New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1873-02-06
How TO Make Cheap Cotton.


In the successful cultivation of cotton th
! great dcsideratum is TO obtain good seed
This can be done only by selecting the hos
stalks. those that are the best formed. be-
iruited. and most thrifty, and cull.ng From
these the largest and best matured bolls
when opened and thoroughly dried by tn,
sun. In this way, not only good seed mat
be Obtained. but the staple will be MATERIAL,
improved both in quantity and quality.
PREPARATION OF THE SOIL.
Ii Is we'll known that the principal root o
the cotton is the tap-root, the length -
which, under favorable circumstances, bcin.
said 10 equal the height of the plant
Whether this be true OF the cotton plant,
cannot say, though il ia certainly the case
with nearly all those plants, the main root nj
which IS tap.
The mere tact of plant depending so much
OH a tap-rOot Tor sus.enauCe, ia q sufficient
reason why il should have an opportunity 10
penetrate the earth to much greater extent
than ia afforded it by the usual imperfect
manner IN which the land is prepared
Even at this day, planters leave unbroken
land under the stalk, precisely where the tap
root should and would penetrate the earth il
it could do So, and thus the result is a mass o.
dcionncd branching roots, instead oi the SYM
met'ical ;ap-root from which the spongiulrS
"r tlbr0US roots would strike out in nj! ,ircc-
lions for nourishmcnt. and to serve As braces
70 tho plant.
mier the system Of shallow blowing. and
~ lr.N,,.p made for the accommodation oi
the tap-rr"t, all the roots leave the plant Mt
right angles to the stalk, and are near the
surface OF the ground. which mode of treat
ment at almost any time viii tell against the
plant, and in q season of drOuth is sure tn
make Known its effects by causing it not only
to shed its fruit in proiusion, but also to shed
its lcavcs-the lungs Of the plant.
To avoid this, break the soil deeply, by
sub-soiiing and thoroughly pulverzng the
beds, so as to give the tap-root an opportu-
nifty to penetrate the soil to its proper depth
and in a drouth it will find moisture to sus-
tain the plant and prevent it from shedding :;
and during wet season your deeply plowed
ground, and mellow, well-pulvcrized beds
viii absorb the surplus water, storing it up
as 1T were for future use, and the plant is well
fortified against many OF the revcrscs it too
often has to contend against-it being pre-.
pared for wet or dry season.
PLANTING TIE SEED.
The next operation is planting, which
should be done rs early rs possible, so az to
escape the late irosts. | have found that
about week before Easter Sunday is the
best time. The bed should be thrown M
some time before planting, in order that it
may become settled and somewhat compact
before planting time. The top of the bed
should Gc narrowed OF, in order to remove
any clods that may remain, trash, and cotton
stalks, and t. pavcrizc the surface Of the
bed in advance of the planter. The failure
to obtain Sood stand is frequently due in q
great degree to the ridges not being har-
rowed, and the pieces of cotton-stak with
which the ground is filed removed from
where the seca are to be dropped. II these
stalks are left in the operation of scraring,
the hand does not only make slow progress,
but the hoe, on striking them, will knock
down many plants, or permanently injura
them. Too much attention can hardly be
given TO the preparation Of the bed, for 1t is
certain that crop wei! planted can be easier
cultivated than one that Is badly attended Ia,
if, indeed, it is not half cultivated.
All cotton seed should be rolled before
they arc planted, my experience being that
it is Of great benefit in several WAYS. Seed,
as they come from the gin, cling together, be-
cause Of the cotton fiber attached to them,
and it is almost impossible TO distribute them
when in that condition evenly in the drill, or
in any other way than in masses OF four or
five, and when the plants are ready for scrap
ing they are so close together that it is difi-
cult to bring to stand' without doing
some damage with the hoe, if it is only the
least that can be done skin the tender stalk
or bruise it, and produce "sorc-shin."
Ny experience has proven that wood ashes
are an excellent material in which to roll the
seed as they are then not only separated,
but are covered with an excellent fertilizer,
which is valuable i'll giving the young plant
an early start and vigorous growth at time
when it is most needed, n the cold mornings
and insects retard its growth al th. time
more than at any other.
CrLTivATING ri!E CROP.
In planting it is certainly best to have the
seed spaced. or in hills, say nine inches apart,
SO that when the cotton is up it is already
chopped out, and no patent chopper" will
be found necessary. When TIE third Leaf
makes its appearance, commence working it
with the improved 'plow and scraper' COM
bincd, with which the row can he shaved so
as TO leave a strip Of enc inch in width, and
at the same time cover the middle with two
burrows. Follow this in few DAYS with a
sweep TO tit the scrapcr furrOw, say twelve
inches, and You cover all the young grass in
the drill with mellow soil, free from grass.
Ten days after this. with large or com
mOn-S1cU sweep, give Inc cotton another
supply OF mellow, clean earth, taken from
the bed made byyour pl0w ana scrapcr, with
twO more iurrnws-thcn follow with the hoe
and finish what the plows have failed TO do,
and bring the cotton to a stand, according TO
the strength Of the land. On ordinary land
nine inches is my rule, and on rich land eich.
teen inches in the drill.
By this "modus operandi" you save the
first hoeing OF your cotton as Conducted I'M
der the old system, and gain an advance Of
at least two weeks in the maturity of the
crop, as the date OF the first bloom IS from
the first working or chopping out, and secure
a better and more uniform stand, rs il i. not
destroyed by mi.l.ck and sOrc-shn, produced
By the hoe.
This advance Of tso weeks /, a material
item in the outcome Of the crop, as it Is an
established fact that the early crop j. the
most certain, is sooner gathered, is 10 better
condition, and brings a better price ia the
markets of yogr hands out Of the way
thus giving better opp0rtUnit. 81 preparing
thoroughly FOR the next crop.
After the second sweeping the soil should
be stirred every week OF ten days by shallow
or surface cultivation, in order b admit at
mospheric air to the roots Of the cotton, bu,
never deep enough to destroy the young and
tender fbrOus roots, nor close enough 10 the
plant 10 injure those Of larger size.
The earth should never be tapped I'D 10
the first limbs, but should be kept a. near