The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-09-24
FARM NOTES.

/ have been obliged to treat the read
ers Of the Farmer and Mechanic rather
badly OF late, since institute work anc
an accumulation III CORE shondencc have
so occupied my time that there has OF
bean moment for anything else. Here
in early September | fii.d the following
letter from Texas. / have become inter-
estcd in COW pea culture and have
largo space devoted to them this
year. Will you please give
me your mf thod Of curing
the hay, as l am a novice at this
business?" / have a score of more of
letters in the same strain, and answered
them by sending my Bulletin on Farm
ing in North Carolina so long as it last
ed. But the edition is exhausted and
now l will have to give again the
method which ! have more than once de-
tailed in these columns, and which some
say will not work, while others, and
hundreds of them, write that it is per-
feet success. l saw recently some very
fine pea vine hay which the man who
made ii said was simply cut and stored
at once in rail pens and covered with a
straw stack. 1t was fine hay. Then
another farmer in the same institute
where this hay was shown, said that
others tried the same plan in his neigh
borhood and the hay all rotted. Now it
was evident that the hay which cured
we'll was more mature than the other.
In fact, no ironclad rule can be made for
any farm practice. We have TO assume
that those who are going to practice it
are going to use some common sense.
A method which with one crop and UNI
der one condition would prove perfect
success may with another crop and UNI
der other conditions, prove a complete
failure Pea vine hay should be cut
when the large part of the pods are
turning yellow, but before there has
been any ripening drying of the pods,
as the leaves soon drop when the pods
get dry. 1t should be cured with as lit
lie exposure to the sun as possible.
/ Hence cut the peas when the dew is off.
Let them lie during one day and rake
into windrows in the evening. Next day
turn these and dry off and in the after
noon rake UP and put in cocks made as
narrow and tall as you can The next
day, if you can take handful and give
| it a hard twist and can see no sap run to
/ the twist you can haul it in and put it in
the barn. After it is in let it alone. 1t
will heat, of course, and if you stir it to
! cool it,off you will make ii mold with
out doubt. Let 1T alone and 1t Will
cure we'll. Avoid any heating in the
cocks and have no dew on it when haul
Cd in. | cure it in this way every year
and always have good hay. Mine has
now been cut greener than 1 would like,
as the pigweeds this wet season have
grown SO tall among the peas that have
, been obliged to cut the hay to prevent
their ripening seed This will remain
out longer than if the peas had been ripe
enough.
From Wake county: 81 have a new
residence built on an old garden spot
| Have the yard in peas and want to get
it in grass. Please tell me what kind to
SOW, how much seed and when? Have
been advised to SOW Blue Grass and
White Glover. Will you please answer
! in the Advocate?" The best mixture
! you can use for a lawn is Blue Grass anG
Red Top. The Red Top will come up al
once and protect the slower Blue Grass
and that will finally make the lawn
Never SOW any White Glover on lawn
!
for sowing White Glover on lawns, and
it generally ruins them. 1t will smother
the grass and then die out itself. Use
only extra clean Kentucky Blue Gras.
and Red Top, and make the mixture two
parts of Blue Grass too one of the Rec
Top, and SOW al rate of about four OIL
five bushels per acre. Few lawns have
the seed soWn thickly enough. Sow il
this month or October, and rake the
seed in we'll Then next spring give the
! young grass dressing of ar-slaket
lime, for Blue Grass is a limestone sol
grass and needs lime here. Then in tn,
spring as soon as the grass is tai
enough for the machine to bite, start tn,
lawn mower and NOW it once week il
all growing weather. Some let a youni
lawn run IN to seed and thus weaker
the growth and fail to have good grass