xt7hqb9v2q0h https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7hqb9v2q0h/data/mets.xml Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station. 1945 journals kaes_circulars_004_414 English Lexington : The Service, 1913-1958. Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station Circular (Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station) n. 414 text Circular (Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station) n. 414 1945 2014 true xt7hqb9v2q0h section xt7hqb9v2q0h l w for § Y 4-I·I Clubs V Y Circulor 4'I4 UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY College of Agriculture ond Home Economics Agricultural Extension Division Thomas P, Cooper, Deon and Director · Requirements l. Boys and girls lO to 2O years old may take this project. 2. Enroll not later than April l. 3. Members must study the instructions given in this circular. 4. Each member must grow at least l acre of corn, following the Tj_ V advice of his county agent and project leader. me 5. The crop must be on one piece of ground. GF 6. Members above i4 years of age will do all the work. Younger Im. members may be helped with heavy work but will keep own records TO 7. Each member must keep a record on the forms in this circular Un of all work done. The record must be approved and signed by be the county agent. C0 8. Eoch member should receive the net return from his project. he 9. To get the most benefit from 4-H Club work, a member should pk attend all meetings of his Club and take part in its activities. is Timely Reminders January ............ Enroll in the project. SE February ........... Study project circular. Select ground for the project. j CC l·lave project leader teach how to test seed corn. Or Ma rch .............. Get best quality seed corn. Learn about hybrid com W April ................ Plow and prepare ground. Apply barnyard manure. 4 IDI Apply commercial fertilizer. May .................. Harrow to conserve moisture and keep down weeds. Al June ................. Plant when ground is warm. Thin when plants are 8 to l2 inches high. ll< Keep an accurate record of your working time. W4 July .................. Continue shallow cultivation. bi August ............. Keep down weeds and grass. b' Cultivate to break up crust following roin. PI Go on a project tour with other Club members. . September ........ Check meosurements of plot before harvesting. O! October ............ lrlorvest when ears are dry. Dj ` Sow winter grain for cover crop. lj. Keep careful record of yield. gp Moke exhibit at community and county fairs. S. November ........ Nlarket any groin to be sold House the feed 60m il in a rat-proof crib. D December ......... Turn in completed project record. ¤ (Revision 0/ Circular 82) [ 2] _ e { l CORN PROJECT FOR 4-H CLUBS ( lr. By E. J. Kinney and E. E. Fish eg the Tl·lE OBJ ECTS OF THE CORN PROJECT are (l) to teach a good method of corn culture, (2) to furnish profitable employment for l o port of the Club member's time during the summer, (3) to stimu— J Oungel lote interest in farm life among farm boys. 3 ip Own When a 4-H Club member selects corn for his project he hopes T _ to produce a high yield. Yields of lOO bushels per acre ore not T lllculm uncommon among state and county project members. Club mem~ T . ned by bers strive for a large yield per acre because that means more ( _ corn for feeding and a smaller relative cost of production. Many ( ~ l€°l‘ items entering into the cost of production, including taxes, rent, ( $ll°Ul°l plowing and seedbed preparation are the same whether the yield “"l'€5· is large or small. Preparing for the Crop y Selecting the plot ( The foundation for successful corn growing is soil productivity. ` com · Corn is given its place in the crop rotation immediately after clover ' y id com or Glfalfa or other legume sod is turned under. Most profitable T yields are obtained from moderately low—|ying but well—drained, i nanure. _ Ioumy SON' y V weeds. APPlYl¤g munure The soil should be well supplied with organic matter. /\pp|ica— P A tion of 8 to lO loads of barnyard manure per acre is an excellent ime. woy of supplying the needed organic matter. This may be opplied before breaking the land or, if not too coarse and strawy, after breoking. The latter method often gives slightly better results. Flowing l€lS' F Lflnd is plowed to loosen it, to destroy weeds, and to cover Slmg O’Q¤¤lC matter. More roinfoll is token up by plowed than by un- olowed land. Fall plowing has some advantages. The larvae of Iiormful insects, such os cutworms and grubworms, are brought to the surface ond destroyed by exposure. Fall plowing exposes thc IS' $0ll to the mollowing oction of freezing and thawing Gnd l'rC1Sl€¤S led com ll°‘$‘ decoy of the organic motter (clover, manure, etc.) which WGS plowed under. However, where lond is hilly it is not advisable to blew in the fall because this would subject the soil to serious losses [ 3 l by washing and leaching. Land to be plowed in the spring should An be plowed as early as possible, to a depth of about 7 inches. mj Preparing the seedbed H0 ln the spring, work plowed sod ground with a disk harrow. lf you S l have no disk harrow, use a spring—tooth, or a spike-tooth harrow. nu A fairly good seedbed can be prepared by several harrowings with del a sharp spike-tooth harrow. Repeat the harrowing at intervals pre until planting time. This keeps down weeds and saves moisture to , which would be lost rapidly if a hard crust were allowed to form. Wh Thorough preparation of the soil is very important. in Using commercial fertilizer Phosphorous is the element most lacking in manure. lt can be le: supplied in various forms to make a proper balance. lf manure GB is used, the fertilizer application should be 300 pounds per acre _ On of 20-percent superphosphate. Superphosphate and ground lime- be stone should be spread broadcast on the plowed land before pre- Ty paring the seedbed, so that harrowing will mix them with the soil th thoroughly. Where manure is not available 500 pounds per acre CO of a mixed fertilizer containing 5 to 8 percent nitrogen, 6 to8 percent phosphoric acid, and about 6 percent of potash should be W applied broadcast and worked into the soil. Choice of variety lll Hybrid seed corn is so superior to the old open-pollinated dl varieties in yield and strength of stalk and roots that it has practi- lh cally displaced the open-pollinated varieties in all important corn- Cl growing areas of this country. Any of the Kentucky certified lil/· Gl brids may be used. Kentucky l02 and lO3, and US l3, are the Ol yellow hybrids certified in Kentucky; and Kentucky 72 B and K€¤· nl tucky 203 the white hybrids. Consult your county agent in select- ing the variety. Measuring the plot Rl ` Before planting, be sure that the plot contains more than tlté required acre, 43,560 square feet. Two disinterested persons l0 should measure the acre before the corn is planted, or soon after. Space should be left outside the measured acre for turning The F6 horse or mule while cultivating. Drive strong posts (which will re- tc main throughout the season) in the corners of the measured acre [ 4 l _ J ` 2 l hould Any rectangular plot that is at least l0 rows wide and that con- V tains the necessary amount of ground is satisfactory. ; How to plant g HYOU lf a corn planter is used, regulate it so as to drop the desired "'°W· number of grains each time. Whether to check or drill should be iwllh decided by the local conditions. lf the ground is weedy the corn firvuls preferably should be planted in checks. On hillsides, it is necessary ` Y "Sl'·"€ to drill. There seems to be little difference in the yield of corn i ` ‘c°'m· whether drilled or checked, if the same number of plants are grown V in both cases. On rich land that holds moisture well, drop 4 grains T A 3% feet apart in the row or 2 grains every l4 inches if drilled. _ y Thin to 3 stalks per hill, or l stalk in each place in drilled corn. On xm be less fertile land thin to 2 stalks per hill and space drilled corn ‘°m"€ about 2l inches apart. lf early-maturing, smaller-growing varieties " Pm - are used, they should be planted at the thicker rate. Corn should Mme be planted only deep enough to place the seed in moist earth. E pr? There is no advantage in planting very deep, as it takes longer for le SON the corn to come up; in fact there is a chance that it may never y f" SC'; come up. T i > o uid be When to plant i A _ Corn should not be planted until the ground is warm. The time for planting varies somewhat in different localities and in _ armed different years, because of varying seasonal conditions. Most of T practi- the corn in Kentucky is planted between April 25 and May lO. r com C0mmunity experience as regards time of planting is a very valu— T ed hy- uble guide and the best practice is to plant when the best farmers ire the ofthe community are planting the main crop. Neither very early d Ken- ¤0r very late planting should be practiced. select- Cultivation Reasons for cultivation an the The reasons for cultivating corn may be summarized as fol- nersons lows; lclflel l· T0 destroy weeds, This is probably the most important Fig the "EGSOVW. ln fact, it is a muah-debated question Wl'l€fl"l€|’ li l”\€lP$ will re' TO cultivate corn more than is necessary to keep weeds dOW¤- d GCM 2- T0 Save moisture Heavy rains pack the soil and fafm ¤ [ 5 ] crust on. the surface that aids in the evaporation of water from the soil. Breaking up the crust by cultivating lessens this loss, somewhat. lm 3. To aerate the soil. By breaking up the crust, air is ol- K V lowed to circulate more freely in the soil, thus favoring the growth de of useful bacteria and making plant food available. lac 4. To let the water from rains sink into the soil quicker by keeping the surface loose and porous. LC; ` Depth of cultivation gl Sometimes the first cultivation is given by going over the field G,. with a light spike-tooth harrow soon after planting. lf the harrow th is light and the teeth are set to slant backward a little, this method th can be used safely on plants 3 or 4 inches high. The advantoge Or of harrowing is that it kills the young weeds. The first plowing may be deep and close to the plants; however, at no time should th the cultivation be close enough to disturb the roots. Later culti- it vation should be shallow and preferably done with a cultivator bc which has several teeth or shovels. Don't use the old-fashioned m double shovel or bull—tongue plow unless absolutely necessary, be- ~ St cause they tend to injure the crop by cutting off many of the {C feeding roots and also by permitting greater evaporation of mois- ture from the soil by leaving the ground with ridges and deep fur- ` D rows. Cultivate whenever necessary to kill weeds and also as soon as possible after a rain, to break up the crust and make the sur- C face of the soil fine and loose. Frequent, shallow cultivation in ll the early stages of growth gives the best results. Number of times to cultivate How many times to cultivate corn depends upon the kind cl n soil and the weather which each season brings. Not fewer than e three or as many as five cultivations may be needed to keep the C plot free from weeds. The growth of weeds on a plot shows a lock ` of cultivation. T ll Cover crop p lt is very important that com land be sown to a cover crop l to prevent leaching and soil erosion. This should be done G5 €‘·"lY T in September as possible. t [ 6 ] _ ¢ 2 i from Insects and Diseases T ’ loss, Insects is O, Both field and sweet corn are subject to injury by several growth destructive insects. Some work on the roots and others eat the leaves or ears. T wr by The wireworm, white grub, and com root worm attack the 4 T roots. These pests are the larvae of beetles, and the methods Q used to combat them must be in the nature of cultivation. Grow- i T ing corn on the same field year after year may help these insects ` to increase. Rotation of crops tends to hold them in check. Fall j T 6 field and winter plowing destroys a great number of these insects as f¤¤*'V0W they are brought to the surface and subjected to freezing. Also A ¤€ill0d this kills many larvae which spend the winter in the soil and feed ¤¤i¤Q€ on the corn above ground during the growing season. ’lOWl"9 One of the worst corn pests is the corn ear—worm. lt is found in Shevld the tip of the ear of corn. Fall plowing helps to control this insect, " CUlll‘ lt is believed. The very serious insect known as the European corn ltiv¤i<>f l:>0rer has now spread over most of Kentucky but has not become ihlolied numerous enough to do great damage. Plowing under all corn- T IVY] be T stalks and corn stubble in the spring is the practice recommended V 4 of The for controlling this insect. I . Diseases 4 GS Soon Corn smut is one of the most common diseases in cornfields. the Sui. Cutoff the affected stalks, carry them out of the field and burn ition in them- 4 Selecting Exhibits An exhibit is an important part of the corn project. Each club kind Ol member is required to show a lO—ear sample of his crop. This er than exhibit may be displayed at a county fair, a school fair, or a local eep the club fair. so lack The county agent will have someone to judge the exhibits. This judge will have several things in mind when he looks over the exhibits, and club members should know what the most im— portant of these things are, so they can select their samples of ,€,» crop l0 €¤fS intelligently First, q judge will be influenced greatly by GS early the Uniformity Of the exhibit; This means that each ear should be lust as much like every other ear as possible. Second, he will [7 l insist that the ears be up to a certain standard in size and that Ch they be well proportioned. He will insist that all ears be abso- lutely sound; any signs of unsoundness will bring down the scare EOS greatly. Finally, the judge will be influenced by the finish ofthe Sh; ears; that is, the way the tips are covered and the finish of the the ‘ butt ends. Frc Shape of ears All ears should taper slightly. Take care to choose ears that for do not taper too much nor too sharply. Size of ears Ml Never select abnormally large ears for an exhibit. Medium on ears are best. Purity All grains in an exhibit should be of the same color. lf it is an exhibit of white corn, all grains should be white. lf there are _ any red or yellow grains it shows that the corn is not pure. ln an lm exhibit of yellow com there should be no white or red grains. IT White corn preferably should have white cobs, but some varieties llc of white corn have red cobs, so the important point is to have the l IS. color uniform. Yellow corn should have red (or pink) cabs. Tips and butts V ` bo The tips and butts should be well filled and carry as nearly lh} as possible the same size and shape of kernel as the rest of the ml ear. Unfilled tips, broken off so as to make the ear appear more CO uniform, will cause the exhibit to be disqualified for competition. CO Type of grain An ideal kernel is slightly wedge-shaped, but not pointed. The kernels should fit up against one another so that little space is lost between rows. The rows should be straight and extend from butt to tip. The grains should have a medium dent. l Type of germ The germ should be large, broad, and healthy. A large, broad germ indicates vitality and strength. Number of rows The number of rows will vary with the variety of corn. [ 8 ] V 4- · ` i l that Character of cob Y abso— The cob should be medium in size. A small cob is broken , $€0i€ easily. When cobs break, much grain is lost in handling and ¤l the shipping. If the cob is too large, the ears are slow in drying and i Jl The the corn may spoil in the crib. g Freedom from disease _ g Corn that is diseased should not be selected for exhibit. Look l T S lh°l for smut and mold. Never select com with mouse-eaten grains. j t Maturity T edium Ears should be dry and sound. Shrunken, wet or loose grains i on the cob indicate immaturity. l l Keeping Records It `t ` . WIC; Keep the record book up to date as the work is done. Every ' In an time something is done connected with the acre of corn, enter it mins in the record book. The number of hours required for plowing, arienés planting, cultivation, and so on, should be put down as the work we the · is done. Then when the crop is harvested and the yield deter- ‘ mined, a short summary will show exactly the cost of producing * ‘ the crop. Don't try to remember items of expense. Let the record T · book do the remembering. First, last, and all the time, keep up nearly the record. The state champion corn project member is deter- Of the mined from the yield and project record. County agents will help T ir more county champions to get accurate yields allowing for moisture _ etition. content. d, The pace is id 'lf0m ' a, l)f0<1d 1. [ 9 ] Club Score Card-Corn Judging Pomts "§_;i‘;jg§?‘Wg gm 4 1. Unitormity of exhibit .......................... 5 ............ . ........... l 2. Shape of ear ,....................................... 10 ............ . ........... g gl 3. Length of ear .................................... 10 ............ . ........... 4. Circumference of ear .......................... 5 ............ . ........... ~ --~W»» l 5. Tip of ear ............................................ 5 ............ . ........... ‘ ‘····· 6. Butt of ear .......................................... 5 ............ . ........... ' ````"' 7. Kernel, uniformity .............................. 5 ............ . ........... l lnllll 8. Kernel, shape ...................................... 5 ............ . ........... l llnnl q 9. Color in grain and cob ........................ 10 ............ . ........... 10. Space between rows ............................ 5 ............ . ........... _ ____ 1 1. Vitality or seed condition .................... 15 ............ . ........... 12. Trueness to type .................................. 10 ............ . ........... U 1 13. Proportion of shelled corn to cob .......... 10 ............ . ........... _ ······ Total .................................... 100 ............ . ........... — -···· PI'Oi€C'I' R€COI'd 1. Variety ................................................................................-· ____,, 2. Did YOU TeSl‘ yOur seed? ................ What germination? ......... . ·-·· -- 3. Kind of soil (rich, medium, or poor) .......................................... I 4. What Crop was grown on the land last year? ,,................ . ...-· ‘‘‘·· - 5. Did you use commercial fertilizer? ..,....,.,,....,....,............... · .····- · Kind of fertilizer used ..........................,, Amount ............ . .···-·- l V''. 6. How much barnyard manure did you use? ..,,.,.,................. . .··---· · liill 7. How did you prepare the seedbed? ..................................... - --···- ·· .......... .. ............. ........ .... .................................................--····-···*"""` '[`( [ 10] _ o i Lobor Record 5 ”`_ All work on the project, such as testing the seed, preparing the ground, planting, cultivating, cutting, shucking, and marketing. ......... wJ——V-` Club Help W Horse 4\TractoT.v M Date member's hours or mule hours Kind of work ......... o is sh¤¤ir§iAs.ii,ieeA,e chewed i uma ceciiie »,.., W 5 5 __________,______l____ ,_,___,__....,..l._... . .......,.......,..... , ....................... . ....,...........,..,. . ......i. . ..............i...........`................ ·······»·· , ,i,iii_,ii,iiiiii,_ 5 ____._i..,....__..i.i. 5 ....._.i...._..,_.,.ii l .._.ii,iiiiiiii_iii.i.i I .i...i,....i..i.ii.ii. i ..iiiiiiiiiiiii.i,...i,.....,i._.iii_._,i,.,i.,i,i,,., ·········· . ..___,_i_____._____.. 5 ._,.._.........i...,., i ....................,. . ,.....i..i.........,., 5 .... , ...,...i... ..,........,..,..,...,.,.................,........,... -—--·~··-· 5 ,,..,,.,_____..____.. 5 _...._.__......i...... . .........,.......,..i 5 ..i...i...,......,....i l ._........,.i....i.... \ ...,..,.,.......i..i...i......,.,.,.,.,.,.,.........,. 5 5 \ l .....i.... 5 ,,,,,,__,_i,_,,_,ii Q ii_i___,_,__liiiii_iii E _ii.._i_,,,__,i,iiiiii .._.iii__iiii..___...,. i_iiiiiiiiiaiii..ii..i iiiiiiii.ii....i.ii.,ii,iiiii.....ii,,i, i ,..,.i...,.. ..... .. ....._,_,_,_____,,_ l _,__,_,____,,,..,,.... 5 ..........,.,......... ...........,........... l ....i................. . ....,,...·..........»..·.....··-·-»···-»»-»------·-~- 5 ,_________, ,iiiit,i_iiii, i o,_ioo_iooi,i_ii_ll___ __,_iiiiiiii_ii___i___ , __,___,,,_iii_iii_i_ii_ B _i,i _ iiii,iiilii_..i_ 5 _i_._iiiiiiii,i,iii.i,iiiriiii .ii,i,i.,..,,.iiiiiiiii , --- .......,_.__ ____,_, ’ _________________,____ 5 ________.__...,..,,,.. 5 ...l.............>..... l ...............................».....4..»....»..·..··V·. - -~-·-----·---·~—·-- V _________,. . .i..i....,.,, _ ,.i.,. 3 ..._.........._....... ......,_..........,... 2 .....i........,........ 5 ..........,..,.....i... ..,.........V,..............»..»..........,.....»..,. i riirr 5 iitiiii,iiiiii__ l ___ii____i,___ii___________,_i,i_ii__iii_i_,i_ B _,iiiiii__ii.i,,ii..._i ._._i,,i,,ii i ...iii.,i i iiiiiii...i..,.i,...,.,..,....i,......i,,‘i..,...ii,. t,,t,,,,i,t_i,__ii__i_i 5 __ii_,__i,,,_,iii_iii_ 5 ___________,_,iiiii_l, i,i,_i__,_iii_ii, _.ii_ 5 iiii i iiii iiiiiiii...i i iiiiiiii,iiiiiii.....,,,i,i,.ii,.i....,,,,i.ii.,..,., ...-»»·-·-- 5 .,ii,ii,i_,_,___,____ ______________o_______ __l_______,,_______,__ 5 _____,___,,,iii___i_ii, 5 _.__i.,....__...iiii.ii . i.iiii.i....,.,ii,.i...,...i.i................».».... 5 5 _____,,. i ,... . ...__i_______ j ______,______,________ _______,_,____________ 4 ____________,__,,__,.., 5 ....,..._., . ,,,....... Q .....,........4....·..·....--»···»·-»·»--—-·-·-~---··· 5 l j _ —·-....».. . .,____,,___ l ______,______,________ _ ____v__________,_____ 5_ _ __,_________,__,l._ I _.............i.... .........» . ..·-·»----····---· — ···-·-~··-—···-··--·-·· , 5 5 , , , , l _,____o_ _ ______ ,_________ _ __________ ` ___________,__________ % ______,________________ _ _____________________ ] _____A___,A_______....,.,.......,........ M .......... ···—--·-···· r ,_____,_,_,________ 5 ______,_______________ _ _________________,___ _ ______________________ _ _____________________ 5 ____5_,____________,______,.__._..................... -----»-·~·r- ,. iii i, 5 i,_i__,_i_o,__,_ii5o__ 5 __oooo,,,,i5_,__,,__,_ l iiiiiril___,r_5i_i_i55i l iiii__iiiiii i ii il iiii iii_ ,i i , iii u , ,,,i u i, ,, i r ll 1 Business Account Number acres grown ......................... Average yield per acre ....................... bw l zxmasss 1>¤11m·s cms iw Rent or use of land at $8.00 per acre ............ . ............. . ............. Use of hand tools at 40c per acre .................... . ............. . ............. Member's time at 20c per hour .................... . ............. . ............. Help’s time at 30c per hour ............................ . ............. . ............. me Team's time at l5c a horse hour .................... . ............. . ............. Tractor time at 70c per hour .......................... . ............. . ............. Value or cost of seed ...................................... . ............. . ............. Manure at $2 a ton (each 2-horse wagon load) .............. . ............. um Value or cost of commercial fertilizer ............ . ............. . ............. _ nel Other items of expense .................................. . ............. . ............. Total expenses .................... $ .............. . ............. _ RECEIPTS mum mis Value of corn produced .......................... . ............. . ............. me Value of stover saved ............................ . ............. . ............ . HPI Value of cowpeas, beans, etc., kg grown with crop .................................. . ............. . ............. Total value ................................ $ .............. . ............. _ Expenses (as totaled above) ........ $ .............. . ............- Net Return ...........,.................... $ .............. . ............. The above account is a true record of my project, carried out to the best of my ability. nm —— ___ Club Mgmbéijl In [ l2] _ o P i Story ot the Project Subject -— "How I Raised an Acre of Corn/’ lnstructions——The story must be your own work. lf written g by another person it will not be accepted. Use pen and ink. Every- l thing of interest connected with the project should be told. lf the stony is interesting and well written it may be sent to some farm l mm journal for publication. 1 ```'``'``” The following outline may help: ···-·-···· l. Where you obtained seed, and what variety. _ .......... 2. Selection and preparation of the ground, including treat- ‘ ment. » ```''''‘'` 3. Planting and cultivation of your crop. . .......... 4. Diseases of corn; insect pests. ___________ 5. Harvesting, storing, and marketing your corn. 6. Exhibits—description; place held; prizes won. ````````°`` 7. Careful account of the yield, total number of bushels, T ........... cmount sold, price at which it was sold, discussion of expenses and y net return. _ ‘ 8. Improvement you would make next year in the same project. y ‘‘‘‘‘‘‘°’‘ ‘ 9. Moisture condition during growing season. . References A . C°“°‘ F¤fm€rs’ Bulletins: No, 948, l548, and l822, U. S. Depart- . ........... ment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. ____,,.. H l-€¤fl€t 7, "Plant Hybrid Corn This Year," and Leaflet 66, _pF0<1luce More Corn," College of Agriculture ond Home Econom- 'CS, Lexington, Kentucky. gl out to [ i3 ] Story-—Haw I Raised An Acre of Carn This story must be in the club member's own handwriting. [ M ] . ae i STORY —— Continued j ;_ ,... . ,n,.. ....,.4.....n.......,.,............n........................, . ...............A....,..........A.n.,....n..................,......................_,. [ T5] i Corn Project of Name .................................................................... Age .,.............. County .............................................. Date .................................... Post office ............................................ R. F. .D ............................. Years in Club work ........................ In this project ........................ Approved ................,....................................................................... (County Agent) Date ........................................................ Lexington, Kentucky March. 1942 Cooperative Extension Work in Agriculture and Home Economics: College of AKYi°“AugQ and Home Economics, University ol Kentucky, and the United States Department ol tgz of culture, cooperating. Thomas P. Cooper, Director. Issued in furtherance of the Ac May 8 and June 30, 1914. 46 10M»8 [ T6 ] _ 0