The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1890-03-27
THE BIGGEST CORN CROP.
A SOUTH CAROLINA FARMER THR
CHAMPION OF THE WORLD.
He Makes the Largest Corn Crop |
Ever Grown ON One Aore-How 1
IL Was Done.

He Makes the Largest Corn Crop
Ever Grown on One Aore-How
IL Was Done.
The acre entered by Mr., z, j. Drake
was u sandy soil in Marlboro County,
South Carolina. The original growth
was oak, hickory and long leaf pine.
Three years ago, before the land was i'm
proved, eight dollars per acre was a fair
valuation, while, thirty years ago, the
plantation of which this acre is an aver
age specimen was called by its owner
observations Empire 1t had gentle
slope, with northern exposure, and was
naturally well drained, The acre was a
fair specimen of much of the poor land
in the South, and its improvement and
produetiveness affords an instructive les
son, As late as 1855, when it was in
corn, it made a poor crop-pactically
nothing. In 1886 the acre yielded about
300 pounds of seed cotton, two dollars
worth of ammoniated fertilizer being
used in the way common to ordinary cot
ton culture, The fertility was so re
duced that in 1887 the yield of corn was
not over five bushels per acre. But now
Mr., Drake undertook to improve it. To
provide the vegetable matter or humus so
much needed, the land was literally COW
cred with rakings of leaves, straw, ETC.,
from the neighboring woods. On top of
this, twenty five horse loads of stable
manure were evenly spread broadcast
also seventy-6ve bushels of cotton seed,
800 pounds of manipulated guano, $50
pounds cotton seed meal and $50 pounds
of kainit. The heavy dressing was all
plowed under with a turning pillow.
1t was laid off in rows with the same
pillow. two burrows to the row, four
feet apart; 100 pounds of guano were
applied in the burrows, and then each
pair of burrows were thrown into ridge
with the same plow. The Peterkin
cotton was planted with Leytch cotton
plan Ter, and made the great crop of 917
pounds of lint cotton on the acre, show
ing conclusively the result of the improve
ment.
PREPARING FOR THE CHAMPION CROP.
Mr.. Drake decided that this acre was
the one for him to enter in the corn con-
test, and he determined to make the big
gest crop on record, season permitting
The last of February, therefore, he
hauled upon the contest acre fifty one
horse wagon-loads of stable manure,
averaging twenty bushels to the load, OIL
1000 bushels of manure in all worth $50
to which should be added 81 for hauling
and spreading. At the same time 500
pounds each of manipulated guano, cot
ton seed meal AMI kainit were also broad
casted, and the whole was then ploweG
under. Following the pillow whole cot
ton seed was literally strewed in each
furrow, 600 bushels being applied to the
acre. A subsoil pillow came after, break.
ing the soil to a total depth of twelve
inches and also buryiug the whole cotton
seed deeper than the other manure
Thus the decaying seed would back W
the crop later in the season, when it:
roots had penetrated below the first layer
of manure. One horse and man die
jobs being completed in one day (Marcl
y, at total expense of 50. The acre
was narrowed on the same day with ,
Thomas smoothing harrow, one man anG
two horses doing the work in about on,
hour. The next day, March 2, the acrt
was laid off, with the pillow, in two fur
rows to the row, followed by the subsoi
| pillow in each row. The rows were al
ternately three and six feet apart--tha
is, there were six feet between two rows
then three feet, then six feet, and so on
| THE VARIETY AND CULTURE.
The seed planted was sone bushel o
| the common gourd variety of the South
! ern white Dent corn, but it was a strair
that had been improved by twenty year
of careful selection from the best of corr
grown on this plantation. The planting
was done in half day by four hands, Oh
March 2, the weather being warm anC
| the land moist. Five or six kernels wer,
dropped to each foot of the row. TIL
latter were five inches deep, but the seer
was only covered lightly an inch deep b,
raking in the sides of the furrow. Rain
the next day, washed in more soil, anc
covered the seed rather deeply. Their
were good rains March 10 and Is, tn
plants began to show on the 10th, and b,
the 18th there was tolerably gooC
stand. On April s the crop was hoed TO
/, the first time, thinned to one stock every
| five or six inches, and the few missin!
places replanted. On the goth the wid'
spaces (six feet) between the alternate
rows were plowed out with the subsoi
pillow. Then a mixture composed o
two hundred pounds each of manipulated
guano, kainit, cotton seed meal, aciC
phosphate and animal bone, was event
applied by sowing in each furrow (thu
combining this application of plant fooc
to the wide spaces, after which tn
whole acre was gone over with harrow
Now, on May Is, the narrow or three
foot rows were plowed out with tn
subsoiler, and 300 pounds of nitrate o
soda was sowed in these rows, and WORKED
IN with hand harrow or cultivator. o.
the 25th the harrow was run through tn
wide rows to break the crust. 1t will b
seen that by this time the soil was no
only well filled with plant-food, but hal
been thoroughly cultivated on the sur
face, and also we'll worked underneath b.
the subsoil pillow, so that the whole sol
was not only full of fertility, but was il
that light and open condition that bes
facilitates root growth.
| ROOT DEVELOPMENT.
To stimulate still further root de
velopment, especially in the wide space
between the alternate rows, where Their
was more room for these purposes, tire
| burrows were run, side by side, in tn
middle of the wide rows, with the sub
soil pillow, and 200 pounds of manipulated
guano was applied in these burrows, tn
rows then being worked by a harrow
The next day there was about an inch o
rain. about six inches of rain fell fou
- Il