Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1891-02-14
Cow Peas for Green Manure.
Cor. Country Gentlemen.

.
Cor Country Gentlemen.
The advice of f. w. S. (p. $40
concerning the use of cow peas as a
renovating crop, demands something
more to be said on that subject. /
have great respect for Prof, Stewards
opinion on the scientific feeding of
farm animals, and feel that he has
done much good by his free and full
advice on that subject; but he has
evidently not had much experience
in the growth Of COW peas, and is
clearly tout of water" on that point.
Now l would not recommend peas
for every climate or soil, They may
not do as well at the North as in the
South, but l would suggest that every
one south of the 400 of latitude, who
is in need of renovating crop, try COW
peas-on small scale at least. And
allow me to say right here, that |
have none for sale, and do not eX>
pect to have. We grow them for the
vine, and usually pasture off the crop
with cattle or hogs.
In the first place Prof. Stewart errs
in supposing peas to be more eXpen-
sive than clover. 1t costs more to
put the land in peas than clover, but
let me show you where the big bal
ance comes in on the other side.
When peas are 81 per bushel here,
clover seed usually ranges from $3.50
TO s.. We usually sow one bushel
clover seed to six acres, and / bush>
els peas per acre. Take it at the low
est {. lure for clover and we have 70
; cents per acre for clover seed and 81 80
for peas sOwn. We can hire land
turned for 81 per acre, and allowing
GO cents for narrowing we have the
whole cost of putting the land in peas
SO per acre as against IS cents for
clover. Now upon land which is fer
tile enough TO warrant us in expect
ing stand of clover, we may reason
ably expect a crop of at least from
eight to ten bushels of peas per acre,
worth as feed double the amount
OF corn.
Turn the hogs in upon this field
. and when they are through harvest
9 ing it you have crop of slower,
, worth fully as much as crop OF
, clover for green manure; and you
, have not lain out of the use of the
land for whole year to get it. The
r peas were put in after the wheat wa,
!. harvested, and you may put the land
o back in wheat again, or any Other
g crop, after the peas are off. With ar
: expenditure Of 50 per acre you have
e grown crop worth from s. to 81
q have given your land good crop o
t green manure, and have thu
+. same land in good condition
Il for seeding to wheat again, Of
i any succeeding crop, that same year
i This is no mere theory but has beer
part of the regular rotation on thi
farm for ten years past,
y Again, Prof. S. is at fault in sup
u posing that clover has long tap roo
- than COW peas. The fact is, that will
II us, peas will send their root
:, much deeper. / had almost sale
= twice as deep as clover on the sam
- land, and we count this good Glove
!, country, too. Upon very thin Lane
= we cannot count for any certainty il
y getting stand of clover; but whel
~ we sow crop of peas, we are abso
lutely certain of something of a GRO
= unless the whole soil is positivel
L barren. In that event you had bette
, move out; neither peas nor Glove
- can help you and you will find it in
" practicable to bring up the land wit
= stable manure alone. But if there
= any strength in the subsoil, peas wi
show it. You will find a splendi
- y, index to the nature of the subsoil (
a. q any country, in the growth oftimbe
- If the trees are little dwarfed, twisted
- up things, black jack, scrub PINE
W and the like, pass on, and let th'
place severely alone. l do not kno
. anything about the nature of II
- land about Fort George, Florida, wit
." which o. p. r. has to deal-to whol
, - Prof. Stewards advice was given, bl
if the timber in that section CORE
- ponds to the description given abov
% / would advise him to sell out at an
% price and come to East Tennessee
~ where the oaks grow from 4 to 5 fe
~ in diameter, and single pine tr,
y. will often make 1000 feet of in(
- lumber-yellOw pOplars twice
nouoh IF IL phnanpr tO huy IaY