Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-09-05
AFTER HARVEST NOTES.

We should like to have talk with
our brother farmers for mutual benefit
all around, on various topics which are
fresh in all our minds. We have fin
ished harvest and have little leisure
for thought. Let us talk about the
proper time to cut grass, in order to
make the best hay. Most people, or
writers, advocate cutting timothy hay
when in blossom, and before the bloom
begins to fall. We would rather have
timothy cut after the seed begins to
fall than before the bloom falls. Now
for some OF our reasons, after which we
can hear from others.
We speak of timothy hay, that being
the grass used for nine-tenths Of the
hay of the Ohio River Valley. 1t
should be cut when the seed is ripe.
The stalk is then ripe, and when moved
away comes out in the winter like a
ripe apple, full of nutrition for stock OF
all kinds. What substance the seed has
is then at its full, and our experience
has been that stock, sheep and horses
particularly, will select timothy hay,
when cut as above, and eat 1t III prefer
ence to any other hay. And TINS AL
stonds to reason that properly ripened
grass has more nutriment than II cut
when green and Of a ''washy' nature
We often speak Of pasture having little
uutriment and being too green and soft
that stock do not do any good on it.
How much better is it if cut and dried
in this condition?
Another reason, grass ifcut when ripe
il not so much hurt by an accidental
shower as when green, and besides
needs but little curing. What is cut in
the forenoon can be put up in the after
noon, and in this immediate section if
wehave dry time it is generally after
the oats harvest. Timothy is ripe, and
can be cut and cured with less trouble
and labor than at any other time. Of
clover hay we had not intended to
speak, but our experience in that goes
much the same way, except that it
ripens much earlier that timothy.
The great western paSturing grounds,
from Texas to Montana, grow grass
that ripens into hay without being cut,
and on which cattle fatten in the win
ter, although they may have to paw it
out from under the snow, which might
prove that ripened grasses fattened bet
ter than green. We might take lesson
from these facts. Some people predict
that these great western pastures will
drive our cattle and sheep out of the
market, and compel us to go into the
dairy business, or some kind of fancy
farming, OF move West. Ofone or two
things we may rest assured. We must
give more thought and careful manage
ment to our farms, or make less money,
or move West and grow up with
another country.
We were amused and instructed with
the following conversation in front of a
"corner grocery" in West Alexander,
Pa, the other day. JIM RICE, one Of
our West Virginia farmers, rode up, and
after ordering MIKE to.lay, aside for him
the best watermelon he had, remarked,
"DAvE, by the way, how did your bind
er work." Nothing was ever brought
into the harvest field that worked bet
teri "Did it work well?" ayes, on al
kinds of ground" "Just what 1 ex-
pected it would" replied jim; "but
somehow our farmers viii go on buying
reapers, and besides paying a lot OF
hands for binding, they leave on the
ground six times what would pay their
hands in grain"
Our friend NIKE, thesgroeery keeper,
could stand this no longer, aud he gave
us the following lecture: ayes, I ssee
the farmers go past here with reaper
after reaper. lift had been me, Ineyer
would have bought anything until 1 |
was able to buy a binder. But our far
mers here are about five years behind.
They have Just begun to buy reapers.
Why, I saw reapes at work thirty
years ago."
@Our people here are laughed at" he
continued, Hfor being behind the times.