The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1884-03-21

folks, too, for that matter. "-L. B.
Waliing, in Golden Rule.
80 : Rotation Of Crops.
| In reply to inquiries we would say
| the rotation of crops is subject SO
broad that but q few points can be
touched upon in an article covering but
single column. While ali varieties
and conditions of soils, as q rule, are
improved by changing the crops that
grow on them, it requires high intelli.
gence to change the crops in the order
which will produce the best results.
For example if piece of land was to
be planted with different crops for -four
years in succession, and these crops
should be corn, rye, wheat and clover,
it would be very poor policy to first
plant rye, then corn followed by wheat,
and then clover. The wheat should
follow the clover, and the rye should
follow the corn, for various reasons.
One reason why wheat should not come
before clover is, because while wheat
draws large quantities of nitrogen from
the soil, the clover not only does not
draw from the soil nitrogen, but when
the roots are plowed in. in their pro-
cess of decay they add large quantities
of nitrogen to the soil. II this be SO,
then it is evident that crop of wheat
following crop of clover will be much
more likely to grow well than if it be
grown before the clover, unless very
much larger quantity of nitrogen be
applied to the land. and as this is one OF
the most expensive fertilizers, the II.
telligent cultivator will so arrange the
order of rotation as will enable him tC
keep his crops supplied with nitrogen
as much as possible from natural
sources.
Rotation of crops are for two pur.
poses, first. to use up more economical.
ly the plant food in the soil, and in the
manure applied; secondly, for the pur.
pose of keeping the land supplied with
vegetable material at the least expense
possible. 1t must be evident to every
one that if piece of land be devoted
year after year to the growing of such
| crops as cabbage, turnips and beets, in
a few years the vegetable substances Of
the soil would become exhausted unless
supplied at large expense by the appli-
cation of coarse manure; but if once in
three or four years a crop of clover be
grown, and the roots plowed under
after one crop had been harvested, il
would supply large quantities of vege.
table material, greatly changing for the
better the condition of the soil, and dc
it at very much less cost than if done
by the application of coarse manure.
On the other hand, if grass be grown
for many years in succession, the grass
roots become so thick that the crop fails
to make a good growth, because it has
become what is called root bound. TIC
pillow such land, and plant it with
some crop like potatoes, greatly changes
it for the better. because it kills the
grass roots and hastens their decay, ant
the potatoes consume considerable
portion of the plant food which is the
result of this decay. The ground is afso
greatly improved by the process of the
decomposing of vegetable substance, Of
which the grass roots are composed.
What crops it is best to rotate with
must depend on the character of the
soil, and its previous treatment. A
light, sandy soil must be treated en-
tirely different from heavy clay soil,
because while one is almost entirely de-
ficient in partially decayed vegetation,
the other, as rule, is rich in this ma
terial; therefore, while one should be
frequently planted with crops that leave
considerable quantities of vegetat on to
decay in the soil, the other should be
planted with such crops as will leave
but little.
There is another effect which crops
have on the soil that thus far has at.
tracted but little attention, and of which
but little has been written.
This effect is caused by exhalations
from the roots of the plants; these ex-
halations vary according to the char
acter of the plant, both in quantity and
quality. The clover plant no doubt ex-
hales altogether different material
from that which comes from the cab
bage or rutabaga; hence, in deciding
what order it is best to place crops,
when we adopt the rotation principle,
if we would meet with the best success,
we must consider the effect of the exha-
lation of each crop on the soil, then we
shall be able to decide what crops follow
each other best. 1t is known that while
some crops will succeed well on the
same soil for many years in succession,
other crops, although drawing upon
the fertilizers of the soil no harder, will
not succeed on the same land more than
one or two years. The cabbage is a
plant that will not succeed well more
than two years in succession; the ruta
baga is another. There is but little
doubt that the principal cause of this is
the poisonous exhalations that come
from these plants. Almost every
farmer knows that few crops follow
rutabagas well; the reason few of them
have stopped to inquire. Potatoes fol-
low rutabagas probably as well as any
other crop, except possibly grass.
As the crops we grow depend so
much on the character of the land and
the surrounding circumstances, it is i'm
possible to lay down any rules that will
be of much value. Under some cir
cumstances, a strong loamy soil, neither
too wet nor too dry, could be treated as
follows, with good results: Turn the
sod under and plant Indian corn; in the
Fall as soon as the corn is harvested
sow Winter I'VE; this may stand to get
ripe, or if fodder is wanted it may be
cut green, and the land sown with oats,
which may also be cut green for fodder,
always renemL ering that rye or oats
sown for fodder must e sown twice as
thick as if for grain. The third season
the land may be planted with early po-
tatoes, so that the crop can be gathered
the last of August, when the land should
be seeded down to grass. If the 10 alton
is such that these would be good crops
to grow to advantage, this would be a
good order of rotation. When seeded