St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1897-04-10
FARMER AND PLANTER.

FARMER AND PLANTER.
THE ARTICHokE.
IT. Value - sssek HsoA aad Its CUltsras
Please allow me space in your valu-
able Journal to answer . few Of the
many inquiries being made Of me in re-
gard to artichokes. grow the I'm
proved White French" some call them
tho Mammoth White" They pro-
dueed for me last year over 600 bushels
per acre. They should be planted in
April. or as soon - the ground Is In
good working order in the spring;
prepare the land as for corn:
lay OH rows three and one-hah or
four feet wide, cut to one eye, and
plant obout 20 inches apart in row, one
eye to the hill; cover about 81 inches;
cultivate - you would corn. Keep
them clean Of weeds until four feet
high, and you will not be bothered
with any after that. They grow from
eight to ten feet high, have . great
many branches and heavy foliage. l
think they improve the land ON which
they grow, especially when hogs are
allowed to run to them. II properly
cut, four bushels will plant IN acre.
The hog seems to be in his glory In the
srtichoke field. They arc not only good
for hogs, but for all classes Of stock.
When fed to milch cows they increase
both flow and quality Of milk very much.
They are . frst-class conditioner for
horses. mules. jacks. and am told there
Il nothing better for sheep. They win
keep well. buried as potatoes or In cel-
lar II covered 50 - to protect them
from the air; when exposed to the air
they win shrivel. would advise dig
ging and storing . part Of the crop
shout the last Of November to feed when
the ground II frozen. but the greater
part leave for the hogs to harvest
Freezing dose not hurt tthemwhile in the
ground. although they grow very near
the surface. Hogs will get all they can
even with rings In their noses. but IL
would be more pleasant for them not
to be rung. When they have access to
artichokes they are not much inclined
to root mp grass
The tubers do not form until about
the time they bloom, which il usually
from the LIST to 18th Of August They
grow rapidly until freezing weather. I
believe freezing and thawing under
ground improves the flavor.
never knew or heard Of . hog talk
ing cholera or swine plague where they
had excess to articholxes- Many emf
nent authorities write in asserting that
the articholke is . most judicious food
for swine, and they do not hesitate to
state that the sanitary properties Of
the artichoke tends to greatly reduce
dangers from concentrating diseases
and generally promote health.
There Is nothing better for brood
sows and pigs, as the chief
object to be sought is muscular
development The articholxe 50
encourages the development Of
their digestive organs that the assimi-
lation Of their food is made much more
effective, thus insuring good health.
They do not grow from the seed. !
have examined closely and have found
one that came from the seed. The
tubers have great many eyes and
every eye viii produce . stalk, SO there
viii be . great number Of volunteers
shoots spring mp II tubers are left in the
ground. They viii spread NO farther
than the roots grow, which is about
two feet. They are about as
hard to kill when growing as po-
tatoeA Ihave dug as many IS one peck
from . single stalk, though rs . rule
hardly half 50 many. Ihsve seen them
as large Is could 60 In . half gallon
cup. and all the way down to the size
Of . marble.
agree with Mr.. Arnold, Of Missouri,
raising them for . number of years,
and from actual experience am fully
convinted that they are one Of the very
best and cheapest feeds . farmer can
have to keep his stock healthy and
growing fast As the season for their
use II from about the 18th of October
until the 18th Of May, they form . con-
Meeting link from the time pasture goes
but IN fall until II begins again in the
spring. Land that win produce 50
bushels Of corn per acre will produce
from 500 to TOO bushels Of artichokes,
with no more labor than with corn.
With hogs. one can save the expense Of
digging, storing and feeding six months
In the year. just open the gate and
they win do the harvesting while you
are doing something else. believe
that - soon - the cheapneas Of raising
and feeding and their excellence Is .
very healthful hog food becomes better
known, al wide-awakc swine growers
win consider . field Of artichokes q
necessary to success and profit q their
clover and corn.-L A. Davis, in Farm
ert Home Journal