St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1899-01-28
FARMER AND PLANTER.
COTTON GROWING.

4
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Intensive Culture of the Cotton Crop as
Against the Old and siipshod
Method. s
The writer had previously urged
the application of the principles Of
Intensive farming" to cotton culture
as one of the most hopeful and effec-
tive methods of relieving some of the
most serious symptoms, if not of eff
fectually curing, that everywhere
complained-of malady soyer produc-
ton" The man who by concentrate
ing his capital, his labor, and his fer
tiIzers, upon smaller area, succeeds
in lowering the cost Of production,
has not only furnished q valuable OBJ
jeet lesson to the community, but has
placed himself upon decided vantage
ground for the future. II. as many
believe, somebody is going to be
crowded out in this cotton growing
business, he viii be about the last
Somebody to leave it. Tt is the man
who can raise the best cotton at the
least cost who is going to do the most
of the crowding," and the "other fell
low who will do the leaving"
Indeed too much can not be said In
favor of this matter of reducing the
cost of cotton production. No indi-
| vidual has the power to raise the mar
ket price of this staple by the slight
est fraction of a farthing. 1t is in
| deed questionable whether any possi-
Bile combination of men or capital or
s'trust" could permanently effect this.
| But every individual cotton grower
can work at the long arm of his own
| plantation lever, and il he can not
| lift up the price, there is always
chance to force the cost down, which,
so far as he is concerned, amounts to
the same thing.
| There is no doubt that the general
trend of matters is towards improved
| methods and better results. Statistics
indicate that in a gradual way the crop
/ Of lint per acre is steadily rising. This
/ increase has been going on for the
past twenty years at an annual rate
/ of about five pounds per acre. The
Financial Chronicle gives the average
/ production in 1S90-91 as 194 pounds,
which in 1s97-9S had risen to 24S
| pouids. This menas about q million
| and a quarter bales increase for the
space now devoted to the crop. There
is, in the nature of things, no earthly
reason why 12,Ooo,0oo bale crop
should not be grown on half the pres
ent acreage, while the other half de-
voted to cereal and forage crops
4 would place the south in a condition
of independence and self-supporting
power utterly beyond anything known
in the past.
/ One of the best means of securing
this result would be by the adoption
of some definite and well considered
rotation of crops. .sGotton cotton,
--eterna1ly cotton" year after year
on the same ground, will ruin any
land outside of the Rer river bottoms
or some other such marvellous natural
manure heap. The basis of the whole
system will properly be heavy CROP
of cow-peas, which can in nearly every
instance be secured by liberal applica.
tions. of potash and phosphoric acid
The cow-peas are better turned under
late in autumn. Fair land, with this
treatment, provided the application o1
the mineral fertilizers has been lib
era1 enough, should give a splendid
crop Of cotton. This may be succeed
ed by corn, or oats or both, in regular
succession. Any stable manure avail
able can be judiciously appropriated
/ to the corn crop. But whether three
or four years rotation be adopted. COW
peas should form the fundamenta
crop. To this the great bulk Of ths
mineral fertilizers should be given. Al
average application Tor peas would b.
about 800 pounds. Acid phosphate ans
800 pounds kainit Tor rs pounds muri
ate Of potash) per acre. The Others
will follow in natural succession, ant
often without further fertilization, tn,
crops and the crop producing capacit,
will steadily advance together. O.
course, if the land is greatly exhaust
ed to begin with, it may be necessar.
to supplement the fertilization of th,
cow-peas, by additional applications o
potash and phosphoric acid to the cot
ton itself.
The contagious influence OF gener
al and intelligent application of tn
methods of scientific agriculture, t
cotton growing, over the south woul'
be hard to estimate. Happily the ex
pertinent stations, most of the agri
culture journals, and here and there,
wide awake and progressive planter
are working manfully in this direction
Those who keep step with the progres
,, of improvements are the men, who i
this progressive age of sharp com
petition, are least liked to b
!. ruined by low prices. Thos
who cling to antiquated, plod
! ding ways, will be compelle'
to take the chances of being distance
in the race. The law of supply an
demand is hard taskmaster. an
. those who are wise, will endeayor +
adjust themselves to any possible cor
!, ditions that the future may bring
, Norman Robinson.
THE END OF THE SEASON.
rS..xx.x,,.. a ,ra, sse ssusa Pror,Ar Care d