The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1881-03-16
NARROWING WHEAT IN
SPRING.

The advantage of narrowing
wheat lands thoroughly in the
Spring, as soon as the ground be.
comes dry enough to prevent the
horses sinking into it, is known to
many farmers who have practiced
it, but is unknown to the majority.
Wheat is usually sown in Septem-
ber upon well prepared land. This
land is left there subject to all the
storms of rain and snow, and the
dry weather in succeeding Spring
until the wheat is harvested. In
consequence, the land becomes, in
May and June, nearly as hard as a
meadow. At q season of the year
when the plants are in the greatest
vigor of growth, the land is so
hard as not to give one half the
nourishment it would if kept mel
low by any process Suppose, for
instance, corn should be planted in
the Fall, under similar conditions
with wheat, and that the Winter
did not injure it, and that it were
left without cultivation of any sort
until harvested; it is evident that
the yield would be diminished over
ons.half; in fact the yield would
probably be so light and poor as to
be almost worthless.
Now, wheat from many expert
ments in its cultivation by hand in
England, shows as great sensitive
ness to cultivation as corn
the yield by careful hand cult
vation being increased TO sixty
bushels, and in some instances,
eighty bushels per acre. Now,
a thorough narrowing Of wheat
in Spring, in a very inexpen-
sive manner, performs the cul
tivation nearly as well. as when
done by hand. If the crust formed
by the Winter SHOWS and Spring
rains is thoroughly broken, and the
ground to the depth of two or
more inches we'll pulverized, the
effect upon the wheat is like magic.
It starts into the most vigorous
growth and in a few weeks has near
ly or quite doubled in size the wheat
not narrowed. In pieces Of wheat
that have come under the writer's
observation, which were narrowed
in strips, that is-one strip not
narrowed at all, and other strips
on each side thoroughly narrowed,
in the early part of June the harrow
cd wheat stood fully one foot higher
than the unharrowed at each side,
and every way was strikingly rank
er and vigorous Mr.. Robert j.
Swan, of Rose Hill Farm, Geneva,
N. Y, who has heavy clay land,
says he has narrowed his wheat for
four years with the Thomas har-
row, and finds the yield to he in
creased fully ten bushels per acre.
Byrum Moulton, of Alexander,
Genesee county, n. Y, harvested
from fifty acres 1,600 bushels of
wheat. His neighbors only Oh.
tanned about ten bushels per acre.
The only difference in land or treat
ment was that Moulton's wheat
was thoroughly narrowed with this
implement in the Spring, and his
naighbors' was not.
The effect produced by harrow
ing barley and oats, after they
have obtained a growth of four or
Eve inches is equally marked. I
have observed many instances
where fully twenty bushels per
acre increase, in consequence of
thorough narrowing, was obtained.
These facts and many others of
similar character show clearly the
great profit which farmers may de-
rive from a thorough cultivation,
by narrowing, Of wheat, oats, bar.
ley and other sown crops, with the
Thomas smoothing harrow.
ECor. Country Gentleman.