The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-03-05


/ CHICAGO AND ST. LOUIS.
| @1e1
in either case Mr.. G. w. Hastings,
writing in Texas Farm and Ranch, says:
This pea was first brought to my no.
tice by a large Virginia grower, and the
! first announcement to the public was in
| the Southern Planter. The writer states
that having seen an account of there be-
ing such pea, the vine of which grew
| TO be forty feet long, he determined to
make an effort to procure it, and says:
After considerable correspondence I
succeeded in buying half a bushel One
! peck of them we planted the last of May
In rows SO inches wide, two in a hill. IS
| inches apart. They were soon up ana be-
gan 10 grow rapidly, till, by September,
| they had completely covered the ground
to the depth of or 4 feet A few days
afterward they began to bloom and bear
! peas, continuing till frost. From this
! patch we picKed ll2 pecks, notwithstaud-
/ ing some of them did not mature before
! frost. The other peck was planted some
weeks later, and while the growth of
| vines was equally great, as many of the
peas were caught by frost, we kept no
| particular account of them.
THE ENORMOUS QUANTITY PRODUCED.
Last season we sowed on an island
| WHICH Is EdlOdCu6u 10 my idEm thirty
| bushels OF these peas, fifteen of which
were sOwn to themselves the last of May
on thin, sandy land, about half n bushel
to the acre. The other fifteen were sown
! in he corn, the seed being plowed under
at laying-Dy time, say last of July one
! bushel to the acre l was not on the
| island very often during the summer, but
was there on Sept II. AT tn 1t time this
! pea patch presented the est wonderful
] ETr Of L..
| imagine. The island is a long narrow
strip of land three miles long though only
! containing 40 acres. The ferry is at the
upper end, connecting with 2 road run
ming down through the center. AS
drove down this road, both on the
right and the left, the whole face
of the ground was completely covered
| with Il dense, heavy mat or carpet of
| vines, with leaves of the richest glossy
green, to the depth of three feet or more,
and filled with the long tapering pea pods,
growing in clusters and every corn stalk
| having two or more vines clambering to
the top, with peas all the way and a nice
| little bunch at the top. Every inch of
| the land was occupied, having crowded
! out every sprig Of grass, wild vine and
| weed. | was not on the island asain till
| the frost had denuded the vines Of their
! foliage, displaying for the frs time the
I
| tnat road again l tried to make some esti-
/ mate OF the quantity Of peas. 1 reasoned
| somewhat in this way If one peck
would produce ll2 pecks, thirty
| bushels ought to produce 112 times
as many bushels which would be more
| than 900 bushels. | thought that that
| could not be, anu turned 70 the old col
orei ferryman who was with me, and
| ASKED him how many he thought there
were. He replied. 4 dunno, boss, but
reckon de nj on to 20, OOJ bushels. / did
no. think there could be as many as that
! but | am disposed TO think there were as
many hundred bushels.
Seeing this description of the pea,
! concluded il would be well to test il on
| the thin clay land and sandy soil of Flor
| ida. and if il would do one-half what it's
| Originators claimed, the question of the
! practicability OF general farming on the
| pine, sandy, and clay lands OF the south
| was solved.
! cleared and broke up several acres Of
! pine land, and p anted the pea which
| procured IRON the Virginia growers. l
! also planted DeJwe n the rows OF ORANGE
/ trees in my groves. L tini the general
habits of the pea TO correspond to the
] description in its enormous productive
/ ness OF vines and peas, and under the
! same circumstances, Judge twice the pro-
] du ii, eness o any other pea may be eE-
! pected.
In this exceeding productiyeness is its
| great ad antlge:
| l. O1 q renoyating crop.
| 2. OF superior fodder for hay or for
| solling cattle, or lOr ensllage
! 3. In peas a SUBSTITUTE for corn. and
mixed with other grain or bran will 90
Il uch farther than corn, bushel for
| busnel.
/. In its mechanical effect on the land
AS reno aling cop it will bring INTO
fertility the pine sandy lands, or light
clay, or worn out soils of the south by
turning under feH crops Of the vines.
As hay crop it is a substitute for
clover or other hay crops Of the north
with grain crop added. II MAKES pos.
siOle the keeping OF large herds of stock
on few acres, and the prolu lion of
nlanures to the extent of fitting lands for
| intensive farmins As grain crop it is
adapted to WORK horses MAKES The finest
and sweetest pork, and is excellent for
poultry.
IL tests thus far have proven its great
superiority er her all Ield PEAS, and
is me southern farmers great need as a
soil reno ator, and TO supply summer
and winter feed for stock and to tatten
| his hogs or feed his poultry.
10 lands OF greater fertility, but when
the soil is so newnaJ stubborn, the pea is
valuable for its mechanical e1ect.