The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1883-05-03
1arm. garosn : 5ons.s'lo.
MAY.
cow PEAS.

the Southern Liue Stock journal
contributes to 1.-THE following:
There is no crop grown with as
much certainty of bountiful
Weld, and at as little cost for labor,
as the COW pea. There are but few
forage plants that yield such enor-
nous crops of forage and OF such
excellent quality, and there is no
fertilizer in the world that enriches
land like their vines turned under
while green. Unlike all CONNER
cial fertilizers, it's value is not ex-
hausted in one crop, but its good
effects can be seen for several
wears. Even where the vines are
moved or eaten off by stock, and
nothing left but their roots a
marked Improvement can be seen
in the succeeding crops for several
years. ] believe when a heavy crop
of vines is turned under, that it
will improve the yield of any crop
at least SO per cent if not 100. In
1880 / planted peas on the poorest
end of a certain piece OF corn land,
intending to turn them under IN
the fall. The wet season prevented
my doing so. The next spring
1SSl-the tenant working that
land, before I knew it, had cut the
dead vines off and burnt them,
leaving nothing but the roots OF
the pea vines. The whole cut OF
land was planted in cotton the
same day and all worked alike; /; but
the cotton on The part planted IN
peas was earlier and far superior to
the other. Last year I planted
this pie:e of land in corn; the
whole cut was planted the same
day and received the same atten
ton through the entire season, and
from the time the corn was three
inches high could tell to the very
row where the peas were planted
ss far as I could see the corn, and
this part of the land made twice as
much corn as the other end, that
had formerly been the richest.
Last year / plowed six acres OF
poor land that would not make ten
bushels of corr per acre, and plant
ed in peas. They had no work
during the year, but they soon
covered the ground so completely
that it was with difficulty any one
could walk through them. From
this land I gathered twenty-five
bushels per acre and left good
many in the field for my mules,
hogs and COWS, all OF which are
extremely fond of them. Nothing
in the world fattens all kinds OF
stock faster than a pea field. ]
planted some later in my corn at
last plowing, running my planter
up in the side of the bed. They
also made good crop. They can
be planted this way or on wheat
or oat stuble, or earlier in the
season and you can either gather
the peas, NOW the vines for hay,
pasture them or turn the vines un.
der and double the yield of your
lard. They are little harder to
NOW than most grasses, but dc
not think they are more difficult
than a heavy crop of clover. They
will make from FIVE to eight tons
per acre of the best hay that is
grown and are preferred to Glove,
because it is a more certain crop,
its yield is larger, the hay is bette,
and requires less trouble and ex.
pense to prepare the ground and
they will grow and make good
crop on ground so poor that clover
would starve out. To drill them
will require about one pushel to
FIVE acres to SOW broadcast one
bushel per acre is about right
With improved implements they
can be planted and harvested as
cheaply as any crop made. After
cutting my oats in June I intend to
SOW forty or fifty acres of the
stubble in peas, running the Chi
cago Screw Pulverizer over it once
and sowing them at the time with
the machine. One hand and siz
mules can prepare and SOW ten tc
twelve acres day and put them
in IN the most thorough manner
This is all the work they will gel
till they are ready to be moved
If you only want to save enough
peas to plant another year, as soon
as they begin to ripen pick off what
you want for seed and then NOV
the vines, but few then will shatte,
out and the stock can eat the peas
with the vines.
We all know that to plant corn.
oats or wheat on the same land fol
years, that the crop will run down,
but if the ground is planted IN
peas, and even if the vines are
moved or pastured and nothing
but their roots left. the land will
grow richer, and the yield will in