Graham guardian., 1895-04-13
THE FARM.

A crop of peas, if early sown,
will make a good soiling crop that
can be fed quicker than any other
spring-sown grain, 1t will make
half its growth before corn for soil
ing can be sown and have the
young plant get out of the ground
The pea is nitrogenous food and
richer in nutrition than corn is, the
corn being carbonaceous when at
its best, and utterly worthless for
feeding until after spring gsown
peas have been cut and fed. Beside
as the pea roots have the power
of using atmospheric nitrogen in
the soil, the growing of this crop
leaves the soil richer than it was
before it was grown.
There needs to be more variety
in our grasses, especially for Glow
er. Many farmers SOW timothy
and clover as if no other combina-
ton were possibly. A sprinkling
of orchard grass is often better, es-
pecially for pasture. 1t will be al
so better for cutting as hay, for the
clover and orchard grass are at
their best at nearly the same time
When clover is sown with timothy
one or the other is partly wasted.
Usually it is the clover, as the
farmer wantssto have the timothy
in head by which time the clover
is brown and dried. The orchard
grass needs to be cut early, even
before it fully gets into head
Then both it and the clover Will
make more crops in the same
year.
There are still some people who
think the farmer is only fit to haul
manure, wear the oldest kind Of
clothes and follow the OK team; and
that he should not venture into
society or mix up in political and:
religious affairs. They also believe
that when a man fails at every
thing else, he is fit to farm. The
few who still entertain these ideas
should disabuse their mind of them,
for intelligent people are coming to
realize that the farm is the nursery
of the nation; that it is here that
the physical and mental vigor is
secured which distinguishes the
lives of great men. Among educa-
ted people tits the man who has hay
seed in his hair that is respected.
He can wear a stiff hat standing
collar and polished shirt with an
unconscious air of indifference that
would put dudes to shame. His
influence is sought in politics and
religion. He reads the papers and
exhibits intelligence to quite as
great a degree as other people,
The improved farmer of the present
day can do anything that is done
on the farm, and besides, keep post
ed on domestic and foreign- affairs,
financial questions and the Market
He reads, thinks, labors and is
happy.
/ believe that some of our best
corn growers have still something to
learn about the cultivation of corn.
1t is the staple corn of the west,-
and yet the average yield is far be-
low what it should be. This is due,
not to the lack of fertility of tho
soil, but to the fact that farmers.
are growing stalks instead of ears.
Corn is often planted to thickly,
or permitted to sucker, and the mis-
sion of the plant is thereby defeat
ed. For ensilage it may be well to
plant thickly, but for grain there
should not be more than three stalks
every three and half feet in the
field. In field planted in hills at
this distance apart there will be 3,
500 hills to the acre, and if ono
pound of corn is grown to the hilI
it will yield upwards of sixty
bushels. 1t is plain to be seen that
five stalks every three and half
feet will grow fewer pounds of corn
than three stalks. What is nec-
essary is to plant so as to have
every hill with some corn-so as
not to have five ears in one hill
and the next two blank. / believe
this is one of the reasons why the
yield is not better, and that much
may yet be learned about the cul-
tivation of the crop even by old
corn growers. A little thought in
relation to mistakes made will en-
able us to do better and more
thorough work in the future. We
can not make the seasons, but we
can do our part. The most favor
able season will not give good
yield if we do not plant and cul
tivate wisely and well.-Lice Stoch
Indicator.