The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1880-06-15
SOUTH THWES7'ERN FLiIRFIELD,

An Interesting Chapter OF Crops md
Other Matters--Some Good Suggestions to
Formers.
WesSrS. Editors: ! shall endcavor TO
TIC occasional in the future, if you will
pardon mefor boing SO scmi-occasio,al
III tho past. Your attentive corre-
spondcnts have furnished you with
news from every portion Of tho coun-
ty save the southwestern. Our farm
crs have just about finished gathering
IN their wheat aud oats. Oats sown
last fall is generally very fine, and
the crop has more than realized the
londcst hopes Of our farmers; but if
the object in sowing spring outs was
q failure, then they were a grand sue
cess. One Of the most cheering Signs
among us is the increasing desire to
SOW large crops Of small grain. Mr..
N. 9. II. will, am informed, make
between twelve and fifteen hundred
bushels of oats. Mr.. NJ. G. AS crop
was also very fine, yielding from sixty
TO seventy dozen per acre. Many
others might be mentioned. even on
to Broad River. The wheat crop was
not generally SO fine, but in some
places was much better than in others.
Now, thcaoats crop is tho cheapest, and
Qor summer tccding) tho best crop
we can raise. And our poor, sandy
land is much better adapted to this
crop than it is to corn, though each
will amply repay proper preparation,
Improvement and culture.
think have found out some ofthc
secrets Of these successful oats raiscrs,
and at the risk Of being prolix 1 shall
| whisper them in your car. First Sc
/ crct: When The grain is sown the land
must be clc0n. a heavy coat ofwccds
or grass OF straw turned under with
the grain at the time Of sowing will
prove poison to the crop. If the land
YOU design sowing has such q coat Of
litter let it be turned under time
enough to rot before the grain is sown.
YOU would make failure turn over
the turfs and clods and grass all
among the grain. Second secret: The
seed must be PIT IN the ground, not
on top it. ploughcd in deep with
a turning plough. There are three
reasons for this. 1. The land will abb
sorb more and consequently will wash
less. 2. Less liable to be killed out
by the freezes. 3. it will stand
drought better. There arc other Sc
crcts in relation to this crop such as
manuring previous to plouyhing, and
which need not mention, as they arc
SO much like a secret they had in a.
| certain city some years awo-so large
that 1t required all the city 10 keep it.
Some Of our advanced thinkers have
discovered our needs, and arc address,
ing themselves to supplying them.
Farmers may make money by saving
it, and may lose by making it. The
great secret Of agricultural success
and Of agricultural wealth is to save
money. Then peace aud plenty will
glory will be. not who can get credit,
but that credit is not wanted.
While some OF our farmers arc stu.
dying agriculture and making it pro-
tcssion. the majority Of our people are
away bchind-runnng in the old ruts
and culivating the land as their
fathers did 4 half century ago. With
this difference, however, our fathers
had fresh land, while VIC have worn
out fields. Our people have a sort of
hereditary horror of leaving the old
plans and ways. But why cultivate
one hundred acres to clear 5000, when
it can be cleared SO much easier on
ten? Let ninc-tcnths OF the labor
given to the one hundred acres lie
given to the ten for two years, and in
three years ut most, we would realize
tho profits OF the one hundred (with-
out Improvement besides saving
ninc-tcntl!S morc timber and nine
tcnths more labor thereafter, and also
leaving the Ten in Il highly fertile state
for future cultivation.
Many years ago DR.. Norwood, of,
Cokcsbury, SO improved an acre of
that poor, sandy, chinqucpin land rs
finally to yield 9l4 Cir my memory is
not at faulD bushels Of corn per acre,
as measured by committee of highly
intelligent gentlemen. Many years
ago read an estimate of wheat grow
ing in France, England and the United
States per acre. In France it was
sixty, in England forty, in the United
States ten. Our country, doubtless,
could make II better showing now
through the more Northern and West
crn States, but perhaps not in our own
state. China, with huge population
TO The square mile, imports no
provisions to feed her millions, but
produces all at home. G saw in II
paper, a few weeks ago, that China
was enabled TO do this by applying all
manurcs for their lands in a liquid
Statc) While South Carolina, with
population only twcnty-siX to the
square mile imports perhaps three
tonrths of her provisions. Bnt, dear
me! how have wandered from my
original purpose! intended to write
about wheat and oats, corn and cot
ton, the orchard and garden, etc, etc,
and although | have written three
pages have not even got to corn and
rcotton But | must close in short
form, lest ( weary you. More anon.
SEMl-OCCASIoNAL.