The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1886-06-10

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ing down by the ordinary plow generates
tho hard-pan found in long cultivated
land.
The pea crop should be planted now
as soon as possible. Put in drills three
feet apart; bushel Of seed will plant
four acres; and as seed is considera-
ton, this mode is oftentimes preferable
to broadcast sowing. More peas can be
raised by the former method of planting,
but the latter is better for the land. If
ones object is to raise seed, drill by oil
means, and give necessary .plowings and
hooings, which will not be great deal.
Tho practice of planting peas in corn is
good; it involves no expense except seed
and the dropping or sowing of them.
But VIC think tho pea is entitled to q
place on the farm as regular crop to be
planted by itself and properly cultivated.
Its value, as renovating or recuperat-
ing crop, is unsurpassed, and it holds no
mean place as food crop, cithcr as
grain or forage. 1t can be made to take
the place of corn to considerable de-
gree, as we have often seen, and can be
N'>''N>'
of the crop is the greatest obstacle to be
overcome, but until better method is
invented VIC can NOW when the pods arc
about grown and euro as forage. A cor
respondent mentioned recently pea
gathering machinc-that is the thing
needed. Let inventive genius go to
work i'll this direction. Tho problem is
very much simpler than that of q cotton
picking machine, and inventors have not
yet abandoned the latter.
juno is good month also in which TO
plant forage crops generally. Last year
we planted amber cane on the Doth of
Juno, and it was fully maturcd before
frost. Maturing late it can be kept
green and Succulcnt for six weeks or two
months, extending the season for feed
ing green stuff well into the winter.
Forage corn planted at intervals Of two
OF three weeks, up to the last Of next
month, will keep stock amply supplied
with good wholesome feed all through
autumn, without the necessity Of trench
ing on the winters supply of fodder. 1t
Is tho neglect of such sidc crops that
causes SO much Northern and Western
hay to be sold in the South. A very
few acres on each farm could supply all
Of the forage needed. Recently we pro
scntcd the latest testimony and conclu-
Slons about Cnsilagc. 1t is sufficiently
encouraging to warrant every farmer
trying it, OH small scale, at least. The
expense of digging small pit, putting
4
putting Il simple roof over it, will be
very small. All can be dono by the
labOrcrs on the farm after the crops are
LAID by. Plant the necessary crops to
fill one now and build silo latcr--I don't
think you will regret the venture.
Last year. whilst laying by somo bot
tom corn, We broadcastcd Sofa bean over
u portion OF it, and were rather sur
pnsed to see it mature its seed fully be-
fore frost AS it stands erect Gs not a
vlnc) we found no difficulty in moving
1t, and gathered the crop in that way
1t IS doubtless n rcnovating crop like the
pea, and might be substituted for it on
bottom lands, where the running vines
OF the pea interfere with the pulling of
fodder. The bean is very hard and the
wccVll docs not seem partial to it. We
Kept the seed two years before planting.
Ground into meal, there is no moro
nutritious grain to bo found. The yield
IS fine, and the bushy habit of growth
and nutritious quality of the grain COM
mend j. Unless cut when young and
green it would make poor forage us the
stems become very hard and woody with
age.
AS the oats crop was very much killed
by the cold last winter, it is very dcsira-
bic that all that survived should be caro-
fully saved with view to propagoting
hardicr strain Of winter oats. Darwin
relates that spring wheat sown in autumn
was nearly all killed, but by planting the
seed of that which survived, in fow
years hardy strain OF winter wheat was
developed from the spring wheat. Why
could not the samo thing be done with |
oats? What is termed in Georgia "win-
ter grazing oats, " originally, we believe,
from Virginia, certainly stands cold bet
ter than the ruSt-proof We have tested
that point from sowingS of each side by
side on the same day last fall. A decided
sprinkling of the grazing oats survives,
and scarcely plant of the rust-proof is
to be seen. The grazing oats is there
fore the more promising as regards cold,
but it is not rust-prOof. What we need
is q variety both rust and cold-proof.
The present IS most excellent oppor-
tunity to begin work to that end. Let
every one gather the scattered heads and
SOW the grain thcrcfrom next autumn.
The pliabiity of tho oats plant, so to
speak, has been shown by the Burt aud
other early varieties recently developed;
woarc encouraged, therefore, to hope that
it may be changed also in its power to
resist cold.
We trust also that an abundance of
seed rye will be saved at the South this
year The area sown in this most yalu-
able grain has been very materially cur