Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1880-01-07
From the Southern Planter and Farmer.
Cultivation of the Corn Crop,

Worthy MaSter,-In compliance
with the request of the Grange, at
our last regular meeting, that |
should prepare an essay on the
best cultivation and management of
the corn crop from the preparation
of tine seed bed to the crib, | sub
nit the following as the course pur-
sued by me for many years and
with very satisfactory results.
1t may be well here for Inc to
speak Of the quantity of land | have
in cultivation, the number of fields,
the rotation of crops, and the gen.
eral character and productlveness
of the soil. | have about 24O acres
Of arabic land the soil is Of a
somewhat molatto color, intermix-
ed with a grayish loan, and rest
ing upon a good red subsoil. This
farm is divided into six fields, Of
about forty acres more or less in
each field, and cultivated in the fol-
lowing order Commencing with
field No, 1. 0he Oldest sod field for
corn, followed by oats, the oat
stubble fallowed for wheat, and
seeded in grass and clover, and SO
on until the entire fields are passed
over; each field remaining in grass
three years. 1t will thus be seen
that one half of the fields are IN
cultivation and the other halt in
grass. There is in most of these
fields some very good and produc'
tive land; but in the same fields
there is land not 30 good in quality
(bcing ofrather a gravelly nature,
but produces very kindly when the
seasons are not TOO wet.
In order to produce a good crop OF
corn | try to have the land cldan OF
filth and we'll broken to the depth
of six or seven inches, except the
gravelly land, which | think does
better when not ploughed SO deep;
and Immediately before planting
the land must be well narrowed;
we then lay the rows off, four feet
apart, and drop the corn about the
same distance in the step; we usu-
ally plant from the goth to goth Of
April, or as soon as the lockwood
blossoms make their appearance.
AS soon as we have finished
planting we gather up all the ma
nurc we can haul out and tOp-dress
the thinner portions of the field,
and when the corn is well up we
20 over it with side-wipes, running
as near to the corn as possible, aim
ing to fill up as nearly as we can
the seed furrow, thus saving the
necessity of hoe work; the next
working IS to go over it again with
the side-wipe, and after this second
working with the side-wipc, we
thin out TO two stalks in the hill
and after we are through thinning
we commence and work the corn
over with the double-shovel plows.
still running close to the corn and
tapping the dirts well in the spaces
between the hills. BY this time
our harvest is ready. When
through with the clover ard wheat
harvest, we again go over the corn
with the clover and wheat harvest
we again go over the corn with the
side-wipes, laying it by with a lev
Ell surface; and with a fair corn sea-
son,we reasonably expect to gather
an average of at least six barrels Of
corn per acre from the field. We
cut the corn up as soon as the
shuck has commenced following, OF
when it is ripe enough to bear,
without injury, the stripping off
the blades. The crop it shucked
out mostly in November, and the
most Of it housed, from day to day,
as brought from the field-endeav
oring to get the whole crop housed
before the December rains COM
mence.
The preparation, cultivation and
sowing the crop Of corn, as stated
above, has been my practice for
many years, and | nave always
succeeded IN making a plentiful
crop, and have never lost as much
as one barrel by spelling, after
housing.
The cost of raising the crop, and
the profits, as nearly as | can ar
rive Of If. are az follows