The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1885-11-25
AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT..
sEAsoNABLE SUGGESTIONS.
How the Farmer May Probably Use {
Present Time OF the Year.

pump S"'uoiipS ahu housing VI III
manfred crops still remaining i'm the
field. The days will get shorter and
shorter, and the weather increasingly
cold and unpleasant; corn will waste
and cotton will drop on the ground
and become. stained and trashy. Every
consideration prompts to energy and
diligence. A month hence the days
VIII DO an hour shorter, and one-tenth
less work can DO gotten out ola laborer
than at present. Indeed, with our
present labor, it is becoming unprofta-
BILE to employ any more of it than
one car help during the winter months.
The negro Is so aversc to wet and
cold during that period it is hard to
get work out of him. But for this,
there is much about q farm which
could DO done, and most conveniently
too during the winter. Almost every
thing i'm the way of betterments can be
attended 10 with more advantage then
than during the busy crop season.
Ditching. removing stumps and stones,
clearing and cleaning up, terracing,
Milling gullies, making lcvees across
bottoms, making farm roads, hauling
leaves for litter, making composts,
and other like things, can receive at.
tention without detriment to growing
crops. Such matters are generally
put off until spring, and then there
is . hurrying, and rushing, and half
doing, to get them done and out of the
way, that preparations may be made
for summer crops. Very much of this
kind of work may be advantageously
done in November, if labor can be held
steadily to it; end where hands are
hired for the year, it ought to he done.
The farmer can give his whole at
tention to these mattcrs-study and
J plan and supervise closely. We find
that cur presence is moro in,pcrativelv
called for by this kind of work than
any other on the farm. In routine
operations, trained hands can do pref
ty we'll, but in betterments repeated
exercise of Judgment is called for at
almost every step.
We ak much Of improving our
lands by deep blowing, sowing peas,
heavy manuring, but what availeth
these if land is rolling, and the soil is
washed away as fast as it is deepcned
or enriched. In all efforts to improve
the soil, the arst step must be to hold
i~t-sttention, study, ingenuity, must
all be directed to this point. Since
terracing has acquired notoriety, hill
side ditching has been almost entirely
discarded. This may be well after
terraces have become firmly establish
ed, but anterior to this, whilst tho ter
races are. being made, and the loose
earth thrown up by the pillow is easily
washed away, bitches will be decided
~ advantageous, especially if washes
have already begun. In heavy rains,
water acquires a terrible momentum
down slopes that are long and steep,
if allowed 10 traverse tho whole dis
lance; catch it in a ditch before it has
had timo to acquire volume and yclnc,
ity. Make the ditch icf-riro clcagI'
enOn~h and doom
with hold the water in the heav-
lest rains; don t bel timid about this,
fearing your ditch will become a gull
10y. With the greatest fall given hill
side ditchee, it is all easy matter to
get them filed up after they have
served their purpose. Every one who
has had much experience with hill.
side bitches knows that tho trouble is
to keep them open. Briars, weeds,
ETC., falling into them are constantly
catching earth and making a soil in
their bottoms, upon which spring up
g .asses and weeds; these catch moro
unless often cleaned out. In crossing
them with the plow dirt and trash fall
in TO such a degree that it is next to
impossible to keep them open when
the plowman does not turn at the
ditch. Where rows mrc ""n on a level
one years breaking and cultivation Of
tins land will completely obliteratc a
ditch that is crossed.
A poorly made, inadequate ditch is
worse than no ditch, but a properly
made, large ditch has one decided
drawback: especially on steep slopes
the water falling into it from above
tends to start little gullies on the upper
edge of the ditch; and these if not
checked tend to clongate up the hill
in other words bitches tend to gener-
ate gullies. Fortunately this can be
obviated by leaving an %unplowcd strip
along the upper edge of the ditch.
Weeds and grass growing upon this
strip binds its soil &C that water will
not cut through it, but checked, i'm its
flow, deposits its burden of soil on
said strip and quietly %percolates through
This strip should be not less than three
feet in width. Where this precaution
has not been taken, and gullies have
started along the upper edge of bitches,
it wonld be well to put trash of some
kind In every one of these, weighing
NNltOWh Win iOSHos n IOibCNt CdkOl
to the ditch can thus be soon estab-
iished, and the unplowed strip will
take care OF it afterwards. Don't
defer looking after these apparently |
little things; 3 stitch in time viii save
mor than afterwards.
Where . moderate gnllies have al
ready formed haul leaves, straw or
trash of any kind and put In thcm-a
little brush at ~intervsls, or a row of
stobs placed across them will serve to-
keep the leaves from being washed
out of them. IeMthis is done, and
piowmen made to3ns their plows overin
crossing these washes, they will very
soon Ill, up More are less dirt and
.sasa VII crop aeio them ahe
will help to I'LL them. If washes are
plowed across without lifting pIow,
tho loose dirt in the wash is carried off
by the first rain, and thus every piow-I