The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1900-04-10
TRY SORGHUM WITH YOUR pRAs

rich land it goes to vine, and not to
seed, ''but, as it is grown most often for
pasture, this does not cut much
figure" Now ! think that it is waste
or time and r. sources to grow q crop
on rich land that cannot be saved and
maze use OF, and as some excellent
fsrmsrs have found great difficulty in
making hay out Of a heavy growth of
peas on rich land, I feel ought, in the
lighS of experience, to call attention 10
few practical points, writes DR.. Au
gustus StaOler, 10 an exchange.
Ny experience is that when green
70 age hay Is desired, rather than pas
ture or seed, very n uch more profit
aOle cops can be secured, even on thin
land, bg so wing with COW peas some
plant of the sorghum family. For the
last three years have seeded eight or
cen acres year Of tbe mixture, and
find it q sure and prof able crop After
some experimenting, l fiod that one
and half pecks Of sorghum seed with
one bushel Of black peas is the right
q lantity per acre, and the wheat drill
Is the best implement to put it in with
Seed broadcastt d and narrowed in does
not grow nearly so we'll as the drilled
&c pays to apply a little commercial
fertilizer IL the land is not rich enough
to grow big coru, and if it is, corn is
the crop 10 plant.
For the same reason that mix id hay
is easier TO cure than pure clover. this
crop 10 very much easier to cure than
COW peas alone. One Of my friends,
whom / regard as first class farmer,
Rowed six acres of COW peas in May,
1899, on land that would have pro
duced hap odsome crop of corn. About
september 1st, when In the right con
ditlOn 60 cut, he cut is with the mower
and tried to rake the hay with horse
rake. ThIs proved i'm icAble. The
growth OF vInts was 60 immense and
tangled that he soon broke the rake
He then tried TO fork it toge ther iuGo
piles by hand, but made slow progress.
de hauled q load into the barn and
tried 20 take lT up with hay fork, but
Gne hay fork broKe, and then there
came a ram; so ne gave It up and let
!he crop rOS where iG grew. Ny crop
of sorghum and peas, while very much
heavier In tons per acre, on thinner
land than his, was handled With the
aid OF the ordinary hsying machinery
from start to finish; aud though ex
posed to g me heavy rains while in
shock, Io,k very little water and
q llckly dried out when the shocks
we're opened. After opening, I put
two shocks into one, and let it stand
ii we we're done cutting corn. Z Then
hauled up TO the barn enough to last
the COWS q month or two, and put the
rest into small stacks on the field
Sorghum leaves and stems being Gov
cred with an impervious coating, turn
water better even than rye straw. A
we'll built stack will stand till sprioe
and not have three forkfuls of damaged
fodder lii i5.
As many pea vines will grow on ar
acre with sorghum as without and
quite as much or more sorghum viii
grow with PEGS as without, for the bac
terra OF The pea roots assimilate more
atmospheric nitrogen than the pee
needs and even more than both pee
and sorghum r. q lire, 80 that g. large
quantity lie stored in the soil. The
dense shading of The soil under the
crop is very favorable to the growth OF
nitrIfying bac5eria The pea roots in
my crop were every where crowded
with tubercles. Another prac ical
point of great Importance ia that the
two plants growing together stand up
we'll and do not become tangled, and W
can cut i1 with high stub0le. a nd stlIl
we all the crop that is valuable fOr
feed. The season of growth, June 1st
to September 1,t, is shorter than is re
quired TO mature q crop OF corn for
grain, 80 thai the crop ought to sue
ceed any where that corn will mature.
o g of my friends planted hslf acre
of sorghum and peas July 4 h, 1899.
and harvested a dne crop of hay thai
was all cured and stored for winter, in
time to reseed the land to rye and
vetch for spring feed. When thu crop
has been cleared { fl, the land is easily
prepared for wheat or rye by twice
narrowing. Il comes in order very
much easier than corn stuoble, for the
dense shade he's mello we'd the soil and
the sorghum roots are deep and strong,
and do not tear out to clog the harrow,