The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-06-10
C.-n m the Great Corn states.


read with profit George Geddes' paper
on corn, printed in the Tribune aoon.
year ago, and have seen other articles
written from the experience OF eastern
men. | propose to give you an account oil
how four.fifths of the corn thai supplies |
the markets of the world is produced, and
will begin with the way we pillow prairie
land for corn. Farmers in the great corn
growing regions for many years found it
difficult to get plows that would scour In
their soil, being too loose and mellow Tor
our wrought and cast iron plows. But
with the introduction of hardened cast
steel this difficulty was overcome.
Our hest corn growers now turn over the
coil from six to twelve inches deep, and
then either drag it down smooth and plant,
or mark off and plant first, then drag and
roll about the time the corn begins to APP
near. believe the most popular plan
now is to let the marker follow Immediate
" after the breaking plows, and drag with
a square drag just as the corn begins to
appear. By this plan it is little more
rough for the plants, but the surface being
uneven the drag has q better opportunity
N get hold of the soil and cover up any
weeds or grasses that may start with or be-
fore the corn. 1t also expedites the plant
inc and the corn comes up through per-
fectly clean surface and can be worked
with cultivator before another crop
of weeds starts. The check-rows
are now almost universally made
with sled marker This is low
sled with three or four runners set the
width apart that the rows are to be plant.
ed. with an arm attached in the middle at
the back end, of sufficient length to reach
10 where the middle of the sled will be on
its return. Stakes are set to run the first
rows by, and chain hung on the outer end
of the gauging arm makes mark that
the driver can drive by on his return.
This gauging arm is only fast In the mid
die of the sled and dropped in front or a
pin in the back end of the outside runner
and changed from side to side at each end,
so as always to point toward the land side.
A careful hand will, with span OF horses,
mark off from 20 to 80 acres per day, and
do it much more regular and straight than
with a pillow, and it is more essential to
have the check-rowing well done where
planting is done with two-rowed ma
chino than where the dropping is done by
hand.
PLANTING.
This is now almost universally don'
with a two-horse two-rowed planter, which
with one man to drive and boy or girl t.
drop, from 10 to 16 acres per day are pu
in. The burrows is opened by polished
steel runner that is sharp on the bottom 7
cut through sods, clods, and trash, tn
back end of the runner spreads out and
hollow, and the corn drops down throug
it. The loose earth closes in on the cor
and is pressed down by broad-face
wheel, which mashes any clods that are |
the way. aud leaves nice level place TO
the corn to come up in After the plantin
and dragging are done, if the weather is Or
before the corn is up sufficiently
cultivate, the ground should be rolled wit
heavy roller. The cheapest and be'
rollers are made of solid white oak loI
about "a to % inches in diameter.
should be made in two sections of from
to four feet each in length, so hung In
good solid frame that they may revol'
independently of each other, to make
turn around with more ease to the team
The rolling should be done four or fi'
DAYS before the cultivator is started,
allow the clods that are p&ssed into Il
ground to get damp and moulder down.
cULTIvATING.
The most popular and by far the be
one-horse cultivator yet introduced IN
the West is the double shovel. This
two shovels from four to six inches bro
and about ~ inches long, fixed to 0
frame or stock some eight or ten inch
apart. and are from 16 to 10 inches in
vance of others. These, if properly mac
run light and are easily managed, a
scour in any soil, and twice pass
through each row thoroughly cleans it o.
so that if properly managed there is I
thing left to be done by hand or with
hoe. But the securing shovel is OF co
paratively recent origin, and many Pr
manufacturers that make other good plo
turn out miserable poor thing IN
shape of double shovel, which farm
should sternly reject, and insist on g
ones or none.
DOUBLE CULTIvATORS.
The late war created a demand fol
more speedy means of cultivating the C
crop, and mechanics met this demand "
thousands of double or two-horse cult
tors of almost every conceivable form
style, some with wheels and seat for
operator to ride while at work others W
out wheels, arranged for the operator
walk behind. While many OF these
worthless, many of them are also valu'
assistants in the growing of cheap G.
The most popular and best of these b
survived the closing of the war, and
been improved from year to year until
have become necessity with the prog
sive farmer, and are now adapted
general use on most of our best corn fa
The most popular of these are som
the Selby or wheeled cultivators, on W
the operator rides, guiding the pillow
his feet, and his team with his bal
driving a straddle of the row and nj
finishing both sides at one operation,
working over from seven to ten acres
day. The use of these cultivators ant
double planters has made it essent
necessary to be careful to have strf
rows and a GOOD hand to drop the cor