The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1884-09-05
miscellaneous.
Experiments With Wheat.

Tho harvest for wheat has been completed,
and the result in general has been such as to
make glad the hearts of our farmers. In some
of the counties of our own and neighboring
States, the yield has seldom been excelled,
and we have heard of but few cases in which
there has not been full average yield. The
price of this grain has of late been very low,
principally from the fact that the crops of
other counties, which we in part supply, or
with which we come into competition, have
also been better than usual but we will be
able to make up for the depression in price
by the quality and quantity of our crop. Let
us be thankful, therefore, and he prepared to
take advantage Of any change that may &C.
cur
AS we shall soon be making preparation
for the next years crop, the following ex-
tracts from the report of experiments made
at Columbus, o., by Director Lazenby, at the
experimental station, Ohio, will be found of
interest:
Thick and Thin Seeding.-Wheat was
sown ON eight plots, the amount ofseed rang
ing from two to nine pecks per acre. The
ripening ofwheat was quite uniform through
out. If there was any difference the earliness
was in favor of the thick seeding. In regard
to the quality of the grain, little difference
could be detected by the eye, but careful and
accurate weighing showed that the thin seed
ing gave the largest kernels, but the weight
of II measured bushel of grain was greater, as
more seed was used-the weight ranging
from fifty-seven pounds, where two pecks per
acre were sown, to 62.5 pounds where nine
pecks were sown.
Another observation of some interest is
that the proportion of the stand winter killed
was uniformly less in the case of thin, and
more in the case of thick seeding.
Some obvious lessons from the table are:
/. That the richer the soil and the more
perfect the seed bed, the less the amount of
seed required.
2. That there is more danger of sowing
too much seed on an acre than of sowing too
little.
5. That no definite rule can be given that
will serve as reliable guide for farmers in
various portions of the State in determining
the best quantity per acre. The condition
of the soil and exposure, the quality of seed
size of individual kernels, capacity of variety
for lillerng, liability of injury from insects
and other enemies, are all factors that should
have due consideration in deciding the
amount of seed to use. If all the conditions
were ut their best two pecks of seed per acre
would be ample. This is seldom or never the
Case. Hence more seed is usually required
Winter Protecton.-A plot was covered
with straw early in December to the depth
of two or three inches. The station notes
show that this plot was not injured in the
| least by the severe weather OF the winter
| Throughout the entire season the wheat pre-
sented strong, healthy even growth.
The straw appeared to serve double pur
pose, that of projecting the young plants from
the severity of the winter, and by acting as =
mulch also protecting them from the droutl
of summer.
Early and Late Seeding.-Plots were pillow
ed and sowed at various times, from August
| 90 to October 13, and from tabulated results
the following conclusions were dawn:
1. Winter wheat may be sowed too early
| In the season or it may be sowed too late, &c
there must be certain time, neither too early
nor too late, which is the best date &c
put in the seed.
O. Many factors must be considered in DIES
ignating the best time to SOW. The condi
ton of the soil and the exposure, the pres
ence fthe Hessian fly, etc, must all be duly
considered.
g. Early seeding does not secure an early
harvest. The same variety sown under thu
same conditions will mature about the samt
time, whether the seeding be done the LIST o
September or the LIST of October.
i q. w neat bOWn dS lubC III VIC oeusOu Us Il
can be, and still be given times to become
firmly and strongly rooted and time to devel
op leaves sufficient to cover the whole grounc
will best endure the winter
5. The earliest sown wheat usually ha,
the largest top and proportionately the small
est root; in the latest sown wheat the root il
proportlonally larger
6. On poor soil land badly prepared grount
the wheat should be sown earlier than upoi
rich soil and well prepared seed bed.
Z. In this latitude the Hessian fly is no
very troublesome in wheat sown later thai
September rs.
s. The best date for sowing winter whoa
in Central Ohio is from the 10th of Septem
Der to the 30th of September, according t,
the conditions mentioned above