St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1899-01-07
FARMER AND PLANTER.
FEEDING THE SOIL.

The Rehabilitation of the Worn Out Soils
of the South and the Most Effec-
tive Crop Rotation.
In building up the worn lands OF
the south, systematic rotation is of
the first Importance; and on account
of its capacity for gathering nitrogen,
no system Of rotation is complete that
does not include the cow pea. A
three-year rotation in the which five
crops oats followed by COW peas; sec.
ond year cotton, third year corn and
peas, with suitable fertilizer in liberal
amount Of each and every crop plant
ed, will be found sure, speedy and
economical method of building up
worn soils, for all whom such rota-
ton would suit; in fact, when the COW
pea vines are converted into hay or
preserved m silage, as they should be,
and fed 10 stock, and the resulting
manure carefully husbanded and
scrupulously returned to the soil from
whence II was taken, it is questionable
If better system could be fcrmu-
lated. Yet this rotation does not suit
everybody, ourself for one; we prefer
to leave out the oats. Hence our rota-
tion is a two-year rotation, with peas
planted every year, in alternate rows,
in both cotton and corn; cotton and
corn rows each six feet apart, with q
row of peas between. This on our
poorest land. The peas are annually
fertilized with potash and phosphates,
our stable manure and surplus cotton
seed being applied broadcast as top
dressing on CALLED spots and the poor
er spots of the field. We prefer this
short rotation, from the fact that we
we find oats decidedly unsatis-
factory as well as Improbable crop
ON old, worn and poor lands of any
and every description in our expert
ence. Oats, like cotton, do best, and
are most profitable on our best lands.
On our best lands cotton, like peas,
needs nothing in the way of fertiliz-
ers except potash and phosphates.
Yet, rich as they are, in order to OBJ
tain best results quite liberal amounts
E
they should be applied in quantity
sufficient as to store them up as actual
surplus in the soil, over and above,
not only the actual needs of the pres
ent crop to be grown thereon, but also
sufficient to counter balance the ex-
cess of nitrogen that is invariably
present in such soils. We refer, of
course, to the alluvials, not only Of
this immediate section, but of the en-
tire south. On these lands we need
no applied nitrogen, not even pea
vine, until they show some sign OF
failing; they contain altogether too
great an amount of nitrogen already
for the good of the crops planted
thereon, let the crop be either corn or
cotton, though we have found cotton
much easier injured by excess of nj
frogen than is corn. Excess of nitro
gen never fails to work an injury to
any and all cultivated crops with
which we are acquainted; hence we
say, never allow nitrogen to be pres
ent in excess in any given soil, if you
can possibly avoid it. As previously
stated, nitrogen is present in excess
in by far the major portion of our
alluvials. Tt stands to reason that,
on these soils, phosphates and potash
get in their best work; and this we
have found by actual practical expert
ence to be the case. We have applied
phosphates, both acid phosphate and
Thomas Stag phosphate in varying
amounts, from 100 to 240 pounds per
acre; we have increased our annual
average yield by their use, from 1000
pounds of seed cotton to 1900 pounds;
this was in 1897. The present year,
1898, we have at this writing October
"a, that much or more on the stalks,
as our crop is better than it was last
year; But as we have not yet gath
cred our crop we can not state actual
yield at this time; later we will put
the scales and weights to it; they will
tell the tale.
On pet tcres we have found that an
application of from so to 200 pounds
of nitrate of soda has quite happy
effect in stimulating the crop and
pushing it forwards out of harms
way, and this even on land that al
ready contains an excess OF nitrogen,
but aside from this, any further appli-
cation Of nitrogen, in any form, would
be unnecessary, unadvisable. undesir-
able, and in fact, inadmissible. Save
all the nitrogen for the poorer lands.
AS clover refuses to thrive or even to
grow on very poor soils, even so the
COW pea will not, and in the very ma
ture Of things cannot luxuriate thrive
and do best in very poor soil.
As nitrogen gatherer and soil rem
ovator the COW pea has no superior;
but although they furnish nitrogen in
abundance absolutely free Of cost,
they furnish neither phosphoric acid
nor potash.
These latter must be added, not only
to properly balance the nitrogen fur
nished by the pea vines, but also to
enable the peas themselves to flourish,
as they are greedy feeders of both, and
cannot possibly thrive and luxuriate
as they otherwise could and would
except these be literally supplied.
Three hundred pounds of acid phos-
phate and 200 pounds of kainit is as
small an amount as should be applied
per acre to the peas, while double this
amount would be better and really
cheaper in the end.
Where peas from some cause have
not been grown then cotton seed meal