The Van Buren press., 1898-09-10
FARMER ANDPLANTER.
IHE SOUTHERN CORN CROP.
sone Suggestions In Regard 70 Harvest
Ing and storing the Grain
and Fodder.

ing the crop = 70 pull. the ears, with
q good portion Of the husks attached.
leaving al the fodder IN the field.
After the crop has been gathered hogs
and cattle are turned into the fields.
and so a portion OF the fodder IS
utilized. This seems Ike a wasteful
method, but IN region where the corn
stalks are usually large and course.
and where haY can be made and saved
with 50 little expense. il IS often the
most economical and profitable plan.
Whether 70 cut the stalks and save
them for coarse feed or TO give cattle
the range Of the field and use the labor
IN making other hay depends on the
amounts OF feed which can be secured
by eQcal amounts Of Iab0r. When the
entire stalk IS saved the yield OF dr.
forage per acre is from : TO tons.
and Of that amount approximately one
fourth. and taat the part which IS the
most paiatabie and has the greatest
feeding Falue may be saved b turn
ing stock into the field. Taking into
account the amount which viii be
gathered b. cattle without expense
and the various losses in handling and
feediH the stalks the total additional
amount OF feed saved by cutting
Is rarely more than one ton
per acre. To secure this addi-
tiOnal ton the entire crop must be
cut. and in order 20 make more than
half the weight of fodder availa Die for
food al must be run through a shred
der. thoroughly dried and stored IN q
dry place. The palatability OF the
shredded fodder varies greatly. II the
cutting IS done early, while the upper
leaves are still green and the stalk is
not yet dry. the yield OF fodder Will be
much heavier and OF much better
quality than when the cutting is done
later. but the early cutting viii cause
loss in the grain yield. and the fod-
der viii be more difficult to cure. As
already remarked, the only object in
saving the fodder is to secure a given
amount OF forage foI feeding stock.
On many plantations an equal amount
of forage OF better quality can be Sc
cured II the labor necessary for saving
the corn fodder IS used in making and
saving hay, and the farmer who adopts
either Of the rotations suggested on
previous page viii rarely find it profit
able to cut, shred and house his corn
stalks
The results OF two years work at
the Alabama college station gives the
stalks value of s. g5 per acre over
the amount received when only the
ears were harvested, and whether
that amount. less the value of
the standing stalks, IS sufficient to
cover the cost of cutting and handling
the fodder is question which each
planter muet decide for himself
When the corn crop is to be followed
by September or October sowing of
clover or any other crop for moving it
will pay 10 cut the stalks to get them
ont of the way, and when the labor Of
cutting is necessary for the success Of
the succeeding crop it viii usually pay
well to save the stalks for fodder, as
the additional expense will be slight.
Topping corn. j. e, cutting off the
stalk just above the ear after the grain
bN x AAo ~ h0A hNIs EAFNo AAluLAA DtAEtA
fodder than is obtained by harvesting
the whole stalk, but the labor in
volved is considerable, the yield Of
fodder light, and the injury to the
grain yield is usually greater than the
value of the food secured. AT the Mis-
sissippi station the removal Of the tops
during three seasons caused an average
4 zf ir
yield. This large decrease in grain was
doubtless due partially to cutting the
tops too early, but at other stations
where similar tests have been made
the average decrease in yield has been
10 per cent, and the value of the fod-
ner secured has rarely equaled that of
the grain lost.
Stripping the leaves from the stalks
Ia very common practice in I'll parts of
the south) is also doubtful economy, es-
pecially when the work is done by
hired labor More or less ears are sure
to be broken off and lost. If the strip
ping is done early the yield of grain is
decreased, and if done late the fodder
secured is of but little value. 1t is
O4lCn AAAE cast LlldL AdbDItls dI IG = ldAA W
pull the fodder on shares, taking one
half and giving the owner the other
half II the crop is well matured be-
fore the pulling is done this will be
profitable to the owner, but the fodder
will rarely pay for the labor when it
must be pulled by hired labor.
If the securing OF certain amount
of forage is the only object, it will sell
dom be profitable for the southern
planter to hire labor to gather either
the whole stalks, the tops or even the
leaves from his cornfields when he has
land or which he can grow hay and
stock to Craze the corntield after the
crop has been gathered. If he has la
Dor which would otherwise be idle. or
If it is desirable TO clear the ground
for the immediate sowing OF some 9TH
er crop, the fodder is well worth saw
ing. even though it makes forage of an
inferior quality.
When corn is to be used during the
winter for feeding Is or more mich
cows, it is economical to use a part of
the crop in filling a silo A silo of suf-
ficient size to hold 25 tons, or feed for
20 cows 100 days, can be built for about
500. while one OF larger size can be
built for much less expense In proper
ton to its capacity. The average cost
of growing the corn and filling the
silo is about 81 per ton. The crop of
stalks from an acre will require about
the same amount of storage room,
whether it is placed in a silo or is
preserved as shredded fodder, though
the building for the silo must be
much more snhstantial than thai