The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1894-08-02
.,I,HE USE or
THE FEET IN
SOWING PLANTING
BY PETER HENDERSON.
BY PETER HENDERSON.


seeds after sowing, especially when the soil
is dry or likely to become 80. I know of
no operation of more importance in either
the farm or the garden, aud trust that
what anu about to say will be read and re-
membered by every one not yet aware of
the vast Importance of the practice. 1 say
'Vast importance" for the loss to the aprl-
cultural and horticultural community, from
the habit of loosly sowing seeds or planting
plants Ill hot and dry soils, is of a magni.
tude which few will believe, until they
have witnessed it; and it is a loss all the
more to be regretted, when we know that
"frming" the soil around the seed or plant
Is, i'll most cases, certain preventive.
Particularly in the sowing of seeds,
CONSIDER the matter of such vast importance,
thnt II cannot be too often or too strongly
told; 1or tho loss to the agricultural NJ Il
horticultural community, by the neglect { +
the simple operation of tirming the soil
around the seed, must amount to MANY
millions annually. For the mischief done
Is not confined TO the less important garden
operations, but even Corn, Cotton, Wheat.
iurnlps and other important crops of the
farm often fail, in hot and dry soils, by be-
ing sown Without being firmed sufficiently
TO prevent the dry air shrivcling or driving
inc seeds. OF course the use of the feet
IS lmpracticablc III tlrming seeds on The
iarm' but heavy roller, applied after SOW
lng' Is an absolute necessity under certain
conditions OF the soil, to insure perfect
termination. From the middle of April to
nearly the end of May Of this year in manv
sections of the country, there was little or
no rain. Such was particularly the case in
tho vicinity of New York CITY, where we
have hundreds of market gardeners, who
cultivate thousands Of acres of Cabbape.
Caulitlowcr md Celery, butt "dry spring"
has played sad havoc with their seed beds.
Celery is not onc-fOurth of a crop and Cab
Dage and Cauliilowcr hardly half, and this
failure is due to no other cause than that
they persist i'll sowing their seeds without
ever taking the prccaution to firm the soil
by rolling.
We sow annually about four acres of
Celery, Cabbage and Caulitlower plants,
which produce probably five millions in
number, and which wc never fail to sell
mostly In our immediate ncighborhood, to
the market gardeners, who have, many of
them, even better facilities than we have
Tor raising these plants, if they would only
do as VIC do, firm the seed after sowing.
WHICH is done thus:
After plowing, narrowing and leycling
the land smoothly, lines are drawn by the
''marker, which makes furrow about two
inches deep and foot apart; after the man
who sows tho seed follows another, who,
win the ball of the right foot, presses down
his full weight on every inch of the soil in
the drill..whcrc the seed has been sown: the
rows arc then lightly Icvclcd IongitudinalIy
with the rake, light roller is passed over
them, and the operation is done.
By this method our crop has never once
tailed, and what is true of Celery and Cab.
baSc seed is nearly true of all other seeds
requiring to be sown during the late sprinp
or summer months.
On July 2d, Of 1874, as an experiment. 7
sowed IL rows Of Sweet Corn and l2 rows
OF Bccts, trcading in, after sowing, everv
alternate row OF each. In both cases those
trod III came up III four days. while those
unlirmed remained ~ days before starting
and would not then have yerminatrd hoS
not rain fallen, for the soil was dry as onat
when the seed were sown.
lhe result was that the seeds that had
DeGn trodden in grew freely from the start.
ana maturtd their crops to q marketable
condltlon by fall; while tho rows unf1rmed
uld not mature, as they were not on]v cipht
DAYS later ir terminating, but the plants
were aiSo, 10 some extent. cnfcebled by be.
ing partially dried in the loose dry soil.
Inc same season, in August, | treated
seeds or Turnips and Spinach in the same
way lnosc trod in gcrminated at once
aha made on excellent crop, while those
uhnrmcd germinated fecbly, and we're
eventually nearly all burned out by the dyv
not air penetrating through the ioose soil
to the tender rootlets.
beg to caution the lnexpcrienced how.
eyer, by no means to tread or roll in seed
II inc ground is not dry. The soil NAV
oltcn DC IN suitable condition tO sow onH
ycI DC loo damp to be troddcn upon or
rolled. In such cases these Operations NAV
not DC necessary at ALL for if rainy weather
ensues, the seeds will germinate of conrse.
Gut II there is any likelihood of q continued
Drought, the trcading or rolling NAV be
zone a week or more after the seed has
ueeh soWn, II there Is any reason to believe
th"t 1t may suffer from the dry, hot air.
hnoIhcr i very important advantage gained
oy treadlng in the seeds is, that wien we
nave crops of Bccts, Celery. Tuynfns
spinach, or anything else that is sown in
lo"s' lllc seeds to form the crop come IN
at once; while the seeds of the weeds, TINT
arc nrc just as liable to perish by the heat "a
.,iosc ol the crop, arc retarded. Such of
inc weed seeds IS lie in the space between
lnc rows when the soil is loose. will not
germinatc as quickly as those of the cron
so."h; ana hence he can cultivate betwccn
'hc rows before the weeds gcrminatc at al.
The above embodics the experience Of
one OF the most practical and successful
market gardeners of the country, and we
believe the adoption of lis plan would al-
most entirely put an end to complaints of
failure to secure q stand of turnips.
The turnip seeds wc offer, VIC believe
1n'ly equal in quality to any sold in this
market. We make no claims thnt Ours are
Deter than all Others, and would not expcct
sensible people to believe any such state.
mcnt.
we solicit your business on a truthful
statement of what VIC believe to be actual
facts.