The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1900-08-15
CRIMSON CLOVER.

The planting of crimson clover Is
increasing very rapidly at the South,
as its merits become better known and /
the proper method of culture better ,
understood.
i suppose more failures have result |
ed from late planting than from any
other cause, although other failures
have been brought about by covering
the seed too deeply, sowing on poor ,
land, deficient in potash, and by plant
ing in an exposed piece of land where !
the young plants had no protection
from the direct rays of the sun. Que
of my neighbors plowed in his clover
seed last summer with turn plow and
then wondered why they did not come
up. L will explain in passing, that
| this gentleman is not actually one of
my neighbors, but city man who
owns place near us on which he
spends the money he makes in the
city.
| Our best success has come from clo-
yer sown in August and up to the mid
die of September. That planted IN
November OF last year amounted to
nothing at all, and that sown ia Octo
Der gave half q crop.
Our finest patch was on piece of
rich clay Ioam. The land has been in
sweet corn with cow peas sown be.
tween. The ears of corn were sold
green and the stalks cut and fed to
stock. The peas made a rank growth
and were cut for hay about August
10Th. AS the vines had lodged badly.
quite heavy stubble was left on the
land. The corn had been cultivated
almost perfectly level and it was there
fore an easy matter to prepare ,the
seed-bed for our clover. We went in
here after light rain with cutaway
harrow and worked the top up well.
then sowed our seed-a peck to the
acre-and narrowed them in lightly
with smoothing harrow. BY this
means the stubble and trash were left
on top of the ground, and this
not only helped to bring up the seed,
, but furnished the needed protection to
the young plants. Within a week thcv
were up nicely and grew off well from
the start.
, Another patch was sown lit.
, tie later among some growing beans
,, on sandy flat, the seed being har.
I, rowed in between the rows immediate.
ly after cultivating the beans. This
;, patch did not do nearly so well as the
first, and am inclined to think that il
was not all owing to the time of plant
ing, but was principally attributable tc
the soil, which although fairly fertile
: was not nearly so rich In potash as the
1 clay land upon which the first patel
: was planted all sandy soils beins
e more or less deficient in this elemen
u of plant food.
When we take into consideration th,
:, fact that crimson clover contains a yer,
; large per cent of potash, we can read
. lily see that It's absence would mate
rally affect the crop. Another time
should use on this land about 200 lbs
O OF muriate of potash, or 800 lbs. O
kalnlt to the acre, as this has beer
- found to give fine results by those wht
have tried it.
!, Clovers will not grow OH poor land
E deficient in potash, and it is useless tt
4 waste seed on such ground unless yo,
y supply the potash and phosphorc aci(
artlficlally. Nitrogen it will get from
the air. | washed out number O
q plants last spring, and was astonishe cd
y at the large number of tubercles form
y ed on the roots of single plant, ant
= in which the bacteria live that Sathe,
the nitrogen from the air. 1t has beer
, estimated that good crop of crimson
, clover will gather and store IN the sol
. in the ncighborhood of So worth q
: nitrogen to the acre besides giving yo,
y a good crop of hay. Is not this wortf
working for? Is 1t not cheaper thar
, buying nitrogen on the market at l.
= cents per pound ? See that the chem
=. icals, potash and phosphoric acid arc
q supplied to your soil, and get your nit
! rogcn, which costs three times as much
free from the air, by growing crimson
clover and COW peas.
Our best acre Of clover was cut the
:, last of May and gave us two tons OF
!, the finest kind of hay, which all OF
. our stock ate greedily. The sod was
= turned under and we have the land
: now in late tomatoes, and shall proba.
bly, again SOW to clover when we give
our tomatoes their last working.
r We have had remarkably good sue.
! cess in sowing crimson clover between
growing corn, or anything which fur
nishes partial shade for the young
plauts. 1t is an ideal cover crop,
standing our coolest winters here and
growing at season when in all likeli-
hood fhe land would otherwise be
barren. 1t not only prevents the
teaching of nitrates out of the soil dur
ing our heavy and continued rains in
winter, but procures more of this
much needed element of plant food
from the air, at the same time.
Plant crimson clover and COW peas
and increase the fertility of your soil.
All the nitrogen necessary for ordinary
farm crops can be secured in this way.
f. j. MERRIAM.