The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1899-03-02
THE COWPEA.
How IL Has behaved ut the New
Hampshire Experiment station.


Hampshire Experiment station.
"This plant is very commonly grown
at the south and is considered there one
of tho plants best adapted TO green ma
nuring. Like the soy bean, it is legu-
ninous plant, and hence nitrogen
gatherer, composed Of valuable plant
food. If, as is shown from experiments,
this plant is so valuable in bringing up
the fertility of land in one section,
why should it not be of equal value in
another? % asks Professor F. William
Rane in recording in bulletin 81 the
following experience with 1t at the New
Hampshire station:
The cowpea has been grown now for
two seasons The trial plots have been
on a fairly rich clay loan, although
poorly drained. The seed was planted
in rows three feet apart and from four
to six inches apart in the row, which Is
mt the rate of about one bushel per acre.
When sown broadcast IL bushels are
necessary. The following varieties have
been grown:
Per acre.
whippoorwill ......-........... tons lst9a I'D
Whippoorwili. .......-..........la tons, Ho 10
New Era. " tohs' oos ~
Southern Yellow Eye. .s tons, ~ 10
Clay or Wonder. TONS l'Vfo 10
eouthern Black Eye. 10 tons, lao ID
The plant is of running nature and
In short time completely covers the
ground whether sown in drills or broad
cast. II is consequently troublesome
crop to turn under As soiling and
silo crop it does not seem to be sue
cess The cattle do not take to it as
freely even as to the soy bean. Its main
value seems to be as green manure.
Besides the plots already mentioned
two other tests are under trial. During
s the season of 1897 small triangular
field of comparatively poor soil was
PLANTED. which yielded at the rate of 8
tons 1 $40 pounds per acre. This was
plowed under and the ground stocked
down to grass in the fall. The grass
winter killed. The ground was wet I'M
til late, so that the results will be I'M
Trustworthy until another season. In
1898 another good sized plot of similar
conditions was sown with cowpeas,
and although late when planted they
produced at the rate of six tons of green
material per acre.
1t is thought by Professor Rane that
this crop should be given more consid-
Grafton from the facts that it is SO easily
grown, Yields so heavily, and seems to
adapt itself to comparatively poor soils.
When blowing under in the fall OF 1897,
the roots were found to be well covered
with tubercles, some being as large as
= he ,N1o
over az feet in height, averaging usu-
ally about feet.
The Velvet Bean south and North.
The following estimate of the velvet
bean, given by a Floridian in Tho
Orange Judd Farmer, may serve to ex-
plain the very positive and conflicting
experiences with it, reported in different
sections of the country:
The cultivation of the velvet bean up
to the present time has established the
following facts: For the extreme south.
it is the greatest forage and humus
producer yet discovered. North of CEN
trail Georgia only in exceptionally long
seasons will the seed mature. North of
the Ohio river IT will make large
growth of vine and leaves, but will not
come to bloom,
1t is a great fertilizer for orange
groTes, but it's use is not advisable after
fne groves come into bearing, as the
pines are habitat of the pumpkin
(stink) bug, and ON the decay of the
bean this pest goes to the orange, pune
turing the fruit and causing it 10 fall
AS rule, the velvet bean is not the
equal of red clover or the cowpea, either
for seed or forage, north Of the guilt
states For forage and fertilizer it has
no equal in the barren, sandy lands OF
the south, where the seasons are long
enough for the crop to mature before
the coming of frosts.
/ Effect of Lining on Various Plants.
y According to experiments made by
the Rhode Island station on acid soils
in that state the plants tested may be
classified witt, regard to their behavior
toward lime as follows, Plants benefited
by limtng-spinach, lettuce, beets (all
kinds), gumbo (okra), salsifyfvegetable
oyster), celery, onion, parsnip, cauli-
flower, cucumber, eggplant, cantaloupe.
asparagus, kohl-rabi, cabbage, dande-
lion, Swedish turnip pepper, pea, pea
nut, martynia, tobacco, sorghum, alfal.
ia, clover, barley, wheat, oats, timothy
and Kentucky blue grass plants injured
by lining, serradella. watermelon, blue
lupine and common sorrel (Rumex ace
tosellao; plants Indifferent to lining,
Indian corn, common millet, Hungari'
an. golden millet. rye notatoeS car.