Lancaster enterprise. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1891-1905, 1898-04-06
be seen from my answers, which
hope Will benefit many others.

be seen from my answers, which 1
hope will benefit many others.
The cotton land would have been in
better plight for the corn if you had
sown crimson clover in the cotton at
the last working, so as to have soil
| cover during the winter, and a legu-
minous crop to turn under for the
corn in the spring. 1t seldom pays to
use commercial fertilizers heavily on
corn, but in the onditions YOU now
have it will be well to use a light
dressing of acid phosphate and kainit,
mixed in equal parts. Apply it some
weeks before planting the corn, so as
to get it Incorporated with the soil.
Plant the corn on the cotton middles,
and the roots will find what the cotton
mas lett at the most important time,
when tasseling. Then the old cotton
stalks will be well decayed, and will
feed the corn when it needs it most.
The same mixture will show we'll
where the peas have been. Now as to
the cotton. l believe it will under the
circumstances pay you to make a mix
ture somewhat like the following, as
the pea growth was not heavy:
Acid phosphate, 800 pounds; cotton
seed meal, 600 pounds, and kainit, 400.
making ton. Use this at the rate of
25O pounds er acre i'm the furrow some
time before planting and bed on it.
with heavier growth of the peas the
acid phosphate and kainit would have.
been sufficient, and had good dress
ing of the phosphate and potasyhaon
applied To the peas this ycaY tbarn
would have been little need ISr mnch
fertilizer on the cotton. om niou
that you believe in peas, ,bIt vom mmst INST
remember that peas WY NOT Of thn,,,
selves make poor lapS rich. M Tbev are
a great hep in byInpinp nm japd -
properly used. B/t xan rs csn up m,Iafani iaan i,
poor by growing peas on il and adJin@ i
n% n"''''mS ~ 10 itTnd then taking the peas
Uii ,"iih hvri/ /lll enable You to dispense
./ng nitrogen, the most costly
pn,' p, We fertilizer, but they need and
.,avc the phoSnhoric acid and
r/"Sh Al tn,y are 10 uV mat they viii
/r the land. Every year | am more
than ever convinced that if we follow
a proper rotation and lose the peas
literally with potash and acid phos-
phate. and feed the hay and the corn
fodder on the place, :, that we can
raise manure and make something by
feeding stock, we need to buy no fer
tiliZers at all for the grain or cotton.
In your section Il rotation of winter
cotton after the peas, with the peas
fertillZed to give Il heavy crop of for
age. VIII uring up the land faster than
than any other. ! would also advise
You TO be sure To plant peas in that
corn next summer. \ farmer not far
from you wrote to me y few days ago
that h" was following che rotation
advised, and that he made - bushels
of oats per acre. At this rate he oats
crop becomes an important matter as
"A sale crop. If we :rc ever to make
cotton at n profit with the low prices
that are bound TO prevail, we must get
il without fertilizer bill attached to
every bale.
We must feed more stock and make
more mauurc,and then put the manure
whore il viii tell in the Improvement
uf the land: that iS. broadcast il ON
tn" corn land, and get the corn and
the oats crops both out of it, and then
add the mineral fertilizers To make
peas and ro>IOr" the nit,ngc IN the
land. Worked i'm this way / believe
/ that while We may not do il at once
the time viii soon come when we can
make the cotton crop with nothing but
what the peas have left for H.. and
make il better and better with every
round of the rotation. Let us IL fast
aN possible gel away from the ever
lasting dependence on the fertilizer
man, and build up our land till il can
do without the constant application of
anything but TIA" mineral fertilizers
that cost less than the complete ones.
| have for years been 'ightng the bat
tie for good farming i'm the South, and
the oldest thing about il is that some
accus" me Of playing into the hands
of the fertilizer men, while the fcrti-
liIer men dcnOuncc me for advising
farmers to stop gambling on the
chances with their goods. We have"
tried the old way till IN" fertilizer men
have gotten richer and TN" farms and
the farmers poorer and poorer. Let
u~ change and try TO farm better.
Peas Will help you immensely. but
they must be helped 10 do it, and they
Will not work miracles.
W f. NJ ,Gsr,