The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1885-08-20
Prom the Southern Cultivator for August
Deep Breaking and SHALLOW CaIaa-
vaei0a fer Cora.

vasioa for Cora.
1.-THE mills Of the gods grind slowly but
surely" might aptly be applied to the progress
OF reform in agriculture, and we down here who
have somewhat strayed from the old road begin
to see some prospects of reward. The immense
advantages TO he reaped by pursuing the meth
eds suggested by the head OF this article are APP
parent on all crops, but especially 80 on corn.
This is not only the case on our place, but on
that of Messrs Allen and Long, Of the Ethel
Meadows plantation, W here the method pursued
interested me so much that thought descrip'
ton would please your readers.
EARLY in last January, Mr.. Long, who per-
sOnay managed everything, and who, by the
way, deserves great praise for his persevering
energy, had a twomue Blue Grass sulky pillow
turn over about ihirtyfye acres OF very thin, ex-
hausted land that had been worn cut by long
continued cultivation in cotton. The breaking
WAS done broadcast and was seven inches deep
In March it was laid eli in rows five feet apart
and the corn dropped two grains in place three
feet apart in the row. The varieties of seed used
were early white f1lnt yellow Dent flint,
and n long seeded yellow flint, all of Northern
growth. As soon as corn began to appear above
the ground, single sections OF the Thomas
smoothing harrow were ruH between the rows,
stirring the surface thoroughly In week after
its appearance above the ground n two horse
Thistle cultvator with finders was run
through it, care being taken not to stir the
ground deeper than two inches.
Twice in April and twice in May the same
process WAS repeated fan sweeps being subsii
tuted for bull tongues on the culivator. This
process has kept the corn on a perfectly flat sur
face, not y furrow mark TO be in the field
from planting 10 harvest and the weeds and
grass kept out of the way. The result is that
twelve weeks from time Of planting there is on
this poor sandy land, without the use of an ounce
of fertilizer, mAturcd crop of excellent corn
that will average three large ears well filed 10
The hill, and can certainly be counted on for
twenty bushels t" the acre. am satisfied that
the same land, broken up as is customary here
abouts with single pillow and usual three pillow
ings with scooter and turn-plew given it, would
have resulted in a sickly looking crop of spind-
ling corn and have yielded not over eight bush
els per acre.
The great point made is that deep, broadcast
half to three acres per day broken seven inches
deep is fair days work for the Blue Grass
snlkY with two medium sized mules and
binary farm hand. The land put in this condi-
ton in early spring while seasons in the
ground is LETT light porous seed bed that holds
moisture throughout the summer OF course it
must not be ridged up and turned over and over
by tIrn plows. While other crops of corn in
this country showed plainly the effects of three
weeks of dry hot weather in May, losing color
and stopped growing, the crop at Ethel Meadows
and Waverly kept green and healthy The fire.
quent and shallow STRINGS Of the soil kept
crust from forming prevented evaporation, kept
the weeds and grass under control. AT the same
time corn root was broken and these neCcs-
sary appendages were enabled to branch out,
tain their horizontal position and were not COM
PEELED to grow vertically downward and rustic
for precariOus support under the water turrow.
With me no question longer remains of the in
comparable advantage of sulky plows and cult
vatOrs, e., deep breaking and shallow culture
over any and all methods of growing corn more
abundantly anil cheapy without fertilizers on
our worn Southern fields. hope ever Southern
sulky pows will especially pertinent on piece
of corn land next year aud see the beauty and
reap the benent or deep prepaia,i"" -od shAis"vs
cIsl,;~atinn w. t. SCHRADER.
LEON COUNTY FLA