Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1878-09-12
Wheat Culture.
NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS ON SOIL, CULTURE
SEED, TIME OF SOWING, PREPARATION OF SOIL,
DISEASES, pREvENTIvEs.

DISEASES, rnEvENrIvEs.
| MEssRs. EDITORS: For ton or twelve wears
past hHvo been ON observer of tho wheat
growing interest of our section, and believing
that my notes and observations in that direction
might be profitable to come, who may be young
and inexperienced, in reference to this important
crop, havo concluded to give them for tho
| public good, or at least for the benefit Of our
| young farmors.
| In the first place, have seen that it is not 80
much in the quantity of land planted, as tho
| quality and culture, that SUCCESS lies. I have
seen one acre Of land, with intelligent and
rightly directed culture, produce rs much as pix
| or eight aores managed in the usual way; and
right here would like our young farmers OF
somc leisure time to solve me this It'll 10 question:
What does it profit q man if he keep and feed
| two horses or mules to cultivate and harvest tho
product of forty acres, when oil that tho forty
acres produces CON be made ON four aores with
| good management and one horse and ono hand9
| Comment is unnecessary.
! The conditions for tho attainment Of success
| in whoa: culture aro precisely the Same as for
| success in corn or cotton. Whatever is worth
having in this world or tho next, must be gotten
| and retained by woRK--well directed, Intelligent
and dilligcnt work. If farmers as olass would
| servo thor cotton and corn crops as thoy do
their wheat and other small grain crops the
| country would DO bankrupt in five years beyond
| tho hopo of recovery And why is It? Is II
| because wheat is 80 cheap and inoonsiderable On
article of diet or trade as not to be worthy of
serious consideration? Who would be- willing to
supply this county with wheat -four ono year for
one hundred thousand dolarsf Surely this sum
kept among lis would make some of us feel
better, if not all.
From tho miserable, slovenly, don't-caro "a
euss'way Of managing this crop, the idea has
become prevalent in tho country that wheat rails
ing is too risky and uncertain o business to
justify any considerable outlay, either In quality
of soil or labor bestowed. The culture of cotton
and corn Ia not considered 80 risky business,
but why? Give your cotton or any other crop
tho samo culture aud chance that you do your
wheat and tho great guano princes Of our
country would soon exchange their silver
mounted CA >ages and palatial mansions for q
cart ana cabin. He that expects something for
nothing will dio in expectation. My obsorva-
| y
tirely, the conditions being tho samo, wheat is
just as certain crop as any other, and the
blame of failure is, nine times out Of ton, on the
! farmer and not OH tho crop. am perfectly
aware that wheat has many enemies and dis
advantages. but what crop is thcro that has notY
| am also satisfied that many of the enemies and
disadvantages to which this Drop is exposed are
The result of ignorance, want Of judgment and
bad management. will now try to lay before
you the result Of my observations.
| FIRST, LAND.
havo noticed that wheat does best on land o
| littlo siding or sopiug Southwark This land
should DO in what is termcd "good hoart," or
capable Of producing profitable crop Of any
other product Of tho farm If not in this con-
dition 1t must be made so by fertilizers (homo-
made the best). The land must not bo springy
or soggy, nor yet so thirsty as to contain nlois-
turo only while it is raining. This last difficulty
may bo met by deep and thorough plowing.
Second or third year cleared land gives better
results than older lands, for reasons to be OK
planned furthor on under the hcad "rust' My
observations show mo that tho best lands for
whcat are those that have been thrown out of
cultivation and allowed to grow up in pine.
Cut down tho pines and lot them lay till tho roots
can DO easily broken up with the plow, burn off
and plow two or three times, eaoh plowing CROSS
ing the last; SOW and harrow or brush in IL
bushels to the acre. Product generally Is to 20
bushels por aoro; with 200 pounds guano or
ammoniateG phosphate to tho aore 20 to 26
bushels.
| SECOND, TIME or SOWING.
My notes indicate that from The first to tho
middle Of October, in this latitude, brings the
best and su"est rcsults The reasons seem to be
that sowing at this season saves the plant from
tho fly, tho tino for whose ravages Is past, gives
ample timo for taking firm root in the soil, thus
preventing freezing out, and sufficiently late to
prevent over-growth Of stalk and injury by
frost. Eight out Of ton crops sown OF this time
were satisfactory; ono was destroyed by storm
and tho other drowned out, being planted on
low level land.
! THIRD, KIND OF wHBAr sowN.
note almost any variety that would mature,
from tho last Of May to tho middle Of June, 10
less liable to crust" and "smut" In almost
every instance, tho later varieties being injured
or entirely destroyed by this pest Of tho wheat
crop. aiat
I - YOUTH, INsEoTs.
In ten years Of obseryationI have not seen
enough insect trouble in wheat to be worthy Of
q note, Think though, from reading aud obser-
tation TINT tho insect trouble In general 10 CON.
ansd 70, old lands or vet bottoms orltoo carly
sowing, Quros good uplands, we'll prepared Mt
1 tbs proper time and sowel as above directed. VI
4 s 81 sisusTs iiSs s3i gSt