work of ground squirrels. This latter evil was the most persistent and damaging one with which the corn experiment had to contend. The per cent taken depended upon location of the variety, whether more or less remote from the unbroken prairie. Notwithstanding all efforts to destroy the squirrels, the damage done was very great. For several successive days previous to planting poisoned corn was placed in every squirrel hole that could be found. This was done not only on the experiment ground, but also on the whole 80 acres and on the edges of the land immediately surrounding it. This work, reenforced with the trap and shotgun, was continued throughout the whole planting season. Cultivation.-All the plats were given four different cultivations, a six-shovel corn plow and a double spring-tooth cultivator being used for the purpose. In addition to this they were twice hoed. Cultivation began on the 11th day of June and ended on the 17th day of July. General remarks.-It was observed in all the plats that the earlier plantings grew larger and stronger than the after ones and that the silks and tassels made their appearance more regularly. The ears of nearly all varieties of the Flint corn were infested with a species of worm. These did but little damage beyond marring the appearance of the ears. The Dents were not disturbed by the worms. Immediately after the killing frost on the night of September 11 the corn on all the plats was cut and shocked. It was allowed to stand a few weeks before husking. The results of a single season's work are only entitled to the public attention as showing the scope of the experiment undertaken. Definite results of any practical value to the farmer can only be obtained by a continuance of the same experiment under a system of careful observations extending through a number of years. Of this a beginning has been made. Tabulated statement. In the following table that date of planting is taken which shows the least number of days from time of planting to maturity. The first seven to ten days planting came up and matured at the same time, while the coming up of the rest varied quite regularly with the time of planting. The items in the columns headed "Up," "In tassel," "In silk,” "Matured," and "Days to mature " apply only to the planting up to and including the date in the first column. The items in the other columns apply to the whole piece. The per cent of corn standing and that taken by squirrels was made from actual daily counts of hills. In computing the yield the corn was weighed instead of measured." Experiments of 1888 in planting corn at Brookings, S. Dak. a I regret not to be able to state the source whence the seed was obtained and the climatic peculiarities under which it was raised. According to Linsser's laws this must decide as to the behavior of the seed and plant in a new climate. I know, however, that some of the varieties had been raised in previous years in the neighborhood of Brookings, S. Dak.-C. A. In comparing the maize experiments at Brookings with the climate of that region, I shall use the record of the Signal Service station at Huron, S. Dak. (lat. 44.3° N.; long. 98.1° W.; altitude above sea level, 1,300 feet), which is 70 miles west of Brookings, and the general meteorological tables for Huron as calculated for this agricultural usage are appended to this table of agricultural experiments. Meteorological data for Huron, Dak., in 1888. |