Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1894-06-27
THE HOME AND FARM.
THE CULTIVATION OF CORN.

In the cultivation of corn three i'm
portant ends should be kept in view. /.
1t should be done at least cost consist
ent with efficiency. 9. 1t shou'd be
done in the best way, hat is, in the
way that will promote the most rapid
and largest growth of stalk and ear.
y. II should be done in the way that
Will most thoroughly eradicate or SUBJ
ii foul weeds. There have been fn any
changes in the methods of cultivating
corn since first began to assist in the
work, on the hills, the hillsides and the
valleys of Duchess County, many a
ago. Then our cultivator was a small,
one handled plough. AS soon as the
rows could be followed we went through
and turned a furrow from the hill, leav-
ing but a narrow, ~unploughed strip
where the row stood. Then we crossed,
doing the same thing the other way.
That left a small square where the hill
stood.
The next process was to weed the
corn, with hoe and hands. AS the por-
ton left unploughed was SO small we
generally could soon accomplish that
process.
The next operation was to go through,
between the rows, both ways, with The
plough and turn the ridge in the middle
back toward the hills, thereby throwing
up quite a trench between them. Then
came killing corn. The hoes were used
to draw the burrows thrown back by
the ploughs still more up around the
corn, at the same time either cutting
up or covering up the weeds and grass.
This generally left the corr ground
pretty clean, and stalk hilled up and
the spaces to be occupied by the roots
of the corn pretty we'll limited, unless
they struck down into the subsoil in
search of food. Nevertheless, / have
seen splendid fields of corn grown in
that way, but it was very expensive,
that hoeing every hill twice.
After this we began 10 use shovel
ploughs and cultivators with cast iron
teeth, then with cast steel teeth, and
Improvements in c~ultivatois have gone
on so rapidly during the last fifty years
that it would seem impossible to i'm
prove them much more. Still, upon
returning to my native county on a
visit, in 1885, l was surprised to see
some of the conservative farmers of
Duchess using the old corn plough.
Others, however, had the improved
cultivators. Farmers of New York
have pretty generally come to the con-
clusion that they can NO longer afford
to use the hoe in the corn field; that
they must do all of the cultivation with
the cultivator or they can not compete
with Western farmers, who long since
abandoned the use of the hoe, if they
ever adopted it in the large prairie corn
fields. Now many of our farmers are
gradually becoming convinced that
they a not afford to use the one horse
cultivator; that the man who cultivates
can not earn his wages unless he drives
two horses. and holds a c~ultivator that
will work two rows at a time. Many
are also becoming convinced that they
can raise their corr most economically
if they have it rowed but one way and
planted in drills, a single stalk every s
to IL inches in drill. They claim that
if the drills are as straight as they should
be, they can cultivate so close to the
stalks as nearly to cut up all the weeds
and what they fail to cut up they can
cover. have seen from fifty to seventy
bushels of shelled corr growth per acre
by this method.
Some fifteen or sixteen years ago a
certain scientific e,litor of a scientific
agricultural journal preached the
theory that the yield of corn could be
greatly increased by frequent deep
ploughing, breaking off the roots of
the plants and causing numerous young
roots to start into growth. He thought
that by following up that method he
could cause a corn stalk to throw out
an ear at nearly every joint. Further
experiment in that line caused him to
abandon the theory and frankly &C.
knowledge thathe was mistaken. Since
then the conviction has been steadily
growing that the true way to cultivate
corn is the way that will break and de-
stroy the least number of roots. That
whileit may do to cultivate quite deeply
at first, before the young roots have
spread far from the base of the plant,
the cultivation afterward should be-
cCme more shallow, SO that the roots
may spread and fill all the soil between
the rows, while the cultivator keeps a
couple of inches of the surface soil mel
low, to serve as a mulch to keep the
soil in which the roots are ramifying-
f~oraging for plant food-moist.
The most approved method of cult,
waiting corn at present date appears to
be narrowing with a light smoothing
harrow from the time weeds begin to
start, before the corn appears above
ground, continuing until the plants are
about four inches high, %cultivating a
pretty good depth at first, then more
shallow, scrupulously refraining from
breaking Off roots. Thus do science,
judgment and experience unite to ar
rive at the truth in regard TO best meth.
dds of farming, as we'll as of conduct
ing other affairs of life.