The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-08-25

1 wish 1t could be said that the farm
ers of Georgia and the South generally
that the time honored plan of laborious-
ly stripping blade after blade tieing
them into hands," hanging these OF.
the bare stalks, then tieing into bundles
then stacking in the field or hauling
to the barn, had passed away never to
be again practiced. When the Georgia
experiment station published Bulletin
No. 80, in November, 1895, giving the
results of a carefully conducted trial of
he plan of cutting the corn stalks down
curing in shocks and then shredding
the "stover," a mild sensation was pro-
duced in the minds of wide awake farm
ers. A few of these adopted the plan
In tentative way in 1896, and some of
them were present at the meeting at In
dian Spring of the State Agricultural
convention in 1897 to confirm by their
experience the views on the subjec,
which the director had the honor to
present on that occasion, in his regu-
lar address. From this time the prac-
tice Widened and extended until at this
date there are but few counties in
Georgia In which the plan has not yet
come into vogue to some extent. For
some weeks past l have received in
quires almost daily from farmers who
are considering the eXpediency of giving
up the old plan Of saving fodder (corn
blades), and throwing away the stalks,
and adopting the far better method
which is now under discussion.
may be pardoned for quoting, Just
here, from Bulletin No. "a, published
in November. 1896:
In Bulletin No. 80, containing the re.
suits of experiments in corn culture
made in 1895. the attention Of farmers
was especially called to the advantages
of the method of utilizing the corn
stalks for stock food. 1t is the almost
universal practice in the South to gather
and cure the blades, and harvest the ears
OF corn, leaving the entire stalks in the
field to prove an almost unmitigated nuis-
ance and obstruction in the preparation
and cultivation of the land in the sue
ceedIng crop and winter homes and hiber-
mating retreats for insects that will be
ready to attack such crops. especially if
it shall be another crop of corn Farmers
have habitually considered this large parr
OF the crop as of no practical value. In
deed, corn stalks, especially of the large
types of corn planted in the South, are
of little available food value because OF
their mechanical condition. Even in the
north the old methods of feeding the
stalks c'stover') without any mechanical
preparation was but little less wasteful
and slovenly than leaving them in the
fields. But the use of machinery for pre-
pairing the corn stalks, shreddirg them
into coarse hay, is rapidly extending
A number of very effective machines may
now be had at moderate prices that will
q.
easily masticated substance. very SINH
lar in mechanical condition to coarse hay
that is readily-even greedily-eaten by
horses, mules and cattle
And the following from Bulletin No
81:
with the valuation Of the several parts
OF the crop yield, as stated at the foot OF
table No. 5, the economic results are so
strikingly in favor of the cutting and
shocking method of harvesting the corn
crop that there can be no further doubts
of its greater economy. The total value
Of all the products on these plots was
$500 per acre. against value of $27.1s
had the crop tccn harvested in the time
honored way, leaving sl242 worth of val
liable foodstuff in the fields to serve as a
harbor for insects and fungus spores, ann
to be in the way of the cultivation Of the
next crop BY an easy calculation it may
be shown that on the basis of 40 pounds
of naked cornstalks left in the fields for
each bushel OF shelled corn made in Geor-
gla ct was AZ pounds in the above reSulO
crop OF 30,000.000 bushels of corn har-
vested in the old way would mean a loss
OF 100000 tons Of roughage, worth when
shredded tat $40 per tom no less than
Sc. 0G0 600.
This would be equivalent to a rise Of
1-5 cents per pound in a crop of 1000 900
bales OF cotton, or IS per bale,
1T would be q sum sufficient to pay
the cash for all the commercial fertil-
izers used in one year by the farmers
of Georgia.
ut would give to each of the 2S5, 900
milch cows and to each of the 2S7 900
farm horses and mules in Georgia 6
pounds of good roughage per day through
out the entire year,"
have no hesitancy in quoting the fore
going extracts because | wrote them
then, and now confirm the facts reported
and the deductions drawn from those
facts.
There should no longer be any doubts
! in regard to the utility of the method of
harvesting the corn crop. 1T is easier
and more quickly done. large amount
OF valuable foodstuff heretofore left to
bleach in the fields and to be in the way
| OF the next crop, is by this plan saved.
The corn (grain) cures perfectly, even
| better, in the shock than when left on
| the stalk to dry and to invite weevils
and other insects. Think of it! In the
second of the above extracts the value
or the shredded corn stalks was put at
| $40 a ton, and yet the total value of the
possible saving of all the corn stalks of
an average corn crop in Georgia amount
| ed to $6,000,000 in one year! Suppose we
put it at SIS ton (what it would fetch
now, the total would amount to 5000, r0J,
| But suppose we bring the estimate down
| to the basis of a four-horSe farmer s
, crop, say so acres of corn Assuming a
! yield of Is bushels of corn GRAIN per
| acre, the total amount of corn stalk hay
not including the blades-wOuld be 36,
! 600 pounds, or IS tons, worth, at SO per
| ton, $50!
! l have said nothing about the advan-
| tages of getting the corn stalks out OF
| the way-no mean item itself. If it will
| pay to cut down the dry dead stalks and
! haul them to the barnyard to be trampled
under foot for manure, as some farmers