The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1897-08-25
AGRICULTURAL.
SOwed Corn Farmers.

They are class of men who do not
like to change, who judge crops by
their size, who do not keep well in
formed as to what science tells of the
real feeding value of crops. Now this
is such good example of the decep-
ton of appearances and of the need of
scientific knowledge that we want to
preach little sermon upon it. Take a
piece of good land, manure it heavily,
SOW southern white corn thickly on it,
and then watch the growth of the crop.
Every farmer knows what an immense
growth there will be, especially if rich
manure is used. An immense amount
of fodder can be grown upon an acre
of land. But this corn cannot make a
natural growth. Corn is plant which
needs the sun. 1t does not do we'll in
the shade. Plant piece under trees
and see how pale it looks. But when
corn is sown, one plant shades another,
so that they all grow in the shade.
Sowed corn is usually pale, does not
have that rich green look which is
sign of healthy growth. Then such
corn never gets to its best. Just where
its growth is stopped depends upon
circumstances, but the work of the
chemists throws much light upon the
question OF when corn is at it's best.
Common sense teaches every one
that the more water food contains the
less its nutritive value. Conversely,
the more dry matter it contains, the
richer its food content. Now this
sowed corn contains much more water,
as a rule, than corn planted thinly, say
half bushel to the acre. The thickly
planted corn does not get usually be-
yond the blooming stage, or at best, the
roasting ear stage. More often it may
get into the milk stage of growth when
it is cut. At this period the value OF
the corn plant is very small COM
pared with what it is when ma
tured. The value of an acre of corn
at time of bloom has been found to be
about SAT. The value of the acre
when cut in the roasting ear stage was
about S64 to S66. When mature, the
value was S115. These figures are the
result of careful experiment, they are
science applied to agriculture and show
with startling distinctness the need thu
farmer has of learning what science i:
doing for the farmer. There is vas
wealth of this information being printed
every week, but alas, the sowed corr
farmer don't read the agriculture
papers. If he did you would see M
more sowed corn on his farm. 1t il
not difficult to figure up how much hi
saves (?) in this one crop alone by re
fusing to spend his "hard earned dol
lars" on first class agricultural papers
Find out how many acres of corn b,
sows and what its condition is whel
cut, and compare it with mature corn
If he has an acre and cuts it when it i
in the milk, he loses about $50 to $50
No saving there. The sowed corr
farmer needs to get his eyes open, t.
get new ideas into his head, to realiz
the value of knowledge which come
through reading and study.
But the pity of it is these men knoy
far more in their own estimation tina
all the experiment stations in the coun
try. If one of them happens to rea
the facts about sowed corn, he will nc
believe them. Not he. He has live
too long to be fooled by such stuff
"Don't anybody who has eyes know tha
more corn fodder will grow on an acr
when it is thickly sowed than when
is planted in hillsp And amt cor
corn? If you SOW it it is corn, if 20
plant it it is corn, and he does not nee
no experiment station or farm pape
fellers to tell him that what he can Sc
with his own eyes amt So" There
clear logic for you. Do you ever rel
son in that way? Corn is corn is il
The great big stalks cut when immi
ture contain great deal of water an
only about one-third of the dry matte
which mature stalks contain. 1t is th
dry matter that tells in cattle feed, an
there is big lot of dry matter in tn
mature corn compared with what ther
is in the immature. The sowed-cor
farmer judges only by his eyes. tn
way to judge is to feed the sowed cor
fortnight and then change to the mi
ture hill-planted corn and see the di
ference. Don't be sowed-corn farme