The Savannah morning news., 1901-01-14

L. p. r. writes: Il have a ten-acre
field now in oats and they are looking
very fine at this time. If nothing serious
happens to them hope to make an aver
age of twenty bushels (maybe some more)
of oats to the acre.
shall cut them just as soon as they
are ripe enough to cut for feed, to be fed
in the shock. They will be ready to cut
probably by the last of May.
Just as soon as the oats are off want
to plant the land in something that will
make good cow food and at the same
time improve the land for another year.
Shall plant ait least one acre in sweet
potatoes As to the remainder I am unde-
cided whether to plant Whippoorwll peas
or Unknown or SOFA beans. Whichever
plant / want to pick the peas or beans
TO be ground into meal for my COWS and
other cattle next winter and then let the
vines die on the land and he turned I'M
der in the fall early enough to allow of
planting wheat next November. What
do you think of it? Would you advise
planting the sofa beans or had better
plant the peas? Which would improve
the land the most? | want to keep this
ten acres growing something right along
all the time.
Our correspondent idea of keeping the
ten acres growing something for stock
food is a good one. In such cases we
usually can not avoid suggesting a trial
of all where one has not found out for
himself which is the best suited for his
particular soil If it is practicable to do
so suppose you plant one-third of the
area in SOFA beans, a third in Whippoor-
will and third in Unknown peas. They
are all good, but it may happen that one
will do better on this soil than the others
and the information gained would be very
helpful for the future.
We are strong believer In and advo-
cate of Sofa beans. For a combination
crop-stock food and soil improver the
Whippoorwill pea is the equal of any other
dwarf or bush sort and of the running
sorts the Unknown Tor Wonderfully has no
superior.
L. P. r. does not state whether he in
tends to save the peas or beans by now
ind and threshing or whether they will
be hand-picked. The latter is rather a
tedious plan and in a way rather expen-
sive even when he can command labor to
pick on shares. It Is the surest way of
securing all of the crop of peas and does
not rob the land of any of the vines but
the latter need not be considered, as the
moved vines can be fed and converted
into manure and this can be returned to
the land. In either case we would have
the rows just as close as possible. Sow
ing the peas or beans in rows tust wide
enough to allow a narrow sweep to run
through to cultivate at least twice during
the summer When the rows are close
together IS 10 "a inches the seeds should
not be so thick in the row as when the
rows are wider. Even when the running
sorts are planted it is best where the
good of the land is sought, to plant so
that there will be as many roots as pos
sible to penetrate the soil and decompose
in II.
When dwarf or bush kinds like the
Whippoorwill are planted, we try to have
the rows not more than 16 or IS inches
apart, and then sow the seeds or 10 TO
the running foot The rows are just wide
enough to allow of cultivation. And the
same with Sofa beans.
OF all the materials that we can grow.
there is none other 50 rich in feeding
qualities as Sofa bean meal. 1t is consid-
erably richer than bran or che meal of
cow peas. 1t is only second to cotton
seed meal In content of protein or flesh
producing element. In this respect 10
bushels Of Sofa beans are worth Is bush
els of Whippoorwill or Unknown peas. You
are right about letting the vines die on
the land rather than turn them under
green.
Every one-hoIse farm IN the South |
should have its ten acres rotated In the |
manner YOU have adopted in this instance. |
the farm would soon be so rich there /
would be little trouble in making a good /
living out of 1t. even IL the rest Of the |
farm were stin given over to corn and |
cotton.