Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1886-09-30
Corn and It's Cultivation.
Country Gentleman,

Discussing the culture of corn is rather
out of season, but in your paper of Aug.
10, page $50, D. n. of Marshall, Tex. crit
icises Mr.. Waldo F. Browns June 10,
page 443) mode of cultivating the crop.
Mr.. Brown advocates the system of bar
ring off corn when young, and throwing
the earth in the middle of the row. By
this method the roots of the young corn
are warmed by the sun, and grow out rap
idly and stronger. At the next working
the earth in the middles is thrown back to
the corn, giving it loose mellow soil to
encourage growth. D. n. antagonizes
Browns mode of culture, saying that his
Conservation and experience teach him
that nearly all crops do better when the
soil is drawn to, instead of from the plants
at every blowing"
Here are opposite opinions of two far
mers, and no doubt each successful corn
growers.
Ny observation and experience has
been that much or more depends on the
cultivation of the land before planting
and cultivation-at least as much so as to
future cultivation. Corn land should be
plowed deeply and thoroughly before be-
ing planted, as thoroughly pulverized
as possible; then run off deep burrows
the rows five feet apart; drop the seed
thirty inches apart in the furrow and COW
er lightly with small harrow made for
the purpose; and as soon as the corn has
three or four blades, if the ground has
not been run together by hard rains, run
around it with small double shovels; but
If 1t has been compacted by hard rains,
run around the young plant with long mar
row scooters, SO as to loosen the earth
deeply and thoroughly around the young
plant. This gives the root of the young
plant air and warmth from the sun, and
the roots take hold in the newly pulveriz-
ed soil and the plant grows off rapidly.
Let the future blowing be gov
erned by the condition the
land may be in from the season-if run
together by rains, the second blowing
should be deeper than if the land re-
manned loose. The first and third plow-
of corn require more judgement, especi
ally the third or last blowing, than the
second; the first, to give it good start
off, and the third or last blowing to
prevent injury; for, in blowing the
last time, the roots of the corn run
across the middles, and at that
time the plant is about caring and tas-
selling, so great pains must betaken not
to disturb those roots, for, if much
broken by the pillow, the corn receives
backset at the very time it requires the
most sustenance to make its ear. That
blowing must be very light, merely
light sweeping over, and running not
nearer than ten or twelve inches to the
foot of the stalks; afterward give the
corn light hoeing in the drill to freshen
up the earth around the stalks. I have
seen many fields of promising corn badly
injured, and some ruined, by deep plow
ing the last time over. But work as we
may seasOnable rains from the Doth of
June to the 10th of August are necessary
to make fine crop of corn.
There is no crop in which farmers
differ so much as to planting and cultivat-
ing corn. Each has his own mode, and
like Mr.. Brown and D. N, who adopt OPP
pOsite plans, is sometimes equally sue
cessful. I would like to hear Mr.. Terry's
views on the subject, although we farm
in ATTITUDES far apart, and that makes
some difference in the culture and man.
agement of some crObs. I have seen
farmers who came from the North and
adhered to their customs and modes of
farming, make signal failures at first;
but, after they got the hang of our lands
and climate, they beat US badly in max
ing crops; in fact, we soon adopted what
| they found out to be the right way to
make Southern farming successful, with
few exceptions.
Corn crops at the South are entirely
neglected and overlooked for cotton.
They are planted hurriedly and not half
cultivated, depending more on seasons
than culture to make them; hence the
production is so low, and it will so con-
| tinue until diversified crops are adopted,
and then corn will receive the attention
it requires to make it produce what it
can and should. And so it will be with
the small grain crops-clover and the
grasses well as stock-raising.