The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1895-10-12
FARMER AND PLANTER.
CATCH THE SUNSHINE.


II IL One of the Essentials to Successfai
Farming.
Sunshine Is such potent factor In
the growth of crops that all FARMERS
should give it q good opportuni'y -
rightly do its work. 1t is an item III
the weather reports about crop pros.
poets. Family physicians prescriDe ~
for many human diseases otochmeh
and dairymen are learning to let .ne
sun shine on their stock. Its health-
ful influence upon vegetation is more
obvious than upon animal liie, a
sprout growing from potato in DARK
cellar will point toward window CIV
inc even faint light. There coulo DC
No vegetable or animal life on the
globe without sunshine. And still III
sometimes happens that crop re-
ccives too much sunshine.
1t is the work of good farmer that
he shall so select his crops, his ground
and seasons, then so cultivate that
each crop shall receive the amount OF
sunshine, heat and moisture that its
nature calls for Where the surface
of farm is billy or even und1lating
he can select the southern slopes, the
! rocky and sandy soils for those crops
needing the most sunshine, and the
northern slopes, the clay and colder
lands for those needing less.
| of course I have studied the wants
of crops in my own latitude Southern
Kentucky more than any other. This
is not far from the center of the corr
belt of North America. But this lat
itude is nearer the southern edge o.
the best climate for wheat, oats. to
bacco and Irish potatoes Hence these
crops usually grow best on the north
ern slopes, while sorghum, sweet pota
toes. field peas, all the melon and vln'
crops grow better here ON the southern
slopes.
1 would prefer to plant the appl'
orchard and. most of the other frui
crops on the northern slopes. 1t be
comes farmer to exercise his bes
Judgment when he comes to decid
how much ground surface shall b
given to each tree, plant or vine
Where apple trees are expected t
grow large they need forty feet
space. Where the large varieties G
corn are grown for grain they nee
about eight square feet of ground; tina
is, stalks from two and half to thre
feet apart. 1t requires more nerv
than most men have to pull up enoug
Young corn to give what is left tn
space it needs. Farmers are learnin
to give corn more space when the
' grow it for ensilage or dry provende
than when they were sowing it fe
: years ago. Experience has taugf
A., them that sunshine should come
the soil all around each plant. b.
what is sunshine? is there an
e thing in it more than light and hea
/, = And how does it do its work to NAL
- crops grow? The modern scienti
= tells us that sunshine is wave-motit
4 of the all-pervading ether. That eth
q is that substantial something that O
cupies in constant quantity evel
square inch of space in the Inverse.
2 occupies all the interstellar distanc
!. and is equally in all solid substance
= These ETHEREAL waves are set in motto
by the great heat of the sun. WIZ
"a these waves come to the earth we c;
them sunshine. When they strike t
earth some of them penetrate solid su
stances and some of them are refiecte
1t Is from these phenomina that
have the seven colors The heat wav
that come with sunshine are absorb
and then radiated. But the how
: these ETHEREAL waves of light and he
penetrating plants, their roots and
ale soil around their roots makes the Gre
to grow lies beyond the ken of hum
understanding. And so we had as w
confess that there are many things
the secrets of nature 'that have I
been dreamed of in our philosophy.
n. B. Dudley, in Farmers Home 10
nal