The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-10-17
A FLORIDA FARMERS NOTES ON
WHEAT GROWING.
OOrrespondenee Of the Progressi7e Farmer.

~ 4S S0u0Ea!4Y supposed GuaG WGe6g
growing ia the extreme South is un-
profitable. but il properly managed, it
can be made one Of the mos successful
crops on the Southern farm. Oats,
rye, and barley are apt to get very
severely damaged, If not entirely killed,
if an extreme frost should occur, such
as we had last February. But wheat
is frost proof and after the severe biz
zard of the Is b of February last, my
wheat crop was the only green thing
on the farm for a few weeks. It came
through that severe weather in perfect
condition and henceforth it shall have
a place among the winter crops Of the
farm every year. Any one who has
oLc3 grown it will continue doing so.
Like corn, it is one of those crops that
no farmer can afford to be without. On
the sandy soils Of the South il is often
affirmed that wheat cannot be grown
that will fill out plump and hard in the
grain like the Northern grown article.
But If the proper grade Of fertilizer is
used it can be quite as successfully
grown on the sandy soil of the South
as anywhere else. There are certain
varieties that suit our climate best,
and if these are adopted and the fertili
za5ion Of the crop along the proper
lines, success is sure to reward th9
Efforts of any one who will give this
crop fair trial Toe farmer who con
templates growing wheat should plan
well ahead and when he is planting his
spring crop arrange to pre- pare for the
fall planting of wheat, by sowing
either COW peas or velvet beans on that
land. My preference would be the
velvet bean, as it is a better nitrogen
gatherer than the COW pea, but when
it comes to plo wing under the crop, the
COW pea is the easiest managed. But
if the velvet bean ia moved and allowed
to lie on the land where cut, it will be
easily plowed under then. The land
for wheat should be put in the best
possible condition by repeated work
ings OF the CultivRtUr and harrow until
it is us fine and friable as an ash heap.
At the last working Of the cultivator
the fertiliz should be applied broad
cast and as evenly distributed on the
entire area as possible. This fertilizer
should be a complete plant food for
wheat; it should analyz9 8 per cent.
Of phosphoric acid, per cent. of pot
ash, and per cent. of nitrogen. About
900 pounds per acre on ordinary s andy
soil will be q lite ample. But should
the soil be in good physical condition
and we'll filed with humus, couple Of
hundred pounds more would be a good
investment. After the fertilizer is ap
piled, the c1ltivator should be run as
evenly as possible over the ground 50
as to leave small shallow burrows for
the seed to fall in. In the absence of a
wheat drill one has to seed by hand as
evenly as posai0le. A Oushel and a
half to the acre is a good average seed
ing.
After sowing run harrow the cross
way OF the cultivstor marks. This will
cover it even aud cause it to sprout
uniformly. A roller should be run
over the land Immediately after, or in
the absence OF a roller, heavy drag,
to prevent water standing in pools and
eventually cause washing during
heavy rain. Some wheat growers ep,
ply salt to the crop, claiming it will
produce bright colOred straw, where
such straw is wanted for any special
purpose. Salt may be an important
addition, bat by using kainiS as the
source OF potash in the fertil z9r, the
same end may be attained. Early in
March top dressing of nitrate of soda
is recommended, applied Immediately
before or during rain. Never apply
nitrate Of soda to a dry soil in dry
weather.
Spring wheat is not a SUCCESS in the
South, as hot weather is on before it is
ready for ripening and spring planting
is always ripened prematurely.
The best time to SOW wheat in this
latitude is between the 18th of October
and the 18th OF November. When
sowed then it is ready for harvesting
from the middle to the end of May.
The best variety for US here is Red
Turkish; it is a bearded wheat not
very heavy in straw but has plump
round graips and fills up very we'll,
and can stand a reasonable amount OF
dry weather, such as We get IN Nay
and early June. I can see no reason
whatever why every farmer in the
South should not be as much interested
in a wheat crop as in corn crop, for
the one ts certainly as profitable Rs the
other, and it will be so in a few years,
that wheat on the Southern farm will
be daarnad as iEnnor tant as corn.