The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-03-17
TEE WAY TO MAKE MONEY
PRACTICAL AND COMMON SENSE SUGGESTIONS ABOUT
PITCHING CROPS.

PITCHING CROPS,
THE PATH TO PROSPERITY MADE A:
PLAIN IS THE ROAD TO MARKET.
Directions which, if Followed. will
Bring Plenty to our Doors, ant
Happiness to our Firesides.
Under this head is included not only thu
number of acres allotted to each, but the b"S
proportion that should hold between dliielcn M
crops. Let the estimates be made on a iaril
of one hundred acres of arabic land. !nas
lnuch as land is cheap ana anund'tnt, let IL "'
. called a two-ho!se iarn. 10 insure proper cul
tivation, twenty-five acres 10 the morse; is
. summer crops that demand continued plou%il
ing and hOeiny, is an ample allowance uhoc'
existing conditions. When ,ahor-saVlnS I'm
plements become perfected ana more Ecnerti
~ used, the area under ullaSe may os itt,ea
ed, but for the present. the above quahtlty u
q Iul estimate. The remaining nltE acres VIII
be claimed by small grain. grasses, clover anc
other forage crops, or thrown on, 10 rest u Ou'
ratio then is one half under cleau culture
and one half in stubblc. sod, pasture or resi-
How shall the first fifty acres be cropped: fll
teen acres in cotton or other money crops
twenty acres in corn; and nlteen acres ,;I. .E
sweet potatoes, peas. ground-peas: or llke
crops, which for convenience may DC calleo
truck crops. Estimating the yield or corn al
bushels
bushels from the twenty acres. One hunured
for horses, TWENTY-FIVE for hogs, and seventy
five for farmers family and laborcrs. fltS
bushels OF corn to a horse may appear q SINAI
allowance to the eld-time farmer, who fed eA
clusiyeiy on corn and fodder and gave peck
of corn day to each animal. But in conJunc,
tion with oats and forage ifor when ample
provisions will be madc) hfty buShels Oh corn
u year-or over a gallon day-is not only as
much as is needed by horsn, hot as illuGn as
should ever be fed to him. Twenty-Five bush
els for hogs is Il moderate allowance ana pur.
posey so-a little Tor closing up the 1attenihs
1erioG being all that is provide" for, IL oclnS
assumed that pork can be- raised cheaper on
other kinds Of food. Seventy-five bushels 1or
bread purposes will supply half bread rttionS
for ten or twelve persons; wheat, potalos anu
vegetables to furnish the other nall.
POTATOES AND GRoSSD PEAS
OF the fifteen acres allotted to truck crops,
two at least should he planted IN sweet p0la-
toes A farmers table should never be- day
in the year. without this nutritious palataole3
and healthy food, and 4 hundred bushels VIII
be required for this in Il family of any size.
Another hundred bushels will be needed /"
fatten his pork, and nothing cheaper OF better
can be raised for the purpose. he ousht 10 10
have another hundred bushels for has TWO
milk COWS during the winter. Taking the av-
erage of seasons, one bundled bushels per
acre being as much us can be safely counted
on three acres In potatoes would be q Dettel
allowance Two acres in ground peas for hogs
could not he better utilized. \ variety called
s'SpaniSh" has acquired some notorlety On latH.
It. is claimed to be more productive than oIiitl
kindS-the pods filing out very unloI1nIy,
with few or no faulty ones, or pops. as thcy
are sometimes called. We are unable 10 give
description OF this variety From representa-.
tons ." seedsmen and otneGs. we in1cr tn. Tne
tops of the ground pea, II gather'o before
frost, make excellent hay. The nuts can De
econom,cally gathered by hogs. The tops can
be cut inst above the ground. with Il sharp
hna Will
OF the ten acres now left. eight may De
p:ant'd in peas, and two III rural hrahchlns :
Sorghum, kattir corn, Esypt3n mi!let' or an, any
of this class OF plants adapted 10 chicken iced-
ing-the peas to be used lnatnlH for milk co.. $,
but partly (ied in hullS) to horses fora caange
OF diet, and partly TO hogs. The inliictS are,
Il lmiranle food for poultry and we have found
the heads Of early maturing MILO ilialLe or
Branching sorghum TO be excellent food Tor
horses also.
THE AMOUNT OF WHEAT NECESSARY.
The other half of the land now claims our
attention. Ten acres are given to wheat,
This may be counted on for six bushels AN
acre, without special preparation or hlSn Ter
tiliZatloll, or sixty bushels in all. Sixty oush-
els will make ten barrels OF flour. Enough ioI
haif bread ration lor an average famll; ana
the requisite laborerS on such farm. Neare
fully aware OF the uncertainty OF the wheat
CROP in most portions of the cotton belt, but
where it can be raised our estimate is not cX-
travagant: where it cannot, aud where aIso
rice cannot be produced 10 take the place OF
wheat, 4 farmer is ju>tlteu IN OUylnS Hour.
But 1t is only in the last extremity that the
purchase of bread by farmer is justitioble.
RULE FOR SOWING OATS.
Five acres in oats to each horse and COW Is a
sOOu, safe rule. tOrt farmer, wltE Whnn u:l'
ryin. rs not Il specially, two COWS are enough
care being taken to have them give mix ~
alternate years. Fer two horses and two COWS
then, twenty acres should be SOwn In oats,
ho D3n6 ItE
Der acre, i've acres will supply hitE DuSneiS 10
the horse; and these fifty bushels ot OATS WIN
Il like number Of bushels OF corn. already pro-
.videu for, will be Simple grain for a horse lor
Twelve months Some peas and some heads
of branching sorghum have been thro"n III
for good measure and and to meet the cNlSen-
cies Of very uniavor;ble seasons; IN localitles
where bottom land is not found, and where
from the thirsty nature Of the soil, or any 9th
reason. the corn crop is particularly uncer-
tain, these two last mentioned crops may very
we'll he substituted for corn in greater or less
degree. Indeed, we are much lncllned 10
think that rural branching sorghum, or MILO
maize, where it natures seed, should 1orm |;
regular part Of the grain crop raised ior morse,
seed and are decidedly less liable than corn to
be cut of by drought AS stated before, we
have fed the whole heads freely to horses
they ate them heartily, and MS far as we could
Judge they supplied the place of corn fully.
WINTER GRASSES AND CLOVER.
We now have twenty acres left. The dispos;,
ing of these will depend somewhat on SOL ana
climate. Where clover and the perennial or
winter grasses will grow, goodiy portion OF
the twenty acres should be seeded with these
and devoted to pcrnaneno pasture Two 10
three acres might he seeded 20 clover every
other year and four acres put down in orchard
nr blue grass Five acres at least, should he
set in Bermuda, and the remaining eight
acres OF the fifty put In solllng ana iorage
crops, such as rye, forage corn, drilled sor'
ghum. etc. We do not include these last IN
the regular cultivated crops, because they re-
Quire only one plowng, and leave large
Quantity of stubble on tue land. They are III
fact humuS-producinS crops. \ halt acre o
rye to each horse or cow is enough, or tWt
acres in all, leaving six acres for forage corn
This we regard as one Of the most imporlan
and valuable crops on the farm. part OF /,
should be cured as dry fodder: five tons or the
product of TWO and q half acres willSultlce 1nr
four head of stock. The remainder. say twen
ty-four tons of green stuff, should be put IN
silo We are entirely satisfied that silage Is
one Of the cheapest and best f0rageS we cal
get-not perhaps superlorto we'll cared hay
but valuable as supplying variety In winter
when stock is confined SD much TO dry 1o0u
1t should not be fed alone; that IS, tn" daily
ration should be part silage and part dry 1od
xler. For this reason, the curing Of a part u
the corn forage Is recommended.
PROVIDE FOR THE STOCK.
The five acres in Bermuda will furnish pas
turugc for both horses and COWS through tht
summer. The four acres of orchard grass WI
do the same during late fall and early spring
The clover will supply hay tor winter; also lI
conjunction with bermuda and orchard Sra,s
furnish grazing to pigs from first OF June til
fall II will be seen that in the arrangement
proposed, ample provision Is nlaue lor tne
Sustenance of both man and beast, whilst The
programme is not an expensive one; nclthc
beyond the capacity OF an ordinary Elrin no.
the means of an average farmer. The c>tl
mates are not based upon rich or highly ma
l.,n he clover.