The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1857-02-19
From the N. Y Daily Tribune.
ABOUT CULTIVATgNG SORG.
HUM OR THE CHINESE SUG AR
CANE

/. SEED.--If there be seed.store within
your reach, your easiest way is to send and
buy what seed you want In planting to raise
seed Cthe first years object, pound will suf-
fee for an acre; and this ought not to cost
more than dollar. But beware of imposte RS
and swindlcrs, for bushels of broom corn ard
kindred seeds will be palmed off as that of the
Sorghum. Where you cannot readily obtain
seed in this way, write to your member of
Congress asking him to send you paper, and
he will generally be able TO do so. If not. the
Secretary OF your State Agrie ultural Society
may be able to supply you.
2. PLANTiSG.-Choose a warm, mellow
soil, such as you would confidently exoect TO
grow at least fifty bushels of Indian Corn to
the acre. Plow early, pillow deep and tho
roughly. Plant as early as you could venture
to plant corn. IL you have hot-bed, start a
little seed in one corner of il. If You plant
considerably, put in your seed at different
times-say, in this latitude, one-quarter each
on the LIST, 10Th and Goth of May and 1st of
June respectively. Plant (for seed) in hills.
six seeds to the hill, and at distances of four
feet each way. Try some FIVE feet apart east
and west ESQ as to let in the sun between the
rows, and some Ill drils-say four or five feet
apart east and west, with the seeds six inches
apart in the drill, and thin Me plants to one
foot apart. If you have seed in abundance.
sow little in drills two feet apart, the seeds
in the drill bat two or three inches apart
Cover lightly, as the seed rots if covered
deeply. Keep the hens a. distance, or it will
come up too soon.
8. TILLAGE.-The Sorghum comes up look
ing very pury-much like broom-corn or barn
grass. IL you set blockhead to weed il, he
will probably pull it up and report that 1t new
er terminated. Cultivate like Indian Corn
only faithfully. IL suckers start, majority
say pinch them or pull them off-that is, in
growing for seed. This need not be done in
growing for sugar.
4. HARVESTING. Whenever the seed shall
be hard and black, cut off the upper part of
the stalks, say three feet long, and hang them
up like broom-corn, in a dry chamber, suspend
ed from the ceiling, so as to be out Of the way
of rats, &c. Now cut up your stalks, pull off
the leaves, and satisfy yourself that all man
aer Of stock will eat them; cut up a few of
the stalks as you would cor1-stalks, and try
like experiment with them; and put the rest of
the stalks through any kind of crushing
mill that may be handy-a cider-mill would
be better than nofhing-catch the juice and in
stantly warm it over slow fire in large ket-
tie, Swimming off the scum so long as any shall
rise. Then boil the juice about four fifths
away, as if 1t were maple sap. Use little
lime-water to neutralize the phosphoric acid
which otherwise will give slightly acid but
rot unpleasant taste to the syrup. Save some
syrup Without thus neutralizing the acid, as
you may like it better that way. Don't waste
the scum, but throw it to the pigs, where it
will make at least excellent manure. Feed
the pumlce or crushed stalks to your cattle;
and, having thus cleared the ground, be ready
to plant or sow extensively next Spring.
5. FoDDER.-We estimate that, whenever
seed shall be sufficiently abundant, any rich,
warm land will produce third more fodder
per acre il sown with Sorghum than If sown
with Indian Corn, and that the Sorghum is at
least twenty-five per cent, more nutritious than
the corn. But all that can be effected this
year is to grow good supply of seed, and
prove that this plant is valuable both for Syrun
and Fodder. Next year will be soon enough
for most cultivators to think of sowing for
fodder or grinding for sugar.
One word OF caution to experimenters;
Don't run the thing into the ground The
Sorghum will prove valuable addition to our
crops, if We don't render it odlous by some
Multicaulis foolery. But wheat, Indian corn
and clover are not going ont Of fashion for
some years yet.