Connecticut western news., 1881-03-30
FARM AND GARDEN.
Cultivation of Indian Corn.

May is the great corn planting month in the Middle and Eastern States. At the extreme North much of the corn will not be seeded until June.. Early planting as 8 rule, gives better crops than does late planting. therefore, what ever the latitude, when the suitab able time comes for dropping the seed of this cereal farmers ought to be in read mess to take advantage of it without delay. On the other hand care must be taken not to plant too early. Of the two evils, very early and very late planting, the latter is perhaps prefer able, for seed that does not germinate soon after planting is liable to rot in the ground. After the latitude much de- ponds on the weather. As soon as the days are mild and the ground is warm and dry, whenever that may be, corn should be planted.
 A rich, friable soil is one of the es- sentials to the production of a paying crop of corn, therefore it is imperative that the ground at planting time be properly prepared for the reception of the seed. Where corn is to be planted on sod land experienced farmers broke it up last fall or during the early winter months. Where spring blowing is done this should be accom- plished as early as the ground will admit of it.
 Long experience appears to have proven that the very best way to fertil- ize soil for the corn crop is to SOW broadcast good manure and blow it in if it be coarse, or harrow it in if we'll pull verized and decomposed, or where chem ical fertilizers are employed SOW these broadcast and harrow in, then hill or drill, applying some concentrated fer tilizer as poultry manure, Peruvian guano, superphosphate or plaster. It is common mistake to depend on con- centrated fertilizers in hill or drill alone. These are of no avail unless there be near at hand plant food in sui ficient quantity to keep up the growth of the plant. An early start is good point gained, especially at the North, where planting is so often necessarily often long delayed, and the fertilizer in the drill induces this, as has been al- ready indicated. The soil outside must contain food enough to carry the plants. orce started on to the perfection of their growth. Not few of our leading ag- riculturists are using for corn, as well as other crops, what are known as spec ial or complete fertilizers, making an application previous to planting and again during the growing season. The argument for repeated applications of moderate quantity over one wholesale dose at the beginning, is that steady and continuous development is better than an unnatural forcing in the early stages of growth. When concentrated fertilizers are employed in the drill care should be observed that the seed does not come in immediate contact with them. A covering of earth must inter- vene.
 Planting in drills is generally conced. ed to induce the largest yields and fiat culture is coming into very general practice, except among farmers who cul- tivate low lands, when the crop is plant ed in hills. Large growing kinds of corn require drills from four to five feet apart, while small corn thrives we'll at 8 distance of three feet or less. The plants once up may be thinned in the drill so as to leave distance between of from three to eighteen inches, as the variety of corn may suggest. The seed should not be covered too deep; two inches is quite sufficient, and more than enough in mellow ground. The use of heavy roller after the seed is drilled in is recommended by some of our prac- tical farmers.
 Cultivation should begin early and may continue until the corn is in tassel. It ought to be frequent enough to keep the surface mellow and the weeds down. The cult1vator has largely taken the place of the hoe and is great saving of time and labor. Root pruning corn failed to gam many advocates 1t IS gen. orally considered serious mistake, therefore the seed once germinated, shallow culture is in order. Under present modes of cultivation suckering is very generally dispensed with. Re- peated experiments have proven that suckers do not lessen the yield of grain to an extent that will pay for their re- moval, except from small portions of field where seed corn is to be gathered
 The importance of employing seed that has been carefully selected, also seed adapted to that latitude and soil in which it is to grow, is too well under stood to need urging here. In New England, Northern New York, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota the several varieties of flint corn that ripen early are usually sown. Farther south the Dent or gourd corn is almost exclusive ly grown.