86 / SEEDWORLD.COM SEPTEMBER 2017 SINCE1915 ThefirstissueofSeedWorldwaspublishedin1915.Heretheeditorswilltakeyoubackintimeto explorethenumbers,newsandissuesthatimpactedtheseedindustry—allcoveredbySeedWorld. 1915 1917 1920 1925 1930 1935 1940 1945 1946 1950 1955 1960 19641965 1968 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1993 19952005 2010 2015 Scientists construct the first genetic map of blueberry. Team alfalfa is released and is ozone resistant. A system for growing modern hybrid corn is developed. A MOMENT IN TIME The cover of our October 1964 issue shows Sondra Goss, “Queen of the Tulips,” with Dutch tulip bulbs on Holland-America Line’s SS Nieuw Amsterdam while docked in New York. They are just a few of the 300 million Dutch flower bulbs imported into the United States. This issue examines the problem of crop surpluses, something becoming more common as agricultural technology improved. Editor Percy Stelle notes that up until the 1960s, surplus crops had been a problem in only a few countries. “In many other parts of the world, millions of people go to bed hungry every night. Indications are that as world population rises, the food shortage is going to become increasingly acute in some countries, and our own population increase is likely to supply a market for much of our surplus unless the trend toward higher crop production per acre continues.” FACTS AND FIGURES FROM THIS 1964 ISSUE: $25 is the average cost of a bushel of alfalfa in Iowa. $28.4 million is the value of seed exports from 1963-64, a new record. 284,8305 pounds of field seeds are imported into Canada in August. 6.3% is the rate of corporate taxes after income that year. 90% of cereal and soybean seeds planted that year are estimated to be farm-saved. The Plant Patent Act enables the patenting of new plant varieties, excluding sexual and tuber-propagated plants. Vigo soft red winter wheat is released, one of first to withstand leaf rust.