North Park union., 1900-11-23
FARM AND GARDEN.
MArrERp or INTEREST TO
AoRicuLTuRisrA

ssos Up-ss-nass Als0 Assss cssAs-
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Hsssss1atass. vissssitaso go Isssssal-
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John Q. Gilmore of FredoniA. Kas..
u more practically familiar With the
production Of English blue grass. or
meadow fsscus. having raised II On
larger seals. than perhaps any othsr
man In the middle west At ths rs-
guest OF Secretary r. D. Coburn he
has vrittsa IN account Of his sapsri-
soee. which appears in . recsnt report
OF the Kansas department Of agricul-
turs. Extracts from his article fol-
low:
This grass has q tvo-fold value; for
its seed crop and for pasturaSe-ths
relative importance of each bsing de-
tsrmined BY the view and interest Of
the grower. The seed crop briaSs
early cash. and It IL for seed that the
grass u chiefly grown In Kansas. It's
heaviest Yields are given in the Arst
three or four years, which run from
six to twelve bushels per acre. accord
ing to soil and season. Kansas u be-
lisved to produce ssvsnty-avs pss csnt
Of the sssd crop Of this country. and
at least ninety per ceat of the total
crop OF ths United States y ssat
abroad. On any laads fairly adaptsd
for corn In eastsrn Kansas It can
be advantassousiy grown: bst on
light, whitish soil, It doss not show
strong vitality nor resist sxtrsms dry
weather. and 10 brief lived.
The ground should be plowsd some
time before seeding tas for uheao
that 1t may settle. but II freshly
plowed can be improved BY going over
1t with = noat. The best state OF tilth
attainabls u highly important The
nearer the ground can be made like .
garden. and the more even and level
before drilling In or sowing the sssd.
the bsttsr. A majority favor drilling.
but other very successful growsra SOW
broadcast and harrow in lightly: and
some fall plant, while Others prefer
the spring for seeding. / favor The
fall. II the ground can be prepared and
rains sufacisntly moisten the soil By
Ssptsmbsr 70 Is. but am aware that
ample moisture can be expected In the
spring, and. therefore. q good stand
10 surer. But . fall start brings .
seed crop year sooner. and the grass
gets dominant In advance OF noxious
vegetation. It IL not easily winter
killnd n tha fall q. nox ,ne.vn,.hl>
and the ground was early plowsd.
do not like the hos-drill 30 well as 4
shos-drill. nor the sight-inch 20 well
- the six-ineh-apart drill rows, though
some have used the former with satis-
factory results.
The quantity planted per acre varies
from . peck To thres pecks when pro-
ducing ssed 10 the paramount object,
and from three pscks to bushsl and
upwards when pasture alone il sought.
A half-bushsl Per acre when seed crops
are the arst consideration and 1t IL
drilled in. 10 enough on rightly pre-
pared ground. for then every seed Il
covered; II showers follow narrowing
In. almost every sssd will sprout and
take root. An inch IL ample depth to
drill. and. II ths ground surface 10 uni
formly lsveled. scarcely any Of the
sssd 70 put too deep. When har-
rowed In, the harrow should be set TO
run ~ for mtllet and similar light
seed. The seed should be cleaned and
freed from cheat and weed seed. II
possible. before planting. Fescue IL
ready for cutting for seed right after
wheat. with the sslf-binding harvester,
and 10 shocked a. are wheat and oats.
The bundles are somewhat ragged in
appearance and bulky at the butts
because Of the heavy blade growth,
the straw of which IL valuable winter
feed for cattle. It II stacked or
thrashed out of the shock by the regu-
lar thrasher men, and the cost per
bushel ranges from the wheat charge
to double the same. according to the
quantity. II sold. the seed 10 taken
from the thrashing machine direct to
the railroad. loaded in cars. In two
bushel bags. and shipped.
The points In favor OF raising this
grass in the portion Of Kansas whsrs It
best thrives are several and substan-
tial. 1t 10 not especially risky nor OK.
pensive for seed and labor to get
stand; the same implements and ma
chinery used for the other crops are
employed in It's planting and harvest
ing; the seed IL fairly profitable crop
in itself with . yield near the aver
age. and At . price Of from three and
one-half cents to four cents per pound:
the straw after thrashing (probably
one-fourth Of ton per aere) leads al
other straw for roughAge. and stock
cleans II up with avidity.
Asstiealtarai osssrvasssos.
The Roman Stem apple originated
In New Jersey and is very successful