The Lancaster ledger. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1852-1905, 1856-06-18
lgrNultural.
From the Southern Cultvator.
FODDER PULLING-ITS INJURY
TO THE CORN CROP.

MESSkS DlIoiS.-TOr cOnSldera bic
time past, have been careful reader Of
your valuable paper, though have not
heretofore attempted to trouble YOU with
any thoughts Of my own.
In the last volume of the Cul,ivator.
was letter from J. III. Bate of Virginia,
on the injury resulting from pulling fod-
der from corr, with which | was much
pleased, hoping that a few such exycri
ments being made public, would check
this dcle.crious practice. The subject was
again brought to my mind by the request
of f Jnkins Of Mississippi, Gn February
number) "that some one would test the
injury resulting to the corn crop by pul
ling fodder, for series of years"
do not think it IS necessary to make
series Of experiments on the subject, as the
injury resulting must he nearly, or quite
uniform in each case. if the fodder is pull
led at the same stage Of maturity, and the
relative injury sustained by the crops, from
pulling fodder at different stages of matu.
rity, can be fully tested during the same
season.
Mr.. Bates experiment was made at
the usual time OF pulling fodder; and the
loss was one sixth. A few years ago,
made similar experiment at about a
week after the common time of ofpulling, in
which the loss sustained to the crop. was
one nneth by weight. At whatever stage
Of maturity the blades are stripped from
the stalk-just at that stage is the matu-
rity of the crop arrested-it gains nothing
from the hour in which 1t is done. The
leaves of plants are not mere appendages
or ornaments, but vital parts Of the plant,
and subServe 4 similar purpose in the veg
ctablc economy that the lungs do in the
animal system. AS the lungs are the me.
dunn through which the blood comes in
contact with the air, and is purified and
rendered tit for circulation and nutrition.
so the leaves of plants are the medium
through which the sap is rendered fit for
circulation and nutrition TO the plants;
and upon their removal nutrition ceases
and death speedily results.
In the experiment to which have al
luded, | wished to satisfy myself as to the
probable amount of injury sustained by
the crops, and whether there was any gain
to the crop after the fodder was pulled
From the first row pulled tho fodder. the
next left untouched, and the third cut
down to the ground a1d shocked up, and
so, alternately, through the piece. When
the corn was all fully dry it was shucked
on and carefully weighed. No appreci.
able difference could be discovered in the
weight of Corn from the rows from which
the fodder had been pulled, and those
where the stalks had been cut off at the
ground-while those rows left untouched
invariably weighed one ninth more than
he rows on either side Of them that had
been so treatd.
Ii, therefore, seems to me to be the bet
ter policy to cut off the entire crop Of corn
and thus have the stalks as well as the
blades; though livery much disapproye of
either plan. In fact, man should not
pull fodder Tor me, even il he would work
for nothing, board himself and give me
the fodder stacked up in the bargain.
would still be loser.
MANY may be disposed to say that they
must have the fodder at any rate, let it
injure the corn crop ever so much. This
is mistake /; we can do without pulling
fodder as well at the South as they do at
the North. Our crab grass ["crop grass
if properly treated, will almost anywhere,
make an excellent meadow. All that ia
necessary is to plow the ground late in the
spring to destroy the early weeds. /
treated piece Of ground in that way last
year and produced as luxurient n swath
OF grass as | ever saw in a Northern mead
ow. | moved it twice during the year