The Abbeville banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1847-1869, 1856-10-23
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From tie South Carolina -Agriculturist.
SMALL GRAIN CROPS.
DY THE EDITOR.

| ~ !" hoW generally conceded that the
production of staple market crops, to the
exclusion of small grain crops in the South
IS very grievous fallacy. The exhaustion,
OF the arabic land, with all the incidents
connected with the culture of cotton, has
been OF incalculaLle injury. This has not
resute! so much from the culture of cot.
ton as it has from the imperfect systems Of
grain culture, which have been persevcrcd
in. Cotton of itself returns more fertiiiz-
ing constituents to the soil upon which it
is grown, than any other cultivated crop in
the South; for the stalk, pods and seed,
comprising all that is valuable as fertilizers,
certainly exceed in value an hundred fold.
tho lint which is sold. These portions of
the plant, with economical methods, might
all be returned TO the soil on some portion
of the plantation.
Corn is at best n hazardous and uncer-
tain crop in the middle and most of the
upper Districts of South Carolina. Tho
contingencies Of drought and freshct, have
this year swept the country from one end
OF the State to the other, and but few ia
vored locations have escaped. The enti, e
crop of corn produced in the State will be
harvested at an expense of not less than
one dollar per bushel, if we estimate the
labor and capital bestowed on the produc-
ton of the whole crop, and we are firmly
of tho opinion. that to average season of
ten years this estimate of its cost to the
planter would not be too high. AS this
fact is one which starcs us in the face.
would it not be well for us to look to the
economical substitutes for this crop, which
in fact is the great exhauster of our SOIL
All the valuable fertilizing elements of the
COIN plant are taken from tae fields and sell
dom returned. The present system of til
lage, exposing the soil to the heats Of sum-
'ncr, and suIjecting it to the wastage of
washing rains, all tend to shake our conf
dence in the universal value Of this crop to
the planter. Its proper cultivation, of
which we shall treat at another time, might
decrease but would not wholly eradicate
the casualties attendant upon its produc-
ton.
We think that the small grain crops,
wheat, oats, rye and barley have been too
much neglected, and that their increased
production in the planting States should be
fostered. The cotton planter objects 10
large crops of small grains, because the
harvesting interferes with the cultivation of
his summer crops. With the old system
of harvesting this is great draw back, but
now, since reaping machines have become
practicable, and are being introduced, this
objection falls to the ground; for with
little preparation a few hands can harvest
immense quantities. So with improved
machinery for threshing and cleaning up
small grain crops. Old,fashioned threshers
accomplishing the task of one hundred
bushels per day, can be supplanted by 9th
ers, doing with the same motive power, and
hands enough to manage the straw and
grain, five times as much. We look upon
the gathering and threshing of large
wheat crop, when aided by proper fixtures
as an easy task, not interfering with the
routine Of the cotton crop to an injurious
extent. The same may be said of oats,
barley and rye. All these are valuable and,
besides, their remunerative character come
in as ameliorating crops in a proper system
of rotation.
Our plan Of cultivating wheat, and the
other small grains, is simple, but effective.
We plow the land deep and thoroughly,
harrow it smoothly, then apply whatever fer
tilizer we use, be it guano, cotton seed or
compost, SOW the seed and cross-plow it
with small short pTows. Land sown down
in barley, should be made very rich with
compost manures. If this is done, from two
TO three bushels per acre is the proper guam
lity of seed to sow. Much too little wheat
is generally sown per acre. Wegreatly in.
cline to thick seeding, and our experience
proves that an addition over the usual
quantity of seed sown more than compen-
safes.
The best steep for seed wheat is solu-
ton of blue vitriol at the rate of one pound
TO every five bushels. Soak the seed wheat
twelve hours in this solution, and it is a
certain preventative Of smut. The world is
indebted to the late john s. Csrwile, Of
Newberry, for this discovery, and it las
now been practiced and tested twenty-five
years with universal success.
Ten years ago South Carolina fed her c;-:
ties from the grain fields Of the North-a
now she exports wheat and -four 10 . con-
siderable sextens and swllsst crops hare
proved mora renspi ,sratissto her planters.
tkss eotspa,., Msimiadh md upper Din.
asicss s. connected " rsilyosa eomnu-|
n,isssien sith ghasi honM ssome
aiiasst ssssidely gra;a,e sing passi
S6IlowiDr 60 ths ttsck % afsin Rzpssis1r,
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