The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1886-02-17
India Wheat.

hit. EutJOT:-l WAS lnuereSJeu III your
remarks, in a recent issue, on the cult
walton of India wheat, and as my ex-
perience with that grain has been con-
tinuous since 1887, when it was first
introduced, and l have long ago come
to regard it as one of the best grains
for every farmer to raise, please allow
me to differ with you in regard to the
" tendency to heat in .bin," which you
refer to.
Many thousand bushels are yearly
grown by farmers in all the towns in
this region, and the grain is always
stored in bins, the same as oats and
other grains, and l never knew of the
first instance of any trouble from heat
ing. We would as soon think of shovel
ing over bank of sand to prevent
heating Unless the grain is stored in
damp state (made so by accidental
wetting after threshing, for it is impos-
sible to thresh it when damp no farmer
has the least trouble with his bins of
niger wheat"
On farm adjoining this was raised,
in 1884, about ten acres; on other
farms, four to six acres all around,
and most all with more or less of it.
Occasionally a man "won't have the
stuff on his farm.
We usually SOW from four to six
pecks of seed per acre about June 9Th
to Goth, and cut with scythe or cradle
in fyom eighty to ninety-five days. The
ordinary "spring work." is done be-
fore it is time for India wheat, and the
harvesting comes about September LIST,
before the hurry of corn harvest, and
so, all things considered, it is the most
accommodating crop we grow, except
that it must be cut and raked when wet
with dews or showers. The best way
is to cut one day and let it lay in swath
Grading is the best way to cut iD one
or two days to wilt, then rake in
punches if moved, or set it upon the
butts if Graded, and give the tip just a
twist to hold it together. When thor
oughly dry, go along, just as the dew is
about gone in the morning, and care
fully lag the punches over so the bot
tom side will be toward the sun, and
by noon draw to the floor, and good
hand will thresh it out with fail as
fast as another can draw it to him. A
former occupant of my farm threshed
ninety-four bushels in this way in one
day, and quit then only because he felt
sure he had hundred threshed. He
told me he could easily have done ii
before sunset. A very common way is
to spread a good load on the floor al
once and take pair of horses, with
their heads connected, and keep them
walking, while an attendant turns and
shakes the straw. This is an old.
fashioned, but a very good and very
cheap, way.
If cut with cradle before the leaves
wither, and well set up and cured, the
straw is eaten by cattle full as readily
as oat-straw. But when moved and
left to bleach and mildew till the hos
quality is all spoiled it is only fit for
litter.
Some farmers wet the seed grain
and then roll in one hundred pounds OF
phosphate and SOW all together. Others
apply light coat of manure every two
or three years. An application of fif
teen bushels of ashes per year viii
usually produce good crops. My OWL
practice is to SOW winter rye and cover
with a disc harrow Immediately aftel
harvest and plow in a good growth Of
rye in sowing time, the only cost being
the seed and narrowing. Various
opinions exist as to its feed value. Tit
legal bushel of forty-eight pounds will
yield an average of twelve pounds o
hulls and thirty-six of meal, or ont
hundred eight pounds of meal to three
bushels, which 1 consider better TO
growth of young stock, production o
dairy or working teams, than two bush
els of corn, weighing one hundred
twelve pounds meal 1t is richer il
starch than corn, but less in fat oil. Thu
effect on soil: The leaf of the plan
seems to take large element of growtl
from the atmosphere, and, like clover
fix it in the roots, and if followed for
long period of years on some fields, will
sufficient fertilizer to grow good stou
crop, the soil is by all means in tn
best possible state for grass crop.
recently applied a light dressing of ma
nure to field of twenty years growtl
of India wheat, and stocked with oats
One and one-eighth acres produced Blu
twenty-five bushels of oats, but tn
next year what grass! Glover not owe