Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1893-11-09


plants which are technically
known as grasses, yet they are
never popularity called grasses.
Among this class is our we'll known
Indian corn, scarcely ever. thought
of as belonging to the grass family,
and the same might be said OF the
Southern sugar cane; but it is
ONLY occasionally that either are
classed as forage plants, though
largely used as snch.
CHINESE SUGAR CANE.
Then there are the saccharine
sorghums, generally called North
ern cane and introduced nearly 30
years ago by Orange Judd, of the
American Agriculturist, as Chinese
sugar cane. This is widely dis
seminated, though not proving SO
we'll adapted to the East as to the
West, has not been grown there
generally. In the central West 1t
was grown many. years for the
making of syrups without any
thought of the forage, as the leaves
were stripped from the stalks and
allowed to remain as they fell on
the ground.
The seed was not saved any
further than needed for planting
again, only as the stock might
gather them up when pasturlng
the fields. Eventually many gath
cred up the seed, using it without
tbrashing, while few thrashed
and ground, in connection with
other grains as chop feed. There
are now some 14O varieties in cul-
tivation as grown at the Govern
ment Experiment Station, Sterl-
ing, Kan, with view of selecting
those containing the largest per
cent. of sugar. Some II varieties
have been selected having especial
merit But it is as forage plants
that they have attracted most at
tention the past 20 years in the
further West, and they are more
largely planted as yet than any
othar kind. Of these perhaps the
zgoFHTafl al ana Floiiger viii Yield the
most forage.
Of the non-saccharine sorghums
there is a long list, and they have
very misleading names, and are
variously known as maize, corn,
millet, and grass, when they would
not be recognized by the novice
writer by any of their names All
of them except the latter { John
on grass) bear seed heads more
or less like the common or sac
charine sorghums, and go are not
corns u- millets, as we commonly
use the words.
The mos commonly raised are
the red and white Kaffir corn,
Jerusalem corn, yellow and white
Milo maize, brown Downham corn,
African millet, and Johnson grass.
In another branch of the grass
family we find Teosinte, a very
valuable forage, 'ut It will not
,,roduce seed here, so does not add
any gain to our stock; and as seed
has to be imported, it is high
priced, so is not likely to become
popular.
Among the artificial grasses,
alfalfa is best adapted to the semi
arid sections and is classed with
the forage plants, though else
where it would be known as a
clover. Then in the vegetable line
we have the cowpea, which is a
misnomer, for it is bean, and the
Soy or Sofa bean just being intro
duced the past few years.
Now, some of your Eastern read
ers may ask, Why raise forage
plants? They are valuable in
themselves. Some of them are
adapted to every section of the
country. The cowpea has been
known to the South long time.
1t is valuable as hay, for It's seed,
and as nitrogen gatherer and fer
tiizer it prepares the ground for
their crops, and fills the place
l,r5ely of the clovers which cannot
be successfully raised there. 1t is
in these respects that they are
likely to prove very valuable to
this new Oklahoma, and they also
are able to withstand long, dry
periods, which is necessary in a
plant here that is growing in mid
summer. We think now, as atten-
ton is being attracted toward them,
I I