The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1897-05-25
WEEKLY DIGEST
OF Experiment station Bulletins.
CORN CULTURE.

D0AAG@AA 3Oa Va &@A O@G9@4N@G -
Kansas Station, and 46 of Maryland
Station detail experiments in corn cul-
ture.
At the Illinois Station some plats
were cultivated 1 inch deep, others .
inches, others 8, and so on up to 8
inches deep, and others were not cult
waited at all, but had all grass and
weeds pulled out by hand, and others
still were mulched 6 inches deep with
straw and received no cultivation or
wedding. The mulched plats yielded
an average of "a bushels per acre those
uncultivated but hand Weeded, 81
bushels; those cultivated 8 inches deep
and those 6 inches deep, gave the same
yield-S6 bushels per acre; these cult
waited 1 inch deep yielded IS bushels [;
those 4 inches deep, SO bushels; and
these plowed with a shovel pillow, 81
bushels. In previous years tests at
that station, shallow cultivation has
always given best results, but SO was
year OF abundant rainfall, and little
cultivation was necessary except to
keep down weeds.
~Invariety tests, of Is varieties, Boone
County White stood first, Leaning
second, and Legal Tender third, yield
ing 1914, 107, and 81 bushels per acre,
respectively.
At the Kansas Station, corn planted
the last of April and first week of Nav,
has done better for several years than
that planted earlier. The number of
CIVILIZATIONS giving best results depends
On soil, climate and season. In 1896,
which was almost an ideal corn season,
4cultivations gave better results at the
Kansas Station than fewer or moreand
the anne was true in '95. At that Sta.
ton, corn planted in listing burrows
has given better results than that
planted on surface plowed land, and as
to method of ~cultivating, where the
hrst two plowings given before the
roots had extended into the middles
yer deep and the last two shallow,
larger yields were obtained than from
all shallow or all deep cultivation. In
both '95 and go corn was grown on
plRts hat had been subsoiled in the
spring and others that had been sub
soiled the previous fell, and in all cases
these plats gave slightly smaller yield
than the unsubsoiled plats. The bulle
tin states that this is due to the fact
that the subsoil at the Station is nat
urRlly porous and both '95 and 90 were
characterized by an abundant rainfall.
In dry seasons, and on lands having q
compact subsoil, subsoiling in the fall
uniformly pays well. Five years tests
show that seed grains from the butts
and tips of the a give quite as good
results as those from the middle. Corn
on land broken the previous fall has
given better results than that on spring
plowed lands. In both '95 and go the
medium and late varieties gave much
better yields than early varieties; but
IN q dry season, early kinds might do
much better than the others. The
varieties giving best average yields for
8 years at Kansas Station, in the order
named are al follows: Early Thomp
son, Hartman's Early White, Pride of
Kansas, and Boone County White.
At the Maryland Station 8 years tests
prove that commercial fertilizers do
not pay on corn; but that Crimson
clover plowed under increased the
corn yield 81 bushels per acre, and turn
ing under another crop of Crimson I
clover on the same land the next year
gave q further increase of "a bushels
per acre. Wide rows show slightly a
better average yield than narrow rows, |
and the expense of cultivatiDg is less.
In four years tests deep and shallow
culture show practically the same aver
age yield. Three civilizations have
given slightly better yields than five.
Drilled ORR has given ten per ceat.
better yield than checks. Ten bushels
Of lime per acre proved more profitable
than any greater or less quantity.
COTTON CULTURE.
Bulletins 35, of Georgia Station, and
rs and rs, Of Alabama Station, detail
extended experiments in the culture Of
colt 1.-THE most popular of all South
ern crops, because it is least effected
by changes Of weather of all summer
crops, and it always finds ready sale
for spot cash. 1t is sensitive to changes
OF weather, but its growing season is
80 long that it has time to recover. Be
tween April and November it receives
good as well as bad weather, and hence
1t is curtailed in yield more than
one-third..or o%ne,fourth. only half