The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1883-08-08
AGRICULTURAL.
Failing Meadows and Com Fodder

Last year there was an unusually heavy
growth of grass, which was exhausting, and
at the time the meadows were mown it was
exceedingly dry and hot The haying sea-
son was remarkable, as there was no rain
for two or three weeks, and most farmers
gathered their entire crop without its being
wetted. When this burden of grass was re-
moved from the land the hot sun, with the
absence Of rain, must have killed many of
the roots. There was very little aftergrowth
to protect the roots and to renew the plants.
If the winter had not been very favorable,
with the snow covering the surface, many
meadows would have been entirely instead
of partially destroyed Another fact is, the
moving machines cut closer than the old
fashioned scythe and leave the roots much
more exposed to the heat of the sun, and the
liability to have the roots killed is therefore
much greater. In dry time it would be
great deal better to set the machine higher,
so that the stubble would protect the roots
more. The longer the stubble the more it
would shade the ground, and at tie same
time the juices in it would afford moisture
TO sustain the plants, or, in other words, the
green stubble would help to keep up the vi
tally of the plants until they could make a
renewed growth, and so protect the crowns
or tops of the roots. l once destroyed a
whole field of orchard grass by cutting it too
close 50 late in the season that there was
not any aftergrowth. The same condition
would injure any kind of grass. 1t would
be great benefit when meadows are mown
in dry time to SOW plaster or even salt up
on the surface. Both would attract mois-
ture, and thus help to start a new growth,
particularly the plaster, which not only
would attract the moisture, but also ammo
MIA, from the atmosphere, and thus doubly
benefit the meadows.
In consequence of the prospective lighter
yield of grass, fodder corn should be extern
sively grown. 1t may be put in any time up
to July first, at this latitude, and mature.
As the present season is about two weeks
later than usual, we can reasonably expect
proportionately longer time for ripening in
the fall. Every farmer has some piece of
pasture or thin, light meadow which can be
turned to good account for fodder corn
and every farm will afford manure enough
to enrich it by scrapng the barnyard and
gathering up fertilizing material in differ
emit places. The ashes will go good ways
and it will pay, if there is nothing better, to
purchase commercial fertilizers for the fod-
der corn. 1t can be put in so rapidly that
the time required is of little account. When
the ground is plowed, harrow it until it is
mellow, and where there is drill, take out
teeth enough to make the rows sufficiently
wide to run q cultivator between them,
or lay the ground out in burrows from two
and half to three feet wide, large corn re-
cuiring wider rows, and scattering the seed
in the burrows. A man can do this almost
as fast as he can walk and then the seed
may be covered by running harrow length
wise of the burrows. If the ground is cult
vated as soon as the rows can be seen, no
hoeing usually is necessary, as the corn
grows so fast when planted late it gets the
start of the weeds. On this account manv
farmers do not put in their fodder corn IN
til quite late in the season, as they save labor
by so doing. The seed should not be put in
too thickly, as greater weight of stalks
and far more substance can be had with
thinner seeding. Some allowance must be
made for waste of seed, but two bushels is
ample for an acre, although most seedsmen
recommend four.-New York Tribune.