The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1890-03-13
DRAEE'S HISTORIC FEAT.
Official Facts of that Wonderful Yield of
Corn-Full Methods of Cultivation--The
Growing Crop q Wonder TO See--OHi-
cial Figures OF the Result.
+ American AgriculturiSt.

The acre entered by Mr.. Il. J. Drake
was a sandy soil in Marlboro County,
South Carolina. The original growth
was oak, hickory and long leaf pine.
Three years ago, before the land was
improved, eight dollars per acre was a
fair valuation, while, thirty years ago,
the plantation of which this acre is an
average specimen was called by itH
owner "Starvation's Empire" 1t had
a gentle slope, with northern exposure,
and was naturally well drained. The
acre was fair specimen Of much Of
the poor land of the South, and its i'm
provement and productivenesS affords
an instructive lesson. rs late as 1850,
when in was in corn, it made a poor
crop--practically nothing. In 1856 the
acre yielded about three hundred
pounds Of seed cotton, two dollars
worth of ammOniated fertilizer being
used in the way common to cotton cul-
ture. The fertility was so reduced 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 liberally
covered 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 - bushels of cotton
seed, 500 pounds Of Wilcox, Gibbs 4
Co.'S manipulated guano, 250 pounds Of
kainit. The heavy dressing was all
ploughed under with Starke's Dixie
turning plow. 1t was laid off in
rows with the same plow, two burrows
to the row, four feet apart; 100 pounds
of guano were applied in the furrows,
and then each pair Of furrows were
thrown into q ridge with the same
plough. The Peterkin cotton was
planted with a Leytch cotton planter,
and made the crop Of 81 pounds Of
lint cotton on the acre, showing con-
clusively the result of the Improvement.
PREPARING FOR THE BIGGEST CROP on
RECORD.
Mr.. Drake decided that this acre was
the one for him to enter in the corn
contest, and he determined to make
the biggest crop on record, season per-
mtting. The last of February, there
fore, he hauled upon the contest acre
50 one-horse wagon loads of stable ma
nure, averaging 20 bushels to the load,
.1 nl4a l-.,--i>--lS. at iii
$50, to which should be added 81 for
hauling and spreading. This was the
dropping of horses and mules fed on
corn and fodder and was not moved
until hauled to the acre. At the same
time 5000 pounds each Of manipulated
guano, cotton seed meal and kainit
were also broadcasted, and the whole
was then ploughed under. Following
the plow whole cotton seed was lit
terally strewed in each furyow, C"0
bushels being applied to the acre. y
subsoil plow came after, hreakin::
the soil to a total depth of Il iEciIc>
| and also buying the whole cotton seed
deeper than the other manure. Thus
| the decaying seed would back up the
| crop later in the season, when its roots
had penetrated below the first layer Of
| manure. One horse and q man did the
| ploughing, also the suhsOiling: both
Jobs being completed in ome day,
! March J. at q total expense Of s..
| The acre was narrowed on the same
dav with Thomas smoothing harrow,
one man and two horses doing tie
work in about one hour. The next
day, March ,, thcacre was laid off with
the Starke plow in two furrows to the
row, followed by the subsoii plow in
each row. The rows were alternately
| three and six feet apart--that is, there
were three and six feet between two
rows, then three feet, then six feet, and
| so on.
TIE VARIETY AND CULTURE.
The seed planted was one bushel Of
the common gourd variety ofthe South
ern white dent corn, but it was a strain
that had been improved by twenty
wears of careful selection from the best
of cora grown on this plantation. The
planting was done in half a day by
four hands, on March 2nji, the weather
being warm and the land moist. Five
or six :kerncls We're dropped to each
foot Of the row. The latter were five
inches deep. but the seed was only
covered lightly an inch deep by raking
in the sides of the furrow. Rain, the
next day washed in mere soil and COW
cred the seed rather deeply. There
were good rains March 10 and -, the
plants began to show on the 10Th, and
hv the 25th there was a tolerably good
stand On April Sth the crop WAS hocd
for the first time, thinncd to one stalk
every five or six inches, and the few
missing places rcp!anted. On the 2Htn
the vide spaces six lfcer betN cen the
alternate rows were ploughed out with
the suhsoil-plow. Then q mixture com
. posed Of POO pounds each of manipu'
lated suano, kainit, cotton seed meal.
acid phosphate and animal bone, was
evenly applied by sowing in each fur,
row thus contlnin" this application OF
plaHt-food to the wide spaces aftel
which the whole acre WAS gone over
with a Thomas harrow. There wa;
rain on the 24th, and two days later
the crop was again narrowed with the
. Thomas harrow. Now, on May Is, the
: narrow or three foot rows were