The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-08-09
No. %

Vetch has proven to be an excellent
crop for either soiling, grazing or hay.
Stock OF all kinds are fond Of vetch,
and the hay is richer in protein than
clover hay, and is more digestible.
In Septen Der, 1896, we seeded one OF
our pasture lots containing one acre to
vetch and turf oats. This lot was
gr6z:d by both hogs and cattle from
the middle Of November to the 1st OF
May, when all stock was kept of the
land. The crop was cut for hay May
II and yielded one ton and seventy, two
pounds of curled hay per acre On the
station farm we have several fields of
vetch that were sown FIVE years ago.
These fields have yielded annually
about ten bushels of seed per acre. The
seed ripen and are gathered in June.
After the seed had been gathered esch
year the land was plowed with two
morse ploW and sown to COW peas, and
we have never failed to get large
amount OF excellent hay. With the
dEst rains in the fall the vetch sesd
that had been shattered out on land
when vetch was gathered, would come
up and grow eff rapidly. This plant is
not injured by cold or frost. The stand
OF vetch on these fields is perfect and
about six inches high now (Marcb) No
seed has been put on this land in five
years except those wasted in harvest
ing the crop each year. There is no
quicker or cheaper way in which to
enrich our land than by growing two
leguminous crops (vetch and COW peas(
on 1t IN the same season, and both Of
these crops utilized for stock food.
Turf oats and hairy vetch: We have
gotten more and better grazing from
these two plants when sown together,
than from either when so wn separately.
The seeding should be done in August
or September, using one and a half
bushels OF oats and one bushel of vetch
seed per acre. The preparation of land
and seeding is same as for oats.
These two plants make happy COM
bination, both mature about the same
time, and while oats is exhaustive tor
land, the vetch is renovating CROP,
and I think will add more fertility to
the soil than will be removed by the
oats.
We have not found a better combina-
tlon than is furnished by these plants
for winter and early spring grazing.
The station has now about forty acres
that IS furnishing excellent gra ziug for
our stock. The college farm has over
100 acres in oats and vetcn, about one
half Of which is used for winter pas
ture and the remainder to be harvested
for seed and feed.
Neither of these plants is injured by
our coldest weather, and both can be
grezad from the middle of November
until the first of April, and if q crop Of
seed or hay is desired, the stock should
then be taken off the field, and the
crop for hay will be ready to harvest
by the middle Of May, or a crop of seed
can be harvested by the middle Of
June. The college farm had, last year,
fifty acres sown to turf oats and vetch.
The crop was harvested in June, and
the yield of seed per acre was fifty
bushels. The land on which this crop
was grown was fine piece Of valley.
After the crop was gathered the land
was broken broadcast with a two horse
plow, and planted to COW peas. One
part sown broadcast and the other
planted in drill. The broadcast peas
were cut for hay in the fall, and those
planted in the drill were cultivated
and the peas gathered for seed.
During the harvesting of the oats,
and vetch in June, enough seed of both
scattered out on the land to perfectly
reseed the field, And with the first
rains in the fall the seed of both oats
and vetch came up, and now the land
is perfectly covered with a green mat
of oats and vetch to a depth of six
inches, and is furnishing fine grazing,
for the cattle.
The oats and vetch can be sown i8
the cotton field at the last plowing,
and after the cotton has been gathered
the oats and vetch will furnish good
grazing until spring.