Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1841-02-10
From the S:uthern Cabinet.
OF SUCKERS ON CORN.

OF SUChERS YIN COhN.
Mr.. Editor:-In The last 1uml,er OF tht
Cabinet, in your article on The I" Agricul
tural Survey" of the country about Pcdee
you seem to regard The larI. of Suckers OF
Corn bearing Ears at their proper places
as befnre unknown To you; and you ask
il it is not one of the pecuiarities of the
Corn cultivated by Col. Williams. in pro.
ducing suckers bearing ears? can easily
answer thai question by observing. thai il
is not peculiar To Col. Williams species oil
Corn, unless his and mine are the same.
which think scarcely probable; and i,
has been my setIled convicliun from SOME
years close observation, thai Indian Coru.
when there il superfuity of strength in
the suil for its sgown wants, will sent our
suckers, which. if suffered to remain. will
no' only do no injury to The parenI stalk.
hut will, in corn aud blades. produce more
than the original stalk withuur them. That
this is no newl y formed opinion of mine,
you can. by referring 10 The June number
of the Snulhern Agriruturisl for 1888, and
in an article on this subject. see that !
came to the same conclusion from my first
years observation.
Corn highly manurctl, when not planted
too Thick. will begin to seuh ont suckers
when abnut from six inches TO knee high,
and If those early suckers suffered TO
remain. and if The field is well cultivated,
they will grow of Iapidlv. dclach ronts of
their own though they adhere sill 10 The
parent stalk tasseI, >loor, and ripen, ar
the same time; and if The suckers ap
pear very early on The Corn. there is often
some difficulty in discovering which is the
parent and Which The offspring.
In 1888, made the Iaresl experimen,
thar could be. with suckers. II was dry
Spring, and great many appeared on my
mauureh Corn. In field Df thirty FIVE
acres. ! left eight rows IensIhwiso through.
oui the field with The s,Ickerson from the
rest Of The field | had them taken away;
and was fully satfed with the result of
that trial, that | had never taken them
away from my Corn sinre. The quanri-
~ of fodder was so much greater Than up.
on the adjoining rows, that there could be
no doubt "ftlIe proprie'y of leaving suck
ers 10 oproduce "A large yield of fodder. and
that nuhins was losr in the produce Of
grain, the following extracts from my
Agricultural Journal ofthatye year will show.
rhe Corn @as planted !oar and haif a Mri! tss!
manured with CotInn seed. stable anrl
yard manure. in nearly equal proportions,
and was carefully cultivated.
August l5.-I coun'ed nineteen ears
Of Coru upon eigh1 hills in --'<
field, in one place; upon which the suck.
ers had been left. On the same row ad,
joining, counted sixteen ears, upon eight
hills. from which the suckers had.been Ia
ken away.
I'm anorher place, counted upon eishI
hills nineteen ears upnn The stalks with
suckers, and thirteen ears upon the same
row on eieh, hills npnn the stalks without.
"ln another place fifIeen ears upon The
stalks with suckers, and twelve on those
withnut.
1.-The fiddler on the eight rows through.
0ur he field must have heen treble as much
AZ upon any other eight rows in the same
field
November l7.-Measured the Corn
taken from thirly-Iwo hills Qnur rows of
eight hills each) upon which The suckers
had been left, and thirty two hills admin
ing -four rows of eight hills.) from which
the suckers had heeu taken away, aud The
result was. as follows: The STALKS with
suckers made sixteen quarts and half-pini
of SheIIrd Corn, and the stalks without
suckers made even sixteen qGarls."
IN rhe same field that year, remarked
n s!a...l that had TWO suckers, and there
wrrr six good sized ears to Ihe hill-two
nff the parent stalk and ;wo on each surk-
er. showed it to several Of my neigh
hors. and they iIruughr The prnluce NOT on
ly of lhar hill, bur of the whole eight rows
upon " hich suckers had been left, so re-
markabe. hat snme Of them thought it
was peculiarity Of my Corn, as they said
thew had never observed more than the
worthless effnrs 10 produce n few grains
among The tassel in their own Corn. /
was able, huwever, 10 satisfy lhen that
that was owing to their having taken away
the first suckers. aud The SECOND growth
was 100 late To produce any more.
In The following year. 1889, a great ma
nv suckers appeared Oh The Corn in The
same field. which was manured and culI-
vatetl in lhe same manner as the year be
fore, all of which were suffered to remain,
and made larger crop than ever upon
that field.
This year. 1910. hut few suckers appear.
ed on any of my Corn. had attributed
il 10 the unfavorable nature Of The Spring
fnr Corn, which has con6rlne my previous
impressions. that the appearance ofsuck
ers is An effort Of nature l., relieve th'
plant ofany superahundance of nutrlment
In conclusion, would remark, that
have vet 10 see Corn that has been vel
cultivated Al all injured, by The early suck
ers being left upon them.
CorToS.
Orange Parish. Ocr. %. 1910.