Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1874-12-25
GraIn Farming.

The intelligent proprietor of grain
farm aims to select such land as will be
properly adapted to the crops which he
proposes to cultivate. If the object Is TO
cultivate only few of the cereals-say
wheat, barley oats and Indian corn-the
soil selected will consist largely of loan
or be composed of alluvion, in which
argulaceous and calcareous material
abounds In many instances there wall
be no opportunity for choice of land, as
every tilIable acre will consist of heavy
clay or mixture of different kinds Of
soil forming heavy land, which is well
adapted to the production of the sorts of
grain alluded to. In grain farming the
aim is, rs far as may be practicable, to
adapt the system of management, the
mode of culture and the kind of crops to
the soil rather than to attempt the iniu-
dicious experiment Of adapting the soil
to the crops. Every product of the farm
should be favored with congenial soil
indeed, this is eminently essential
whenever the farmer desires to produce
the largest maximum yield per acre. A
fair crop of excellent wheat may be pro-
duced on light sandy soil; but such
land will not furnish a congenial
sub-bed for growing wheat. Barley,
for example, may be raised on light
mucky soils; but some other crops NAV
be produced on such land with far
more profit, as mucky and peaty soil
is deficient in those elements of fertility
which make q csngenial soil for barley.
AS all soils are spoken of by working
farmers as either heavy or light, the
proprietor of grain farm will always
select land that is neither too heavy nor
too light. There is grade of soils be-
tween the heavier and the light which it
is always desirable to secure. Yet,
where the choice lies between light and
very heavy II win be more satisfactory
in every respect to choose the heavy
land, as such ground will be found more
congenial to a larger number of crop
plants than the light soil. Besides this,
the heavy soil is susceptible of being
brought to higher state of fertility than
the very light land, and the fertility can
be maintained from year to year with
less labor and fertiliZing material than
where the soil is so light and porous that
the elements of fertility are rot retained
for the use of growing plants. When
supply of phosphate, nitrogenous, or
other fertilizing matter is Incorporated
with heavy soil, larger than is essen
tial to. meet the requirements of the
Gus portion of the seed-bed envelops the
valuable elements of fertility and retains
the minute atoms until the numerous
spongioles of crop plants, spread through
the soil the succeeding season, lay hold
OF and appropriate the rich pabulum that
has long been held in store
The intelligent proprietor of grain
farm, if he has adopted a system of pro-
gressiVe agriculture, chooses iudicious
rotation of crops. Here also the impor-
tant principle of adaptation must be
strictly observed. On the heavier kinds
of lands the following rotation system
will be found quite sat isfactOry in near
ly every respect, namely: Indian corn,
barley, oats, wheat and red clover. The
crop of red clover should be plowed
under the next year after seeding. On
some grain farms the system of rotation
is varied from the foregoing, thus: In
dian corn, oats, rye and red clover. In
some locations rye straw is so valuable
at markets in certain cities that certain
farmers prefer to raise rye instead of
wheat, as the remunerative price received
for the straw, together with the returns
for the grain, will greatly preponderate
over the profits of "A crop of wheat ON
the same ground. Besides this there is
uO OtHcI CIop hhOnB lhC CoiCuls Win
which the seed of red clover can be
sown with the same assurance that there
will be "a good catch" as with rye. A
crop of clover in iudicious rotation is
moro valuable and more important than
a crop of rye or wheat. Red clover will
;, catchN satisfactorily in some instances
with wheat, oats or barley. But as oats
and barley are so liable to yield such
heavy and dense burden of leaves near
the ground the young clover is often in
danger of being smothered to ruinoas
eXtent-N. y. Herald, .E3.s n3