Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1869-05-14
@ Il D 9 " L y U R a L !,
Late and Thick Planting of Cotton.

Late and Thick Planting of Cotton.
E"ttors Southern Cultivator :-Every
thing in regard to tho preparation and cult
vation of the cotton plant that has emanated
from the pen of Mr.. Dickson, is in the wri.
tors opinion perfect. except his late planting
and tho providing Of the plants. The writer
has pursued precisely the sam mode of ma
king cotton for fifteen ycars-long before he
heard of Mr.. Dickson, and has rarely ever
JAILED to make satisfactory crops the only
difference being in the size of the Sweeps
the largest size he mentions are % inches.
Ihe writer uses them from 30 to SO inches,
which do precisely the same kind of work,
but more of it, in a given time, and conse-
qucntly abridgcs labor, and lessons the horse
power--the extra draught is a matter of lit.
tic consequence. The great error among
planters in using these mammoth sweeps is,
that they are not properly set on the plow.
stock. They must run fiat, aud never exceed
one inch in depth. If they go deeper, the
mute Wilt Be used up. If properly made,
and properly adjusted on the stock, they are
a sine qaa non. They abridgc labor, lessen
horsepower ct least one-third, and last but
not least, the roots Of the crops are uncut
They are to this country what the sulky pillow
is to the prairie of the West. BY the gene
raj use of these plows, what a wonderful re-
formation there would be, in lesscning the
number Of mules and horses now required
In 1850 the writer produced with ten mules,
ISL bales of cotton and 1000 bushels of corn.
The rub in this system is to prepare tue land,
and the only way in which it can be done, is
to in October, and pillow every day
through the winter, when the land is in order,
till planting time, or buy extra stock to pre-
pare, and sell of after planting. I did not
intend to say SO much about this plow, but 1
notice that planters object to them in writing
of Mr.. Dickson's plan.
Mr.. Dickson plants cotton as late as the
lOth Of May. If from necessity, nothing
would be said, but the presumption is, that
this is, in his opinion, a proper time, as
he is always up With his work. In the belt
of the country in which Mr.. D. plants, and
which he considers tho home of tho cotton
plant, it is strange that he plants at this late
day. The fact that he makes prodigious
crops, planted thcn, proves nothing. 1t is
an axiom in the vegetable kingdom that ths,
longer any plant is growing, the heavier y
fruits. Corn, cotton or any other crop pfas88aE
ted late, has a tendency to prodrco stalk With
little fruit. Early planted cotton acquires a
size and stamina which it.oan mover attain if
planted late. The writer can, 'ita, tho dark, in
the month of August, go intS,a!Hssttou fold,
aud distinguish stalks that are planted first Of
Aprilsand the 10th of May, Icifenoither have
Been csowded.) Mr.. d. .maRes his ':cost6p
four feet .yfac, and leaves ssho cotton 8 Or
8 inches apart, and from.tNo to three stalks
in a hill. This is onet. tdaesery, tHfcesinches.
Mr.. d. makes wonderful crops; but it cannot
be attributed to this crowdtngA. why mako
the rows SO wide aud leave 'tle, plant SO
thick in the drill 2. Thereof nothing in tho
structure Of the plant ttIhst. requires this diff
ference in one way.aha,t6o' otheff::.. There is
no reason why oottot. Of any other crop
should be planted wider oneway than an other,
except that it facilitates the culti;ystion. Mr..
D. says the strongest reason fofS5his thick
planting, is that it natures earlier So far SO
good, but does it yi,ld more Mr.. D. dwarfs
the plant to accelerate its maturity. If the
plant is at homo, why uso artificial means to
make it mature? Why not give it ample
room for its full Development l can see no
good reason. for providing the rlant-it ro-
tards the culture, because there are so many
more stalks to adjust, the hollis are neccssari.
ly smaller, and consequently the picking is
lcss-the staple is not SO good, because it has
not tho full benefit Of tho sun, to elaborate
its juices.
Respectfully,
j. w. CRAWFORD.
Cold SPRING, PIoKENs Co., s. 9.
WARTS ON Cows TEATs.-These> trouble
some excrescences may be easily removed by
applying tho following simple remedy: In a